- Hagan Captures 50th NHRA Career Win in TSR Direct Connection Dodge//SRT Funny Car at NHRA Four-Wide Nationals in Charlotte
- Ashley, Hagan, Anderson and Herrera take Wins at Charlotte Four-Wide
- TOUGH FINAL ROUND PUTS DAMPER ON WEEKEND FOR JOHN FORCE IN CHARLOTTE NHRA 4-WIDE NATIONALS
- BO BUTNER WINS JHG MOUNTAIN MOTOR PRO STOCK SEASON OPENER
- AARON STANFIELD RUNNER-UP AT NHRA FOUR-WIDE NATIONALS AT ZMAX DRAGWAY
- JUSTIN ASHLEY WINS NHRA FOUR-WIDE NATIONALS AT ZMAX DRAGWAY
- Tony Schumacher Out Early After Jam-Packed Four-Wide Weekend in Charlotte
Hossler’s Fortunes Finally Reversed After Winning Round Five In Qatar
Courtesy of ADRL
DOHA, QATAR – After qualifying in the top spot for the second straight race in the Arabian Drag Racing League, Alex Hossler was eager to finish the job this time.
That it took some good luck in the finals was of no concern to the Pro Extreme standout who had suffered his share of mishaps through the first half of the eight-race season.
The second half of the year is quickly proving to be a different story as Hossler was the top driver on both days in Round Five at Qatar Racing Club (QRC), finishing the job on Friday with a fortune-filled win in the finals against Von Smith.
Hossler went 4.09 to beat Smith, who struggled to a 7.94.
“We had some good runs and turned those into rounds wins and then in the finals, we got lucky,” Hossler said. “We had a lot of luck in the bank from the first three rounds and we made a withdrawal for this one.”
Al-Balooshi’s Record Run Highlights Round Five Qualifying In Qatar
Courtesy of ADRL
DOHA, QATAR – Khalid Al-Balooshi found another way to outdo himself on Thursday.
Less than a week after the talented Pro Nitrous driver recovered from a fire to his car to win the fourth race of the eight-race Arabian Drag Racing League series, Al-Balooshi raised the bar during qualifying of Round Five at Qatar Racing Club (QRC).
With near-perfect conditions leading the way, Al-Balooshi went a record 3.80 at 197 miles per hour, taking the No. 1 qualifying spot in PN with one session remaining on Friday before eliminations.
“My team has been working very hard this week to try and squeeze every bit of E.T. and mph out of each run as we can,” Al-Balooshi said. “I want to thank all of them for working so hard and giving me such a good car each week.”
Fourth place finish highlights Troy Coughlin’s 2010 Season
Courtesy of Jegs
Delaware OH – Racing in the NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Series in 2010, Troy Coughlin enjoyed a lot of success as he posted a very respectable fourth place finish behind the wheel of his nitrous oxide-equipped JEGS.com 
Chevy Camaro. Racing against world class drivers all season, Coughlin’s performance was consistent from start to finish and he earned the dubious distinction of being the only driver in the class to qualify for all ten events in 2010. He also posted several semifinal finishes along the way.
“Overall, it was a pretty good year for us,” said Coughlin. “Being the only guy to qualify for every race says something not only about how competitive the series is, but also how solid our team is. Running a nitrous car, I felt like we were at a disadvantage against the supercharged and turbocharged cars but we were able to hold our own. At the last race in Las Vegas, we were sweating bullets because we struggled to qualify but we managed to get in and that helped us finish fourth.”
Al-Balooshi Still Aiming High After Getting Second Win In Qatar
Courtesy of ADRL
DOHA, QATAR – Khalid Al-Balooshi had an excited tone in his voice last week after picking up his second win in four races in the Arabian Drag Racing League.
But it was also obvious that Al-Balooshi and his Speedtech team aren’t nearly content heading into Thursday’s Round Five at Qatar Racing Club (QRC).
“We have laid down some solid runs over these last four races, but we really need to pick it up,” tuner Brandon Switzer. “There are a lot of tough Pro Nitrous teams over here and everyone has had about five weeks worth of testing and racing on the same track, which means it is only going to get harder to qualify and win rounds from here on out.”
Al-Balooshi and his team had their toughest challenge last week during testing before Round Four.
GM Performance Parts LSX Challenge Expands
Courtesy of NMCA
Santa Ana, CA – If you’re an LS fan then the GM Performance Parts LSX Challenge Series is what you’ve been waiting 
for. Developed from the excitement of the LSX Shootout, the all-new LSX Challenge Series will run at four select events in 2011:
Bradenton Motorsports Park – Mar 18-20
Atlanta, Dragway – Apr 14-17
Beech Bend Raceway – Sep 9-11
Indianapolis Raceway Park – Oct 6-9
The GM Performance Parts LSX Challenge Series takes place as a part of the NMCA Flowmaster Muscle Car Nationals (Except at Holley the LS Fest, which will have all sorts of additional LS performance activities), which means you will see the best in LS performance as well as all-domestic heads-up muscle car drag racing.
