Michalek Brothers Racing to Field Top Alcohol Dragster Entry in 2016

Courtesy of Michalek Brothers Racing

 

Michalek Brothers Racing (MBR) has entered a new era. After 3 years of part-time involvement in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series behind the wheel of the Dreher Motorsports A/fuel dragster, the team will move forward with fielding its own Top Alcohol Dragster entry under the MBR banner. Michalek Brothers Racing has taken possession of a 2010 Spitzer Enterprises A/fuel dragster and is in the process of preparing the car and assembling a team for a 2016 debut.

“First and foremost, we need the thank Jared and Randy Dreher of Dreher Motorsports,” said Corey. “Over the past 3 years we have built an outstanding relationship with those two and their welcoming family both on and off the track. They were gracious enough to let me license in their car and they provided Kyle and me the opportunity to get seat time at 2 regional events and 6 national events inside the cockpit of a proven winner. It was a blast, to say the least, and I’m looking forward to seeing them out at the track for years to come.”

Kyle Michalek, MBR’s first Top Alcohol Dragster driver, reflected on a partnership that got off to a fast start and never lost momentum all the way through the team’s runner-up finish this past month in Norwalk, Ohio.

"The Drehers consistently provided us with a great car which helped shorten the learning curve and get us quickly acclimated to the Top Alcohol Dragster class," said Kyle. "We always knew the car would be setup safely and it would be capable of running with the best cars out there every time we came to the track. That was a huge confidence boost and enabled us to experience lots of on-track success while racing with the Drehers. We can't thank them enough for providing us with a great opportunity."

With three solid years of learning and experience in the NHRA’s fastest semi-professional racing class, MBR will move into unchartered waters as an owner of a 3,500 horsepower injected-nitro burning dragster.

"Being car owners is both exciting and overwhelming at the same time," said Kyle. "Corey and I still find it hard to believe we have an A/fuel car in our shop and recognize we are extremely fortunate to have great partners that support us and allow us to pursue this new opportunity. We are fully aware of the daunting scope of work ahead of us to get ready for the 2016 tour. This includes car preparation, team building, and sponsorship development with current partners while bringing in new support for our team. We know it won't be easy, but we are eager to tackle this challenge and continue moving forward in our racing careers as we build a team capable of running with the best competition in the class."

Corey Michalek commented on the team's progression through the sport and what this new opportunity means to MBR.

“This is the next step of the journey that’s been 13 years in the making,” said Corey. “We’ve had a heck of a ride to this point working for Mark Thomas and Pat Dakin, preparing and racing two separate super comp cars, winning the Search for a Champion contest to allow us to step up to A/fuel, and then having success on the national stage racing with the Drehers. As long as we can continue getting the opportunity to be at the track and to compete, sign me up.”

With MBR’s 2015 season in the books, the focus now shifts towards preparing for the 2016 NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series schedule. Along with pursuing additional partnerships and preparing the car to hit the quarter-mile, MBR will be teaming up with Drag Illustrated to provide readers with a transparent, behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to get an A/fuel dragster operation up-and-running from scratch. The driver blog series has a tentative August 2015 start date and the team plans to contribute monthly installments.

"This will be a "learn-as-you-go" process for MBR as we navigate the in's and out's of owning, operating, and funding an A/fuel car," said Kyle. "We hope to be able to provide insight to the process through the blog series, and keep MBR fans in the loop as we eye a 2016 debut for our car."

For additional MBR information and updates, please “like” the Michalek Brothers Racing FACEBOOK page and follow @MichalekRacing on TWITTER and INSTAGRAM.

Lombardo Ready for 2014 with New Car, Team

Courtesy of LuAnn Bishop
Photo courtesy of Bob Johnson Photography

Greetings and welcome to 2014. Much of the country is beyond freezing cold and we would certainly be thankful for a few inches of rain here in Southern California, but a few (perfect) 70 degree days were exactly what we needed to run our brand new NAPA Auto Parts Lucas Oil Ford Mustang through it's paces. The last time I suited up at Famoso, Bakersfield's home of the famed March Meets and Hot Rod Reunion we qualified #1, went low e.t. and top speed, won the race, and set the track record-we like it here!

From the moment we received the first rendering to the day Rick Jackson's Centre Pointe Collision Center color magicians allowed us a few spy photos, the subtle but gorgeous black to blue fade has consistently impressed. Now proudly decked out with our partners logos, countless hours of tinkering yields a special balance of taste and national branding. Set the body and brand new Hadman Chassis in place by it's 80 foot transporter/rolling workshop with matching Gatorwraps graphics, and you're forced to take a moment and let it sink in. It's no wonder folks love to be around these cars.

