Family ties makes Phoenix race special for NHRA superstar Enders

Erica Enders has hit the reset button and is ready for this weekend's 28th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird International Raceway.

Enders and her Cagnazzi Racing crew, like a lot of other Pro Stock teams, struggled with the track in the 2012 season-opener at Pomona. But Phoenix is a new race, and Enders is looking forward to getting her Chevrolet Cobalt running well in a town where she has a lot of personal history.

"Phoenix now becomes the first race of the year," Enders said. "We've got to leave the whole Pomona race in the dust. We'll go to Phoenix with a new attitude and new confidence, and that's perfect because the city means a lot to me."

Firebird is one of Enders' favorite tracks, as she's done well there in the past. Plus, the Phoenix area is home to Enders' brother and numerous other family members.

To make sure the weekend is a roaring success, Enders and her crew are spending two days this week testing at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

"Phoenix is like a home race for me and we really want to do well," Enders said. "My family's from there, and lot of them still live out there. We'll have a lot of people at the track with us. I look forward to having that support group around me.

"In the past, Firebird also has been pretty lucky for us. We've not won in Pro Stock there, but we've come close a number of times. It's also the first place I qualified as a professional. I look forward to this weekend."

Enders made her official Pro Stock debut at Phoenix in 2005, qualifying No. 16 but losing in the first round to future boyfriend Richie Stevens. Enders has qualified fourth or better three times at Firebird, reaching the semifinals twice.

"All my love to Gaston Kearby," Enders said. "he's the one supporting the team this year and we couldn't do it without him."

The event begins Friday with Pro Stock qualifying sessions scheduled for 1:30 and 4 p.m. Qualifying continues at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday with eliminations slated for an 11 a.m. start on Sunday. ESPN2 will carry all of the action.

Pro Stock's most prolific female racer ready to add win to her resume

(Photo by Brandon W. Mudd)

The pressure is on Erica Enders as she enters the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season, but the 28-year-old driver from Houston wouldn't have it any other way.

Enders had her best season as a professional last year, reaching three final rounds and racing to a sixth-place finish in the ultra-competitive Pro Stock class. She returns with her Cagnazzi Racing team, lead by crew chief Dave Connolly, as she looks to move up the Pro Stock ladder and win her first race in the class.

That assault begins this weekend at the 52nd annual O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, the season-opener for NHRA competitors.

"Expectations are very high," Enders said. "We're coming off a really good test in Bradenton (Fla.), and it's nice to get back in the car and get back in the swing of things. I can't be more excited to get the season under way."

Enders is the defending No. 1 qualifier for this race, having grabbed the first of her two poles in 2011 at Auto Club Raceway. The most successful female Pro Stock racer in history also had career-bests in runner-up finishes (three), semifinal appearances (four) and won-lost record (28-11).

She hopes to build on that in 2012.

"I feel like we have a lot of unfinished business to take care of," Enders said. "I'm positive my guys feel the same way. It's going to be a cutthroat year – like it is every year – but we've got the same mindset as we did last year. It's every man for himself."

Pro Stock is the most competitive class in NHRA, where races are routinely decided by thousandths of a second. That puts the onus on the driver, something Enders cherishes.

"Pro Stock is absolutely ridiculous with how competitive it is," Enders said. "It's the most cutthroat class out there, where a 16-car field is separated by just a couple hundredths of a second, not tenths of a second, so you've got to be perfect.

"As a driver, you've got to be on the money from the time you fire your car. You have to do the burnout correctly so you don't burn up the clutch, and then you've got to have an awesome reaction time. You've got to hit your shifts and not be late, so the driver's performance is crucial. Every thousandth of a second counts. The more perfect you can be, the more perfect your setup is, the better chance you have at winning.

"I like that. I like the fact that a lot of the pressure is on me. It's tough, it's a hard class. But I wouldn't have picked it if I didn't love it."

Qualifying begins with sessions at 1:30 p.m. PST on both Thursday and Friday, followed by two more rounds at 11 a.m. and 1:45 p.m. Saturday. Eliminations are slated to begin at 11 a.m. Sunday. ESPN2 will carry all the action.

NHRA Launches Vintage T-Shirt Program at Target Stores Nationwide

(Erica Enders, above, and Antron Brown, below, model some of the new vintage t-shirts licensed by the NHRA. The shirts are available at Target stores nationwide. Photo provided by NHRA Communicaitons.)

After a successful test program earlier this year, JEM Sportswear and NHRA have announced the official launch of NHRA Originals, a line of vintage NHRA-themed t-shirts. The first two shirt designs, featuring classic logos from the NHRA Winternationals in 1972 and the NHRA’s 1962 Nationals, are currently available in Target stores nationwide.

As part of the launch of NHRA Originals, the world’s largest motorsports sanctioning body intends to bring out of its archives some of the classic logos and symbols of the sport of NHRA Drag Racing and make them available on a variety of consumer products. These logos, which over time have become the definitive artwork of the sport, marked an era in NHRA Drag Racing like no other.

“The artwork associated with NHRA national events in the ’60s and ’70s are iconic NHRA designs and are highly sought after,” said Gary Darcy, senior vice president of sales and marketing, NHRA. “This new line of NHRA Originals will pay homage to those classic designs and artwork of a time gone by, but not forgotten.”

