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 "We had a really fast hot rod," Densham said of
his season-opening performance, "and I think we'll have
one this weekend, too.
"You know, there's only been one race all year (the
Mac Tools Gatornationals at Gainesville, Fla.) where we didn't
have a car that was capable of winning.
"The problem is that the class is so competitive right
now that you can't make a single mistake either driving or
tuning. If you do, they make you pay for it."
BY THE NUMBERS
0: Victories at Pomona Raceway
4: Position in current Funny Car Point standings.
8: NHRA POWERade victories.
18: Career final rounds
244: Races run before winning for the first time at Memphis, TN, in September
2001.
RACE AT A GLANCE
– Densham has not advanced beyond the semifinals in 22 appearances at the
Auto Club Finals. He was a semifinalist in 2001.
– Densham was runner-up to Jerry Toliver at the season-opening K&N
Filters Winternationals at Pomona Raceway. He also was runner-up at the 1999
Winternationals, losing to Tony Pedregon in the final.
DID YOU KNOW?
 For 27 years, Densham taught auto shop at Gahr High School in Cerritos, CA,
and operated an independent Funny Car team with largely volunteer help, mainly
from current and former students....when he isn't driving the Auto Club Ford,
Densham is crew chiefing the Top Alcohol Funny Car driven by son Steve, a former
NHRA Jr. Dragster winner....Densham is the oldest driver EVER to win the Mac
Tools U.S. Nationals, drag racing's oldest, largest and most prestigious event.
When he won last Labor Day at Indianapolis, he was 57 years, 321 days old.
That puts him in some very select company. The oldest previous champion crowned
at Indy was Connie Kalitta, who was 56 when he won the Top Fuel title in 1994.
Warren Johnson was 56 when he won Pro Stock in 1999. Don Garlits was 54 when
he won Indy for the final time in 1986....Densham addresses 60 school groups
each year on behalf of the Auto Club, stressing auto safety and goal-setting
while touting the wide variety of career opportunities available in the automotive
field.
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