Prolong Super Lubricants Northwest Nationals Previews
29 July 1998
VANDERGRIFF READY TO PUT HIS NAME IN NHRA TOP FUEL WIN COLUMN KENT, Wash. -- One NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series track has proven to be a hotbed for first time winners in Top Fuel this decade. And if Bob Vandergriff, Jr. has anything to do with it, Seattle International Raceway's legacy will continue at the 11th annual Prolong Super Lubricants Northwest Nationals presented by Al's Auto Supply, July 31-Aug. 2. The $1.4 million race is the 14th of 22 events in the $30-million NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series. Vandergriff would like to follow in the footsteps of former SIR Top Fuel winners Michael Brotherton (1992), Tommy Johnson, Jr. (1993) and Ron Capps (1995), to become NHRA's newest first time winner in the 6,000 horsepower category. Vandergriff's Jerzees Racing team has been impressive in recent events, posting a semi-final appearance at Chicago's Route 66 Nationals and following that effort with a runner-up finish to Kenny Bernstein at Columbus, Ohio's Pontiac Excitement Nationals. Following disappointing first and second round losses at St. Louis, Denver and Sonoma, Calif., respectively, Vandergriff feels that the time is right to break into the winner's circle. The 33-year-old Cumming, Ga. resident, with four career final rounds to his credit, says it's definitely time to put a big mark in the win column. "It's a big monkey on our back, no question," Vandergriff said. "Our car has always shown that it has the performance that it takes to win a race, and we've been in position to win but for some reason we just haven't been able to do it. A point in winning races is to give some legitimacy to your team as a winner. For us, we've been in a position to win enough races that when we finally do win, it's going to breed more success. The first one just seems to be the toughest one right now." With runner-up efforts at the 1995 U.S. Nationals, 1997 Slick-50 Nationals and Champion Auto Stores Nationals, combined with his recent run at Columbus, Vandergriff's team headlines the list as best team without a victory. Ask any veteran team in the Top Fuel pits who's right on the edge of breaking through with a win and Vandergriff's name always comes up first. Still, Vandergriff says they need to prove it on the track. "It's kind of a bummer right now because we do feel we're one of the top teams out here," he continued. "But to not have won a race yet, it's sort of like a black eye on us. It's awfully tough out here and you've got to have everything just right to win. We feel like if we keep putting ourselves in that position, eventually we're going to knock that door down and hopefully it will stay open for a while." At the beginning of this season, Vandergriff was farther away from the winning door than he had been in his career, posting a second round loss at the season-opening Winternationals and following that performance with three consecutive first round exits. "After the first eight races we decided to change everything with the car because we weren't going anywhere," Vandergriff said. "It's been a blessing in disguise really. I wish we would have made the changes earlier. The car has performed a lot more consistent and made really good laps every time we bring it to the starting line. When you can get the car to the finish line every time with limited parts damage you know you have the opportunity to win rounds. We've been to the semis and the finals this season since we made the change. It's just been a dramatic improvement for the Jerzees team." While Vandergriff is aware of Seattle's ability to produce first time winners, he also realizes it can be one of the toughest tracks on the circuit. However, in the past his team has been able to adapt to SIR's tricky conditions with flying colors. He holds the elapsed time record there at 4.642 seconds. "Seattle has a reputation for being a little difficult for some drivers, but we seem to have always been able to run good there," Vandergriff said. "We were the top qualifier there two years ago and should have won that race. Seattle has been good to us. They have repaved the track and made some changes and we should be able to run really fast there. Hopefully our momentum will keep going for the rest of the season and we can get a win soon. Maybe it will come at Seattle." Vandergriff, like most drivers, knows that one thing always comes at Seattle: fatigue. He says the driver and team that can keep their wits for the final three days of NHRA's testy West Coast Swing, a three week span of races that begins July 16 in Denver and concludes Aug. 2 in Seattle, will most likely walk away with a trophy at the Northwest Nationals. "It shows you what caliber your team is," he said. "You have to be mentally tough and really focused when you get to Seattle because it gets to be a struggle because you're worn out, you've beat up all your parts and you're scrambling to make sure you have enough parts in the trailer to compete. The team that can capitalize on the situation can take advantage of some of the other teams who may have become frustrated and lost some of their focus. It's really a crucial race." ETCHELLS FEELS STRONG SHOWING AT SEATTLE MAY BE KEY TO SEASON KENT, Wash. -- As Chuck Etchells looks over the schedule of remaining races in the 1998 NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series season, you can be sure that a big asterisk will be placed beside the 11th annual Prolong Super Lubricants Northwest Nationals presented by Al's Auto Supply, July 31-Aug. 2. The $1.4 million race is the 14th of 22 events in the $30-million NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series. Not only is the event the final race in the three-event Western swing, placing a premium on available parts and team focus, but it also serves as the traditional first call for drivers who are engaged in tight Winston championship