February 2008 Archives

It's on to race two of the NHRA Powerade Series, which this weekend visits Firebird Raceway near Phoenix for the CSK Nationals.
It would be easy to pick the Winternationals winners to win in the Arizona desert. But I think I going to go with a few hunches.
Top Fuel
I know before, I said never bet against Alan Johnson and the U.S. Army dragster driven by Tony Schumacher. But something tells me that Brandon Bernstein and going to recover from his slow start at the Winternationals with a win here.
Funny Car
There's a first time for everything, and I'm seeing an all-women's final with Ashley Force beating Melanie Troxel.
Pro Stock
Take Kurt Johnson here. He ran good at the Winternationals and he's won here before, so I like his chances.
Of course, the real winners might just be mother nature and rain.

THIS....

OR THAT?

NHRA veteran Tony Pedregon, who has won two Funny Car championships since 2003, said recently that after his fiery crash at the season-opening Winternationals on Feb. 10, he thought very briefly about possibly switching from NHRA driver to an office job.
Well, Tony, if you're still considering....do you want to trade?

Unfortunately for us bench racers, Pedregon will be back in the seat when the NHRA season continues this weekend at the CSK Nationals near Phoenix.

Tony Schumacher drives the U.S. Army dragster to its second consecutuive victory at Pomona Raceway, winning today's 48th Winternationals. (Staff photo by Raul Roa)

4:52 - Greg Anderson is back!
The three-time series champion drops the hammer on the competition and runs the quickest run of the weekend and beats defending series champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. This could be the first of many for Anderson, in the past five seasons has finished first, first, first, second and second the past five seasons.

Greg Anderson makes his quickest pass of the weekend to win the Pro Stock final during today's 48th Winternationals at Pomona Raceway. (Staff photo by Raul Roa)

"(Coughlin's) just a tough guy to race," said Anderson, whose 6.616-second run in the final beat Coughlin's 6.638. "You know when you race him he's going to pull out all of his tricks. We just felt fortunate to beat him.
"I didn't look over to see him, because I was scared to death."
4:57 - Wow! Robert Hight continues his dominance of Pomona Raceway, just nips Cruz Pedregon at the line to win here for the second time since November. Pedregon left him watching at the start, but the Ford Mustang power just kicked in and Hight drives around the former champion for the victory in his third consecutive final at Pomona Raceway in the past year.

Robert Hight drives the Auto Club Ford Mustang to victory during the Funny Car final at Pomona Raceway. (Staff photo by Raul Roa)

"I'd like to have all the races here," said Hight, whose 4.861 beat Pedregon's 4.879. "We seem to have a pretty good track record here. I was going down the race track and flashbacks from last year and losing to (Gary) Scelzi (when he crossed the centerline in last season's Winternationals). I just kept telling myself, 'Keep this thing in the middle and don't let it get inside or over near the wall.
"It was unbelievable. After the first two rounds, I didn't give us a chance. We worked through it and got the job done."
5:00 - Tony Schumacher is Army strong, making his quickest pass of the day to win Top Fuel, beating teammate Cory McClenathan, running a 4.499 to McClenathan's 4.536.
"(McClenathan's) tough," Schumacher said. "We help built that car, so they can pull out a .49, just like we can.
"It was a good run to see the win light come on. This was perfect. It was a great ending to a great day."

Prediction update: I went two for three on the day, picking both Schumacher and Anderson and missing on Hight. I will note I did pick the guy Hight beat in the first round - Ron Capps.

The U.S. Army just marches on. (Staff photo by Raul Roa)

3:19 - The Big Mac attack returns as Cory McClenathan advances to the final round with a win over Morgan Lucas. The bad news is that he faces teammate Tony Schumacher, who has hovered around 4.50 seconds all day.
"It's a big for us," McClenathan said. "We'll just drink some Rockstar (energy drink) be back for the next round."

Cruz Pedregon cruises into the finals. (Staff photo by Raul Roa)

3:32 - Cruz Pedregon keeps on cruising, drops a 4.85 run to beat Ashley Force to advance to the final round. The Cruzer faces Robert Hight, who advances when John Force smokes the tires early in the semifinals.
"It's the finals, baby," Pedregon said. "This is big."

