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POMONA, Calif. (February 5, 2007) -- Jeff Arend was named the driver of the Checker, Schuck's, Kragen blue car on December 5, 2006. He made his first test lap in the car on January 19, 2007. He received his custom-made CSK fire suit a week later, had his photo taken for the graphics on the side of his transporter, and has gotten to know his crew chiefs and his team. The only thing he hasn't done is make his "official" debut as a member of Worsham Racing, but that is scheduled to take place during qualifying session No. 1, this Thursday, at the Carquest Winternationals in Pomona.
Ready to put all the preseason hoopla and speculation behind him, Arend is simply focused on the task at hand and he's eager to prove himself to both the public and his peers. With one career victory on his record, a Keystone Nationals crown earned back in 1996, Arend has always been seen as a solid driver who just needed a fast car to make his mark. He'll get his chance in 2007.
"I'm so ready to make that first real lap, with real points and real results on the line, it's getting tough to sleep," Arend said. "It's been pretty much a whirlwind since the announcement was made, and then we got to work testing the car and learning to work together, and now I think we're all ready to do it for real. The Checker, Schuck's, Kragen team has a huge fan base, including the more than 12,000 associates who work for CSK, so I know they're all going to be paying attention and checking out the new guy. I plan on not disappointing anybody.
"In Las Vegas and Phoenix, during the two test sessions, I found out pretty fast what it's like to drive a car this quick. We've already made some laps that probably would have been in the 4.69 or 4.70 range had we run it out the back door, and my career best coming into this season is still a 4.79, so it's an obvious step up. I caught up to it fairly quickly, though, and I'm heading to Pomona expecting to run those kinds of numbers."
Although 2007 will mark Arend's 12th year as a professional Funny Car driver, a dearth of sponsorship over that period of time has kept him from racking up the seat time he craves. As point of comparison, Arend enters this weekend's race having competed in exactly 65 rounds of competition since 1995, posting a 15-50 won/lost record along the way. During the same period of time, Arend's teammate Del Worsham has competed in 474 rounds, winning 248 of them. 19 of Worsham's 21 career victories have been earned since Arend became a licensed driver, and all of these numbers add up to one thing for the Canadian native.
"Now you see why I'm so excited to drive this car," Arend said. "I'm joining a team that knows how to win and has the track record to prove it. Maybe things weren't their best last year, but everything I've seen since I joined this organization has been all about winning races. I've spent a lot of years in this sport thinking more in terms of just qualifying for races. Now, I'm with a group of guys who aim to win, not just Round One, but the whole deal, every week. This is what I've always wanted.
"Del's numbers speak for themselves, and they're all you need to know to figure out what a great driver he is. I've always been impressed with how he handles the car and reacts to it, so there's a lot I can learn there. In terms of everything else, though, we share information, we share parts, tune-ups, and anything else we need. My co-crew chiefs, Marc Denner and Chris Cunningham, are very smart guys who know how to run a program and make the car go fast. I expect this season to be an incredible experience, and I expect to win."
If Worsham's career path is any indicator of how Arend's may be about to blossom, the new blue driver should be expanding his mantle space at home, to make room for additional trophies. Like Arend, Worsham won very early in his career when the victories were seen as clear upsets. He then went through a long drought trying to find the Winner's Circle again, finally breaking through eight years later in 1999. Since then, with the expansion to two cars in 2000, Worsham has piled up the hardware.
"Making the move to two cars was obviously a turning point for this team, and since that happened these two CSK cars have been capable of winning on a weekly basis," Arend said. "Del and I both won so early in our careers we probably had no idea just how hard it was, and now I'm where he was back in 1999, wondering when I'll do it again. Once he broke the seal on that drought, he won a lot of races. Being a part of this team, at this point in time, is right where I need to be to do exactly the same thing.
"We'll come out this weekend looking to qualify high and win rounds, and we'll approach every race that same way. I couldn't be in a better place. I just can't wait to get going."
Getting it going will make it "official." Jeff Arend will be a part of the Checker, Schuck's, Kragen racing legacy. Taking it to that next step may just be a matter of time, and the clock starts ticking on Thursday. Building supplies for a new mantle can be found at your neighborhood home improvement store.
