Day 1 of Qualifying at Pomona

Lots of fun at the NHRA season finale here in Pomona, Calif. and great weather. Here's TJ Zizzo making his run.

TJ Zizzo: Vote Lagana for NHRA Hardworking Crew Award

(Photo by Brandon W. Mudd)

Last Sunday at the NHRA Full Throttle Series' event at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Dom Lagana did what many people thought was impossible: he and his family-owned team nearly beat seven-time Top Fuel champion Tony Schumacher in the class finals and beat current points leader and two-time champ Larry Dixon to get there.

In recognition of their achievement, NHRA and Full Throttle have nominated Lagana and his team for the Full Throttle Hardworking Crew Award, an award voted on by the fans. There are four nominees in each of the four NHRA Pro classes and the winning team will be announced at the Auto Club Raceway this weekend in Pomona, Calif. as part of the 2010 season finale.

TJ Zizzo, an Illinois native who also races a limited schedule for a family-run team, Zizzo Racing, isn't among the nominees in the Top Fuel category, but is asking fans to visit www.NHRA.com/HardworkingCrew this week and vote for Lagana.

"I've known Dom and the Lagana family for a long time and I'll admit, I'm a little jealous of what they accomplished in Vegas," said the 35-year-old Zizzo from his home Sunday. "But at the same time, I'm happy for him and proud of what he and his family-owned team was able to do and I can't imagine another team more deserving of this award than them.

"It also gives us hope because we're a family-run team that competes on a limited schedule and when I see what he was able to do, it makes me think that we can get our PEAK/Herculiner Top Fuel dragster in the same situation and hopefully, win all four rounds on a Sunday afternoon."

Fans of TJ Zizzo and Zizzo Racing can find updates and photos of the PEAK/Herculiner Top Fuel team by checking out ZizzoRacing.com, Twitter.com/ZizzoRacing, and Facebook.com/ZizzoRacing. Videos of TJ and Zizzo Racing can be found at YouTube.com/TJZizzo.

Zizzo will race his PEAK/Herculiner rail in the NHRA Full Throttle Series' season finale at the Auto Club Raceway in Pomona, Calif., at the 46^th Annual Auto Club NHRA Finals. The first round of qualifying is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. local time, Thursday, Nov. 11. For information about the event or to purchase tickets, visit NHRA.com or call 800-884-NHRA (6472).

OK, let's try this again...

So after the entire sports staff left the STL Globe-Democrat and after the announcement that Gateway International Raceway would no longer host NASCAR events, leading to its eventual shutdown, I kinda let my blogging go by the wayside. I'm going to give this another shot. I'm going to Pomona this weekend for the NHRA finale, so I might have some insight on that. I may also post about the last days of Gateway. Haven't decided yet.

BTW, if you know of anyone needing a PR guy or a racing media guy, hook a fella up. Thanks.