Punching ticket to NHRA playoffs next item on Shane Gray’s to-do list
BRAINERD, MN – As Pro Stock driver Shane Gray heads to this weekend’s 35th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals 
with his powerful Valvoline/Nova Services Chevrolet Camaro in tow, one word keeps popping into his head.
“I’m so thankful to everyone that supports us and lets us chase this championship,” Gray said. “Certainly my mother and father, Terry and Johnny Gray, they deserve the lion’s share of the credit. They are our main supporters and have always been the ones to push us boys to chase our dreams.
“At the same time we have great sponsors in Valvoline and Nova Services. Then you look across the shop and I see this really dedicated group of professionals that give their all here at home and when we’re on the road to making this car the best it can be. So yeah, thankful is a great word to use when I think about my career and this year.”
Having raced to the semifinals in three of the last five races on the NHRA tour, Gray has ascended to seventh place in the Mello Yello championship points, despite the fact he has run one less race than his peers. If things go well in Brainerd, he could lock up one of the 10 playoff spots for this year’s Countdown to the Championship with a race in hand.
“We’ve really gotten into a good rhythm with Dave (Connolly’s) tuning calls and the crew getting into sync with what he’s doing,” Gray said. “A big part of anyone’s success is the chemistry the team has, and when you see the guys not only working hard for one another but doing it with smiles on their faces, you know things are going well.
“I’m super comfortable behind the wheel because my confidence in the car they are giving me is sky-high. Things are clicking well.
“As for the points and the Countdown, I really just don’t let that stuff get in my head. We just do our jobs and things work out the way they work out. We skipped a race early in the year and people could have said that would cost us a chance at the playoffs, but really what it did was allow us to reset and get everything in order. Now we’re seeing the positive results we need to see to be successful.”
Brainerd International Raceway could be a great place for Gray to score his fifth career win. He was the top qualifier there last year and a runner-up to Jeg Coughlin Jr. in 2010.
“I love the track and the people up there are fun and enthusiastic,” Gray said. “This always is a fun weekend.”
Pro Stock qualifying sessions are scheduled for 3 and 5:30 p.m., Friday, and 1 and 3:30 p.m., Saturday. Eliminations start at noon, Sunday. FOX Sports 1 will air qualifying action from 9 to 11 p.m., Saturday, and eliminations live from 1 to 4 p.m., Sunday. (All times listed in CT).
