TOLIVER'S DAY ENDS EARLY AT THE MOPAR MILE-HIGH NATIONALS
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MORRISON, Colo. (July 13, 2008) – Rockstar Energy Drink Dodge R/T Funny Car driver Jerry Toliver always goes into race day with plenty of enthusiasm, but this season has been tough for the guy with the perennial upbeat personality. Toliver was eliminated in the first round at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals today, the first time the pro nitro cars raced to a 1000-ft. finish line in NHRA history. Cruz Pedregon took him out after tire smoke slowed the Rockstar Energy Drink car.
Pedregon had a slight lead off the starting line (.070 to .094 reaction time - .000 is perfect) and Toliver began to track him down when the Rockstar Energy Drink car lost traction. Toliver tried to recover, but his 4.648-second elapsed time at 209.17 mph wasn't enough to catch Pedregon's winning 4.293/284.62.
"The Rockstar Energy Drink car left the starting line slow and Cruz was going by me before it smoked the tires," explained Toliver, who moved up to 15th in the point standings. "Like I've said most of the season, we've got to get this car moving quicker faster. We really need to address that problem. The Rockstar Energy Drink car pulled the front wheels up again and smoked the tires and it was over.
"The race track was tricky. Three or four cars smoked the tires in front of us; we weren't the only guys out there having that problem. On the next run my teammate Gary Scelzi got down the same lane we were in and Tony Pedregon smoked the tires in the left lane. This is a very tricky track and it's hard to take what happens here and apply it to anything else you're doing on any other track.
"We'll take our loss and move on to Seattle and turn this deal around. This is a good team with a great sponsor and a great bunch of guys. I'm not just saying that; these guys are fantastic. Phil Shuler (crew chief) is pulling his hair out right now and so am I, but we're not giving up by any means. We're going to fight on."
The next race for Toliver and the Rockstar Energy Drink team will be the 21st annual NHRA Nationals in Seattle, Wash., July 18-20.
FUNNY CAR POINT STANDINGS (Unofficial)
1. Tim Wilkerson, 978 (winner today)
2. Robert Hight, 763
3. Tony Pedregon, 750
4. Ashley Force, 739
5. Cruz Pedregon, 720
6. John Force, 695
7. Ron Capps, 632
Gary Densham, 632
9. Mike Neff, 600
10. Jack Beckman, 530 (runner-up today)
13. Gary Scelzi, 491
15. Jerry Toliver, 414
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MORRISON, Colo. (July 13, 2008) – Rockstar Energy Drink Dodge R/T Funny Car driver Jerry Toliver always goes into race day with plenty of enthusiasm, but this season has been tough for the guy with the perennial upbeat personality. Toliver was eliminated in the first round at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals today, the first time the pro nitro cars raced to a 1000-ft. finish line in NHRA history. Cruz Pedregon took him out after tire smoke slowed the Rockstar Energy Drink car.
Pedregon had a slight lead off the starting line (.070 to .094 reaction time - .000 is perfect) and Toliver began to track him down when the Rockstar Energy Drink car lost traction. Toliver tried to recover, but his 4.648-second elapsed time at 209.17 mph wasn't enough to catch Pedregon's winning 4.293/284.62.
"The Rockstar Energy Drink car left the starting line slow and Cruz was going by me before it smoked the tires," explained Toliver, who moved up to 15th in the point standings. "Like I've said most of the season, we've got to get this car moving quicker faster. We really need to address that problem. The Rockstar Energy Drink car pulled the front wheels up again and smoked the tires and it was over.
"The race track was tricky. Three or four cars smoked the tires in front of us; we weren't the only guys out there having that problem. On the next run my teammate Gary Scelzi got down the same lane we were in and Tony Pedregon smoked the tires in the left lane. This is a very tricky track and it's hard to take what happens here and apply it to anything else you're doing on any other track.
"We'll take our loss and move on to Seattle and turn this deal around. This is a good team with a great sponsor and a great bunch of guys. I'm not just saying that; these guys are fantastic. Phil Shuler (crew chief) is pulling his hair out right now and so am I, but we're not giving up by any means. We're going to fight on."
The next race for Toliver and the Rockstar Energy Drink team will be the 21st annual NHRA Nationals in Seattle, Wash., July 18-20.
FUNNY CAR POINT STANDINGS (Unofficial)
1. Tim Wilkerson, 978 (winner today)
2. Robert Hight, 763
3. Tony Pedregon, 750
4. Ashley Force, 739
5. Cruz Pedregon, 720
6. John Force, 695
7. Ron Capps, 632
Gary Densham, 632
9. Mike Neff, 600
10. Jack Beckman, 530 (runner-up today)
13. Gary Scelzi, 491
15. Jerry Toliver, 414
