Posted on 03/14/2009 4:53:38 PM PDT by flattorney
Nice very nice!
Angelle has won the championship three times, Danica has won one race.
If the number of wins is your sole unit of measure, you have a point. WHAT TYPE of race they are driving is my point. If Angelle won championships in the GP circuit, I would immediately concede the point. But straight-arrow racing does not hold a candle to the courses.
If the two motorsports were an even test of abilities, the great, incredible, super champion John Force would be earning a LOT more money from his "driving abilities" on the world circuit, as would other drivers. But John Force owes his success to his crew chief's (Austin Coyle) setups on the car, as does Ashley. As does Robert Hight.
GP racer Michael Schumacher made over $60 million per year for the last few. Force is NOT on the Forbes list. Do you think that is because Force does NOT want to make that much money? He does not have the driving talent to even qualify for a position to race against Schumacher, so he has to stay in drag racing. Angelle as well.
I know that Indy racing is not GP, but it is a far greater test of abilities than drag racing. One should give credit where credit is due.
Face the facts. Drag racing is the shortest auto race with the least driver involvement. The fact that both Angelle and Danica are competitive in their respective sports is enough to give credit to the better driver: Danica.
QED.
’ But Danicas sport is more challenging than Angelles. Indy racing involves far more than acceleration and reaction. Shall we start with stamina? Cornering? Maneuvering?
The driver doesnt have their own lane in Indy racing. Oh, how I could go on!’
But it’s such a long wait to see who wins.
this is amazing information that a coworker sent my way a year or so ago.
incredible shot.
I would like to see the other side of the coin.A few years ago one of the Pedregon brothers took second in an IROC style race.I bet a lot of “real” race car drivers would have to change their skivies if they were to strap themselves into a fuel car and mash the throttle.
If the objective isn’t to win, what is the point?
We were not discussing John Force, his crew, nor Michael Shcmumacher, how much money they make, where they are on the Forbes list, yada-yada.
Angelle hands down.
Actually, I used the other drivers to validate my initial argument. Drag racing proves little about the driver’s ability. Saying a drag racer has comparable skills to an Indy or GP driver is like saying that a community organizer would make the best president.
On second thought, many people would agree with that. You win, we all lose.
There you go again...
You going to the Las Vegas SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals? Thought we better not wait to post this with the rest of the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals event posts tomorrow night. Be well - TAB
03.31.09: Free NHRA Driver Autograph Session at The Palms Resort & Casino
A free NHRA driver autograph session will kick off the annual NHRA SummitRacing.com Nationals, April 2-5, at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The autograph session will take place in the Key West Room of The Palms Resort & Casino in Las Vegas on Thursday, April 2, from 6-8 p.m. Drag racing fans are invited to obtain autographs and take photos with their favorite drivers. Drivers scheduled to appear include: Tony Schumacher, Jeg Coughlin Jr., Cruz Pedregon, Ron Capps, Antron Brown, Jack Beckman, Kurt Johnson, Morgan Lucas, Shawn Langdon, Urs Erbacher, Matt Hagan, Jeff Arend, Johnny Gray, Kenny Koretsky and Bob Bode. Many more are expected to join the festivities.
03.05.09: Palms Casino Gaming Chips to Feature NHRA Champions
Reigning NHRA drag racing champions Tony Schumacher, Cruz Pedregon, and Jeg Coughlin Jr. will be honored in a uniquely Las Vegas manner when the Full Throttle Drag Racing Series returns to Glitter Gulch April 2-5 for the first of two annual visits to The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. In what is quickly becoming an annual tradition, the Palms Casino Resort will put into circulation a limited number of special-edition $5 and $25 gaming chips that feature the three reigning world champs. The chips will be made available April 2nd in advance of a prerace party taking place from 6-8 p.m. in the Key West Room at the popular hotel, located at 4321 West Flamingo Road.
Schumacher, Pedregon, and Coughlin will headline the special meet-and-greet party that will be attended by at least 20 other professional drivers on the NHRA tour. "So many special things have happened as a result of our team winning the 2008 POWERade championship and I have to say being on a real chip in Las Vegas is way up there," Coughlin said. "We were lucky enough to have this honor bestowed on us last year as well and I can tell you it's a surreal feeling to sit at a Blackjack table and bet with a chip that has your face and racecar on it.