battles. With only eight races remaining on the schedule, it becomes crunch time. Etchells, however, who leads seven-time NHRA Winston champion John Force by only one point following the Autolite Nationals at Sonoma, Calif., needs no such warning signals. The Kendall Chevrolet Camaro driver, in no attempt to cling to a cliché, plans to take it one race at a time. "As I've said all along, we're not going to start getting caught up in this championship battle," Etchells said. "Our focus is still on performance and winning races. We want to work to stay in the hunt and then once we get down to the final few races and there's only a few points between us and the competition, then we'll start talking strategy. Until then, our main priority is to win races. We want to devote our full attention to each race as it comes." They'll need to devote their full attention to the Prolong Northwest Nationals. Etchells past history at the tricky quarter-mile suggests the venue isn't one of his all-time favorites. "Seattle has been a tough place for us over the years for a variety of reasons," Etchells said. "I think we're in a good position this season to be competitive there. We're looking forward to having some success there." Etchells best finish there came in 1995 when he made a semi-final appearance. Other than that, the Putnam, Conn. driver has two second round losses and three first round losses there. However, with two victories this season and four semi-final round appearances, Etchells' team appears to be in the best shape ever. "I think for the first time in my career, as a team we are financially able to have the parts to compete for the championship," Etchells said. "We've added several new associate sponsors this season and it has made a big difference in our performance. We've also got two of the best crew chiefs in the business with Tim and Kim (Richards). There's just a variety of things that's making a big difference in our performance this season." Etchells leads Force by one point with nine races remaining, and drivers like Ron Capps and Cruz and Tony Pedregon are within striking distance, setting the stage for a Winston championship battle that will be one to remember, no matter the outcome. With all due respect for Force and his decade of dominance, Etchells just hopes he's the one holding the trophy at the end. "John has proven over the years that he's the guy to beat," Etchells said. "We have a lot of respect for John, his team and what they've accomplished in the sport. But we're hungry, too. Obviously winning the championship would mean everything to this team. If we did win it, I think someone would have to wake me up and tell me I wasn't dreaming. Then, the next day, someone would have to tell me again so it would sink in. But more than anything, I would be really happy for this team. The majority of our team has stuck with us over the years and worked very hard. Winning the Winston championship would be a nice payback for all their hard work." MARTINO HOPES TO EARN FIRST VICTORY OF SEASON AT SEATTLE KENT, Wash. -- After such a promising 1997 NHRA Pro Stock season, Tom Martino was prepared to enter 1998 with a bang and build on his impressive sixth place Winston finish of a year ago. So far, his lofty expectations have not been realized. So goes the life of a driver in Pro Stock, one of the most demanding categories in the NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series. Martino, 40, of Farmingdale, N.J., claimed victories at Houston and Columbus, Ohio last season and made another final round appearance at the season-ending Winston Finals. His efforts quickly gained him much recognition as a driver to watch for the future. His future to date has included seven first round losses, three second round losses, two DNQ's and a runner-up finish at Virginia's Pennzoil Nationals. He's currently a ninth in the Winston standings, some 605 points out of first place. While parity has reigned supreme in NHRA Pro Stock competition, Martino, like the majority of his fellow competitors, have hung on for one wild ride. And even though Martino's Pontiac Firebird is sponsored by Six Flags Theme Parks, this is one roller coaster ride he'd just as soon get off. He'll try to make his exit from a disappointing first half of the season and begin a climb back up the Winston standings with a strong showing at the 11th annual Prolong Super Lubricants Northwest Nationals presented by Al's Auto Supply, July 31-Aug. 2 at Seattle International Raceway. The $1.4 million race is the 14th of 22 events in the $30-million NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series. Martino says the first step in getting back on track will be to redirect the team's focus. "We've been focusing so hard on trying to make enough horsepower to run with everyone we sort of lost track of what we do best, and that's race the car," Martino said. "During the last two years our best quality has been to adapt to the track and do well on race day. This year the competition has gotten tougher and everyone seems to be getting better at adapting to track conditions. We're going to start going back to our old routine. We're going to start thinking about the track regularly and not spend our time worrying about finding three or four more horsepower." If that's the plan, give Martino the upper hand at SIR, a track that is well known for throwing a few curve balls at drivers over the years. With weather conditions that can cover the entire spectrum on any given day, drivers must be able to adjust to unpredictable conditions quicker than a chameleon in a plaid color scheme. Factor in the hectic schedule leading into the Prolong Northwest Nationals, and things can get interesting really quick. "It's really tough to make the changes to the car from Denver to Sonoma in one week because the car uses such a radically different setup on the mountain," Martino said. "Then you go from the heat in California to Seattle where the weather