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Allen Johnson Picks Up First Number One Qualifier of 2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge Chase in Denver

Jul 26, 2011

Allen Johnson grabbed his second pole in a row at Bandimere Speedway

It certainly wasn't easy and didn't come right out of the box, but NHRA Pro Stock Driver Allen Johnson showed during the second day of qualifying during the Mopar NHRA Mile High Nationals, that he and his team have got what it takes for high-altitude tuning when they grabbed their second pole in a row at the event.

NHRA Pro Stock Driver Allen Johnson at Mopar NHRA Mile High Nationals

Pro Stock qualifying for the Bandimere Speedway event was dominated during the first day of activities by eventual event champion, K&N's Mike Edwards after he made the quickest passes of both sessions one and two to hang on to the number one position, at least overnight. Johnson struggled during the first session, pushing the clutch in early and coasted to a 9.249. In session two, Johnson and his team looked more like themselves when they made a serious threat to steal away the number one from Edwards, but they would have to wait until Saturday to make that happen.

Saturday was a whole new ballgame for the driver from Tennessee. During the third session, Johnson jumped up to grab the number one spot, just edging Edwards by five thousandths of a second, with his 6.983. And he and his Mopar sponsored Dodge Avenger weren't finished just yet.

With an adjusted altitude of nearly ten thousand feet, these naturally aspirated Pro Stock engines don't have a whole lot of 'air' to work with and their performance is affected much more than the nitro classes. Johnson and his team still had a few tricks up their sleeve thanks to the extensive testing they have conducted in these conditions and it truly showed in the fourth and final session. As the pairings go in professional qualifying, Johnson and Edwards were one and two on the sheet coming into the final session and would run each other as the final pair. Edwards made a good run and picked up another two-thousandths, but it would be Johnson making the biggest leap and jockeyed back to the back to the pole that V. Gaines tried to take away in the pair just prior.

"We've tested a lot at this track the last few years and have built up a lot of very valuable data that has contributed to our success," he noted after qualifying was completed on Saturday. "We feel that this is our race, and we do everything we can to perform at our very best level. Tomorrow's conditions should be very similar to what we had today, and we actually left a little bit on the table on that 6.97 run. So there's a chance that we could improve slightly during Sunday's eliminations."

While the number one qualifier was the first for Johnson since the points were reset for the 2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge just three races ago at Norwalk, it was his second of the season, seventeenth of his career, not to mention his third at this very event. With the Denver number one, Johnson acquired the maximum qualifying points of one-hundred and seventy-five, along with the widely appreciated $3,000 low-qualifier bonus check from K&N Engineering.

"You get better with every run. Hopefully you improve with every run. Dad tunes these Hemi engines better with every run. It's a progression. It isn't that we are pulling a rabbit out of the hat, we're just getting better," said Johnson.

It's still anyone's game for the 2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge, but each driver takes each and every race as serious as the next. With a $50,000 payday for the Challenge Champion, the biggest single day payout for any NHRA professional category, each qualifying point is precious to guarantee one's spot in the elite eight. Currently, Erica Enders sits at number one with Jason Line behind fifteen points at number two and Mike Edwards, Greg Anderson and Allen Johnson wrapping up the top five.

The Bandimere event kicked off the "Western Swing", a three race in a row portion of the 2011 NHRA Full Throttle schedule. Next the team's head to Infineon Raceway, in Sonoma, California before wrapping up the "Swing" the following week in Seattle, Washington.

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

Lloyd Brothers Motorsports' Flat-Track Motorcycle Racer Brad Baker

Jul 26, 2011

18-year-old flat-track motorcycle rookie Brad Baker

It takes a special breed of riders to compete in flat-track motorcycle racing. Getting on a two-wheel missile, sliding into turns at over 130mph in huge packs on tracks as big as a mile is enough to rattle the nerves of even the most experienced competition riders. And that's why some may have been surprised when Lloyd Brothers Motorsports decided to go with 18-year-old rookie Brad Baker when selecting a rider for their twins program in 2011.

Getting on two-wheels and sliding into turns at over 130mph on tracks as big as a mile is enough to rattle the nerves of even the most experienced competition riders.

But Baker quickly proved that talent, no matter how experienced, can compete at the highest levels of the sport when paired with the right team.