Jeg Coughlin Jr. advances to another Pomona final. (Staff photo by Raul Roa)

3:45 - Favorites days in Pro Stock continues as Greg Anderson and Jeg Coughlin Jr. advance to the finals. Of the 14 races in the factory hot rod category run so far, the higher-qualified car was victorious in all but one - No. 5 Allen Johnson's win over No. 4 Warren Johnson in the second round.

It's a Big Mac attack for McClenathan (Staff photo by Raul Roa).

1:42 - Cory McClenathan, a La Habra native, is liking his new deal with Schumacher Racing, advancing to the semifinals with a victory over Antron Brown in second round.
1:46 - Larry Dixon smokes Fuller, showing their's another meaning for the U.S. Smokeless dragster.
"It was a great pass," Dixon said. "It knocked the blower belt off on the end, but it was great to get the win light."
1:53 - The Sarge just marches on, easily beating Doug Herbert in the second round. U.S. Army crew chief Alan Johnson can do no wrong. This race may be over.
"These U.S. Army guys are just a machine," Tony Schumacher said. "I'm proud to drive this car."
2:06 - John Force Racing is having a great day as Force beats Scelzi to lead a stable of three Force cars that advance to the semifinals. Daughter Ashley beat Bob Tasca and Robert Hight defeated former Force driver Gary Densham.

Ashley Force drives her way to semifinals (Staff photo by Raul Roa).

"There's been a lot of work the last 10 months since Gainesville (Fla.) in March," Force said. "All of our sponsors stuck by us and we through it.
"How 'bout little baby (Ashley). She just trucked down their like a man. She looks like her mom, but drives like me."
2:10 - Cruz Pedregon puts himself in position to spoil the Force party with a second-round win over Jack Beckman. Pedregon is doing just his late father and NHRA pioneer Frank Pedregon once said, "with good old Mexican parts."
"We'll beat all the Schumacher, Force cars it takes," said the Cruzer, who took out Force entry Mike Neff in the opening round, then follows it up Beckman, who flys Schumachr colors. "I know that's what everybody wants. But you can't stop the Pedregon brothers and you can't buy us."
2:26 - The 2008 season is looking a lot like 2007 in Pro Stock as three of the top four cars - Kurt Johnson being the exception - advance to the semfinals.
"You have to be a real man to run in this class," top-qualifier Greg Anderson said. "We've got four tough cars in the semifinals. It's going to be a brawl, and I'm just glad to be part of it."

Time to light 'em up!

And Tony Pedregon lit of the Pomona sky after his engine exploded into a fireball during a first-round loss to John Force. (Staff photo by Will Lester)

11:05 a.m. - And we're racing! Cory McClenathan shows he ready to play with nice low 4.5-second pass to beat the Bud Prince
11:09 - Hot Rod Fuller, after qualifying a very disappointing 10th, steps up and makes the quickest run of the weekend with a 4.494.
"She's been purring all weekend," said the driver of the Caterpillar dragster. "It's about time she started to roar!"
11:13 - Well, so much for that prediction. Vandergriff just smoked the tires near the 60-foot mark and loses to Morgan Lucas. We'll see if Shoe can save my reputation.
11:22 - I got one right as Tony Schumacher makes the second-quickest run of the round with an easy win over Doug Kalitta.
"That was a battle," Schumacher said. "It's an unbelievable way to begin a season."
11:34 - And the best class, or is it my personal favorite - the Funny Cars - take to to the track. And we have our first shocker as Gary Densham defeats top qualifier Tim Wilkerson.
"Gary ran good," Wilkerson said. "That just shows you what can happen. You have to come out and be on your game, or your day's over."
11:43 - I'm not doing good. Mel Troxel taps the tires before half track and loses to Bob Tasca, who gets his first win in the class.

Here's a down-track shot from Raul Roa as Tony Pedregon's Chevy Impala expodes near the 1,000-foot mark. Pedregon was transported to a local hospital for evaluation, but later returned to the track.

11:55 - John Force advances to the second round when 2007 champ Tony Pedregon jumps the start. Then it gets scary. Pedregon's Chevy Impala explodes into a big fire ball just before the 1,000-foot time. The car then bounces off the left retaining wall just past the finish line and bounces across the track before resting against the right wall. Force, meanwhile, can't get his car stopped an lands in the sand trap at the end of the track. Both drivers were able to get ouf of their cars under their own power and are OK. This is one of the worst crashes I've experienced live, and I have to admit I was a bit shaken as I've dealt with Tony more than any other driver, so it was a relief to see him walk away with just a few minor burns to his hands.

