Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Sportsman star Mia Tedesco ready to shine in her home state

READING, Pa. (Sept. 27) -- It should come as no surprise that Pennsylvania native Mia Tedesco loves racing in her home state.

The up-and-coming NHRA racer gets a rare chance to race in the Keystone State when she competes in Top Alcohol Dragster and Super Gas during the Dodge NHRA Nationals this weekend at Maple Grove Raceway.

Tedesco, who lives in Pittsburgh, will drive the CARS Protection Plus/Schepel Motors/NGK/Lucas Oil Top Alcohol Dragster and the CARS Protection Plus/VP Racing Fuels Super Gas Chevrolet Cavalier in Reading.

"It doesn't happen very often, so it's pretty cool when we do get to race in Pennsylvania," Tedesco said. "It's neat. The weather doesn't look that good, but Reading isn't too far from home. My family will be there, and I definitely like Reading a lot. We've had a lot of success there."

Tedesco raced to the final round in TAD in 2015, and Tedesco Racing teammate Jason Lynch has won the last two national events in Super Gas in Reading. It's no wonder she loves racing here.

"Sometimes you just find a track that you like," Tedesco said. "It's weird. Jason and I both will be like, 'This is a track we really like.' Jason has won Super Gas two years in a row, and I lost in the finals of Alcohol last year. And the year before that, I went the fastest of the whole season.

"It's just been a track we seem to have a lot of success at, and we really like it. We hope to continue the success."

Tedesco cherishes the chance to race in front of her parents, Mike and Cindy, as well as other family and friends, and they should get to see her go as fast as she has gone all season, especially in the dragster. That's because Reading is usually run in cooler fall temperatures in the Northeast, which translates to higher speeds.

"It's going to be in the high 60s, so cooler, better air," Tedesco said. "Just like the nitro cars, the Alcohol cars respond the same way to that weather."
Mia Tedesco gets a rare chance to race in the Keystone State when she competes in Top Alcohol Dragster and Super Gas during the Dodge NHRA Nationals this weekend in Reading, Pa.
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Monday, September 19, 2016

Jason Lynch charges to Super Gas victory at NHRA Carolina Nationals


CHARLOTTE (Sept. 18) -- Talented Sportsman racer Jason Lynch added another entry to his stellar résumé after racing to victory at the NHRA Carolina Nationals on Sunday at zMax Dragway.

Lynch, 41, drove the CARS Protection Plus/VP Racing Fuels Oldsmobile Cutlass to a win in Super Gas, notching his fifth career national event title and fourth in the class. He was able to hoist the Wally trophy in front of the Charlotte crowd after beating Jim Perry in the final round.

"They're all special, for sure," Lynch said. "As hard as it is to win nowadays, any time you can win one it's a good time. I rank this one right up there with all of them just because it's not getting easier to win -- it's getting harder. In the Sportsman classes, everybody is good and can drive, so it seems like it's getting tougher and tougher every year."

The veteran racer from Pleasant View, Tenn., knows exactly how tough the Sportsman classes can be. He finished second at the national event in Brainerd, Minn., on Aug. 21, then made it to the final four cars at the U.S. Nationals two weeks ago.

"I got lucky a few times," Lynch said of the Charlotte win. "In this class, it takes a lot of luck. We made some good runs, and things just fell my way. I got close in the last two national events, and I was glad I could finish this time."

Racing as a teammate to up-and-coming star Mia Tedesco, Lynch edged Ray Sawyer in a double-breakout semifinal race before dispatching Perry in the final round. Perry, who beat Tedesco in the final here in April, had a .024-second reaction time and a 9.923 pass on the 9.90 index, but Lynch was slightly better with a .029 reaction and a run only .009-second over the index. The margin of victory was .009-second.

"It's cool," Lynch said. "I've never won here, so that was a plus. We've had real good luck here the past couple of years as a team. Mia won here in March 2015, so it was good."

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Sunday, September 18, 2016

Mixed results for Sportsman star Mia Tedesco at Charlotte national event


CHARLOTTE (Sept. 18) -- Sportsman star Mia Tedesco will be happy to get out of the Carolinas summertime heat.

With the temperature and humidity rising Sunday for the NHRA Carolina Nationals, teams had to face a recalcitrant racetrack, and many, including some of the top pros, had trouble making good runs. Tedesco's was no different, and it didn't help that her CARS Protection Plus/Schepel Motors/NGK/Lucas Oil Top Alcohol Dragster was a little down on power in her second-round race Sunday.