"This year, Jim Baker of the Palms was looking for some input on the design and I asked him to put my father on there with me because he's such a big part of what we do. They graciously fulfilled my wishes and I promise you I'm going to fill my pockets with plenty of those chips before I leave. My thanks to the Palms Casino resort, not only for this very cool deal for me, but also for the support they show to our sport."
As associate sponsors of Funny Car champions Tony and Cruz Pedregon, the Palms Casino Resort is offering a special "Pedregon Racing" room deal for race teams, sponsors, and fans for the April race. Palms Tower Deluxe rooms are $89 a night on April 1st, 2nd, 5th, and 6th, with reduced rates on April 3rd and 4th of only $159 a night. Fantasy Tower rooms are only $119 and $189, respectively.
To book one of these special rooms, call the Palms Casino Resort at 866-725-6773 and mention the "Pedregon Racing" special. There are a limited number of rooms available and rates are subject to availability. Reservations should be booked ASAP to take advantage of this offer.
This needed to be pulled forward from the FR 2007 NHRA thread that FlA posted.
TAB
If anyone has interest the second 2009 updated was performed on FlAttorney's FR Racing - Formula One section. Be well - TAB
04.01.09: During the off-season, Formula One teams experiencing significant loss of sponsorships. F1 has always been the most expensive motor racing in the world and many sponsors said enough was enough. To field a F1 team for one season it costs a minimum of 5-7 times more than a top NASCAR team. A NASCAR team costs on average 4 times more than a NHRA Top Fuel dragster or Funny Car team. Also in the off-season, FIA totally rewrote the rules book with the most significant changes in F1 history. Many of the changes I like. The cars have a much more traditional look, passing should be easier, and for the first time in eleven years they are racing on slicks again. There were many engine rules changes with the largest being that a driver is only allowed eight engines for the season before penalties are assessed. The maximum allowed engine RPM's was reduced from 19,000 to 18,000 but the reduction is not enough to realistically increase the engine's racing life. Last night, I/we DVR watched the season opening Australian Grand Prix. It was outstanding with a wild finish. Of the season opening NHRA, NASCAR, and F1 races, Formula One blew the other two away. Compared to last year's race, and all the '08-'09 off-season problems, I was surprised how good the race turned out. One last comment, F1 requires the most driver endurance and stamina, followed by NASCAR supertrack racing, and then NHRA's championship top fuel racing. Unlike NHRA and NASCAR, very few F1 drivers race past their early to mid 30's. ~ fla
Hope you find a TF ride soon. We missed seeing you at Gainesville and Houston. And I hope you make it to The Strip this weekend, with or without ____________ , and we see some face time on ESPN2 like the Winternationals.FlA and all the crew
12.28.08: NHRA Top Fueler Hillary Will wins the Scott Kalitta Memorial Trophy in Sydney
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04.01.09-22:45 FlA Says: 2009 Spring Nationals Déjà vu? Maybe yes but I hope not. - - For last weekend's NHRA Spring Nationals in Houston, on Friday's Day 1 Qualifying, a weather front passed through the area bringing day long rain and it dropped the temperature 13 degrees. For Saturday's Day 2 Qualifying, it was somewhat humid, strong cross-winds affecting the track and a high temperature of only 65 degrees. For Sunday's Final Eliminations, it was a sunny high of 72 degrees, 5-10 mph winds and very low humidity. The track was under a high pressure dome and drag racing conditions were perfect.
The current weather forecast for Las Vegas is: Thursday, a high of 81 degrees, winds WSW 23-30 mph, 16-20% humidity. For Friday, a weather front is passing through the area dropping the temperature about 15 degrees with a 20-30 % chance of rain and mostly cloudy. The front will bring NW winds 25-35 mph with gusts to 50 mph. For Saturday, sunny, high in the mid 60s, winds NW 10-18 mph, with gusts to 24 mph. For Sunday, sunny, high in the low-mid 70s, winds only SE 5-8 mph with typical desert low humidity. Like the Spring Nationals, Sunday will be another perfect day for drag racing at the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals.
