Consistency Name of The Game for Wilkerson
Posted by: Nicole Erickson
Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park is one of the few tracks where veteran driver Tim Wilkerson has not won a prestigious NHRA Wally. This weekend as the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series comes to Phoenix for the CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Nationals, Wilkerson hopes to cross this track off his list.
At the first race of the year, the driver of the Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Shelby Mustang qualified in the top half of the field going 3.962-seconds at 320.28 mph, but was disappointed to go out in the first round of eliminations.
“We had a very consistent race car in Pomona. We qualified in the No.8 spot, but we just didn’t close the deal on race day. I ended up smoking the tires and that really frustrated me,” said Wilkerson. “I’m confident in our set-up and I’m happy with how the car is running. We want to continue that momentum and have an even quicker car in Phoenix.”
While the team did test at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park just a few weeks ago, Wilkerson points out the team cannot rely on all the same data to tune the Levi, Ray & Shoup Funny Car.
“Last time we were here the temperatures barely reached the 60’s making the track a little tricky. This weekend is expected to be drastically different from testing; we are looking at sunny and 80 degrees,” explained Wilkerson. “But my team is optimistic with the track conditions at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park. Over the last few years, NHRA has done a much better job preparing the track surface to improve our performances.”
Fans at home can watch all the action from the CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Nationals on FOX Sports 1. An hour of qualifying coverage will air Saturday night at 10 p.m. EST. On Sunday, FOX Sports 1 presents live coverage of eliminations starting at 5 p.m. EST.
CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Nationals Schedule (Mountain Standard Time)
Friday, February 26
Nitro Qualifying Q1: 2:00 p.m.
Nitro Qualifying Q2: 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, February 27
Nitro Qualifying Q3: 2:00 p.m.
Nitro Qualifying Q4: 4:30 p.m.
Sunday, February 28
Driver Introductions: 10:15 a.m.
Round 1 Eliminations: 11:00 a.m.
Follow Tim Wilkerson Racing on Social Media for race updates:
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Twitter: @TeamWilkerson
Instagram: @TimWilkersonRacing