2007 NHRA NATIONAL EVENT SCHEDULE
Listen to Trackside Interviews with Champions, Drivers and Crew Chiefs
Robert Hight
Hillary Will
Bob Vandergriff
Dave Connolly
Ed Iskenderian
Cory McClenathan
Robert Hight
Jim Yates
Tony Bartone
Hillary Will
Whit Bazemore
Byron Hines
| Harold Martin is Ready to Set Sail
in San Antonio A Martin favorite, San Antonio Provides a Great Spot to start 2007 IHRA season In any form of motorsports, the start of the racing season brings a period of renewed excitement and enthusiasm. Having had the off-season to refresh, renew and improve their equipment, every racer arrives at the first event confident of their chances for victory. For Harold Martin and the ACDelco Pontiac Pro Mod Racing team, as well as all the competitors in the Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series, that first winning opportunity comes this weekend as they gather in San Antonio, Texas for the Amalie Oil Texas Nationals, the first stop on the eight-month, 12-race IHRA schedule. “We’re always excited to get started with a new season, to be amongst our fellow competitors in the Pro Modified category, and to have a shot at the championship,” stated Martin. “It’s also a tremendous feeling to start the year in San Antonio. Our ACDelco Pro Mod team has a great fan base in there, and it’s good to get to Texas so we can race in front of them and see and greet them again. We’ve also had great success at San Antonio Raceway, giving us an added comfort zone, so we’re certainly looking forward to arriving there for this weekend’s race.” Martin Hopes Performance Gains and Rules Changes will yield Pro Mod Parity In order to record what would be a very popular win, as one of the nitrous contingent in the unpredictable Pro Modified category Martin knows he will need to extract the very maximum from his state-of-the-art, 2,500-horsepower hot rod. After dealing with an evident performance disadvantage to those competitors utilizing a supercharger in 2006, the Martin crew worked tirelessly throughout the off-season to close the gap, hoping the gains they have made combined with new rules changes will once again provide a level playing field. “This entire ACDelco team worked extremely hard in the off-season, employing a two-phased plan,” detailed Martin. “Our first goal was to enhance our existing hardware, which we feel we have done, giving us a quicker race car than we had last year. We also have a whole new engine program which we hope to debut around mid-season. “However, the ultimate piece which we won’t really know until we get to the racetrack is where our nitrous performance will measure against the blown (supercharged) cars, and whether the rules changes instituted in the off-season will yield the parity they were designed to provide. Those answers will come this weekend in San Antonio. The fans come out to see side-by-side racing, so hopefully we will have a blown car and a nitrous car qualified one and two, and nothing would be greater than to have a nitrous car and a supercharged car squaring off in the final.” Martin and ACDelco team to invest in the future Before he even takes to the track, however, Martin has another equally important assignment in the San Antonio area, as he will be speaking at several high schools prior to the event as part of the ACDelco/Harold Martin “Pros Who Know” Scholarship Program. As a long-time proponent of helping others to follow in his footsteps, Martin looks forward to speaking with students across the country, deliver a positive message while encouraging them to follow their dreams. “We absolutely have to invest in our future,” said Martin. “When you look at all of the great opportunities that exist in the automotive industry, it’s a great thing to be a flagship that can instill and motivate young students to pursue careers in that arena. I’m really excited about sharing that message, and that ACDelco has come forward to participate in the “Pros Who Know” scholarship program. We’ll be kicking things off in San Antonio, with similar appearances in our race markets throughout the year, and I’m looking forward to meeting some great kids. It’s a great way to start our weekend at the races.” Notes on Harold Martin and the ACDelco Pontiac Racing Team entering the Amalie Oil Texas Nationals: Harold’s Record at San Antonio Raceway: This will be Harold’s fifth appearance at San Antonio Raceway, where he has one final-round appearance and two starts in the top half of the field. Event Schedule: Qualifying: Friday, March 23: Two rounds at 12:00 noon & 6:30 p.m. Saturday, March 24: Two rounds at 12:00 noon & 6:30 p.m. Final Eliminations: Sunday, March 25: Pre-race ceremonies start at 9:45 a.m. First round of eliminations at 10:30 a.m. |