AREND SET TO MAKE HIS OFFICIAL TEAM CSK DEBUT
POMONA, Calif. (February 5, 2007) -- Jeff Arend was named the driver of the Checker, Schuck's, Kragen blue car on December 5, 2006. He made his first test lap in the car on January 19, 2007. He received his custom-made CSK fire suit a week later, had his photo taken for the graphics on the side of his transporter, and has gotten to know his crew chiefs and his team. The only thing he hasn't done is make his "official" debut as a member of Worsham Racing, but that is scheduled to take place during qualifying session No. 1, this Thursday, at the Carquest Winternationals in Pomona.
Ready to put all the preseason hoopla and speculation behind him, Arend is simply focused on the task at hand and he's eager to prove himself to both the public and his peers. With one career victory on his record, a Keystone Nationals crown earned back in 1996, Arend has always been seen as a solid driver who just needed a fast car to make his mark. He'll get his chance in 2007.
"I'm so ready to make that first real lap, with real points and real results on the line, it's getting tough to sleep," Arend said. "It's been pretty much a whirlwind since the announcement was made, and then we got to work testing the car and learning to work together, and now I think we're all ready to do it for real. The Checker, Schuck's, Kragen team has a huge fan base, including the more than 12,000 associates who work for CSK, so I know they're all going to be paying attention and checking out the new guy. I plan on not disappointing anybody.
"In Las Vegas and Phoenix, during the two test sessions, I found out pretty fast what it's like to drive a car this quick. We've already made some laps that probably would have been in the 4.69 or 4.70 range had we run it out the back door, and my career best coming into this season is still a 4.79, so it's an obvious step up. I caught up to it fairly quickly, though, and I'm heading to Pomona expecting to run those kinds of numbers."
Although 2007 will mark Arend's 12th year as a professional Funny Car driver, a dearth of sponsorship over that period of time has kept him from racking up the seat time he craves. As point of comparison, Arend enters this weekend's race having competed in exactly 65 rounds of competition since 1995, posting a 15-50 won/lost record along the way. During the same period of time, Arend's teammate Del Worsham has competed in 474 rounds, winning 248 of them. 19 of Worsham's 21 career victories have been earned since Arend became a licensed driver, and all of these numbers add up to one thing for the Canadian native.
"Now you see why I'm so excited to drive this car," Arend said. "I'm joining a team that knows how to win and has the track record to prove it. Maybe things weren't their best last year, but everything I've seen since I joined this organization has been all about winning races. I've spent a lot of years in this sport thinking more in terms of just qualifying for races. Now, I'm with a group of guys who aim to win, not just Round One, but the whole deal, every week. This is what I've always wanted.
"Del's numbers speak for themselves, and they're all you need to know to figure out what a great driver he is. I've always been impressed with how he handles the car and reacts to it, so there's a lot I can learn there. In terms of everything else, though, we share information, we share parts, tune-ups, and anything else we need. My co-crew chiefs, Marc Denner and Chris Cunningham, are very smart guys who know how to run a program and make the car go fast. I expect this season to be an incredible experience, and I expect to win."
If Worsham's career path is any indicator of how Arend's may be about to blossom, the new blue driver should be expanding his mantle space at home, to make room for additional trophies. Like Arend, Worsham won very early in his career when the victories were seen as clear upsets. He then went through a long drought trying to find the Winner's Circle again, finally breaking through eight years later in 1999. Since then, with the expansion to two cars in 2000, Worsham has piled up the hardware.
"Making the move to two cars was obviously a turning point for this team, and since that happened these two CSK cars have been capable of winning on a weekly basis," Arend said. "Del and I both won so early in our careers we probably had no idea just how hard it was, and now I'm where he was back in 1999, wondering when I'll do it again. Once he broke the seal on that drought, he won a lot of races. Being a part of this team, at this point in time, is right where I need to be to do exactly the same thing.
"We'll come out this weekend looking to qualify high and win rounds, and we'll approach every race that same way. I couldn't be in a better place. I just can't wait to get going."
Getting it going will make it "official." Jeff Arend will be a part of the Checker, Schuck's, Kragen racing legacy. Taking it to that next step may just be a matter of time, and the clock starts ticking on Thursday. Building supplies for a new mantle can be found at your neighborhood home improvement store.
