MOPAR READY TO ROLL IN LAS VEGAS WITH TWO PROVISIONAL NO.1 QUALIFIERS AT NHRA NATIONALS
Company press release.
◾Mopar drivers and teams compete this weekend at 15th annual Summit.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
◾Johnson hoping to add third consecutive Pro Stock title win this season, and repeat last year's sweep of the K&N Challenge and Las Vegas National title win
◾Johnson and Coughlin are seeded No.1 and No.2 for the Pro Stock edition of the K&N Horsepower Challenge race within a race on Saturday
◾Coughlin earns provisional No.1 qualifier with second Pro Stock qualifying pass on Friday
◾Hagan tops both qualifying sessions to earn Funny Car provisional pole position
◾DSR Mopar drivers looking to turn their luck around in Las Vegas after just one final round appearance in the first three races of the season
March 28, 2014 , Las Vegas - The Mopar contingent of HEMI®-powered Dodge vehicles rolled into the staging lanes at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the SummitRacing.com National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Nationals event with the same anticipation of getting on a winning streak as most visitors hope to have at the other Strip for which the city is best known.
The one Mopar driver heading into this weekend's action already riding a winning streak is Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson who comes in on the heels of consecutive title wins at the NHRA Nationals in Phoenix and Gainesville. Not only would he love follow up the debut victory of the 'Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar' Dodge Dart at the Gatornationals with another trip to the winner's circle, but he's hoping to continue a number of streaks at a track where he has had some good success.
Johnson, the current leader in the factory hot rod standings, is also the defending winner of both the Las Vegas national title and the K&N Horsepower Challenge race-within-a-race bonus event, as well as the additional 'Sweep Bonus' of $50,000 for his efforts. Johnson has won the challenge twice and is once again seeded No.1, while HEMI-powered teammate Jeg Coughlin Jr. is seeded second and fellow Mopar driver V. Gaines' qualifying points put him in the sixth spot on the ladder.
All three Mopar drivers are among eight Pro Stock entries racing for a lucrative payday in the K&N Horsepower Challenge on Saturday. The eight-racer field features the seven drivers who have accumulated the most points in qualifying since this same event last year, along with a final spot for the driver added in by a fan vote. The winner of the event will earn $50,000, and the runner-up will take home $10,000.
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Adding to his odds, Johnson also holds the distinction of being the only driver in the challenge's history to win the final round on a hole-shot using a perfect 0.000-second reaction time. That 2008 win was aboard a Dodge Stratus, while his victory, in a Dodge Avenger, at the 2013 edition was only the fourth time a Dodge had ever won the challenge (Darrell Alderman's 1991 win was in a Dodge Daytona, while Vincent Nobile won in a Dodge Avenger in 2012). Johnson would love to add the new Dodge Dart to that list of winners at this year's challenge. In preparation for that battle, Coughlin, who has five wins at this track, came away with the provisional No.1 qualifying position in his new JEGS.com Mopar Dodge Dart by posting a low elapsed time pass of 6.625 seconds (208.78 mph) in Friday's second qualifying round. Johnson put his Dodge Dart sixth with his second pass (6.632 /208.94) while HEMI-power had V. Gaines (6.657/209.07), who is second in the Pro Stock standings following two runner-up finishes to start the year, rounding out the top-10. Looking to turn their luck around this season is the Don Schumacher Racing quartet of Dodge Charger R/T drivers who have only seen a single final round appearance this year with 'Mopar Express Lane' driver Matt Hagan in the season opener. Things were looking up as Hagan (4.131 seconds / 306.74 mph) and teammate Ron Capps (4.164 / 306.19) topped the first qualifying session of the weekend. Hagan upped the ante in the second session by setting the low e.t at 4.063 seconds and fastest run of the weekend at 317.05 mph to take the provisional No.1 qualifier honours. Capps dropped to the third spot with his 4.075/ 314.61qualifying effort while Mopar teammates Jack Beckman (4.115 / 310.13) and Tommy Johnson Jr. (4.116/305.98) sit in the ninth and tenth positions with two sessions left on Saturday to set the ladder for eliminations. Television coverage for the fourth of 24 events in the 2014 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season will be broadcast on ESPN2 with ninety minutes of qualifying highlights airing Saturday, March 29 at 8 p.m. (ET) while on Sunday, March 30, two and a half hours of eliminations action will be broadcast starting at 11 p.m. (ET). 