"We talked to a couple of the established top guys, but thank goodness for those unanswered prayers," team owner Dave Lloyd said. "Brad has been a real solid fit with this team and is a breath of fresh air."

Baker has shined all season long. In his first start, he set fast time in all three practice and qualifying sessions, won his heat race, and led 9 laps before settling for a 5th place finish at the famed Springfield Mile in Illinois. After a hiccup in the teams second event of the year, they rebounded for a 4th place on the half-mile in Lima, Ohio.

Lloyd Brothers Motorsports' flat-track motorcycle racer Brad Baker

Lloyd Brothers Motorsports' flat-track racer Brad Baker

"It's been great racing for Lloyd Brothers this year," Baker said. "Ever since the first test before Sprinfield, I've felt comfortable on the bike and with the team. It feels awesome being on a team that I can actually have personal relationships with, instead of just showing up and riding."

While most teams would do the mentoring, Lloyd thinks that Baker has brought just as much to his organization as Lloyd Brothers Motorsports has brought to Baker.

"I think we are bringing each other along, actually. We support Brad as he learns what it's like being an expert and riding a twin," Lloyd added. "On Brad's end, he is open minded about riding the Ducati. He gives great feedback and is adapting himself to get the most out of the bike each time out."

Baker has used his rookie status to his advantage this season. "Nobody expects you to win," he astutely pointed out. "So you have less pressure on your shoulders. Of course I set my goals as high as I can, but without the pressure, I just go out and ride."

With 10 events left in 2011, Baker and the team have their eyes set on a win. The team is supremely confident that it has found a rider to forge a relationship with for many years to come. "He's smooth, calculating and aggressive. He truly is one of the professionals in the paddock," Lloyd said.

Baker has his eyes set on a National Championship, a pretty lofty goal for a rookie. But with such a successful early start to the season, Rookie of the Year honors seem to be almost guaranteed, and Baker feels it's time to set the goals higher. If the dream does come true, K&N Filters will be right there with them.

"Lloyd Brothers Motorsports depend exclusively on K&N Products for our air and oil filter requirements. Motorcycle flat track racing is a brutal, dirty environment. K&N Filters keep the inside of our motorcycle engines clean and free of any unwanted dirt and dust while at the same time making the most horsepower that they are capable of making," Lloyd said. "We also use K&N products in our transporter to get us to the track.

Our transporter runs much better with our K&N filter kit and it even gets better fuel mileage."

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

Netherlands' K&N Sponsored Team Jaronn Equipe Wins at Le Mans Bugatti Circuit

Jul 26, 2011

Lawson says the A310 is difficult to drive, as it was never meant to race on a track, but it is also a lot of fun.

The Dutch Youngtimer Touring Car Challenge is widely popular with racing fans throughout Europe, the races are always exciting and highly competitive, and with races at Hockenheim, Zolder, Spa Francorchamps, Le Mans and Zandvoort, drivers get a chance to drive on some of the most popular circuits in Europe. Yet, perhaps even more important to the series' overall popularity is that the racecars are attainable. "This historic race series is for cars from the 1970's and 1990's," explained team Jaronn Equipe founder and driver, Randall Lawson.

The newly rebuilt and repainted 1979 Renault Alpine was the talk of the paddock at the Le Mans Bugatti Circuit.

Lawson was born in 1962, in Amsterdam, the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. Like so many racers he got his start racing go-karts. In 2000 Lawson jumped into racing Touring Car where is talent quickly flourished. Lawson has so far collected four Dutch Touring Car Series Championships, including the 2009 Youngtimer Division II Championship.

"We made the decision to race with an unusual car, our Renault Alpine A310 V6, which was not intended as a circuit racer, but as a rally car. We took up the challenge and created a circuit winner," commented Lawson after winning the 2009 Championship.

The pink K&N sponsored Alpine continues to outrun the likes of Porsche, Ferrari, BMW, Lotus and any other comers in its age bracket.

Today, the Renault Alpine still successfully competes against the Ford Escort MKI and II, Porsche 914, 964 and 911, De Tomaso Panteras, Ferrari, Mini Cooper, Opel Kadett GTE, Opel Commodore, BMW M3 E30 and 325i, Lotus 47 and even a Trabant (once produced by East German automaker VEB Sachsenring Automobilwerke).