Pedregon's car catches fire near the finish line. This is a shot of the Pomona Raceway video board by Raul Roa.

Force had some interesting comments. You could tell that while Tony is no longer a member of his team, he is certainly not forgotten.
"I broke every rule in the book" Force said. "I thought I was late when he got way out there, not knowing he had red-lit.
"I glad he's Ok. I love Tony Pedregon.
"I got to the (finish line) when I saw his car explode. I was looking at him and forget to hit the (parachutes). I keep telling my kid (Ashley Force) don't forget the chutes, and then I do it. But I'm glad Tony is OK."
Pedregon was transported to Pomona Valley Medical Center for evaluation.
He was later released and watched his brother advance to the finals.
"There was no warning," he said. "It blew up, and I had instant flames, like a flame-thrower in my face and the scary part was I didn't know where I was. I hit the wall very hard and I feel very lucky. I knew that my hands were burned and I knew that I got beat up a little. When I got out of the car I thought, 'I can't believe the car finally stopped and I'm going to get out of it.' I got out of it slowly because I wanted to make sure the car was completely stopped."
12:17 - And we end the first round with a doozy. Ron Capps vs. Robert Hight in a battle between two teams who expect to win the championship. Hight wins a tire-smoker as Capps takes out the 1,000-foot cone and is disqualified.
Well, there goes my pick in Funny Car. It appears the nitro coupe Gods finally caught up with Capps, who had made four consecutive 4.8-second runs before smoking the tires near halftrack.
12:36 - Anderson follows up a win by Kurt Johnson with another low 6.6 run. Then Coughlin ends the round with victory to cap off a Pro Stock round, where all the higher-qualified cars were victorious. It looks like everyone came to play today.

It's race day here at the 48th Winternationals.
We just got back from the Don Schumacher Racing pit area, where we had some breakfast along and listened to the team's six drivers speak to the NAPA sponsor contingent.

Mopar Dodge Funny Car driver Gary Scelzi says its in the bag during a breakfast conference prior to eliminations.
Here's my predictions for the day:
Top Fuel
Comments: Put your money on Tony Schumacher and the U.S. Army team in Top Fuel. I found out long ago to never bet against crew chief Alan Johnson. We also could see a pivotal matchup in the semifinals, where a Schumacher-Hot Rod Fuller matchup is possible. Fuller was the category's most-consistent competitor last season, but is only 10th on the qualifying latter.
Final-round: Schumacher over Bob Vandergriff.
Funny Car
Comments: Tim Wilkerson was the surprise top qualifier, but we like Ron Capps, who had the most-consistent car in qualifying, making four runs in the 4.8-second range, including three in the low 4.80s. Capps has a major tilt against Robert Hight, who finished second in the Countdown to the Championship last season, but the matchups should be like going downhill from there. Also, don't count out Melanie Troxel, who races from the No. 3 hole.
Final round: Capps over Troxel
Pro Stock
Comments: Greg Anderson appears to have recaptured his mojo and I look fo rim to start out the season with a win. He appears to have a solid road to the finals. The bottom half of the bracket should be a battle between defending champion Jeg Coughlin Jr., Kurt Johnson or Jason Line. Expect an All-Summit Racing final.
Final round: Anderson over Line

Antron Brown talks to the media after qualifying on the pole for the 48th Winterantionals Saturday.

Antron Brown has gone where very few men have gone before, and he likes it.
"When that clutch came in at 100 feet, nothing can prepare you for that. It's a whole new realm," said Brown today after qualifying No. 1 in Top Fuel for the 48th Winternationals. "It was like in Star Trek when they hit the warp drive and you see all those stars go by on the side. I hit that and I saw the stars go around my helmet.
"I thought it couldn't get any better and at 330 feet it kicked back again. I couldn't believe it. And then 660, 1,000. I was like, 'Oh, oh, oh..." By the time I was able to get situated, it was time to hit the parachutes and the run was over. I got back to our pit area and everyone was telling me what a great job I did. I looked at them and, 'Boys, I don't even know what happened."

Melanie Troxel talks to the media after qualifying third in Funny Car at the 48th Winternationals Saturday.