The point of this forensic analysis is that last Saturday at the Spring Nationals, despite the strong cross-winds condition, the final day of qualifying was nothing short of fantastic with National, track, and driver personal best records set. With perfect conditions forecast for Final Eliminations on Sunday, our group of fifty-four(54) people(I was very surprised - it was twice what I expected), could not wait to head out to the track. We were not alone, as the crowd for the Finals was much larger than at the Gatornationals. It was the largest Finals attendance of the '09 season. Unfortunately, the nitro crew chief's got greedy on Sunday and many cars over-powered the track, resulting in poor side-by-side racing. There was still some great races particularly the Top Fuel showdown everyone had been waiting for, since the start of the season, of Larry Dixon vs. Tony Schumacher. Great side-by-side race on Tony's march to his 1st '09 Wally. The only good side-by-side race Ashley Force had was in her Funny Car final against Jack Beckman. It was a great race but her previous three races were poor. Had it not been for the fantastic racing action in the two Pro Stock classes(cars/motorcycles), Sunday would have ended up a disappointment.
If this Sunday ends up being another optimum race day, I sincerely hope the nitro crew chief's demonstrate good judgment in their set-ups and remember their team, car, and driver are there to entertain the ticket purchasing fans.
10th annual![]() |
WEDNESDAY, April 1, 2009 |
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Sponsor Midway Parking | 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM | |
Competitor Parking, Registration & Tech (all categories) | 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM | |
THURSDAY, April 2, 2009 |
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Spectator Gates Open |
7:30 AM
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Registration/Tech Inspection (all categories) |
7:30 AM - 5:00 PM
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Sportsman Qualifying |
8:00 AM
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Comp Eliminator Qualifying Session |
4:00 PM
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Secure Track |
6:00 PM
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FRIDAY, April 3, 2009 |
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Spectator Gates Open |
7:30 AM
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Registration/Tech Inspection (Pro's and TAD/TAFC only) |
7:30 AM - 12:00 PM
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Sportsman Eliminations |
8:00 AM
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Comp Eliminator Qualifying Session |
12:00 PM
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Pro Stock Qualifying Session (PS Car) |
12:30 PM
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Nitro Qualifying Session (Funny Car / Top Fuel Dragster) |
1:00 PM
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Top Alcohol Qualifying Sessions (Funny Car / Dragster) |
2:00 PM
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Comp Eliminator Qualifying Session |
3:00 PM
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Pro Stock Qualifying Session (PS Car) |
3:30 PM
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Nitro Qualifying Session (Funny Car / Top Fuel Dragster) |
4:00 PM
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Top Alcohol Qualifying Sessions (Funny Car / Dragster) |
5:00 PM
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Secure Track |
6:30 PM
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SATURDAY, April 4, 2009 |
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Spectator Gates Open |
7:30 AM
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Sportsman Eliminations |
8:00 AM
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Comp Eliminator - Round 1 |
11:30 AM
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Pro Stock Qualifying Session (PS Car) |
12:00 PM
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Nitro Qualifying Session (Top Fuel Dragster / Funny Car) |
12:30 PM
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Top Alcohol Qualifying Session (Dragster / Funny Car) |
1:30 PM
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Pro Stock Qualifying Session (PS Car) |
3:00 PM
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Nitro Qualifying Session (Top Fuel Dragster / Funny Car) |
3:30 PM
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Top Alcohol (Dragster / Funny Car) - Round 1 |
4:30 PM
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Secure Track |
6:30 PM
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SUNDAY, April 5, 2009 |
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Spectator Gates Open |
7:30 AM
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Sportsman Eliminations |
9:00 AM
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Pre-Race Ceremonies |
10:00 AM
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Final Eliminations |
11:00 AM
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Secure Event |
4:30 PM
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Schedule subject to change |
== TOP FUEL ==
Larry Dixon 3/1
Tony Schumacher 4/1
Antron Brown 9/2
Brandon Bernstein 6/1
Cory McClenathan 7/1
Doug Kalitta 10/1
Morgan Lucas 12/1
Shawn Langdon 15/1
Spencer Massey 25/1
Joe Hartley 50/1
Field (all others) 18/1
== FUNNY CAR ==
Del Worsham 4/1
Ron Capps 5/1
Ashley Force Hood 5/1
Robert Hight 6/1
Tim Wilkerson 8/1
Jack Beckman 9/1
Cruz Pedregon 10/1
Tony Pedregon 10/1
Bob Tasca III 12/1
John Force 12/1
Field (all others) 18/1
== PRO STOCK ==
Jason Line 5/2
Jeg Coughlin Jr. 3/1
Greg Anderson 9/2
Mike Edwards 6/1
Allen Johnson 8/1
Kurt Johnson 10/1
Ron Krisher 12/1
Larry Morgan 15/1
Warren Johnson 25/1
Jim Yates 25/1
Field (all others) 20/1
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