Team Jaronn Equipe continues to find ways to keep the Alpine in front of the competition.

In fact, only five weeks after a destructive crash at Zolder racetrack in Belgium, the uniquely painted Alpine A310 and Lawson scored yet another victory at Le Mans Bugatti Circuit. Driving a rebuilt car the K&N sponsored driver was once again too fast for the competition in his class.

"Five weeks was not much time, but enough to make a new winner out of it," added Lawson. With its new pink paintjob the car was the talk of the paddock and attracted a big crowd.

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

Jacob Elrod Makes Smart Move at Grand Bend and Wins ET Clash During IHRA Nitro Jam Nationals

Jul 26, 2011

The Elrod team's 9.90 Corvette Roadster showing off its new K&N Composite Scoop with Jacob behind the wheel at Grand Bend.

Sometimes plans don't go according to the way they were first laid out and for Lima, Ohio's Jacob [Jake] Elrod the chain of events that took place during the IHRA Nitro Jam Nationals in Grand Bend, Ontario Canada, weren't necessarily a bad thing.

Jacob taking his turn earlier this season in the team's Top Dragster at Indy.

Elrod, along with his brother Tony, father Dave and their good family friend, Pat Forster of Pennsylvania, make up the Elrod Racing team that is comprised of a strong stable of five cars, which they each share the driving duties from one event to the next.

For this particular event, Jake started off behind the wheel of the team's Super Rod [9.90 Index] Corvette Roadster and while things didn't go well for him in that car when he made an early first round exit, there were other exciting things in store for him.

"Dad was running his car in Top Dragster and it was having some sort of ignition problems that we really didn't get figured out until just before first round," Jake explained. "During first round, dad knew it was fixed and it was just a little dark down at the finish line. He knew he couldn't keep it to the floor or he would breakout, but just ended up giving her the stripe back. So after he didn't get past first round, I asked him about getting into the bracket race, which was $5,000 to win. You know by that time it was late at night and he said we would talk about it in the morning."

"The next morning, I was sitting there eating my Lucky Charms," he chuckled. "Pat [Forster] walks up and asks if dad was going to get into the bracket race, which I didn't think at that point he was. So we thought maybe he would let me run the car in it. We went ahead and got the car out, got it ready and waited for the call for the No Box class. When they called that class, I went in, woke dad up and asked him if he was going to get in the Box race, he said no, I'm not running it, it's too hot."

Elrod asked if it was OK to go ahead and run the car himself, "since the car was already all set to go, it was hard for him to say no."

It pays to have lots of information on hand to study, like the Elrod's have available due to the switching of driver's from race to race. Jake had not made a pass in the team's Top Dragster car, but was able to come up with a dial fairly easy. "I did like a weight calculation, the difference between him and I, plus I had an idea of what he was hitting the tree at and I know generally about how much quicker I normally am," he noted. "So, I sort of had an idea of where to start on everything. I actually padded the box just a little bit, because I didn't want to go red first round. I ended up getting paired with a ten second car first round, he ended up being later on the tree than I was, so that round win actually became like a time run for me."

Where Elrod didn't have his usual success in the index class, he more than made up for it in the bracket race, making his way through five rounds of competition to find himself in his first final of the weekend, the Box final and paired up with the racer who suggested they enter the bracket race in the first place.

"I had to run Bill Riddle in the final round of Box," Elrod pointed out. "Saturday night, he had actually come to us and made the suggestion that we get into the bracket race. So he was the one who talked us into running the race and then we had to face each other in the final. We were actually pitted right next to each other, too."

Where Elrod was .006 green on the tree, Riddle was that much on the wrong side and the redlight win sent Elrod to the money round, where he would meet up with the No Box Champ, Will Steckly.

"I didn't know who he was, but apparently he's won the Summit Super Series like twice," he confessed. "It worked out, I was .029 on the tree and he was .043. So I just did my normal thing. I didn't really think he would have some 'double-oh' package as a No Box car, but if he did God bless him. I just wasn't going to go up there and try to set up to go red or anything."

Elrod easily chased down Steckly for the over ET Clash victory, taking home $5000 along with a decent handful of contingency awards. Not bad for a race that he never planned on competing in when he rolled into Grand Bend Motorplex just two days earlier.