Rookie Funny Car driver Melanie Troxel's biggest worry coming into the 2008 season was the day she had to face husband Tommy Johnson Jr.
Troxel won't have to worry about that Sunday.
Johnson, who moved over to the Montster Energy Drink Funny Car team this season, failed to make the 16-car field for the 48th Winternationals. He struggled throughout the four qualifying sessions and could only muster a 4.917, which placed him two spots below the qualifyinng line.
Mel, meanwhile, nearly set history, just missing being the first woman to qualify No. 1 in Funny Car. She instead settled for the No. 3 position with a 4.810.
"I haven't been home yet," joked Troxel after being asked about Johnson's feelings. "I'm heartbroken for Tommy. It's an incredible frustrating feeling as a driver. It's kind of what we've been talking about. People were making a big deal of us racing each other in the finals. That would be great. If we both make it to the final round, that's a good day for everybody.
"It's time like this when one of us isn't doing well and the other one isn't, it kind of rubs salt in the wound."

Tim Wilkerson is surprise leader in Funny Car

Tim Wilkerson, in the days of big corporate backing, is an NHRA throwback.
The veteran Funny Car driver has limited funding and is one of the few single-car teams on the Powerade Series circuit.
But he showed the little guy can still step up when need be.
Wikerson will race from the No. 1 spot Sunday after he driving his Chevy Impala to a 4.790-second run at 325.22 mph.
"I'm pretty happy with the run," Wilkerson said. "We left a lot on the table in the morning. We were at the point where we were already (qualified), so we might has well go for the throat and it worked."
Wilkerson also got some praise from Don Prudhomme, who Wilkerson has a working agreement with the Top Fuel owner.
"He just stuck his head in and said, 'How about those old junk parts? They work pretty darn good, heh.' I was kidding him about the old parts he gave me," Wilkerson said. "It's not always the quality, but the quanity."

Pro Stock leader Greg Anderson talks to the media after qualifying No. 1 at the 48th Winternationals

Greg Anderson may be Pro Stock's top qualifier, but he wasn't all smiles, either.
The three-time champion, who is No. 1 following a track-record 6.629, also found trouble negotiating the right lane on Saturday, slumping down that side of the race track for the second consecutive day.
"Being No. 1 is a great feather in the cap," Anderson said. "It makes the team feel wonderful for all the hard work they've done over the winter.
"But we're having troubles with the right lane. We didn't get down it yesterday, so we have to figure it out. I'm just happy we ran well today. We have a couple of positives with some minor negatives, but I'm not going to worry about that now."

Consistency works for Ron Capps

If consistent runs truly is what wins on the NHRA Powerade Series tour, then Funny Car veteran Ron Capps must be feeling pretty good today.
Capps has driven his NAPA Dodge Charger like it's been on a rail.
The California native started with a run of 4.876 on Thursday before following with a 4.838 Friday and a 4.850 during today's first session.
"It kind of nosed over at the end there," said Capps after his first attempt today. "But it's a great race-day setup. I don't want to jinx the NAPA Charger, but we have made three runs in a row down the race track. That's a big deal."

Doug Herbert has dedicated the 2008 season to his sons, Jon and James, who died in a traffic accident two weeks ago.

Top Fuel Doug Herbert could have missed this weekend's 48th Winternationals at Fairplex and nobody, not his fans, his competitors or his sponsors would have minded.
They would, in fact, have understood.
But not Herbert, who despite his sons, Jon, 17, and James, 12, being killed in a traffic accident two weeks ago, is here doing what's always done during the early part of February - drag racing. For him, getting in a Top Fuel dragster is the only way he can deal and grieve during this time of personal tragedy.
"I'm a racer and I like racing," said Herbert, a 17-year veteran who grew up in Villa Park. "My boys loved racing. They know everybody out here. This is what I do; this is what I like to do.
"My life's changed forever, but I want to keep racing and I want to win the Top Fuel championship for my boys. I got motivation for it. My whole team's got motivation for it. We're pretty fired up."
Please keep Herbert and his family in your prayers

Antron Brown made his first 4.49-second pass of his career today in just his second ever run in a Top Fuel dragster.

Antron Brown is rookie in a rookie in the Top Fuel class this season.

He just doesn't drive by one. The former Pro Stock Motorcycle rider stole the show today after taking the top spot in Top Fuel with an impressive 4.495-second run at 330.07 mph.

