TEAM WILKERSON RACING LEVI, RAY & SHOUP NHRA Nitro Funny Car Contact: Bob Wilber -- [email protected] FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE GAINESVILLE SUCCESS WOULD BE A MAJOR GAIN FOR WILK GAINESVILLE, Fla. (March 10, 2014) -- Professional golf and tennis use the term major in an official way, designating specific tour events as long-running majors while assigning significant incentives and rewards to those tournaments. In the drag racing world, the term is unofficial and is loosely attached to a handful of historic races that formed the foundation for todays 24-race NHRA Mello Yello tour. The Gatornationals in Gainesville has always been considered one of those unofficial majors (along with Englishtown and Indianapolis) and while a win at this weekends 45th annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals offers no additional points, bonuses, or green jackets, theres no denying it represents a very special accomplishment at a race that carries historic importance. It is, after all, still a major in the eyes of many. With the NHRA Mello Yello season starting out west, Gainesville is historically the first race on the east coast, and as such it is a de facto season opener for millions of fans east of the Mississippi, and for a sizable contingent of Europeans, who build sunny getaway vacations around a trip to the Gators. Any driver who takes home the Wally in Gainesville knows the win is somehow slightly more special. Tim Wilkerson did just that in 2010, and the thought of doing it again gets him charged up, pumped up, and ready to rock. It is special, theres no getting around that, even if it really is just another race on the tour, Wilk said. Indy and Englishtown are the same way. The points are the same and the trophy is the same, but youre winning a bit of history at all three of those races and winning Gainesville in 2010 was a proud moment for me and everyone on the Levi, Ray & Shoup team. I think part of the deal is that its in Florida at a time of year when most of the people in the eastern part of the country, or in Europe, are sick and tired of winter. The chance to head down to Florida to soak up some sun and get out of the snow is a pretty strong pull, so its a unique crowd that comes to Gainesville from all over. Theyre all excited to be there, they come out in big numbers, and it all adds up to a great atmosphere. I get amped up just thinking about it. After a rough start to the season in Pomona, Wilk made important progress in Phoenix, qualifying in the top half and winning his first round of the year. To take the progress even further in Gainesville would be exactly what the team owner is asking of the crew chief and driver. In 2010 we were doing even worse, Wilk continued. We didnt qualify very well at either Pomona or Phoenix, and we lost in the first round at both of those races. We had one of those unlucky losses in round one in Phoenix, running fast enough to beat just about anyone but Robert Hight, and he was the guy in the other lane, but we still got to Gainesville with an 0-2 record and I doubt we were on too many peoples radar when we got to work. Its just kind of how it is for a team like ours, when we have to do a lot of testing at the first couple of races to figure out what the car wants, all over again. In 2010 we put a new body on the car with a front-halved chassis, and we ran the table on Sunday by beating some very good teams. I hope it all comes together like that this weekend, because it was a lot of fun and my guys deserve to experience that. In addition to holding an unofficial position as a major on the NHRA tour, Gainesville is also the first major event for Team Wilk, in terms of sponsor visits and corporate hospitality. Dick Levi often attends the event, along with hundreds of staffers and guests from LRS and Diversified Yacht Services. We call Gainesville, Denver, and St. Louis our Big Three when it comes to all the fun stuff off the track, because those are the three races that really stand apart from the rest in terms of how many of our sponsors and their guests are with us, Wilk said. We do a lot of corporate hospitality throughout the season, but those three races are at another level, and it ramps up the intensity in a really good way. When you have that many people in the pit area and all around you, pulling for you and cheering everything you do, you cant help but be a little more intense. Its a cool deal, and we always look forward to it. Like I said, it just takes everything to a different level and you want to do everything you can to make the whole weekend a big success. Well do our best and well see how much good we can do. Were all looking forward to it. Winning four rounds in Gainesville in 2014 would be a thrill for Tim Wilkerson, his sponsors, and his fans. One might even call it a major accomplishment. ### ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Team Wilkerson Racing NHRA Nitro Funny Car timwilkerson
Posted on: Mon, 10 Mar 2014 23:07:32 +0000
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