Bob Tasca III
Motorcraft/Quick Lane Tire & Auto Center Ford Shelby Mustang
Nitro Funny Car class
NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series
50th Annual Kragen O’Reilly NHRA Winternationals
Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in Pomona, CA
February 11-14, 2010
Race 1 of 23
BOB TASCA III AND MOTORCRAFT/QUICK LANE FORD SHELBY MUSTANG REACH SEMI-FINALS AT 50TH ANNUAL WINTERNATIONALS
Pomona, CA., February 14, 2010 – On the golden anniversary of the NHRA Winternationals, Bob Tasca III and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Shelby Mustang team hoped to go four rounds and earn their third career win. The team’s chances for victory ended with a semi-final loss to Ron Capps.
Piloting his new 2010 Shelby Mustang body, Tasca and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Racing team had a trying weekend up until the final qualifying session on Saturday afternoon. Sitting on the bump spot, Tasca ran low ET of the round with a 4.075-second pass at 306.88 miles per hour.
Bob Tasca III and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Shelby Mustang were confident heading into Sunday’s elimination rounds. Tasca had two solid first rounds of competition and defeated Melanie Troxel and Matt Hagan.
Tasca met Capps in the semi-finals and smoked the tires right off the line.
“We made a mistake; it was an oversight,” said Tasca. “Chris [Cunningham, crew chief] wanted to put a set of scuffed tires on the Shelby Mustang because the track was still hot. We didn’t want to put a new set on, so we rolled a set out that we had. They were the tires from the Pomona race in November. They were old rubber and did not react the way we expected. The car should not have done what it did.”
Despite not walking away with the win, Tasca and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team will leave Pomona in third position heading into Phoenix next weekend.
“We can take a step back and see that we’ve come a long way in the off season,” said Tasca. “We came out here and did well. I’ve got a big smile on my face and the team has big smile on their faces. We’ll roll into Phoenix with similar conditions, so there is no reason why we can’t win Phoenix.”
John Force won the 50th Annual Kragen O’Reilly NHRA Winternationals.
“Congratulations to John Force and his entire team. It is fitting that he won the 50th NHRA Winternationals,” said Tasca. “Obviously if I can’t win, I’d love to see another Ford win. John is the hero of the sport; he’s been my hero growing up in drag racing. I’m happy to see him get the season started off with a win.”
NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Points
1. John Force, 121; 2. Ron Capps, 94; 3. Bob Tasca III; 78; 4. Jack Beckman, 74; 5. Del Worsham, 59; 6. Matt Hagan, 57; 7. Ashley Force Hood, 56; 8. Cruz Pedregon, 51; 9. Robert Hight, 43; 10t. Tony Pedregon and Jim Head, 33.
Motorcraft/Quick Lane Racing on the Web
Twitter – http://www.twitter.com/MQL_Racing
Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/MQLRacing
Flickr – http://www.flickr.com/photos/motorcraftquicklaneracing/
About Motorcraft
Motorcraft® offers a complete line of original equipment-approved parts that are recommended and approved by Ford Motor Company. From routine maintenance to underhood repairs, Motorcraft parts offer exceptional value with the highest quality and right fit at competitive prices. Motorcraft parts are available locally and are backed nationwide by Ford Motor Company’s Service Parts Limited Warranty. For more information, visit www.motorcraft.com.
About Quick Lane Tire & Auto Centers
Quick Lane® provides automotive quick services for all makes and models. Quick Lane’s nationwide network will surpass 600 facilities, each providing the convenience of an aftermarket company (no appointment necessary, service while you wait, evening and weekend hours, competitive prices) with the confidence of a major automotive manufacturer (quality parts, factory-trained technicians). Quick Lane® is a registered trademark of Ford Motor Company. For more information, visit www.quicklane.com.
About Fordparts.com
Fordparts.com allows customers to shop for, order and receive original equipment parts. Fordparts.com enables customers to remain connected to a Ford or Lincoln Mercury dealership of their choice for the parts expertise, personal delivery assistance, and post-sale follow-up associated with a traditional purchase at a parts counter. The user functionality and convenience of the website is for individual “do-it-yourselfers” who service and repair their vehicles themselves, to fleet managers purchasing parts for a company’s fleet of vehicles, to a repair shop or “installer” purchasing parts on behalf of a customer visiting their facility for automotive service. For more information, visit www.fordparts.com.
About Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents. With about 200,000 employees and about 90 plants worldwide, the company’s brands include Ford, Lincoln, Mercury and Volvo. The company provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company. For more information regarding Ford’s products, please visit www.ford.com.
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