2014 NHRA Championship Points Standings (Following eliminations at the NHRA Gatornationals) PRO STOCK (season wins in parentheses) 1. Allen Johnson – Dodge Avenger –282 (2) 2. V Gaines – Dodge Avenger – 244 3. Vincent Nobile – 235 4. Jason Line – 233 (1) 5. Erica Enders Stevens – 226 6. Dave Connolly – 211 7. Shane Gray – 181 8. Jeg Coughlin Jr. – Dodge Avenger 148 9. Larry Morgan – 114 10. Chris McGaha – 107 FUNNY CAR (season wins in parentheses) 1. John Force – 316 (1) 2. Robert Hight – 273 (1) 3t. Alexis DeJoria – 187 (1) 3t. Del Worsham – 187 5. Bob Tasca III – 184 6. Tommy Johnson Jr. – Dodge Charger R/T – 168 7. Ron Capps – Dodge Charger R/T – 164 8. Matt Hagan – Dodge Charger R/T – 161 9. Jack Beckman – Dodge Charger R/T– 151 10. Courtney Force – 146 About Mopar Motorsports Mopar's commitment to professional motorsports competition was established in the 1950s when a partnership ignited with drag racing pioneer Don Garlits, resulting in the breaking of numerous speed and performance barriers in HEMI®-powered vehicles over the next several decades. In 2014, Mopar celebrates the 50th anniversary of the introduction of the GEN III 426 Race HEMI® and looks to defend back-to-back NHRA World Championship titles (2012-2013) in the Pro Stock class and battle for another Funny Car World Championship after wins in 2011-2012. While Mopar remains involved in a various professional motorsports series, it continues to honor its roots by being a proud supporter of amateur racing within the NHRA with its sponsorship of the HEMI Challenge and Mopar Sportsman Cup. Mopar Brand Mopar is Chrysler Group LLC's service, parts and customer-care brand and distributes 280,000 parts and accessories. With the creation of the industrial alliance between Chrysler Group and Fiat S.p.A., Mopar is extending its global reach, integrating service, parts and customer-care operations in order to enhance dealer and customer support worldwide. Mopar's global portfolio includes more than 500,000 parts and accessories that are distributed in more than 130 markets. Mopar is the source for genuine parts and accessories for Chrysler Group brands as well as Fiat brands. Mopar parts are unique in that they are engineered with the same teams that create factory-authorized vehicle specifications for Chrysler Group and Fiat vehicles – a direct connection that no other aftermarket parts company can provide. A complete list of Mopar accessories and performance parts is available at www.mopar.com. Mopar-first Features Mopar has introduced numerous industry-first features including: ◾Vehicle-information apps: first to introduce smartphone vehicle-information applications, a new channel of communication with customers ◾Electronic owner manuals: first to introduce traditional owner manuals in a DVD and brief user-guide format. First to offer complete vehicle-information kits in Spanish ◾Wi-Fi: first to offer customers the ability to make their vehicle a wireless hot spot ◾Wireless charging: first to introduce in-vehicle wireless charging for portable devices ◾Electronic Vehicle Tracking System (EVTS): first to market with interactive vehicle tracking device that sends owner a text when vehicle is driven too fast or too far based on pre-set parameters ◾wiAdvisor: first to provide factory-connected tablet technology in the service lane for instant vehicle diagnosis ◾wiTech: first to support vehicle diagnosis and software updates leveraging off-the-shelf personal computers and a dedicated wireless tool network ◾2011 Mopar Challenger Drag Pak: first to introduce a 500-plus cubic-inch V-10 drag-race package car More than 75 Years of Mopar Mopar (a simple contraction of the words Motor and PARts) was trademarked for antifreeze product in 1937. The Mopar brand made its mark in the 1960s – the muscle-car era. The former Chrysler Corporation built race-ready Dodge and Plymouth 'package cars' equipped with special high-performance parts. Mopar carried a line of 'special parts' for super-stock drag racers and developed its racing parts division called Mopar Performance Parts to enhance speed and handling for both road and racing use. The brand has expanded to include technical service and customer support. About Magneti Marelli Based in Italy (Corbetta, Milan), Magneti Marelli was established in 1919. The company is a subsidiary of Fiat Group and has a successful presence and reputation as performance technology provider in racing, including Formula 1 and World Rally Championship (WRC). Its racing involvement also includes other racing segments such as NHRA sponsorships. Magneti Marelli designs and produces advanced systems and components for the automotive industry. With its 85 production units, 12 R&D centers and 26 application centers in 19 countries, about 38,000 employees and a turnover of 8.3 billion USD in 2013, the group supplies all leading carmakers in Europe, North and South America and the Far East. Its business areas include: Electronic Systems, Lighting; Powertrain, Suspension Systems and Shock Absorbers, Exhaust Systems, Aftermarket Parts & Services, Plastic Components and Modules, Motorsport.. Mopar Express Lane Service Mopar Express Lane service, offered at participating Chrysler Group dealerships, provides a dedicated service lane for fast oil changes, and much more, in order to maximize customer convenience for all make and model vehicles. Available services include oil and filter changes, multi-point vehicle checkup, tire rotation with brake inspection, air and cabin filter replacement, wiper blade replacement, headlight and light bulb replacement and battery testing. Mopar Express Lane service is a consumer's best choice for vehicle maintenance, with highly-skilled Chrysler Group dealership technicians ready to get to work and get you back on the road in no time. No appointments. No waiting. No worries.
