Winning!

NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series competitors imbued with Mopar® power and HEMI® DNA have been setting up shop in the winner’s circle, capturing NHRA professional class wins at four of the first eight events of the 2011 season.

Words: Darren Jacobs

And Mopar® takes the win!

That common refrain has been voiced by PA announcers at tracks across the land in the early stages of the 2011 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, as racers with the Mopar® Omega M plastered on their rides have been let loose on a wild winning binge. Competitors with Mopar HEMI®-power under the hood of their Pro Stock Dodge Avengers and Funny Car Dodge Charger R/Ts have raised Wally trophies high in the air at four of the first eight events of the 2011 campaign.

The abundance of wins featured a winner’s circle visit by Mopar Dodge Avenger Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson at the NHRA SuperNationals in Englishtown, N.J., on June 5. The triumph by longtime Team Mopar member Johnson was the most prominent in a string of victories that included one by Mopar-powered Dodge Avenger Pro Stock rookie Vincent Nobile (at the NHRA Spring Nationals in Houston, Texas) and two courtesy of Dodge Charger R/T Funny Car driver Jack Beckman (the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals in Charlotte and the NHRA Southern Nationals in Atlanta).

Johnson’s win was especially sweet, as the veteran drag racer serves as the primary standard bearer for the Mopar brand, carrying the Mopar colors on his Dodge. Johnson and his J&J Racing squad whooped it up in Victory Lane, enjoying their first chance to raise a trophy and do the “hat dance” since the 2010 Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals event last July.

“It feels great to win,” said a joyful Johnson, who claimed his ninth career win and first at the legendary New Jersey quarter-mile. “We’ve been close this season. This Mopar Dodge Avenger has been fast, and we always have plenty of power with the Mopar HEMI under the hood. Once again, Mopar power has proven it can get the job done, and that’s our recipe for the rest of the season.

“We have been taking a different approach this year and have been working into developing a good product with this new chassis. We are almost where we want to be with six races left until the Countdown. We are still refining things, and continue to work hard each and every day. The car is very consistent right now and we can continue to fine tune it and learn things.”

Johnson’s victory drew praise from a man whose opinion matters a whole bunch if you have Mopar on your race car—Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group LLC’s service, parts and customer-care brand.

“All of us at Mopar are proud of Allen’s performance,” said Gorlier, who attended his first NHRA event last year at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals. “Having two Mopar-powered Dodge cars in the final round serves as a validation of the power and performance of our Mopar HEMI engines in NHRA competition.”

Yep, that’s right, Englishtown offered a Mopar vs. Mopar throwdown in the final. Facing off against Johnson was wunderkind Vincent Nobile, who as a 19-year-old-rookie has taken the Pro Stock ranks by storm.

The second-generation racer (his father John Nobile is a veteran Mopar Pro Stock driver) advanced to his first career final round at the NHRA Las Vegas event on April 3, then made another money-round run at the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals on April 17. The up-and-comer broke through for his first win at Houston on May 1 and made history while doing so, becoming the youngest winner ever in the Pro Stock class.

Three consecutive final-round appearances, four finals in his first eight starts and a top-five spot in the points at press time. It sure looks as if the next big NHRA star has emerged, and he’s coming from the Mopar-powered ranks.

“It’s crazy how competitive Pro Stock is. Every driver is great out here,” said the humble Nobile, who competes with Mopar HEMI engines supplied by Allen Johnson’s J&J Racing shop. “There are no easy rounds. I race with a bunch of great people. We are definitely living on a high right now.”

Also living on a high is Mopar-powered NHRA Funny Car driver “Fast” Jack Beckman. The Don Schumacher Racing pilot has certainly lived up to his nickname, banking two wins thus far in his Dodge Charger R/T. Beckman claimed his tenth career Funny Car win with Mopar HEMI power at the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals, then tasted victory again at the NHRA Southern Nationals on May 15 to earn his second triumph at the Atlanta venue.

“I was given the baddest hot rod this weekend,” said Beckman after his Charlotte victory. “To get a win is awesome! I drive for Don Schumacher and we get the best of everything, including the best people working on this car, led by Rahn (Tobler, Beckman’s crew chief), and everything came together.”

Quite right, Mr. Beckman. You do get the best of everything—including Mopar power. It’s a fact well known by the many racers who have won with a Mopar HEMI—and the many that have fallen to Mopar power as well!

Mopar Challenger Drag Pak Drivers Claim Three Class Wins at NHRA 4-Wide Nationals

The success of Mopar power hasn’t been limited to the NHRA pro ranks. Mopar-powered NHRA Sportsman racers have claimed enough Wally trophies to form a small army of little golden men. Mopar’s grassroots racers especially stood out at the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway in Concord, N.C. on Friday, April 15, where Mopar Challenger Drag Pak drivers motored to three class wins in the Stock Eliminator ranks.

Class champions included Dave Thomas of Westchester, Pa., who steered his 2011 Mopar Challenger V-10 Drag Pak to the AA/SA (Stock Automatic) class victory, and Keith Lynch (B/SA class) of Greenville, Ohio, who also qualified No. 1 overall in Stock Eliminator and advanced to the semifinals.

Thomas, who recently set the elapsed time (ET) record in the AA/SA class with a 9.43 second pass in his Mopar V-10 Drag Pak at the NHRA Division 1 National Open event at Atco (N.J.) Raceway, brought home a Wally trophy in North Carolina with his defeat of Ken Miele. He advanced to the third round in overall Stock eliminations and also received congratulations on his recent record-setting performance from a very special person in attendance—Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group LLC’s service, parts and customer-care brand.

Thomas was one of a number of Mopar Drag Paks to compete at the 4-Wides, with three bringing home the winner’s hardware. In addition to Thomas and Lynch, Michael Iacono, of Wading River, N.Y. drove his 2010 Mopar Challenger Drag Pak to the C/SA class win. Also doing battle in a Drag Pak at zMAX Dragway was the legend himself, “Big Daddy” Don Garlits, who dispatched Edmond Richardson in the first round of overall Stock eliminations before falling in the second round.

Dodge Brand and Robby Gordon Help Make ‘Fast Five’ Film a Blockbuster

The Dodge brand teamed up with Universal Pictures to support the smash hit action-thriller “Fast Five,” supplying multiple 2010 and 2011 Dodge Charger vehicles used in chase scenes throughout the movie. “Fast Five” graphics were also featured on the No. 7 Dodge Charger R/T car of NASCAR Sprint Cup driver Robby Gordon at multiple races, among other sponsorship elements.

Gordon debuted the special “Fast Five” look at Martinsville Speedway on April 3, and competed at six events with the unique graphics, including the Texas, Talladega, Richmond, Darlington and Dover NASCAR Sprint Cup events, with a best finish of 20th at Talladega.

“The Dodge brand is proud to partner with Universal Pictures on ‘Fast Five.’ We enjoyed being a part of the production process and working with the cast and crew, and it clearly comes through in the film,” said Ralph Gilles, President and CEO, SRT® Brand, Chrysler Group LLC. “The chase scenes in this installment of ‘Fast Five’ 
are over-the-top and adrenaline-filled, and Dodge fans will be thrilled by the performance of the Dodge Charger.”