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"Everybody's playing hardball out there." —Brandon
Bernstein after defeating a strong-running
Zizzo in the first round
"I told (crew chief Ed) McCulloch before
the run that this reminded me of our race in
the finals at Indianapolis in 1992. He dug
down deep inside and ran quick and fast to
beat us. I said that's what we have to do.
I have to run not the best race of the day,
but the best race of my life. And that's what
we did."—Herbert
after edging Schumacher for the win in the
final round
"We couldn't have picked a better time
to run our best speed and elapsed time."—Herbert
again, on his career-best 4.516 at 329.75 that
beat Schumacher’s 4.527 at 329.18 mph
FUNNY CAR
“The last time we raced at Joliet, we
saw the first 330-mph Funny Car pass. This
time, there’s definitely a chance we
could see the first 6.6-second E.T. from a
Funny Car.” --
Ron Capps before the race, proving he knows
what he’s talking about
"We'll find out just how fast 85 percent
will go. There won't be any question, because
everybody will have it right on the limiter." --
Gary Scelzi on the aggressive approach most
teams take to Chi-town
“When the air is cool, which it usually
is when we're here, it's like racing downhill.
If you look through the record books, you'll
find a lot of drivers who have set their personal
bests at Route 66.”—Del
Worsham on the speed-conducive conditions at
Route 66
“The Chicago races are always really
fun races because the crew chiefs can throw
everything they’ve got at the car. You
know you’re in for a good ride at the
Joliet track because that’s about as
good as it gets.” --
Tommy Johnson Jr. on why the Chicago strip
is the site of so many record-setting runs
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"It's great to win on tricky tracks,
and it's great to out-pedal the other guy.
Really, it's great to win any way you can!
But when the conditions are prime and everyone's
flying down there, side-by-side with the flames
up, it's a major rush to put on the win light.
It feels just a little better, and for a guy
like me it reminds me that I'm at this level
and beating the best. That's awesome."—Phil
Burkart on why he likes the prime racing real
estate at Route 66 Raceway
“It's probably the best track we race
on. We're going to have a high-pressure cold
front coming down, so those conditions might
be there where the fans will really see some
good performance despite the new rules that
are designed to slow the cars down a little
bit.”—Whit
Bazemore on what it would take for record-setting
runs
“Route 66 is one of the best track's
we've raced at this season. The fans are great
and you've also got Al's Steak House around
the corner, so I'm looking forward to that.
It should be a lot of fun."—Jeff
Arend on some of the peripheral advantages
of racing at Chicago
"Just like with your horse, you have
to be one with your racecar." --
Eric Medlen, a former rodeo star, on the Zen
of drag racing
“It is a steep learning curve.”—Norm
Grimes, veteran NHRA Sportsman tuner with
five Alcohol Dragster championships to his
credit, on his progress after joining Jerry
Toliver’s team just a couple of weeks
before the Chicago event
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