"It's tough out there," Tedesco said after falling to Duane Shields. "You see all the Top Fuel guys going out there smoking the tires, not able to make it down. To see all that and know that it's hot and it's not ideal conditions, you try to compensate for that, but it's hard sometimes. We did the best that we could, and we'll try to get them next time."

Tedesco left first against Shields, but she knew immediately something was amiss. Her pass of 5.544 seconds at 267.85 mph wasn't enough to hold off Shields' 5.365-second run at 274.50 mph despite a .047-second advantage on the Christmas Tree.

"I felt like when it left I knew it had at least a hole out because it didn't really want to move," Tedesco said. "I felt like I hit the Tree, too, and that's exactly what happened. It had a hole out at the hit, didn't leave, and he made a good run. I beat him on the Tree but it wasn't enough that time. It just wasn't a good run."

Tedesco had scored her first holeshot victory in TAD in a first-round victory, and she drove well in all three rounds of Super Gas this weekend. Her CARS Protection Plus/VP Racing Fuels Super Gas Chevrolet Cavalier eventually broke out in a third-round race late Saturday night.

"We were close on the Tree, and I broke out," Tedesco said. "I was going faster than I thought I was and it was just a good race. We're happy with that, and we were having fun. We're going to keep on racing and try to go rounds next time."

Tedesco and Ray Miller III had nearly identical reaction times (.013 for Miller and .019 for Tedesco), but she was .012 under the 9.9-second Super Gas index, giving Miller the win. His package was good, as he made a 9.910-second pass to advance to the fourth round.

Tedesco and her team will take a weekend off before racing at the national event at Maple Grove Raceway, Sept. 29-Oct. 2.
Mia Tedesco's CARS Protection Plus/Schepel Motors/NGK/Lucas Oil Top Alcohol Dragster was a little down on power in her second-round race Sunday at the NHRA Carolina Nationals.
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Saturday, September 17, 2016

Mia Tedesco shows off driving skills in two Sportsman classes in Charlotte

CHARLOTTE (Sept. 17) -- Mia Tedesco showed why she is an emerging star in the world of NHRA drag racing on Saturday.

Tedesco won on a holeshot in the first round of Top Alcohol Dragster and posted a combined reaction time of .025-second over her first two rounds of Super Gas at the NHRA Carolina Nationals in Charlotte.

Tedesco earned the victory in her CARS Protection Plus/Schepel Motors/NGK/Lucas Oil Top Alcohol Dragster on skill behind the wheel. She left with a .025-second reaction time and then had to pedal the car mid-track. Tedesco recovered and made a pass of 5.469 seconds at 271.79 mph that overcame Josh Hart's 5.435-second run at 257.87 mph.

"That's my first one, something I've been trying to do for a really long time," Tedesco said of the TAD holeshot victory. "After losing on a holeshot last weekend, to come back and get my first one feels really good.

"The car shook, I pedaled it, and it wasn't pretty but my win light came on, and that's all we're looking for at the end of the day."

The win advanced her to the second round against Duane Shields, the No. 2 qualifier, who knocked off Tom Fox Jr. the first round.

"The car has been all right," Tedesco said. "We made one good run (in qualifying), then shook the tires and smoked them, so we're just trying to get dialed in. My guys will get there."

Tedesco also had a good start with her CARS Protection Plus/VP Racing Fuels Super Gas Chevrolet Cavalier. She ripped off an .008 light in a first-round victory over Pat Martin and then had a .017 reaction time against Donnie Gibbs Jr.

Tedesco needed a good light in the second round because her Cavalier ran .042-second over the 9.90 index, compared to Gibbs' .021-second effort.

A third-round run in Super Gas was slated for late Saturday night.
Mia Tedesco won on a holeshot in the first round of Top Alcohol Dragster and posted a combined reaction time of .025-second over her first two rounds of Super Gas at the NHRA Carolina Nationals.
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Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Driving in two Sportsman classes is a rush for star Mia Tedesco

CHARLOTTE (Sept. 14) -- Sportsman star Mia Tedesco hopes to be rushed during the NHRA Carolina Nationals this weekend in Charlotte. Tedesco will again pull double duty at the national event, driving the CARS Protection Plus/Schepel Motors/NGK/Lucas Oil Top Alcohol Dragster and CARS Protection Plus/VP Racing Fuels Super Gas Chevrolet Cavalier.

"Charlotte has treated me well these past two years," Tedesco said. "I really like it here. You always kind hope that you're rushed to change and run both classes because that means you did well in both. The goal would be to be rushed and have to jump from car to car."

Despite driving in two distinctly different classes, Tedesco has been rushed from one car to another "plenty of times" in her young career. It has happened so much that the 22-year-old has gotten used to the rush of going from one to the other.

