Just two races left for hotshot Shane Gray to punch through for a victory

LAS VEGAS – Last week’s announcement that Shane Gray’s son Tanner will be taking over driving duties of the Valvoline/Nova Services Chevrolet Camaro in 2017 has left Shane with just two races left to secure another win for himself. That places an extra premium on this weekend’s 16th annual NHRA Toyota Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, a race the entire Gray family would like to win.

“Yeah Tanner’s nipping at my heels now so I better bear down these last few events and try to get another Wally before they put me out to pasture,” Shane Gray said with a laugh. “The reality is, we win as a team and lose as a team and I can tell you I will be just as happy and satisfied when Tanner wins next year as I am whenever I win. It’ll be fun either way.

“Certainly, we’d like to win these last two races. The car has been fantastic and we seem to be in the semifinals every race now, which puts us right there in the mix to win, we just need to punch through and get it done.”

Riding a string of 16 top-half qualifying efforts — highlighted by pole-grabbing results in Chicago and St. Louis — Gray has raced to three semifinal finishes in a row, no small feat in the midst of the cutthroat Countdown to the Championship playoffs. Overall, he’s reached nine semifinals this season, a steady showing of incredible consistency and good horsepower.

Additionally, engine customers Drew Skillman and Alex Laughlin have been a tear since the playoffs started with Skillman winning the last national event in Dallas, and Laughlin winning St. Louis, posting a runner-up finish to Skillman in Dallas, and reaching the semis in Charlotte.

“We’re all coming to life at the right time,” Gray said. “And certainly it’s a big help when you can look at the data from three different cars each round versus going out there and doing it by yourself. Drew and Alex are great drivers and we’re very proud of what they’ve been able to do this year with our engines.”

Gray has risen from seventh to fourth with his playoff performance and enters Las Vegas exactly one round behind third-place Vincent Nobile. Should he catch and pass Nobile and hold onto that spot or better, it will mark a career-best finish for the four-time national event winner from Mooresville, N.C.

“We’ll just take it one run at a time, like always,” Gray said. “We’ve been knocking on the door of a win for quite awhile now and if we remain persistent and vigilant, we will break through, hopefully before the year is up.”

Pro Stock qualifying sessions will run at 11:45 a.m. and 3:45 p.m., Friday, and 11:45 a.m. and 3:30 p.m., Saturday. Eliminations start at noon, Sunday. FOX Sports 1 will broadcast qualifying action live from 6-7 p.m., Friday. Eliminations will air live from 4-7 p.m., Sunday. (All times listed in ET).