 LAKEVILLE,
IN (September 20, 2007) -- Max Naylor, the only NHRA Pro Stock driver currently
competing on Hoosier tires, rocked the racing world recently. First, the driver
of the Jagermeister Dodge Stratus Hemi qualified No. 1 at NHRA's biggest event
of the season--the U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis. It was the 54-year-old
driver's first-ever low qualifier award. Naylor repeated the feat two weeks
later at the Mid-South Nationals in Memphis becoming only the 18th driver in
Pro Stock history to qualify No. 1 in two consecutive NHRA events.
It all began earlier in the year at Michigan when Naylor, dissatisfied with
his team's performance, met with Hoosier engineers about a possible switch to
the Hoosier brand. At Michigan, they tested a set of Hoosier drag tires built
specifically for the Pro Stock class.
Naylor, a former race track owner and sportsman racer, shocked everyone when
he later showed up for final qualifying at Denver with his Pro Stocker mounted
on Hoosier drag slicks. Since then, the tires haven't been off the car.
After a few events and some set-up changes working out the bugs, Naylor and
his Hoosier-shod Hemi have now become a formidable combination in NHRA
competition.
The first taste of success came over Labor Day weekend when Naylor earned
the No. 1 qualifier position on each of the three days of qualifying at the
U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis. Naylor was the top qualifier among the 33 Pro
Stock cars on hand. Naylor's Jagermeister Dodge posted at time of 6.655 seconds
@ 206.39 mph to take the top spot. It also broke a string of 329 races in
which the competing tire brand has been the No. 1 qualifier--a streak dating
back to 1992.
Naylor
stated, "This weekend is the highlight of any drag racers career.
I told the guys that no matter what happens for the rest of our lives,
or this weekend, we can always say we were No. 1 at Indy." Naylor
added, "It's a major accomplishment." Two weeks later at Memphis, Naylor showed his team's performance at
Indy was no fluke. The New Buffalo, PA driver again claimed the top
qualifier position. In addition to setting a career-best mark, Naylor
also set a new track ET record with a time of 6.594 seconds @ 207.37
mph. He also is just the 18th driver in
Pro Stock history to qualify No. 1 in two consecutive NHRA events.
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 In between the two events, Naylor and his wife Jane, along with his
entire crew, stopped by Hoosier to meet the staff and get a glimpse of
how the tires he now races on are built.
Since making the switch to Hoosier tires, Naylor stated, "It's
good to be working with people with the utmost integrity. It was just
the right time for the both of us."
For more information about Max and the Jagermeister Pro Stock team
visit www.naylorracing.com.
Can Max and the Jagermeister team make it three events in a row? We
will all find out this weekend at the O'Reilly NHRA Fall Nationals
(September 20-23) in Dallas, TX.
The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) was founded in 1951 by
Wally Parks and is based in California. NHRA has over 35,000 licensed
competitors. For more information about NHRA visit www.nhra.com.
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