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GAINESVILLE, Fla. – It is with some emotional trepidation that Budweiser/Lucas Oil Top Fuel driver Brandon Bernstein prepares for the ACDelco Gatornationals March 14-16. Though he won this event in his 2003 rookie season, the thought that is ever-present this year is the loss of his good friend Eric Medlen, who was injured in a testing accident Monday following last year’s event. Eric succumbed to those injuries four days later.
“This is definitely going to be a tough race,” said Bernstein. “There was a group of us known as the Brat Pack, namely, Morgan Lucas, J.R. Todd, and Ashley Force who will join with Eric’s dad and members of Eric’s team to remember some of the good times we all had together. It will be a time to bond and a time to be together. There’s comfort in our circle of friends and we’ll work through it.
“On the other side of the coin, we have a job to do,” continued Bernstein, “and the team is depending on me.
“The Gainesville event is huge and we look forward to seeing many of our fans. This is a
great track and we’re anxious to see the new state-of-the-art control tower that has been completed.
“We are going to try to focus on the positive side and maybe bring home another trophy for Eric.”
Bernstein won the 2007 spring event in Las Vegas, two races following Eric’s death. He dedicated the win to Eric and then presented Eric’s mom, Mimi, with the trophy.
The second-generation driver scored a personal season-high five victories in 2007 and chased the NHRA Top Fuel championship to the semifinals of the last event, finishing third in the final point standings, less than two rounds away from the coveted championship.
“We hope to use everything we learned and all our success last year as a building block for this year,” said Bernstein.
“With rules changes which incorporated added weight on the race cars and an increase to 90 percent nitromethane from 85 percent, crew chiefs are still experimenting with tune-ups. We are fortunate to have veteran tuner Tim Richards, who was responsible for engineering all the tweaks that propelled us to the No. 1 qualifying spot at the last race in Phoenix .
“Tim’s experience and success is a big confidence booster heading into Gainesville .”
Nitro (Top Fuel and Funny Car) qualifying begins Friday, March 14 at 1 p.m. with a second session at 3:30 p.m. There are two qualifying sessions Saturday, 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., with final eliminations kicking off at 11 a.m. Sunday.
ACDELCO GATORNATIONALS
NHRA RACE DAY – March 16 – ESPN2
11 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. ET
Eliminations – March 16 – ESPN2
6 – 9 p.m. ET
Brandon Bernstein took the reins to the Budweiser/Lucas Oil Top Fuel dragster from his father, Kenny, whose 39 Top Fuel victories and 30 Funny Car victories make him No. 2 driver on the career nitro win list. Brandon was named Southern California Auto Club Rookie of the Year in 2003, and has amassed 17 career victories to date including a career-high five wins and a third-place overall finish in the 2007 NHRA POWERAde Series.
Just like the Bernstein family legacy on the track, Budweiser American-style lager follows the same family recipe used by five generations of Busch family brew masters. Brewed with only the finest hand-selected ingredients and Beechwood aged for the perfect balance of flavor and refreshment, Budweiser is “the Great American Lager.”
ACDELCO GATORNATIONALS WILL BE EMOTIONAL ROLLERCOASTER FOR BERNSTEIN
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – It is with some emotional trepidation that Budweiser/Lucas Oil Top Fuel driver Brandon Bernstein prepares for the ACDelco Gatornationals March 14-16. Though he won this event in his 2003 rookie season, the thought that is ever-present this year is the loss of his good friend Eric Medlen, who was injured in a testing accident Monday following last year’s event. Eric succumbed to those injuries four days later.
“This is definitely going to be a tough race,” said Bernstein. “There was a group of us known as the Brat Pack, namely, Morgan Lucas, J.R. Todd, and Ashley Force who will join with Eric’s dad and members of Eric’s team to remember some of the good times we all had together. It will be a time to bond and a time to be together. There’s comfort in our circle of friends and we’ll work through it.
“On the other side of the coin, we have a job to do,” continued Bernstein, “and the team is depending on me.
“The Gainesville event is huge and we look forward to seeing many of our fans. This is a
great track and we’re anxious to see the new state-of-the-art control tower that has been completed.
“We are going to try to focus on the positive side and maybe bring home another trophy for Eric.”
Bernstein won the 2007 spring event in Las Vegas, two races following Eric’s death. He dedicated the win to Eric and then presented Eric’s mom, Mimi, with the trophy.
The second-generation driver scored a personal season-high five victories in 2007 and chased the NHRA Top Fuel championship to the semifinals of the last event, finishing third in the final point standings, less than two rounds away from the coveted championship.
“We hope to use everything we learned and all our success last year as a building block for this year,” said Bernstein.
“With rules changes which incorporated added weight on the race cars and an increase to 90 percent nitromethane from 85 percent, crew chiefs are still experimenting with tune-ups. We are fortunate to have veteran tuner Tim Richards, who was responsible for engineering all the tweaks that propelled us to the No. 1 qualifying spot at the last race in Phoenix .
“Tim’s experience and success is a big confidence booster heading into Gainesville .”
Nitro (Top Fuel and Funny Car) qualifying begins Friday, March 14 at 1 p.m. with a second session at 3:30 p.m. There are two qualifying sessions Saturday, 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., with final eliminations kicking off at 11 a.m. Sunday.
ACDELCO GATORNATIONALS
NHRA RACE DAY – March 16 – ESPN2
11 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. ET
Eliminations – March 16 – ESPN2
6 – 9 p.m. ET
Brandon Bernstein took the reins to the Budweiser/Lucas Oil Top Fuel dragster from his father, Kenny, whose 39 Top Fuel victories and 30 Funny Car victories make him No. 2 driver on the career nitro win list. Brandon was named Southern California Auto Club Rookie of the Year in 2003, and has amassed 17 career victories to date including a career-high five wins and a third-place overall finish in the 2007 NHRA POWERAde Series.
Just like the Bernstein family legacy on the track, Budweiser American-style lager follows the same family recipe used by five generations of Busch family brew masters. Brewed with only the finest hand-selected ingredients and Beechwood aged for the perfect balance of flavor and refreshment, Budweiser is “the Great American Lager.”