"That was a great run," Brown said. I can't say enough of my Matco Tools team. I'm not a rookie racer, but I'm a rookie driver. My team has made this transition real easy.

"This is such a great race car. It's almost driving itself. It's making a lot of horsepower and the numbers are coming up on the board."

Kurt Johnson in Pro Stock and Cruz Pedregon in Funny Car aren't the top qualifiers in their respective classes, but they did manage to make the best runs of the day in their individual categories.

Pedregon, who failed to qualify here at the Auto Club Finals in November, cruised to a 4.830 at 321.27 mph. Scott Kalitta, who smoked the tires today, is still No. 1 in Funny with his 4.818 run he made Thursday.

"For me, I don't worry too much about going low e.t.," Pedregon said. "I'd rather come out and run another 4.83 and maybe follow it up with a 4.81.

"I've been doing this long enough to know that consistency is what works out here."

For Johnson, moving over to the left lane was what worked for his Chevy Cobalt.

"We took the information from Thursday and just applied it to that left-hand lane," said Johnson, who moved up to No. 2 in Pro Stock with a 6.646 today. Greg Anderson is still No. 1 with the 6.635 he ran on Thursday.

. "It looks like that left lane is probably a couple (hundredths of a second) quicker.

"I hope its not a one-lane track on Sunday, but moving over there made a difference today."

Tony Pedregon talks to the media after winning the Funny Car championship last season.

For Tony Pedregon its all about respect, and so far defending Funny Car champion Tony Pedregon doesn't appear to be getting any.
The veteran pilot, despite last season's championship, was tabbed to finish no higher that fourth in one pre-season poll.
While Pedregon doesn't exactly agree with that, he believes he can just prove the so-called experts wrong again.
"What does a guy have to do to get some respect," joked Pedregon, who is competing at the Winternationals this weekend. "Well, no one counted much on the Giants winning the Super Bowl. I think it's trivial. Everyone has an opinion. I think, for the most part, people tend to look at the talent and the man power of the super teams. Look, (John) Force has about nine rigs in his pit area and four funny cars, and (Don) Schumacher has four, and we're essentially a one car team.
"It's no different in other sports. There's teams like the Yankees, these guys just have more money and can spend more. I think people have a tendency to look at that. If you ask me, I put us at the top of the list. I think we can win more races than we won last year. We're going to have to fight more for it, but I think we can be better."

U.S. Army driver Tony Schumacher signs a autograph. The for San Fernando Valley resident has become one of the top competitors in drag racing.

My crack video man Raul Roa and myself dropped by the U.S. Army pit area and talked to five-time Top Fuel champion Tony Schumacher, who is seeking an unprecedented fifth consecutive title this season.

Schumacher hopes to cut up the competition this year.

Tony talked about his chances to win the championship this week and about recently taking some runs in stock car. Our video should be up shortly. I hope you enjoy it.

Top Fuel driver Doug Herbert gets ready to make a pass down the Pomona Raceway quarterfinal during the first day of qualifying for the 48th Winternationals.

Noon: We visted the John Force Racing pit area to talk to rising star Ashley Force. The daughter of 14-time John Force finished a very respectable 10th in points last season and great things are expected in 2008. She proved to be very delightful and had some interesting things to say. Look for our video later tonight.

1:57 p.m.: And Johnny Gray officially kicks off the 2008 Powerade Series season by running a 6.77-second run. I'm not sure, but I don't think that will hold as the top-qualifying time.

2:18: Greg Anderson takes the top spot and nearly re-sets the track record with a 6.635.
I guess nothing changes.

2:29: Bob Tasca opens the Funny Car wars with a sluggish 5.277.

2:34: I guess if you're a driver, you're a driver. Melanie Troxel makes her first competitive pass in a nitro Funny Car and takes it right down the middle for a nice 4.90 run.

3:08: John Force makes his first competitive since last falls horrific class near Dallas.He still has some work to do after smoking the tires near halftrack.

