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1969 Camaro Stock car owned and driven by Dan Fletcher, who is one of the most recognizable sportsman class drivers in Drag Racing
Duane LaFleur's K&N Filters 1968 Chevrolet Camaro roadster built by Race Tech Race Cars will be at the most prestigious NHRA National event on the circuit in Indianapolis
1962 Corvette driven by Thomas Bayer to compete in the 55th anniversary of the MAC Tools U.S. Nationals at O'Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis
K&N sponsored racer Warren Johnson is seeking his seventh win at the MAC Tools U.S. Nationals
K&N Horsepower Challenge 2009 victory for Jeg Coughlin at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio. Coughlin is looking for another victory at Indianapolis.
Sportsman class racer Brian Browell will compete in Competition Eliminator Labor Day Weekend in Indianapolis
There is an edge inside many racers, and it’s not diffused until they win at the biggest race of the year, it’s not satisfied until they repeat that win, and it’s not complete until they walk among the legends at O’Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis.
On Labor Day weekend, fans get a chance to watch, and racers get another shot at winning the most prestigious NHRA drag racing event on the circuit, the 55th anniversary of the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals. This will be the 18th National Event of the 2009 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series where more than 1,000 competitors in 12 different racing categories will hit the fabled strip at drag racing’s grandest event.
K&N will have many supported racers in both the pro and sportsman categories in the four day marathon. The sportsman racers will battle for the U.S. Nationals Title as well as points for the year end championship. The pros will battle it out for the final open positions in the Top 10 to qualify for the Countdown to 1. All season long pro racers gather points, but once this event is over the top ten pros in each class have their points reset. They will
compete until one champion is left in each class.
Three-time Pro Stock world champion Greg Anderson is seeking his sixth overall Mac Tools U.S. Nationals victory and K&N sponsored legend
Warren Johnson is going after his seventh win at the prestigious race.
Other K&N supported racers include:
Competition Eliminator
Dan Fletcher, reigning world champion, also currently third in the world David Rampy, currently sixth in the world
Brian Browell, currently eighth in the world
Greg Kamplain
Larry Pritchett
Super Stock
Brad Zaskowski, currently second in the world
Gary Stinnett, currently ninth in the world Slate Cummings Larry Cummings Peter Biondo
Michael Mans
Charles Forbes
Stock Eliminator
Peter Biondo
Dan Fletcher
David Rampy
David Forbes
Slate Cummings
Super Comp
Gary Stinett
Tommy Phillips, currently sixth in the world
Ray Connolly
Travis Prudhomme
Janice Swan
Dave Connoly
Greg Kamplain Sheldon Gecker
Anthony Castillo
Super Gas
Ray Connolly, currently second in the world
Tommy Phillips, currently seventh in the world
Michael Ruff, defending champion Duane LaFleur
Sheldon Gecker
Rick Prudhomme
Tracy Dennis
Thomas Bayer
K&N 2009 Horsepower Challenge Winner
Jeg Coughlin is a two-time U.S. Nationals Pro Stock winner and the current Full Throttle Series Pro Stock Points leader. “There is no other series like Indy,” he said. “My goal was to race at Indy from a very young age, and second to win the greatest drag race on earth, the U.S. Nationals. There is no other race on earth like it.”
The first of five pro qualifying sessions is scheduled for 5:30 pm EST on Friday, September 4. Racing continues throughout the Labor Day Weekend and final eliminations begin at 11 am EST on Monday, September 7.
ESPN2 will televise more than ten hours of coverage. Check your local listings for times.
The Ninth Annual Bluegrass Classic is a 60 lap race at Bluegrass Speedway in Bardstown, Kentucky. For Ray Cook, it was his first win in the state of Kentucky.
Ray Cook lead all 60 laps to score his first win the Kentucky at the Ninth Annual Bluegrass Classic, photo by Rick Schwallie
The Brasstown, North Carolina native captured his third Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series Race of 2009 and a $10,000 to win purse.
Ray Cook's MasterSbilt Monte Carlo SS has a Race Engine Design Motor and K&N filters, photo by Rick Schwallie
Winner's Circle Prize of $10,000 went to K&N supported racer Ray Cook at Bluegrass Speedway in Kentucky, photo by Rick Schwallie
Cook opened up a five car length advantage over Chris Wall of Holden, Louisiana as Dale McDowell of Chickamauga, Georgia made a pass on Brandon Kinzer of Allen, Kentucky.
As leader, Cook picked up the tail end of the field and started to enter traffic. At the same time Wall was closing in on Cook.
