An impressive contingent of more than 20 cars will employ Mopar power in the battle to take the checkered flag and win the $10,000 Mopar Bonus at the 21st annual Chili Bowl Midget Nationals, when the record field of 278 entries hits the track on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2007.

With a track record of past triumphs at the Chili Bowl Midget Nationals, including Tracy Hines' 2005 Chili Bowl championship and Tony Stewart's title in 2002, Mopar power has proven a force at the event, which will be held at the Tulsa Expo Raceway in Oklahoma. The large field of Mopar-powered entries will vie to win the $10,000 Mopar Bonus, awarded to the midget car that takes the checkers in the Chili Bowl main event utilizing a Mopar powerplant. Hines and Stewart are the only drivers to win the Mopar bonus.

Recently named as team owner for Mopar's factory-backed efforts in the World of Outlaws Sprint and USAC National Sprint & Midget Car Series, NASCAR Nextel Cup star Kasey Kahne, owner of Kasey Kahne Racing (KKR), will compete at the Chili Bowl in a Mopar-powered car owned by Wilke-PAK Motorsports. Kahne's bond with Mopar grew stronger in 2006, as he won the October event at Lowe's Motor Speedway carrying the Mopar logo and colors, in the first win for a NASCAR Nextel Cup entry that carried the Mopar colors as its primary paint scheme. With the announcement last month at the Performance Racing Industry (PRI) trade show that KKR will field Mopar's factory teams, the Kahne-Mopar relationship has come to full blossom.

One of Kahne's Chili Bowl Wilke-PAK teammates will be none other than Team Mopar's Jerry Coons Jr., winner of the 2006 USAC National Midget Car championship. Josh Wise, who brought home the 2006 USAC National Sprint Car championship for Mopar, will also compete for Wilke-PAK, as will Dave Darland. Swindell Motorsports will field Mopar-powered Chili Bowl entries for the father-and-son duo of Sammy and Kevin Swindell. Kevin was named as 2007 driver of the Team Mopar No. 79 Kasey Kahne Racing USAC National Sprint & Midget Cars at PRI. USAC stars Teddy Beach and Brad Kuhn are also part of the large group of drivers who will field Mopar-powered entries. The Mopar power featured at the Chili Bowl will be supplied by a stellar lineup of engine builders. Gary Stanton, Gaerte Engines, Sesco, Bob Wirth and Ed Pink Racing Engines are just a few of the names tuning the engines that will power the throng of Mopar entries.