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BRANDON BERNSTEIN DEFENDS
TOP FUEL TITLE IN PHOENIX; CHANDLER, Ariz. (March 7) – Brandon Bernstein was the toast of the Top Fuel class at the Checker Schuck’s Kragen Nationals at Firebird International Raceway. If he were nominated for best actor by the Academy of Arts and Sciences, it might be for a role as Master and Commander of Firebird International Raceway. In Brandon’s two-year career he is undefeated on the Firebird quarter-mile. This was Brandon’s fourth career victory and the fifth victory in the last seven races for the Budweiser/Lucas Oil team. Six-time NHRA champion Kenny Bernstein won the last four of five races to end the 2003 season. Counting Kenny’s victories, Brandon’s three victories in 2003, and today’s win, the Budweiser/Lucas Oil team is 8-0 in final round appearances. “To get my first win here at Phoenix last year, and then to come back here and win after being laid up as long as I was, it was a tremendous feeling,” said Brandon. “In the back of my mind I thought it was possible to win because we’ve done it here before and Tim (Richards) has a handle on this track. After we got by the second round I thought maybe we had a good shot at winning. Tim had the car dialed in and I feel comfortable at this track. After first round, you kind of get in a rhythm and everything just moves along.” Bernstein qualified sixth with a 4.553-second elapsed time at 309.91 mph. On Sunday, the track was hot and slick, but the Budweiser/Lucas Oil team had a very competitive first round winning elapsed time, 4.540 seconds at 316.45 miles per hour, when John Smith fouled with a red light start and spun the tires. In the quarterfinals, Bernstein faced off against Darrell Russell and was first out of the starting gate and first to the finish line, 4.572/323.66 vs. 4.678/311.85. In the semifinals, Bernstein rolled to the starting line against Tony Schumacher. In a side-by-side battle, Bernstein got to the stripe first with a 4.552/321.88 vs. 4.564/320.13. Bernstein’s final round opponent was Doug Kalitta. When the green light flickered, Bernstein ran straight down Broadway with a 4.537/326.63, while Kalitta spun the tires at half-track and could only watch as the Budweiser/Lucas Oil team began to celebrate. Bernstein is third in NHRA POWERade Top Fuel standings, only four points out of second place and six points out of the lead. “It’s going to be a big battle this year,” said Bernstein. “It’s no longer a beer war between two cars as we’ve seen the last couple of years. These guys are playing hardball out here and they’re running 4.40s. It’s going to be a dogfight between four or five cars, maybe six. “Maybe we can go on to Gainesville in two weeks and repeat (last year’s victory) there.”
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BRANDON BERNSTEIN RETURNS
TO DEFEND CHANDLER, Ariz. – Brandon Bernstein is excited to return to Firebird International Raceway March 5-7 for the Checker Schucks Kragen Nationals. Like his father, six-time NHRA champion Kenny Bernstein, Brandon earned his first Top Fuel victory at this track. Kenny stood on the victory podium for the first time in Top Fuel in 1991. Brandon won at Firebird in 2003 in his second national event outing as pilot of the Budweiser/Lucas Oil Top Fuel dragster. “This is a very special place for us,” said Brandon. “We hope to duplicate last year’s achievement. Our pre-season test session went well here and we ran very competitive numbers. Once you get a taste of victory circle, you just want more. “We had a stutter-start to the season with a rain delay of the season-opening race at Pomona. Because I was sidelined the last half of the 2003 season with back injuries, I’m revved up and ready to race.” Bernstein, injured May 18, 2003 at Englishtown, N.J., made his 2004 comeback Feb. 6 at a test session at Firebird International Raceway. “The first pass we made was only about 300 feet,” explained Bernstein, “but the moment the team started the engine, and I began the roll through the burnout, it felt like I had never left the cockpit. It was a very comfortable feeling.” Bernstein hit competitive elapsed times in the 4.50s during testing. Safety changes have been made to the McKinney Top Fuel car for Brandon’s return. They were actually incorporated for Kenny about mid-season last year when he stepped in to substitute for his injured son. There is a molded seat designed to absorb shock and provide more back protection. The seat is manufactured by BSR Products in Mooresville, N.C. and is used by many of the NASCAR competitors from truck to Busch to Cup. The Budweiser/Lucas Oil team also changed to a different Simpson seat belt which is made from stronger material with less stretch. The third change was in the chassis construction of the cockpit. At the time of Brandon’s losing bout with the guardwall there was one upright supporting the center of the cockpit that actually contributed greatly to his spinal injury. Now there are two bars on the back of the seat, one on either side of the driver’s ribs. “I’m looking forward to the benefit of these upgrades this season,” said Brandon. “We expect this year’s Top Fuel battle to be hard fought. Not only will the blue team be tough, but there are at least 6 other cars that are going to be right in the hunt. “There will be no cake walks to the podium.” Nitro Qualifying for Checker Schucks Kragen Nationals: Friday, March 5, 3:30 and 6:30 p.m.; Saturday, March 6, 1:30 and 4:30 p.m. Final Eliminations Sunday at 11 a.m.
CHECKER SCHUCKS KRAGEN NATIONALS TELEVISION ADVISORY Qualifying – March 6 – ESPN2 Eliminations – March 7 – ESPN2 |
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