3:10: Pro Stock stalwart Greg Anderson visits the media center after qualifying No. 1 with his 6.635.
"We love coming (to Pomona Raceway), whether it be the winter or the fall," Anderson said. "This track is always good to us.
"We had a good feeling coming in, but you never know what's going to happen out there. Judging by that first run, it looks, it looks like we're going to have a lot of contenders (for the championship). You're always nervous making that first run of the season, but I'm very happy."
3:35: Veteran Scott Kalitta visits the media center to talk about his wild ride that saw him qualify No. 1 in Funny Car, but ended with him going into the sand trap at the end of the circuit.
"I'm just happy it went down the race track," said Kalitta, who made a 4.818 pass. "It did what we told it do, finally. We had a big thrash before (qualifying), and I didn't have time to set the (parachute) handles.
"I knew there was potentially going to be a problem. I just said to myself, 'Well, if it's not running well, I just shut it down early. Then it was running OK, and I thought, 'It'll be OK. Well, it wasn't. It could have been a lot worse. We'll be OK."
4:45: Reigning world champion Tony Schumacher drops by the media center after stealing the Top Fuel No. 1 spot from Alan Bradshaw with a 4.513 pass on the final pass of the day.
"That was a very decent run on a very good race track," Schumacher said. "We've won in Pomona quite a bit, but not so much at the first race of the year. We've always won in the fall here. But we have a really good race car.
"(Crew chief Alan Johnson) could have gone after it, and maybe run a little quicker. But it was outstanding. We're still itching all on the changes, but I'm happy to drive the car."
Final tidbits: The first day of the season ends with some very solid race cars shaking their heads and wondering what happen.
The list includes Brandon Bernstein (No. 16 at 9.831), who most picked to win the Top Fuel title, and John Force (No. 14 at 6.726), Gary Scelzi (No. 17 at 7.442) and Robert Hight (No. 19 at 9.526) in Funny Car.

Well, the 2008 season is just a few minutes away, so what better time to come out with a few predictions.
Here's my top five for the upcoming season:

TOP FUEL
1. Tony Schumacher
Never pick against Alan Johnson
2. Brandon Bernstein
The Bud prince stepped up big last season, look for more of the same in 2008
3. Hot Rod Fuller
2007 was a dream season; can he do it again?
4. Larry Dixon
The two-time champ is definitely one to watch
5. Doug Kalitta
Was 2007 an aberration or a beginning of a downward spiral
FUNNY CAR
1. Tony Pedregon
Two-time showed the way in 2007; why not again in '08?
2. Robert Hight
Top car in the class, but can he find the consistency?
3. Ron Capps
The people's champ?
4. Gary Scelzi
Knows how to win
5. John Force
Faces biggest challenge of his career
PRO STOCK
1. Greg Anderson
Arguably the sport's most-consistent winner over the past five years
2. Jeg Coughlin Jr.
Seeks repeat
3. Allen Johnson
Developing more consistency is a must
4. Jason Line
2006 champ ready to resume old form
5. Kurt Johnson
Proven winner

Now it's your turn

What do you do after the Super Bowl?

How about a drag racing?

Well, ready or not, another NHRA Powerade Series season is upon us, and this one promises to be just exciting as the last one.

There's a lot of good storylines as the 2008 season prepares to kickoff on Thursday for the first day of qualifying for the Winternationals at Fairplex.

One of the most intriguing will be the husband and wife battle of Tommy Johnson Jr., and his better half, Melanie Troxel.

Both will be competing in Funny Car this season. We have a video interview planned this week and we'll get their take about the upcoming season.

Also in Funny Car, we have the return of John Force, who appears to be ready for a comeback after proving he's ready to continue the fight after roaring to a 4.7-second pass during preseason testing.

Another question in the class is simple and to the point:

What does Tony Pedregon have to do to get a little respect?

The two-time championship, who won the class last season, was recently picked just fourth in a preseason poll by the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin.

Yes, we understand the procedure for the Countdown to the Championship has changed, but if that same procedure was in place last season, Pedregon would have still won the title.

He's my pick to repeat, and we'll just have to wait a few months to see who is right.

The big story in Top Fuel is whether Tony Schumacher, who has already set a record with a fourth-consecutive title, make it a magical five in a row.

I betting that he can. But it should be an interesting season with Schumacher, Hot Rod Fuller, Brandon Bernstein and so many others all in the mix.

In Pro Stock, it looks like it will be a battle between Greg Anderson, who let the title slip out of his grasp last year, and defending champion Jeg Coughlin Jr., who showed over the weekend he's ready for another trophy after winning the Pontiac Showdown in Las Vegas this past weekend.

Get ready, the roll through the waterbox beginning at 2 p.m. on Thursday!