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Since the Checker, Schuck's, Kragen Funny Car program expanded to two cars in 2000, there has always been a tendency for fans, announcers, and others to think in terms of the "A team" and the "B team" in the CSK camp. Not wanting to have his two cars be seen that way, Del Worsham made a conscious decision to call the squads nothing more than "red" and "blue." from the first day. This year, with Jeff Arend taking over the controls in the blue CSK machine, there should be little doubt that this group is one big team, with two strong cars.
Coming into this race, Arend and his group had been running well, had qualified at every race, and had held a spot in the all-important top eight since the first stop on the tour, although they had also not won a round since that opening weekend. The close losses might have been moral victories, but they were losses just the same, and Arend wanted to make sure that trend was reversed here in Georgia.
"We've been running well, and I think we've been running well enough to win, but we had been getting bit by the photo-finish bug a bit lately," Arend said. "There are so many great teams out here, there's never a chance to squeak one out or take a breather. It seems like, every time you turn around you're racing one of the best teams in the world. Coming in here, I know we all wanted to make it clear that we think we can run with all of these teams, and no one should be surprised to see us up here in the points, in the top half of any race field, or someday soon, in the Winner's Circle."
Arend and his group made that statement, once again, by showing their stuff on Friday night. With great weather, huge crowds, and ample excitement in the area throughout qualifying, the only potential downside to this race was the fact the Friday night session was clearly the "make or break" run for every Funny Car team. Any bobble, any miscue, any problem at all, on Friday night, would likely cast a team's weekend result in stone. Just ask Cruz Pedregon, Tommy Johnson, Jerry Toliver, and Bob Gilbertson, who were the unlucky four to not make a huge lap on Friday, and therefore missed the field.
Running under the lights on Friday night, car after car made stunning runs, with the header flames soaring skyward and the bump spot plummeting into the basement. By the time Arend made his pass, he was already out of the top 16, and he knew he and his team had to deliver.
"We figured the whole first session was out the window, in terms of those numbers, and we figured we'd have to bump in by the time we ran," Arend said. "But we didn't back down. We went up there aggressively, and my guys gave me a very strong race car. It was my job to maximize the E.T. by staging well, and keeping it in the middle."
Arend did his job, and his team provided the rest. When the new blue CSK Impala, making its debut here in Atlanta, crossed the finish line, a time of 4.712 popped up on the scoreboard. Jeff Arend was not only in the show, he was 3rd on the qualifying list and had reset both of his career-best marks, yet again. On top of that, the 4.712 exactly matched teammate Worsham's all-time best run, further illustrating the parity in this program.
When Saturday's runs were unable to have any impact on the standings, Arend entered the race from that same No. 3 spot, his best qualifying position on the year. For the effort, he would earn a first-round date with Gary Densham, who most certainly must have had some Team CSK revenge on his mind, as Densham had fallen to Worsham and the CSK red team, in the first round, at the prior two races.
"They're a good team, and so far this year they've shown they can step up and put big runs on the board," Arend said. "I wasn't sure lane choice was going to be a real issue, but I was glad to have it. We all figured we needed a solid first-round lap to get past Gary."
At the tree, neither Arend nor Densham left with their usual urgency, but their race was decided quickly. As Arend tore down the track to that same solid lap he was hoping for, clicking through the beams in 4.902 seconds, Densham's mount smoked the tires early. After four consecutive races which featured first-round exits, some of which were painfully close, Jeff Arend was moving on, as was his teammate.
"Del won too, and that was a big win for our whole program," Arend said. "We're all intent upon being in the mix when the playoff system starts in September, and while we've been in the top eight since the opening weekend, Del has had to come back from a really rough start. We were pumped to see them win, and we couldn't help but dream of facing those guys in the semi. Trust me, weren't looking past the guys we had to race in round two, because that big mean Brut car, and the guy inside it (Ron Capps,) are among the very best of the elite. But, we couldn't help using a possible all-CSK semi-final as further motivation."
When the second round began, it quickly became apparent that the same track everyone had raced on in round one was now predominantly a right lane track in round two. Without lane choice, Arend and his guys would have to race out of the left lane, and in the end, Arend joined Tony Pedregon and Gary Scelzi as second-round losers who smoked the tires early over there. Only Worsham managed to get his car past the 330 mark under power, but he also lost to a quicker Robert Hight. Arend was defeated by a clean running Capps, in that big mean Brut car, and his day was over.
"Either the left lane went away, or some pretty smart teams got really dumb in a hurry," Arend said. "But that's racing. That's why they give the quicker car lane choice, because it's impossible to keep them perfectly even all weekend, or even all day, for that matter. Sometimes you dig your own hole when you lose lane choice, and it happened to four good teams in the second round.
"For us, the statement was made in the first round and in qualifying. We're here to play, we're here to compete, and we're here to win. I don't know if anyone else is surprised to see us running well, but we're not. We expect it, and we expect to keep doing it. This is a great organization, and I'm so proud to be working with these guys, with the Worshams, and with everyone involved. The crew is great, my crew chiefs are fantastic, the chemistry is unbelievable, and we have so much potential still to show. I'm glad we're racing next weekend, because I can't wait."
Will there be any further statements from Arend and his team next weekend, in St. Louis? Only time will tell, but one shouldn't be surprised.
