Ohio Racer Mark Pawuk Reunites with Summit Racing at Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals
NORWALK, Ohio (June 24, 2022) – Before he became a championship challenger in the Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown Series, Mark Pawuk enjoyed a long and successful NHRA career in the Pro Stock category. He competed in the doorslammer class from 1985 through 2006, banking six national event wins in the process.
Pawuk received support from Summit Racing Equipment for 15 years as both a primary and associate partner in Pro Stock, and today it was announced that Summit Racing joined Pawuk’s Empaco Equipment Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak operation as an associate partner.
Beginning with this weekend’s Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio, the familiar red, white, and blue Summit Racing logo will again adorn a Pawuk-piloted machine. The event hosts the fifth of eight Factory Stock Showdown Series races in 2022.
“Summit Racing was a major sponsor of mine for 15 years in the Pro Stock class, and I’m glad we’re able to team up again,” said Pawuk. “It’s an honor for me to have the opportunity to once again represent a company that was so supportive in helping me reach a high level of success in my Pro Stock career.”
A resident of Akron, Pawuk is especially proud of his Ohio roots.
“I grew up in northeastern Ohio and Summit Racing Motorsports Park in Norwalk was one of the tracks I used to race at weekend bracket racing in the mid-1970s,” he explained. “With Summit Racing headquartered in Tallmadge, which is about 30 minutes from where I live, it feels like a full circle moment for me. To be an Ohio-based racer with an Ohio-based company backing me at a track that helped launch my drag racing career, it’s just a great feeling. I’m looking forward to carrying the red, white, and blue Summit Racing banner again.”
Pawuk has been a strong contender in the Factory Stock Showdown Series since entering the class as a member of Don Schumacher Racing during the 2018 season. He has powered to three runner-up finishes and three poles, including his most recent No. 1 qualifier at the Gainesville, Florida event earlier this season.
Pawuk has yet to visit the winner’s circle since returning to the NHRA scene, but he has positioned himself as a bona-fide threat in the category. He has finished in the Top 10 for the past two years in a class which often draws between 20-to-30 entrants per event, including an FSS career-best third place finish in 2020.
“Our team is long overdue for a win,” said Pawuk, who enters the race weekend ranked 10th in the Factory Stock Showdown Series standings. “To get that first one this weekend in Norwalk with Summit Racing back on board would be the perfect way to kick off this new chapter in our relationship.”
“We are thrilled to be partnering with Mark again,” said Jim Greenleaf, Motorsports & Events Manager, Summit Racing Equipment. “He was a fierce competitor in Pro Stock, one of the toughest classes in drag racing, and a great representative for Summit Racing. The skills he gained in Pro Stock make him a standout in the Factory Stock Showdown Series and we’re proud to have our colors on the Empaco Equipment Dodge Challenger Drag Pak. We look forward to a winning partnership.”
Mark Pawuk and the Empaco Equipment Dodge Challenger Mopar Drag Pak team begin qualifying for this weekend’s Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Summit Motorsports Park on Friday, June 24 at 3:30 p.m. ET.
About Summit Racing Equipment
Summit Racing Equipment has been the World’s Speed Shop® for over 50 years! Summit Racing is the world’s largest e-commerce, mail order, and retailer of performance automotive parts and accessories. Summit Racing offers a huge selection of parts in stock from over 1,500 manufacturers for all forms of racing, street performance, off-roading, restoration, and tools. It also offers fast ground service shipping to most areas of the country and same-day shipping on in-stock items. Summit Racing has the industry’s top-rated customer service and a full-time technical department to answer your questions. With headquarters in Tallmadge, Ohio, Summit operates distribution and retail stores in Tallmadge, Sparks, NV, McDonough, GA, and Arlington, TX.About Don Schumacher Racing
Established in 1998, Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) has grown to become the winningest organization in NHRA Drag Racing history, and further cemented its position as one of motorsports’ elite teams when it surpassed the ‘350 wins’ milestone during the 2020 season. DSR owns 19 world championships in three different NHRA categories and including hall-of-fame team owner Don Schumacher’s five NHRA Funny Car triumphs from the 1970s, DSR has been successful in capturing 366 national event victories overall.Headquartered in Brownsburg, Indiana, DSR campaigns the Maynard Family/Scag Power Equipment Top Fuel dragster in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series with fan-favorite Tony Schumacher at the helm. As an eight-time world champion and 85-time NHRA national event winner, Schumacher is the most decorated Top Fuel driver of all time.
DSR also campaigns three entries in the Factory Stock Showdown Series. The trio of DSR Dodge Drag Paks is piloted by former Pro Stock racer Mark Pawuk, David Davies, who made his NHRA debut with DSR in 2021, and Warren Walcher, who is set to compete in his first full FSS season in 2022.
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