The track started to take rubber and passing became difficult. Wall stayed within two car lengths off Cook for several laps. Cook was able to keep Wall at bay until the finish line to score the win. Wall took second place.
Cook’s MasterSbilt Monte Carlo SS has a Race Engine Design motor and is sponsored by Hicks and Ingle Company General Contracting along with VP Racing Fuels, Real Racing Wheels, Integra Racing Chocks, GW Performance and K&N Filters.
“We’ll savor this win for a while,” said Cook. “Our K&N filters performed well and protected our engines in this type of dirt racing. We count on great filtration and additional horsepower for our engines with K&N.”
Vaughn Gittin Jr. drives the 2010 Falken Tire Ford Mustang
Even through the obstacles that he faced this season, Vaughn Gittin Jr. fought his way to third place in points
Going into the final round of the 2009 season of Formula Drift, Chris Forsberg, driver of the NOS Energy Drink Nissan 350Z, and Vaughn Gittin Jr., driver of the 2010 Falken Tire Ford Mustang, sit in first and third place, respectively.
Chris and his team choose to equip their winning NOS Energy Drink Nissan 350Z with K&N Filters
Chris Forsberg is at the podium for the third time this season
Chris Forsberg is the only driver to stand atop the podium three times this season. He dominated the competition and took first place at both Round 2 in Atlanta and Round 5 in Seattle, and also placed third at Round 4 in Las Vegas. "The car is the number one key ingredient for our team's success this year," says Chris. "We are running the same car that has taken us to the podium several times in the last couple of seasons."
Chris and his team choose to equip their winning machine with K&N Filters. "We require the best filtration for our engines," says Chris. "An engine's air filter is the only barrier between its delicate internal parts and the smoke, rubber, and debris that we are constantly driving through while drifting."
With more than a 50-point lead in the chase for the Championship, Chris looks to have first place locked down going into the final round at Irwindale Speedway, otherwise known as the "House of Drift." Chris's strategy to maintain first place "will not be very different than that of any other round," he says. "Because there are no seeded drivers this year, we focus all of our efforts on qualifying. Once we have achieved that goal, we can look towards top 32 tandem, and so forth."
Even with the obstacles that he has faced this season, Vaughn Gittin Jr. has fought his way to third place in points, after taking second place at Round 2 in New Jersey and fourth place at Round 5 in Seattle. The 2010 Falken Tire Ford Mustang takes quite a beating from Vaughn's heavy right foot, but keeps going strong with the help of the Falken Tire crew, as well as the reliability of K&N Filters.
"We use K&N Filters because they are the best on the market," says Vaughn. "They offer the best flow for our high horsepower and they have the best filtration out there."
Vaughn has fought his way to the very top of the podium at Irwindale Speedway three times before in his successful career. He made history in 2005 when he won the D1GP USA vs. Japan, and again in 2007 when he won the prestigious D1GP World Championship. Vaughn was also the winner of Formula Drift Round 7 at Irwindale Speedway last season.
"Going into Irwindale, my confidence is extremely high," says Vaughn. "I love the track and the crowd is always insane. I'm going to go out there and drive as hard as I possibly can, and as smart as I possibly can. Hopefully I can move into second place, or at least maintain my third place in the Championship."
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.
K&N supports stunt riders like Randy Callicoat who finished 13th in XDL round 3
Bill Dixon accepts first place plaque for Individual Freestyle at Toyota Speedway in Irwindale, California
K&N air and oil filter helps “Krazy” Kyle Rapport finish 8th in Individual Freestyle at XDL round 3
Stunt Rider Bill Dixon wins the Individual Freestyle contest at XDL Round 3
K&N Circle Challenge champion Luke Emmons
Eric Whitcomb said he receives more power when using K&N Air Filters
Started in 2005, the XDL Sportbike Freestyle Championship was created to give sportbike riders a means in which to connect the growing stunt riding culture with mainstream sports fans. Randy Grub, an event promoter, saw potential in stunt riding and created a series. According to Grub, XDL is a “culture first and a sport second. The XDL Freestyle Championship combines urban culture, music and style more akin to skateboarding competition than an AMA Superbike race.”
Grub said “XDL has doubled in size each year.” The number of professional level freestyle athletes is growing and the competition is becoming fierce. Grub would eventually like to see sportbike freestyle competition make it into the X-Games. “I look for strong brand names like K&N; which align with the XDL image,” he said, “Corporate sponsorship is really important to the series.”