"That happens quite often actually," Tedesco said. "It isn't a problem until you start going rounds in both classes. At the St. Louis divisional, I made it to the semi's of Super Gas and won (Top) Alcohol (Dragster), and there was a point where they called Alcohol and Super Gas to the lanes at the same time. I ran up there and said, 'Which one do you want to go in?' "

She chose the dragster, made the run in the longer car, then hurried back after changing and drove the Super Gas car, but it has happened before.

"It's crazy, for sure," Tedesco said. "There will be times when I race Alcohol and there will be somebody waiting for me at the top end, and they fly me back to the motorhome, where I'll change and fly me to the lanes. My car's already in the lanes waiting for me.

"I'm used to it and really like it. I grew up bracket racing, and you're used to racing all day from car to car. I like it."

It's not a simple matter to go from one car to the other, as Tedesco wears a different firesuit for each and it takes time to get ready for each car.

"Everything changes," Tedesco said. "The procedure is different, the uniform is different. In the Alcohol car, I wear a one-piece Stand 21 21-layer suit with Nomex underneath. I wear heavy gloves, a Hybrid (head-and-neck restraint), a Top Fuel-type helmet from Stand 21, racing shoes. In my Super Gas car, I just wear a two-piece, five-layer suit, my Hybrid, helmet, and gloves."

Could she have to hurry from one car to another in Charlotte? She hopes so.

"It's always likely, depending on how everything goes," Tedesco said. "It depends on how NHRA decides to call them and the schedule and how it plays out. In Charlotte last year when I won at the Four-Wide race, I made it to the semi's in Super Gas and won Alcohol. They called them both at the same time, and you have to run and make it work somehow."
Sportsman star Mia Tedesco will again pull double duty at the NHRA Carolina Nationals this weekend in Charlotte, driving the CARS Protection Plus/Schepel Motors/NGK/Lucas Oil Top Alcohol Dragster (above) and CARS Protection Plus/VP Racing Fuels Super Gas Chevrolet Cavalier (below).
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Monday, September 5, 2016

Semifinal finish for Mia Tedesco has CARS Protection Plus Top Alcohol team feeling good

INDIANAPOLIS (Sept. 5) -- A strong semifinal run at the 62nd annual U.S. Nationals in her CARS Protection Plus/Schepel Motors/NGK/Lucas Oil Top Alcohol Dragster has Mia Tredesco and her teammates feeling pretty good about themselves. Sure they would have liked to win the sport's biggest race, but getting down to the final four in a superstar field of drivers is quite an accomplishment.

"A semifinal finish at Indy, the U.S. Nationals, that's a pretty big deal," Tedesco said. "It's probably way better than we could have hoped for coming in, but at the same time we had the quickest car in qualifying, so you're always a little disappointed when you don't close it out."

After beating Ken Perry and world champ Chris Demke in the first two rounds of eliminations of Sunday, Tedesco faced Dan Page early Sunday afternoon with a berth in the final on the line. Although she ran a quicker elapsed time -- 5.343 at 272.45 mph to Page's 5.356 at 272.06 mph -- Tedesco came up just short thanks to Page's .031-second reaction-time advantage at the starting line.

"I'm disappointed that I let my team down, but it is what it is," Tedesco said. "The car made a good run and we figured some things out this weekend, so overall we can be happy, but whenever you get beat on a holeshot it stings a little.

"We've just to work as a team and keep doing what we're doing. I think we got a lot of stuff figured out this weekend, and I feel good going into Charlotte now after this performance."

Tedesco and crew will take a weekend off before heading to the ninth annual NHRA Carolina Nationals, Sept. 16-18, at zMax Dragway in the Charlotte suburb of Concord, N.C.
A strong semifinal run at the U.S. Nationals in her CARS Protection Plus/Schepel Motors/NGK/Lucas Oil Top Alcohol Dragster has Mia Tredesco and her team feeling pretty good about themselves.
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Sunday, September 4, 2016

Star in the making Mia Tedesco two rounds away from U.S. Nationals glory

INDIANAPOLIS (Sept. 4) -- To be the best, you have to beat the best, and Top Alcohol Dragster upstart Mia Tedesco did exactly that Sunday afternoon, taking out 2014 world champion Chris Demke in the second round of eliminations to advance to the final four of the 62nd annual Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals.

Needing a big pass after a pedestrian opening-round clocking of just 5.565 against Ken Perry, which gave Demke lane choice in the quarterfinals, Tedesco responded with a massive .108-second reaction-time advantage that helped her lead the champ from start to finish. Her 5.289 at 273.72 mph in the CARS Protection Plus/Schepel Motors/NGK/Lucas Oil injected dragster sealed the deal ahead of Demke's 5.345 at 273.16 mph.

