Jim Whiteley looking to make history in Vegas

Jim Whiteley looking to make history in Vegas

LAS VEGAS – Going into this weekend’s SummitRacing.com Nationals at ‘The Strip’ at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, defending four-time NHRA Division 7 Top Alcohol Dragster Champion Jim Whiteley has a shot at making history. With his wife, Annie, wheeling the YNot Racing Top Alcohol Funny Car to victory at last weekend’s Western Regional event held at ‘The Strip,’ they have the opportunity to become the first husband and wife Top Alcohol winner’s circle as Jim will run the Top Alcohol Dragster final from last weekend during this weekend’s qualifying.

A freak occurrence kept Jim and Annie from their shot at history last weekend. As Jim and his opponent Chris Demke left the line in the final, a piece of debris blew through the finish line beams, nullifying the run. The final will be re-run during the third qualifying session this weekend.

“It got pretty windy before the final,” said Whiteley. “The track is so good in Vegas, almost too good. We didn’t have enough wheel speed in the final and it got into some heavy tire shake and I was forced to pedal. From talking to Chris [Demke] I think the same thing happened to them. It was a pretty close race all the way down. Whether we would have won or lost, I really hate the fact that run didn’t count. We completely understand the decision NHRA had to make in re-running the final this weekend.

“I am just so happy for Annie,” Whiteley continued. “I think it was one of my happiest moments in all of my racing. We ran the dragster final before the Funny Car final, so I was down on the top end and got to help Annie get out of the car. It was a pretty special moment. Hopefully we cap the race off by winning the final in dragster this weekend.”

While the season is relatively young, Demke has gotten off to a fast start, winning the first two national events of the year. Winning both races would not only help improve Whiteley’s standing, but help slow down Demke’s momentum.

“Needless to say that round and the main race will be pretty important,” commented Whiteley. “The session we are going to run the final in Saturday morning should be fast. The track shouldn’t be too warm by then. They ran good here last weekend and will be ready for us. They are on a roll and have a lot of confidence right now. I think the first guy out of the gate is probably going to win.

“I am really happy with the way Norm [Grimes – team Crew Chief] and the guys have the car running right now,” Whiteley added. “We ran some pretty strong numbers last weekend in some pretty bad air. He really has the car haulin’ and I’m looking forward to getting to drive it this weekend.”

Qualifying begins on Friday for the alcohol cars with two sessions, followed by one final session Saturday morning. Eliminations begin with round one Saturday evening and final eliminations will conclude the event on Sunday.

To find out more about YNot Racing’s promotional partners, visit the websites below:

RaceGoodyear.com - Goodyear's position as the leading tire maker in drag racing is unquestioned. The quickest, fastest and most powerful earth-bound machines in the world look to Goodyear for tires that generate enough traction to take advantage of their stunning ability to go fast in a straight line.

NGKSparkPlugs.com - When performance counts, the fastest teams on two wheels or four, on land or on water choose NGK Spark Plugs.

The team would also like to thank the continued support of J&A Services and Advanced Oilfield Services.

Contact: Pro Race Communications 979.415.4959