conditions are typically a lot better. Those three races in a row are just so demanding, both physically and mentally. You really have to be prepared for it. You're always glad when it's over, and you just hope that you made the right decisions along the way." PATTERSON FEELS CONFIDENT THAT FIRST PRO STOCK TRUCK WIN IS NEAR KENT, Wash. -- When the news came that the Patterson family, one of the most successful NHRA Comp Eliminator teams of all time, would enter the world of NHRA Pro Stock Truck racing, many of the category's top prognosticators gave the team an instant stamp of approval. Those big expectations were met with success at the first race for the new category. At Houston's Pennzoil Nationals earlier this season, Todd Patterson drove the Team Mopar Dodge Dakota to a semi- final round appearance, where he lost to fellow Dodge competitor David Nickens, who went on to record the victory. Things were going just as planned for the Augusta, Kan.-based Patterson team. But then, over the course of the next three events, the team began to scramble, posting two second round losses and one first round exit. The search for consistency ended at the Sears Craftsman Nationals in Gateway International Raceway, where Patterson produced another semi-final round appearance. At Sonoma, Calif.'s Autolite Nationals, the team went one step further, posting a runner-up finish in their first final round appearance. Patterson hopes to take the next step and post his first victory in Pro Stock Truck competition at the 11th annual Prolong Super Lubricants Northwest Nationals presented by Al's Auto Supply, July 31- Aug. 2 at Seattle International Raceway. The $1.4 million race is the 14th of 22 events in the $30-million NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series. With as much confidence as Patterson has in his driving ability and the team's engine building and setup skills, he thought he would be going into the Prolong Northwest Nationals with a trophy in hand. "It's been slower coming that we would have liked it," Patterson said. "We've always been recognized as a leader in small block engine development and made a good debut at Houston. But since then we struggled a little. My dad (Allan) has really worked hard at the shop, along with Nick Ferri, and tried a lot of parts and pieces. At St. Louis that work paid off. By eliminations we really picked up quite a bit. We showed it wasn't a fluke at Sears Point. We feel pretty confident about our program now." Patterson qualified 14th at Gateway, but then surprised No. 3 qualifier Nickens and No. 6 spot holder Grant Lewis in the first two rounds. However, he says his qualifying runs were a little misleading because he had two uncharacteristic bad laps behind the wheel. "I had made a couple of crooked runs during qualifying and felt like we still had the power, and as long as the driver did his job we could win," Patterson said. "During that first round I made a really straight run and the truck responded by running a 7.82 second elapsed time. It just all clicked. Now we know the potential is there. For a while we were getting a little frustrated. Now we know the truck is capable of winning rounds." Patterson is looking forward to getting to the state of Washington, where the air is clear and cool and the temperatures are generally mild. He says times and speeds for the trucks should be better than they've been since Houston. "Seattle's going to have the best air conditions we've seen in quite a while," Patterson said. "The air is going to be cooler and with the sea level altitude, there's going to be a tremendous opportunity to run some great numbers." Patterson expects an exciting race. "That track has always had great traction and one of the best starting lines on the circuit as far as I'm concerned," Patterson said. "Everybody is going to run quicker at Seattle. Especially after coming from the extreme altitude in Denver and the heat in Sonoma, Seattle will be a welcome relief. It's going to be a lot of fun." And just what does it take to earn an NHRA Pro Stock Truck victory? According to Patterson, a flawless package on race day. "It takes the total combination," Patterson said. "You've got to have the engine, driver and tuneup. Take away one of those ingredients and you're not going to be successful. Larry (Kopp) has been really good this season and he's made Grump (Bill Jenkins) look really good. There's no secret that Jenkins makes great horsepower. But without Larry's tuneup and his driving skills that engine doesn't mean a thing." While Chevrolet S-10 driver Kopp leads the Winston championship chase based on three victories, Patterson feels like Team Mopar is closing in fast. "We feel like we're within a few hundredths now," Patterson said. "We're going to keep pecking away at it. This year has really been a lot of trying different things. I think once everybody gets a firm handle on their programs it's going to be as competitive as Pro Stock. I think by Indy we're going to have over 30 trucks out here. Then it's going to be very difficult just to get in the show." PROLONG SUPER LUBRICANTS NORTHWEST NATIONALS GENERAL INFORMATION * Schedule: Pro qualifying sessions are scheduled for 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. (PDT) July 31. Qualifying continues at noon and 4 p.m. Aug. 1. Pro Stock Truck qualifying will be held on July 31 only with three sessions (3, 7 and 9 p.m.). Pro Stock Truck final eliminations will begin at noon on Aug. 1. Final professional eliminations start at 11 a.m. Aug. 2. Federal-Mogul competition starts at 8 a.m. July 31. * Tickets: Tickets are available for the Prolong Super Lubricants Northwest Nationals presented by Al's Auto Supply. Call (253) 631-1550, or Ticketmaster for ticket information. * On TV: ESPN2 will televise two hours of live final round coverage and race highlights Aug. 2 at 4:30 p.m. (PDT). ESPN2 will also show two hours of qualifying highlights on Aug. 1 at 6:30 p.m. (PDT).