XDL competition consists of several events. Most notably is the individual freestyle contest; which decides the national championship. During this event, athletes are given three minutes to piece together a run that covers all the required competitive elements. Other events include the Sickest Trick, Freestyle Burnout, and Circle Challenge competitions. For round three at Toyota Speedway in Irwindale, CA K&N was the title sponsor of the Circle Challenge. The K&N Circle Challenge is a head-to-head event in which riders compete to be the first to finish 10 circle wheelie rotations.
K&N caught up with several of its sponsored sportbike freestyle athletes during qualifying. “Krazy” Kyle Rapport, a 24-year old hailing from Santa Ana, California, qualified well and had a strong finish in the Individual Freestyle event. Kyle finished eighth in round three and currently sits 12th overall in XDL Championship FMF Cup Points standings.
Krazy Kyle rides a 2003 Kawasaki ZX6R 636 with stunt modifications; which include: a rear handbrake, cages to protect the engine, and K&N products. Kyle protects his valuable engine with K&N air filter part number
KA-6003 and wrench-off oil filter part number
KN-204. “My bike runs awesome,” said Rapport “K&N is awesome!”
Also in attendance at XDL round three was K&N sponsored athlete Randy Callicoat. Callicoat drove to Irwindale,
California from Arizona. Randy said he picked K&N high-flow air and oil filters for high-performance bikes because they cover the two biggest maintenance products found on his stunt bike. Callicoat had a strong finish in round three, managing 13th place and is 17th overall in points. Randy said “I would like to thank K&N for supporting stunt riders and for helping to make stunting mainstream.”
Eric Whitcomb, a K&N supported Corona, California athlete, made a strong showing in the Aprilia All-Star Challenge. Whitcomb runs K&N products both in his competition bike and the truck that he uses for traveling to events. “With K&N air and oil filters my stunt bike gets more power in the low end," said Whitcomb. "I can also feel the increased horsepower I received when I installed a K&N air intake system on my truck. You can’t go wrong with K&N.”
Follow Rapport, Callicoat, Whitcomb and the whole XDL Freestyle Championship throughout the season at the K&N news site.
The Ford powered K&N Black Stallion and Ford powered K&N Iron Warrior were part of the Monster Truck Invasion in Winchester, Virginia. Driver Michael Vaters organized the motorsports event and brought in a lot of the Monster Truck heavy hitters.
Trey Myers in the Ford powered K&N Iron Warrior took the racing win in Winchester, Virginia
Ford Powered K&N Black Stallion launched skyward and demonstrated Michael Vaters driving skills
Avenger, driven by Steve Koehler, Chris Bergeron drove Brutus, Jay Snyder was behind the wheel of the Screamin’ Demon, Tim Bee in the Killer Bee and Tim Mente drove Storm Damage played in front of the crowd.
Michael Vaters in the Ford powered K&N Black Stallion took the Freestyle win with his wild and crazy exhibition
The Avenger Monster Truck flips over during Freestyle Action in Winchester, Virginia
Rain and dangerous thunder storms moving through the area cancelled Friday night’s event, but the system passed through and the Saturday event held a full house of Monster Truck fans.
The evening started out with the Wheelie contest. Each driver put big air under the trucks but Michael Vaters in the Ford powered K&N Black Stallion took the wheelie win.
The track was wet from all the rain but the track crew did its best to keep it in shape. Round one racing paired the Ford powered K&N Iron Warrior, driven by Trey Myers against Killer Bee. Myers moved on to the next round. Brutus beat Screamin’ Demon and the Ford powered K&N Black Stallion beat Avenger. In the end it was Black Stallion paired against team mate Trey Myers in Iron Warrior. The wet track worked out well for Myers in the Iron Warrior. His gears allowed the truck’s tires to dig into the dirt and he beat Black Stallion in the finals.
In the freestyle competition Monster Trucks skated across the track and went high in the air. The 700 pound tires slid the trucks in circles for the cyclone donuts. Michael Vaters won the freestyle event in the Ford powered K&N Black Stallion.
Vaters uses K&N products. “We use K&N air and oil filters,” he said. “We’re hard on motors at every race and K&N protects our engines. K&N can handle the Monster Truck scene.”
On Sunday, the wheelie contest was the first event of the day. Each truck launched off the cars and went high into the air. Freestyle action was high and tight as the drivers maneuvered the huge trucks and demonstrated their driving skills. The Avenger flipped over his truck toward the end of his exhibition and Vaters took the second freestyle win of the weekend.
The Black Stallion Team next heads out to the West End Fair in Gilbert, Pennsylvania.