We budgeted a few days to methodically work through all that has to be just right to be prepared for Pomona. We arrived with a brand new car, all new data logger, ignition, and fuel systems, new driver and crew combination-all of whom have been absent from a drag strip since November. Plain and simple, Rick Jackson, Chris Perl, Lew Larson, Scott Manning, and Jim Adolph made this a successful outing, each new system was sorted out. We will arrive at Pomona next week for the Winternationals with an invaluable familiarity and comfort level with our new program, ready to start 2014 by attacking one of the quickest, fastest, and shortest drag strips in the country.

NAPA Filters, having lead us to back to back Pomona victories here just a year ago, has the car book ended with their rightful place on the hood and (the driver's best friend) parachutes. The anticipation is essentially expiring and the excitement of the new season is ours to enjoy! We hope to see you at an upcoming event and thank you very much for supporting our program on and off the track!

We are so excited to be racing this year with our sponsors: NAPA Auto Parts, Lucas Oil, Centre Pointe Collision Centers, NAPA Batteries, NAPA Filters.com, NAPA Power Supreme, Arvada Excavating, NGK Spark Plugs, NAPA Belts and Hose, CP Carrillo, Carlyle Professional Hand Tools, Mahle, Midtronics, Mechanix Wear, NYNY Hotel and Casino, Gatorwraps, Raymond’s Trophy, and Twin Palms!

www.jacksonlombardoracing.com

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DJ Cox to Drive for Anderika Racing

Courtesy of John DiBartolomeo

 

DJ Cox has been named the driver of the Anderika Racing TA/FC Monte Carlo for 2014.

 

As they begin their defense of the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Eastern Region championship, Cox will be making the transition from driving a clutch-operated Funny Car to the Lencodrive/Neil Chance converter used by the Anderika team. Cox is a veteran NHRA Division 1 TA/FC driver who will bring his Dixie Construction sponsorship to join the East Coast Auto Electric sponsored team with additional support from Keystone Automation, Lucas Oil and Mahle/Clevite bearings. Cox will be replacing John Anderika who announced at the beginning of the ‘13 season that he would be retiring at the end of the year. With Anderika behind the wheel, the team went on to appear in five final rounds, winning the final two and the NHRA Eastern Region Championship.

 

Team owner Chuck Anderika said “When we decided to look for a driver the main criteria was someone who could immediately step in and help us to continue to win. The whole crew felt DJ was the right driver to accomplish this.”

 

The team will begin the year at the opening NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Eastern Region race at Virginia Motorsports Park on April 4^th.

Lombardo and Jackson Join Forces for 2014 TAFC Title Chase

Courtesy of LuAnn Bishop/Lombardo Racing

Two of Top Alcohol Funny Car's perennial championship contenders join forces as NAPA driver John Lombardo Jr. merges with Rick Jackson's Centre Pointe team. "Teaming with Rick Jackson will virtually double our resources and increase our ability to promote JLR, the class, and the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series," Lombardo said. "Rick's results speak to his commitment to performance, as do ours."

Both partners in the new JLR team already have multiple national event victories, including a combined three this year, and both are among the quickest and fastest ever, with all-time bests in the mid-5.40s. Lombardo, currently second in the national standings, opened the season with a victory at the Winternationals, claimed his second regional championship in the last three years, and led the national rankings multiple times with a 25-11 win-loss record.

"NAPA, Lucas Oil, and the rest of our great partners are coming with me to Rick's already strong program," said Lombardo, whose professional approach and considerable marketing acumen has made him one of the top promoters in the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series. "My equipment will be retained to work displays and customer events for NHRA and our marketing partners, bringing a "Big Show" feel to many of our national and LODRS regional appearances."

Read the full story at www.LombardoRacing.com. 

 

Driver Feature - New A/Fuel Driver Ashley Sanford

Written by Nate Van Wagnen
Photos courtesy of Ashley Sanford

When you picture the driver of a 270 mile per hour, nitro-burning A/Fuel Dragster, you probably don't think of a 19 year-old California girl. And when you think of a sponsor of such a car, you probably wouldn't imagine a nail polish brand. When they make their trackside debut at Las Vegas testing next week, it's safe to say that asphalt drag racing newcomer Ashley Sanford and Gelish Soak-Off Gel Nail Polish will stand out. 