The NHRA Originals vintage t-shirt program will feature the 1972 NHRA Winternationals logo along with the iconic snowflake. A nostalgic front-engine dragster is depicted on the front of the 1962 NHRA Nationals shirt, which marked the second year the sport’s largest and most prestigious event, now known as the U.S. Nationals, was held at its current home in Indianapolis.

“We are happy to bring these classic symbols of NHRA Drag Racing to consumers through this limited-time offer,” said Jenni Gold, creative director, JEM Sportswear. “We are confident that these two shirts will quickly sell out and look forward to working with NHRA on introducing new designs to the line and to consumers nationwide.”

The test program with Target earlier this year was extremely successful with all test markets selling out of its inventory in short order. As a result, Target has decided to stock these two items nationwide at all of its 1,750 stories in 49 states and the District of Columbia. The men’s t-shirts will have a retail price of $9.99 and be available in small, medium, large and extra large. The 1972 NHRA Winternationals design comes in a navy color, while the 1962 U.S. National design is available in red.

JEM Sportswear and NHRA hope that soon after the Target Stores launch, JEM Sportswear will begin rolling out these and other products through other retail outlets.

K&N Horsepower Challenge Offers Bonus Cash for NHRA Pro Stock Drivers

(Jason Line is the No. 1 seed for this weekend's NHRA Full Throttle Series Pro Stock K&N Horsepower Challenge at Norwalk. Photo by Brandon W. Mudd)

Jason Line will lead the K&N Horsepower Challenge field as the No. 1 seed for the first time as the lucrative special event takes center stage June 25 during the fifth annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park.

A purse of $76,000 is available for the eight drivers competing in the K&N Horsepower Challenge. The winner of the 27th annual K&N Horsepower Challenge will earn $50,000. The runner-up will earn $10,000, the two semifinalists $3,000 each, and the four first-round finishers $2,500 apiece. A $25,000 NHRA sweep bonus is available to any driver who can win the K&N Horsepower Challenge on Saturday and take the Pro Stock eliminations title during the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals on Sunday.

Line, from Mooresville, N.C., qualified No. 1 at two of the 20 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series events where drivers could earn K&N Horsepower Challenge points. It will be Line’s seventh appearance in the bonus event.

The $136,000 K&N Horsepower Challenge showcases eight Pro Stock teams in a race-within-a-race bonus event. Seven of the teams qualified during a 20-race span from the 2010 Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk through the 2011 Ford NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals presented by Tri-Cities Area Ford Dealers at Bristol (Tenn.) Dragway, and the eighth-place team was selected via a special fan vote on the K&N website. Besides the $76,000 available in the K&N Horsepower Challenge, bonuses of $60,000 were paid to the top Pro Stock qualifiers throughout the 20-race K&N Horsepower Challenge series, $3,000 to the No. 1 qualifier at each race.

This year’s K&N Horsepower Challenge field features two past winners and six drivers who are looking for their first victory in the special event. The past winners are defending champ Greg Anderson, who drove his Summit Racing Pontiac GXP to a sweep of the Norwalk weekend last season, pocketing $100,000 for his efforts. The other past winner is second seed Allen Johnson, who claimed victory at the event in 2008 in his Team Mopar Dodge Avenger. Among the six drivers who have never won, two are multi-time runners-up in the race, Mike Edwards (three) and Line (two).

In the opening round, top-seeded Line will face the winner of the K&N fan vote, Erica Enders, who is making her second appearance in the event. Second-seeded Johnson will meet first-time qualifier Shane Gray; third-seeded Edwards will face Rodger Brogdon, who is making his second start; and three-time and defending winner Anderson will meet veteran driver Ron Krisher.

Other past winners of the K&N Horsepower Challenge include Darrell Alderman, Bruce Allen, Dave Connolly, Jeg Coughlin,  Bob Glidden, Kurt Johnson, Warren Johnson, Larry Morgan and Jim Yates.

K&N Horsepower Challenge rounds are scheduled for 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 2:50 p.m. on June 25.

2011 K&N HORSEPOWER CHALLENGE FINAL STANDINGS:

1. Jason Line, Mooresville, N.C., Summit Racing Pontiac GXP                                                        

2. Allen Johnson, Greeneville, Tenn., J&J Racing/Team Mopar Dodge Avenger                              

3. Mike Edwards, Coweta, Okla., Penhall/Interstate Batteries Pontiac GXP                                     

4. Greg Anderson, Charlotte, N.C., Summit Racing Pontiac GXP                                                    

5. Ron Krisher, Warren, Ohio, Valvoline Chevy Cobalt                                                                    

6. Rodger Brogdon, Tomball, Texas, Racers Edge Pontiac GXP                                                      

7. Shane Gray, Artesia, N.M., Service Central Pontiac GXP                                                            

8. Erica Enders, New Orleans, ZaZa Energy Chevy Cobalt                                                           

2011 K&N HORSEPOWER CHALLENGE ROUND PAIRINGS:

FIRST ROUND (11:30 a.m.):

Line vs. Enders

Johnson vs. Gray

Edwards vs. Brogdon

Anderson vs. Krisher

               

SEMIFINALS (1:30 p.m.):

Line vs. Enders winner vs. Anderson vs. Krisher winner

Johnson vs. Gray winner vs. Edwards vs. Brogdon winner

               

FINAL (2:50 p.m.)