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LAS VEGAS (April 12, 2008) - For the first time in this 2008 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series season since joining Don Schumacher Racing, Jerry Toliver failed to qualify for a national event.
It was a tough go for the driver of the Rockstar Energy Drink Dodge Charger R/T. His first pass of 6.017 seconds at 164.87 mph was good for No. 12 at the time, but his subsequent passes and a stellar field of competitors, kept him at the bottom of the roster, including a 14th-place 4.970/195.46, a 5.974/163.47 (DNQ), and finally a 4.998/302.89, a hair short of making it into the 16-car field.
"Any time you DNQ at a drag race it's a huge emotional letdown for the driver, the team, everybody," said Toliver. "Everybody works way too hard and puts way too many hours in this thing to come out here with all the best parts and all the best resources and all the right financing. Everything is right here and we just missed it. We had a bad weekend.
"There was no one thing we could point out that was wrong," he continued. "We couldn't get the car down the race track. We fought with the race track, and it spun the tires. It just did everything wrong it could do.
"We got bumped out in the last round by a thou (a thousandth of a second) and unfortunately that's it. It's hard. It's just difficult for everybody and there are no words to say except you pick up and you move from here and you keep moving forward.
"We're going to test here on Monday and Tuesday and try to make this Rockstar Energy drink Dodge better. This Rockstar team is a great team, with good guys, great sponsor. We'll get in our groove; we'll be good.
"It's not like we're in bad company," he said of joining John Force on the DNQ list, "but it's never good company to be on the DNQ side.
Next up for Toliver is the NHRA Southern Nationals in Commerce, Ga., April 25-27.
TOLIVER FAILS TO QUALIFY IN VEGAS
LAS VEGAS (April 12, 2008) - For the first time in this 2008 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series season since joining Don Schumacher Racing, Jerry Toliver failed to qualify for a national event.
It was a tough go for the driver of the Rockstar Energy Drink Dodge Charger R/T. His first pass of 6.017 seconds at 164.87 mph was good for No. 12 at the time, but his subsequent passes and a stellar field of competitors, kept him at the bottom of the roster, including a 14th-place 4.970/195.46, a 5.974/163.47 (DNQ), and finally a 4.998/302.89, a hair short of making it into the 16-car field.
"Any time you DNQ at a drag race it's a huge emotional letdown for the driver, the team, everybody," said Toliver. "Everybody works way too hard and puts way too many hours in this thing to come out here with all the best parts and all the best resources and all the right financing. Everything is right here and we just missed it. We had a bad weekend.
"There was no one thing we could point out that was wrong," he continued. "We couldn't get the car down the race track. We fought with the race track, and it spun the tires. It just did everything wrong it could do.
"We got bumped out in the last round by a thou (a thousandth of a second) and unfortunately that's it. It's hard. It's just difficult for everybody and there are no words to say except you pick up and you move from here and you keep moving forward.
"We're going to test here on Monday and Tuesday and try to make this Rockstar Energy drink Dodge better. This Rockstar team is a great team, with good guys, great sponsor. We'll get in our groove; we'll be good.
"It's not like we're in bad company," he said of joining John Force on the DNQ list, "but it's never good company to be on the DNQ side.
Next up for Toliver is the NHRA Southern Nationals in Commerce, Ga., April 25-27.