AREND AND TEAM MAKE A STATEMENT, EARN QUARTER-FINAL FINISH
Since the Checker, Schuck's, Kragen Funny Car program expanded to two cars in 2000, there has always been a tendency for fans, announcers, and others to think in terms of the "A team" and the "B team" in the CSK camp. Not wanting to have his two cars be seen that way, Del Worsham made a conscious decision to call the squads nothing more than "red" and "blue." from the first day. This year, with Jeff Arend taking over the controls in the blue CSK machine, there should be little doubt that this group is one big team, with two strong cars.
Coming into this race, Arend and his group had been running well, had qualified at every race, and had held a spot in the all-important top eight since the first stop on the tour, although they had also not won a round since that opening weekend. The close losses might have been moral victories, but they were losses just the same, and Arend wanted to make sure that trend was reversed here in Georgia.
"We've been running well, and I think we've been running well enough to win, but we had been getting bit by the photo-finish bug a bit lately," Arend said. "There are so many great teams out here, there's never a chance to squeak one out or take a breather. It seems like, every time you turn around you're racing one of the best teams in the world. Coming in here, I know we all wanted to make it clear that we think we can run with all of these teams, and no one should be surprised to see us up here in the points, in the top half of any race field, or someday soon, in the Winner's Circle."
Arend and his group made that statement, once again, by showing their stuff on Friday night. With great weather, huge crowds, and ample excitement in the area throughout qualifying, the only potential downside to this race was the fact the Friday night session was clearly the "make or break" run for every Funny Car team. Any bobble, any miscue, any problem at all, on Friday night, would likely cast a team's weekend result in stone. Just ask Cruz Pedregon, Tommy Johnson, Jerry Toliver, and Bob Gilbertson, who were the unlucky four to not make a huge lap on Friday, and therefore missed the field.
Running under the lights on Friday night, car after car made stunning runs, with the header flames soaring skyward and the bump spot plummeting into the basement. By the time Arend made his pass, he was already out of the top 16, and he knew he and his team had to deliver.
"We figured the whole first session was out the window, in terms of those numbers, and we figured we'd have to bump in by the time we ran," Arend said. "But we didn't back down. We went up there aggressively, and my guys gave me a very strong race car. It was my job to maximize the E.T. by staging well, and keeping it in the middle."
Arend did his job, and his team provided the rest. When the new blue CSK Impala, making its debut here in Atlanta, crossed the finish line, a time of 4.712 popped up on the scoreboard. Jeff Arend was not only in the show, he was 3rd on the qualifying list and had reset both of his career-best marks, yet again. On top of that, the 4.712 exactly matched teammate Worsham's all-time best run, further illustrating the parity in this program.
When Saturday's runs were unable to have any impact on the standings, Arend entered the race from that same No. 3 spot, his best qualifying position on the year. For the effort, he would earn a first-round date with Gary Densham, who most certainly must have had some Team CSK revenge on his mind, as Densham had fallen to Worsham and the CSK red team, in the first round, at the prior two races.
"They're a good team, and so far this year they've shown they can step up and put big runs on the board," Arend said. "I wasn't sure lane choice was going to be a real issue, but I was glad to have it. We all figured we needed a solid first-round lap to get past Gary."
At the tree, neither Arend nor Densham left with their usual urgency, but their race was decided quickly. As Arend tore down the track to that same solid lap he was hoping for, clicking through the beams in 4.902 seconds, Densham's mount smoked the tires early. After four consecutive races which featured first-round exits, some of which were painfully close, Jeff Arend was moving on, as was his teammate.
"Del won too, and that was a big win for our whole program," Arend said. "We're all intent upon being in the mix when the playoff system starts in September, and while we've been in the top eight since the opening weekend, Del has had to come back from a really rough start. We were pumped to see them win, and we couldn't help but dream of facing those guys in the semi. Trust me, weren't looking past the guys we had to race in round two, because that big mean Brut car, and the guy inside it (Ron Capps,) are among the very best of the elite. But, we couldn't help using a possible all-CSK semi-final as further motivation."
When the second round began, it quickly became apparent that the same track everyone had raced on in round one was now predominantly a right lane track in round two. Without lane choice, Arend and his guys would have to race out of the left lane, and in the end, Arend joined Tony Pedregon and Gary Scelzi as second-round losers who smoked the tires early over there. Only Worsham managed to get his car past the 330 mark under power, but he also lost to a quicker Robert Hight. Arend was defeated by a clean running Capps, in that big mean Brut car, and his day was over.
"Either the left lane went away, or some pretty smart teams got really dumb in a hurry," Arend said. "But that's racing. That's why they give the quicker car lane choice, because it's impossible to keep them perfectly even all weekend, or even all day, for that matter. Sometimes you dig your own hole when you lose lane choice, and it happened to four good teams in the second round.
"For us, the statement was made in the first round and in qualifying. We're here to play, we're here to compete, and we're here to win. I don't know if anyone else is surprised to see us running well, but we're not. We expect it, and we expect to keep doing it. This is a great organization, and I'm so proud to be working with these guys, with the Worshams, and with everyone involved. The crew is great, my crew chiefs are fantastic, the chemistry is unbelievable, and we have so much potential still to show. I'm glad we're racing next weekend, because I can't wait."
Will there be any further statements from Arend and his team next weekend, in St. Louis? Only time will tell, but one shouldn't be surprised.
