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Bristol: Tony Schumacher Saturday notes

SCHUMACHER STAYS NUMBER ONE BRISTOL, Tenn., May 17 - Piloting his U.S. Army Salute the Troops Top Fuel dragster, Tony "The Sarge" Schumacher secured his second pole of the season here Saturday following final qualifying for tomorrow's O'Reilly ...

Published: May 17, 2008, 7:43 PM

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SCHUMACHER STAYS NUMBER ONE

BRISTOL, Tenn., May 17 - Piloting his U.S. Army Salute the Troops Top Fuel dragster, Tony "The Sarge" Schumacher secured his second pole of the season here Saturday following final qualifying for tomorrow's O'Reilly Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway.

Schumacher's 4.502-second pass from Friday was never challenged during the last two qualifying sessions and as a result he will face off with 16th-place qualifier, Alan Bradshaw, in the opening round of final eliminations beginning at 12 noon ET.

"It's been a few races since we were number one," said the five-time world champion. "It certainly appears like we have a pretty good race car this weekend. Now, we have to go out and seal the deal on Sunday."

This will be the second straight race that Schumacher and Bradshaw have met in eliminations. Two weeks ago in St. Louis, Schumacher won a second round battle.

"You can't take those guys for granted," said the Chicago-area resident. "I can assure you that we'll have to bring our best to advance."

While claiming his second pole of 2008, Schumacher also banked his 49th career pole. It's his third career pole at Bristol Dragway.

"As I've stated, we really love racing here," he added. "It's a beautiful facility with a great racing surface, so we always look forward to this tour stop." On Sunday, Schumacher will be seeking his third victory of the year, while attempting to widen his lead in the Top Fuel standings.

"We have some momentum a third of the way into the season," he said. "It would be real nice if we could build on that even more here in Tennessee."

-credit: dsr

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