Elrod Racing is proud to join K&N in 2011 and utilize numerous K&N products on each of their racing entries. "All of our cars use the K&N Wrench-Off filters," said Jake. "It's really nice, because we have a couple of different oil pans between the cars and there is a size for everything. Of course we use the K&N air filters on all five cars, which I just love. There are just so many things that could get sucked up in there and you don't have to worry about that when you are protected by K&N. Plus we have the K&N composite scoops and the 2nd Generation ones for the dragsters look so nice, we didn't even paint them. We just cleared them because the carbon fiber just looks way too cool to cover up with anything."

Jacob's victory adds to several other NHRA and IHRA accomplishments already racked up during this year. Look for a whole lot more from the Elrod Racing Team, as they are only just beginning the second half of their 2011 season.

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

Luis Martinez Jr. Wins NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Race at Portland International Raceway

Jul 26, 2011

Luis Martinez Jr. comes in for a victory at the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Portland International Raceway

Luis Martinez Jr. won the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Portland International Raceway in Oregon using patience and staying calm when those around him experienced blown motors and lost control of their cars on Sunday.

NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Racer Luis Martinez Jr.

Martinez won the pole, the second of his NASCAR K&N Pro Series West career, and led the first three laps, but fell back as the Bi-Mart Salute to the Troops 125 unfolded around the 1.967-mile road course.

"At the beginning of the race, we thought we really had something," Martinez said of his No. 6 King Taco/Sunrise Ford/Lucas Oil Ford. "Sometime about halfway it kind of went backwards for us. We ended up in the back."

Greg Pursley, the leader in the K&N Pro Series West standings, passed Martinez for the lead on lap 4 and held it until lap 20. Martinez was able to take back the lead on lap 21, but held it for only a lap.

Luis Martinez Jr. wins the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race at Portland International Raceway in Oregon

Brandon Davis passed Martinez for the lead on lap 23 before Pursley jumped back out front on lap 27. Pursley was pulling away when his motor blew on lap 46 and he had to withdraw.

With Pursley out of the race, Michael Self and Andrew Ranger took turns leading. But Ranger's motor blew and Self spun out in the oil. But drivers fell out of contention after the crash.

Martinez worked his way back to the front and was racing Davis for the lead when Davis spun off the track.

"We couldn't really recover that fast," he said. "Little by little, we started making our way back up."

The next challenger for Martinez was David Mayhew. He passed Martinez on the last turn of the last lap of the race, but Mayhew overdrove the turn and went off the track. Martinez took advantage and rallied past Mayhew to the finish line.

Martinez, the 2010 Sunoco Rookie of the Year, won for the first time in 23 career NASCAR K&N Pro Series West starts and admitted after the race he thought his engine wasn't going to make it to the end of the race.

"We thought the motor was about to blow up," he said. "So I kind of drove it real easy and that helped us out when Mayhew overdrove it. That helped us get by him."

Eric Holmes followed Martinez in second place, followed by Derek Thorn in third.

"We gambled and I wasn't sure if it was the right thing or not, but it kinda paid off at the end there, all the stuff that was going on," said Holmes. "It was a little crazy there at the end. Too bad for David, he made a great pass there around the 6 car (Martinez) and I thought he had the win there, just overdrove the last turn. It was pretty wild the last couple laps. It was fun. Everybody ran pretty clean with each other."

Pursley led a race-high 37 laps, but finished in 26th place after blowing his motor. He has a 233-point lead over Moses Smith in the K&N Pro Series West standings. Martinez is third, 306 points behind Pursley.

Thorn was making his first K&N Pro Series West start for the Sunrise Ford team owned by Bob Bruncati.

"Third place here at the end was quite the feat," Thorn said. "My downfalls led to some positive things. We just kinda hung on there at the end. They kinda gave it to us. Pursley blew up. The 35 (Ranger) blew up. The 10 (Davis) went off the track. It was just kind of attrition. That's what everybody's been telling me: Bring it home in one piece and you'll be in the top five. That was the case and I can't thank these guys enough. It's cool for this team to come home one and three."

The Bi-Mart Salute to the Troops 125 will be broadcast on Speed on Aug. 18 at 3 p.m. ET.

The next NASCAR K&N Pro Series West race is the Toyota/NAPA Auto Parts 150 at Colorado National Speedway on Aug. 6.

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

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