"Chris Demke is one of the best out there and he's always going to make a good run," said Tedesco, who had never beaten Demke in three previous matchups. "He's usually going to kill the Tree and they rarely make mistakes with their setup, so to get by someone like him is a real honor.

"We knew we needed to make a good run, we knew we needed to go after it, and that's what we did. Thankfully it worked and we advanced."

As the No. 1 qualifier, Tedesco faced Perry in Round 1 and was given the win on a red-light foul by her opponent. Perry was a .098-second early while Tedesco cruised to a leisurely 5.565 at 253.28 mph.

"In that first-round race we put a hole (cylinder) out at the step, and it felt like it wasn't running really good at all," said Tedesco, only the second woman in history to qualify No. 1 in TAD at this event. "Thankfully he went red, so it didn't really matter. We got by Ken, brought the car back, tried to get everything fixed, and got it put together in time to come up with a new game plan against Chris."

Tedesco will now face Dan Page, who ran a 5.334 at 272.17 mph in his quarterfinal win over Bill Litton. Tedesco will have lane choice in her race against Page.

"We're going to keep taking it one round at a time and really we are only running ourselves," she said. "If we can make a good, solid lap, that should do it. That's the game plan. Just go up there, make good laps every run, try to do the best that we can, and if the win light comes on, then it was meant to be our day."

In Super Gas action, Tedesco raced her CARS Protection Plus/VP Racing Fuels Chevrolet Cavalier to Round 4 before losing a razor-close race to Alan Bush. Both drivers left with identical .016-second reaction times and stayed side by side all the way down the quarter-mile, but Tedesco arrived one-thousandth of a second ahead of the 9.90 index, handing the victory to Bush, who posted a 9.904 at 163.31 mph.

"I'm not hanging my head at all," Tedesco said. "That run against Alan wins the majority of races. We're both .016 on the Tree, I take 5 thou, breakout by a thou. That's just racing, nothing to be upset about. If I do that every round, I would normally win. You know, Alan Bush is such a good competitor and he always makes good runs and I knew that going in. It was just a good race."
Top Alcohol Dragster upstart Mia Tedesco took out 2014 world champion Chris Demke in the second round of eliminations to advance to the final four of the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals.
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Saturday, September 3, 2016

Mia Tedesco charges to the top of Top Alcohol class at drag racing's premier race

INDIANAPOLIS (Sept. 3) -- It only took Mia Tedesco 5.244 seconds to make her mark at the 62nd annual Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals when she roared down Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis at a top speed of 276.75 mph to assume the No. 1 qualifier spot in Top Alcohol Dragster.

It was a true zero-to-hero moment for the upstart driver from Pittsburgh, who was literally last on the timing sheet heading into the fourth and final time trial, but her Dave Hirata-tuned CARS Protection Plus/Schepel Motors/NGK/Lucas Oil dragster was flawless in her last pass, sending a loud and clear message to the rest of the field.

"I'm definitely happy with that run," Tedesco said. "We've been working on some stuff, trying to work out some bugs that have been popping up. We found something yesterday but didn't have the greatest of runs yesterday or this morning.

"Round 4 we came out and knew we had to swing for the fence because everyone was going pretty quick this morning and that's exactly what we did. It's the U.S. Nationals. You can't really baby it. You have to go for it every round and in Q4 it worked out, so it was a good day."

Tedesco remains alive in both categories she's racing at Indy, as her CARS Protection Plus/VP Racing Fuels Chevrolet Cavalier has already carried her to three elimination round-wins in Super Gas.

"I feel good in both cars," she said. "I feel good in the Super Gas car and in the alcohol dragster. I'm just trying to stay relaxed and do what I know to do and have fun doing it."

Super Gas could continue as early at 8 a.m., Sunday, with Top Alcohol Dragster eliminations beginning at 9:45 a.m. Round 2 of TAD is slated for 2:30 p.m.

"The game plan is to just go round by round," Tedesco said. "We plan to do whatever we have to do to win, and that means getting the cars to go down under power and make good runs. We actually had to change motors today because in the earlier qualifying run we blew one up. So we'll have a new motor tomorrow, new everything, and start the day out fresh. Like I said, I'm just going to go round by round, be smart, and just try to get down the track."
Mia Tedesco ran a 5.244 with her CARS Protection Plus/Schepel Motors/NGK/Lucas Oil dragster to assume the No. 1 qualifier spot in Top Alcohol Dragster at the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals.
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