Carpenter and Snyder To Appear On ADRL Drag Racing Live Thursday
Courtesy of the ADRL
O’FALLON, MO – Pro Nitrous standout Charles Carpenter and Pro Extreme driver Mick Snyder will be the featured guests on the American Drag Racing League’s (ADRL) weekly online show, “ADRL Drag Racing Live,” presented by
Summit Racing Equipment.
The entertaining 60-minute show airs live every Thursday at 9 p.m. EST on the ADRL website, www.ADRL.us and also on www.blogtalkradio.com/adrldragracinglive. Every archived show is available on-demand on the ADRL website as well.
“ADRL Drag Racing Live” is hosted by ADRL Television personality Bret Kepner and ADRL Director of Media and Communications Josh Hachat. They break down the latest news and happenings in the ADRL and the Arabian Drag Racing League, and it is the only weekly show that is 100 percent devoted to the ADRL and Arabian Drag Racing League.
2011 UNLEASHED SCHEDULE “TEASE”
Written by Ray Wilkings
Los Angeles, CA – The schedule won’t be “official” until we send out a press release, but here is some long awaited information. I have six tracks committed to hosting an event this year.
I am still working on a seventh and final event in the Western U.S. We will be going to South Georgia Motorsports Park (GA), Tulsa Raceway Park (OK), No Problem Raceway Park (LA), Cordova Dragway Park (IL), Milan Dragway (MI), and Lebanon Valley Dragway (NY). These are all great NHRA member tracks that are excited to have the opportunity to host an Unleashed event. They will all enthusiastically welcome the racers of NHRA Unleashed, and I KNOW that you will support them in force.
The classes that we will be featuring for 2011 will be Outlaw 10.5, Limited Street, X275 Radial, 8.50 Index, 9.50 Index, 10.0 Index, 11.0 Index, 12.0 Index, and 13.0 Index. The 2011 NHRA Unleashed Rules will be released soon. There will be some changes in the Outlaw 10.5, and Limited Street classes to accommodate more cars. The X275 Radial class will be added, and the index classes will be updated to the 2011 NHRA Rulebook.
Matt Smith Prepping For Double-Duty In ADRL
Courtesy of ADRL
DOHA, QATAR – Matt Smith has long believed he was capable of being a standout driver in a car and not just on a motorcycle.
As he’s quickly proven in the Arabian Drag Racing League, the Al-Anabi Racing talent is also able to do both at the same time.
Smith, the son of legendary driver Rickie Smith, has been one of the biggest stories at Qatar Racing Club (QRC) over the past month for his efforts both behind the wheel of a Pro Extreme car and on his Harley-Davidson Pro Extreme Motorcycle.
The latest headline-grabber came on Tuesday when Smith went 3.57 at 212.47 miles per hour during testing in KH Al-Thani’s PX Camaro, following it up with a 3.58 at an even faster 212.60 mph on his next pass.
It’s the most recent turn of events in a span that Smith has thoroughly enjoyed.
Jenkins Still Searching For Consistency in Qatar
Courtesy of ADRL
DOHA, QATAR – During the two-week break from racing in the Arabian Drag Racing League, Shannon Jenkins spent most of his time in front of his laptop studying graph after graph, in search of the problems that had plagued his Al-Anabi Racing’s Camaro during the first three races in December at Qatar Racing Club (QRC).
Although Jenkins was confident he found what he was looking for, testing and qualifying produced nothing but tire shakes and headaches. Jenkins made the necessary adjustments on race day, but a red light in the semifinals ended his stay in Round Four last week.
During the round, the “Iceman” got the best of Isaias Rojas when he used an incredible reaction time of .006 and a stellar 3.88 at more than 195 miles per hour to advance to the semifinals. There he met points leader Khalid Al-Balooshi, and Jenkins’ second 3.88 was negated by the disappointing red light.
“I’m very disappointed with the red light for the Al-Anabi team and for my crew, but that’s just racing. We had a car that could have won this race, but we didn’t, so we’re just going to focus 100 percent on next week, and find a way to get the job done,” said Jenkins.
Mahana Al-Naimi, Jenkins’ teammate, wheeled his Al-Anabi Racing ’68 Camaro to a No. 2 qualifying spot, but eliminations yielded similar results as to what the “Iceman” experienced in his semifinal matchup.
Quick 32 Sportsman Series Competitor Giust ready for 2011
Courtesy of Quick 32
OSGOODE, ONTARIO – Quick 32 Sportsman Series presented by NAPA Auto Parts competitor Paolo Giust is ready for the upcoming season in this popular drag race series.
“I’m ready to go,” he said recently. “And the car is ready. There won’t be many changes to the car as it was a new car last season.”
Giust, driving in the Quick 32 Sportsman Series Top Dragster class, did not attend all events in 2010 due to business commitments, but the driver of the 2009 Race Tech Race Cars and Components Top Dragster made his mark.
Right at the start of the season, he captured an event win during the first event in May held at the Cayuga Dragway of Toronto Motorsports Park. For other events, he always qualified in the top five, and took home a couple of first-round wins and was also a quarter-finalist during the Quick 32 Sportsman Series event at the IHRA Nitro Jam at the Grand Bend Motorplex in his first year of Quick 32 Sportsman Series racing.
