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MIKE EDWARDS WILL RACE 2010 WITH SPONSORSHIP FROM INTERSTATE BATTERIES

edwardsMike Edwards Motorsports has established a new partnership with Interstate Batteries for the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Pro Stock season. Interstate Batteries will serve as a predominant sponsor for the 23-race season on the 2009 NHRA Pro Stock world champion Mike Edwards Pontiac.

The partnership with Mike Edwards Motorsports marks Interstate Batteries return to NHRA competition.

"Our racing organization shares Interstate Batteries core values ... and with that alliance behind our team, we believe this is will be a winning combination in 2010," Edwards said.

TRI-STATE STK/SS ASSOC. ANNOUNCES 2010 EVENTS

The 'Tri-State Stock/Super Stock Association presented by Jim Bailey/Finished Racing' will hold 2010 events at:

ZIZZO SWAPS STORIES WITH DITKA AND NOWATZKE

zizzo-ditka-thumb-300x225-125If you haven't tuned in to one of the Access Hollywood type celebrity TV shows lately, now might be a good time to start. We're expecting a T.J. Zizzo sighting on the red carpet sometime soon.

First it was back stage at the O'Reilly Manager Conference with Danica Patrick and Tony Stewart, now these photos surface with Zizzo, driver of the PEAK, HERCULINER / O'Reilly Top Fuel Dragster, sharing the stage with 'da Bears' Hall of Fame player and coach Mike Ditka and Indiana All-American and 1965 first round draft pick of the Detroit Lions, Tom Nowatzke.

DON SCHUMACHER, ANTRON VISIT COLLEGE

Two days before beginning the 2010 NHRA season, 24-time NHRA winner and driver of the Matco Tools dragster Antron Brown will visit with students at Cerritos College. The former college track star at Mercer (N.J.) Community College will speak to students at Cerritos College about education and career choices. Brown's 7,000-horsepower Matco Tools dragster also will be on display.

"I really enjoy these school visits we do for Matco (Tools)," Brown said. "I was just like many of these students not too long ago when I was a student at Mercer (Community) College in New Jersey. It's nice to give back and speak to the kids about career paths and the importance of focusing on education. These kids at the vocational schools are the technicians of tomorrow and it's great to have the chance to meet them and hopefully deliver the right message. It's great that Matco makes the vocational program a top initiative for the company."

WANT TO BE AN ANNOUNCER?

Ever dreamed of becoming a professional racing announcer? For one lucky fan, that will become a reality as Bristol Dragway is searching for the new voice of Thunder Valley’s popular Fas Mart Street Fights. 

The hunt begins today, Feb. 2, for a new announcer to pump up the crowd during its 2010 Street Fights series in Thunder Valley.

Anyone interested in the position can submit an audition video to the Dragway staff for the opportunity to become the official announcer for this season.

LAS VEGAS PRO STOCK SHOWDOWN BEGINS FRIDAY

The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend will present the fifth annual Las Vegas Pro Stock Showdown, paired with a new event: the Las Vegas Supreme Sportsman Series.

Many of the top names in Pro Stock racing will use the Showdown to place the finishing touches on their cars prior to the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season-opener in Pomona, Calif.

GASSER LEGEND KS PITTMAN PASSES

K.S. Pittman, one of the all-time greats of the legendary gasser wars of the 1960s, died Jan. 31 after a long illness. He was 82.

CHUCK FORD JOINS MIKE KNOWLES PRO MOD TEAM

Mike Knowles, owner and driver of the 1963 "Blown Money" Corvette Pro Mod, is pleased to officially announce that two-time world champion tuner and former crew chief of the year recipient Chuck Ford has joined Knowles Racing taking on the responsibilities of crew chief and tuner. The agreement is exclusive to Knowles and his team.
 
"In a game that is won and lost by thousandths of a second, it's not enough to have all the best parts and be able to cut a light if you're hoping to win a championship. The Pro Mod class is way too competitive, and the new NHRA series is going to be fierce. You've got to stack as many cards in your favor as possible, and adding Chuck really sets us up for a championship run in 2010," Knowles said. "I'm ecstatic that Chuck has agreed to come on board exclusively with our team.

BEARD MEETING CHALLENGES AS INTERNATIONAL MAN OF HORSEPOWER

schu_yas_12Throughout his 30-plus year NHRA career as a crew chief and team manager, Lee Beard has been tackling and meeting challenges.

Beard, however, says his latest task was one of his most daunting of all.

Beard recently was in charge of putting together two complete Top Fuel dragster teams for the Yas Marina Curcuit, after it partnered with Don Schumacher Racing. Yas Marina is a spectacular motor racing circuit in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The new Top Fuel teams with drivers Tommy Johnson Jr. and Hot Rod Fuller will be based in Abu Dhabi.

NHRA'S 2010 TV PACKAGE INCLUDES PRIME TIME

NHRA will launch its 10th anniversary season with ESPN, the worldwide leader in sports television, with a primetime telecast of the most highly anticipated Full Throttle Series race in many years at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona: the 50th Kragen O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Valvoline, Feb. 14 from 8-11 p.m. ET.

Highlighting the complete 2010 schedule, released today, is a commitment to consistent broadcast times for Sunday’s race day action with 17 of the 23 events scheduled in the coveted Sunday night prime-time slot on ESPN2. Once again, the most prestigious drag racing event in the world, the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals at O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis, will feature more than 10 hours of wall-to-wall coverage beginning with qualifying on Sunday, Sept. 5 and concluding with a five-hour broadcast on Monday afternoon, Sept. 6 from 1 – 6 p.m.

In all, the network will dedicate more than 100 hours of original programming to the world’s quickest, fastest and most intense motorsport with live or same-day coverage of qualifying on Saturday and eliminations on Sunday. All broadcasts will be aired in high definition on ESPN2HD.

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