Atchison Racing update 2002-05-23

Rob Atchison and the PRIDE Fighting Championship. Funny Car Team Proud of IHRA's Safety Rules

Cordova, Illinois - Being shut down after the burnout is not one of the things you hope to get while in the midst of competition on race day, but if it's going to affect your well being you are certainly glad when it does happen.

Rob Atchison and the PRIDE Fighting Championship funny car after four rounds of competition qualified with a personal weekend best of 5.98 seconds at 233.40 miles per hour. This was enough to put them in the number eleven spot facing Terry Munroe for the first round of eliminations. Unfortunately, Munroe suffered a crash earlier in qualifying and alternate Van Heusen was the replacement. This should have been an easy win for Atchison as Van Heusen qualified off the mark this weekend.

Atchison's car did its perfunctory burnout, but on the reversal is when the track crew noticed something on the race surface. While idling, IHRA officials performed a further inspection underneath the PRIDE Fighting Championship machine to discover there was indeed a leak that would have caused havoc for Atchison on the race track.

"You never want to get shut down ever, but especially on race day. I am thankful though, I would rather be safe than sorry. To get caught up in your own oil on the racetrack would have been a disaster. It could have resulted in not just damage to the racecar but also to myself. IHRA made the right call," stated Rob Atchison.

Along side PRIDE FC also supporting Atchison Racing is Erickson Manufacturing Ltd., manufacturers of tow straps and tie downs (www.ericksonmfg.com), West Coast Transportation out of Ontario, Canada, and King Koil/Mattress Depot also of Canada.

-ar-