Sanford is making the switch to A/Fuel after several years driving a variety of sand dragsters, the most recent entry being a supercharged Top Alcohol rail. She started at age 8, winning her first race in a kids quad class. Super Comp sand rails came next, before moving up to the 3500 hp Top Alcohol car at age 16. Ashley decided that the transition to a nitro-injected A/Fuel car on the asphalt would be the next step in her racing career.

“It's always been something that I've wanted to do, it's like a dream of mine. I was recently approached last year about it by a good friend of ours, Keith Longerot, who had a friend who might have a car available. Once I heard that, I was like, 'Okay, this is going to happen, I'm going to make it happen.' Since then we've been full force with it. We got our car and we're ready to go.”

The move to asphalt really got going after Ashley's father, Shane, spoke with A/Fuel tuning legend Jerry Darien.

“I get my tire carcasses to make the paddle tires from (Jerry) Darien. It's kind of a funny story; I bought my Top Alcohol Dragster from Jerry, it was Gary Scelzi's In-N-Out car from the nineties. Around this time last year, I called Jerry and told him that we were interested in getting into asphalt racing. Well he called me last August, asking if we were still interested. We started to make arrangements to get started with the licensing procedures once the season ended. That deal ultimately didn't work out, but then we got involved with Larry Miersch and ended up buying his car.” said Shane, a former Top Alcohol sand rail champion.

It was mostly Ashley's desire to move to traditional drag racing, but other factors helped the decision along.

“I started talking to my guys about the switch,” Shane continued. “The sand drag scene has started to diminish over the last few years; the economy has killed it, the television coverage was dropped, and it was time to move on. We had a lot of fun with it. It's bittersweet to leave the awesome sand drag family. We hope to bring Ashley back with new sponsors for a few Top Fuel races in 2014. We decided, let's just do our own operation. We have the truck and trailer and crew from the sand car, so it made more sense to do our own operation than to pay someone.”

Shane says that 2012 Winternationals finalist Larry Miersch and his crew will be helping for the first few races to get them accustomed to the asphalt-pounding A/Fueler. After that, Shane and the team will operate on the knowledge they acquired tuning the Top Alcohol and Top Fuel sand cars.

The dragster that Ashley drove previously runs on a 300 foot sand strip, covering the course in under 2.5 seconds at 150 mph. One would think it would be a hard transition to add 120 mph and another 1,020 feet of racetrack. Sanford is looking forward to that challenge.

 Sanford's blown alcohol sand dragster

“I'm really excited to get the full force of the car. I'm only going 300 feet right now and it's trying to take off even at that point. Besides that, I'm excited just to feel the smoothness, and the straight shot. In the sand, you never know if you're going to hit a rut or a hole in the ground,” said the Lucas Oil-sponsored driver. 

Along with Lucas Oil, Sanford will receive primary sponsorship from Gelish, a popular brand of long-lasting gel nail polish. The D Las Vegas hotel and the Golden Gate Casino and Hotel will host the team when they're in Las Vegas. Heroes Bar & Grill and Roscoe's Famous Deli in downtown Fullerton, CA will also support the team.

Larry Miersch's Spitzer-built dragster has been adjusted to fit its new driver by some of the best in the business. Working out of the Worsham's shop, Dennis Taylor poured a new seat and made sure all of the safety features were up to spec. Aside from pedal adjustments by Grant Downing and a new steering wheel, there were few things that needed to be changed. 

 Sanford's new ride, pictured in 2011 w/ driver Blake Alexander

(Courtesy of Jeff Moore/One Seven West Photography)

Sanford and her Gelish/Lucas Oil team hope to get in enough runs during the Las Vegas Pro Stock test session for her to earn her TAD license. If all goes well, they plan to debut at the Winternationals in Pomona, February 14-17. After that, Shane says the team will run a primarily west coast schedule, but the U.S. Nationals will probably be on the schedule as well.

Keep up with Ashley during her TAD rookie season on Facebook and Twitter. Her website is www.ashleysanforddragracing.com.

TAN Reader Question

Q. Who is the driver you look up to the most?

A. “I'd have to say Alexis DeJoria. Over the years I've been going to races and meeting the drivers, and she was the very first person to completely acknowledge me and give me good advice. She made me feel good about my dream. She made it seem like I wasn't just some other little girl coming up to her and saying, 'I want to do what you do.' She really made me feel good about myself and what I was doing. I just admire that so much.”

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