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Bristol: Doug Kalitta preview

Kalitta seeking Top Fuel summit in Bristol. Bristol, Tenn., April 22, 2003 -- As with most things, especially drag racing, timing is everything. For Doug Kalitta and the Mac Tools/Kalitta Motorsports Top Fuel dragster team, now is the best ...

Edited: Apr 24, 2003, 3:02 AM

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Kalitta seeking Top Fuel summit in Bristol.

Bristol, Tenn., April 22, 2003 -- As with most things, especially drag racing, timing is everything. For Doug Kalitta and the Mac Tools/Kalitta Motorsports Top Fuel dragster team, now is the best possible time to be heading for the mountains of East Tennessee. That's where the quarter-mile world of the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series converges again April 25-27 for the Mac Tools Thunder Valley NHRA Nationals at scenic Bristol Dragway.

The Mac Tools team is on a roll and a very fast one at that. After claiming a long overdue win and running the fastest speed ever of 333.91 mph last time out in Houston, Team Kalitta has that intangible, yet powerful, enigma known as momentum. The trip into Thunder Valley for their sponsor's event has arrived on the calendar at the best possible time.

"Racing in Bristol is always great for us," Kalitta said. "We won there at the inaugural Mac Tools Thunder Valley Nationals in 2001. We are anxious to get back on the track and try to climb even higher up the NHRA POWERade Top Fuel championship points ladder. We closed the gap between ourselves and (Larry) Dixon (points leader) to 69 points with our win Houston. A win in Bristol in front of all of our Mac Tools fans would be another giant step toward our goal of winning the Top Fuel championship."

Crew chief Connie Kalitta, co-crew chief Jim Oberhofer and the rest of the Mac Tools dragster team will give Doug Kalitta the best possible chance to claim an NHRA record-setting sixth consecutive season-opening No. 1 qualifying position when the racing action rumbles to life Friday in Thunder Valley.

Doug Kalitta Power Points
Career event wins: 12
Last event win: 2003 NHRA O'Reilly Spring Nationals, Houston
Career final rounds: 26
Last final round: 2003 NHRA O'Reilly Spring Nationals, Houston
Career No. 1 qualifying: 12
Last No. 1 qualifying: 2003 NHRA O'Reilly Spring Nationals, Houston
Career best elapsed time: 4.482 seconds (2003 K&N Filters Winternationals)
Career best speed: 333.91 mph* (2003 NHRA O'Reilly Spring Nationals, Houston)

After five of 23 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series national events in 2003, Kalitta is 3rd in Top Fuel championship points.

*Fastest speed in NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series history

-km-

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