Chicago, Illinois (July 8, 2015) - Richie Crampton and the Lucas Oil Top Fuel dragster team are ready to bounce back during this weekend's Lucas Oil Route 66 NHRA Nationals at Route 66 Raceway.
Crampton, who is in the midst of a terrific season, scoring three victories and sitting fourth in the points standings, failed to qualify in Norwalk, Ohio, last weekend but that has his Morgan Lucas Racing team fired up for Chicago.
"When you have a rough weekend, you look forward to making things right," Crampton said. "In our case, we're ready to put Norwalk behind us and get on to Chicago."
The MLR team was already looking ahead to Chicago soon after the Norwalk disappointment, ready to move forward in the hunt for the Top Fuel championship. Crampton pointed to a bounce-back after a tough race at Atlanta Dragway earlier this year as proof of his team's resiliency.
"I believe we are good at quickly putting things behind us," Crampton said. "For instance, I red-lit in Atlanta, and then we went on to win the very next race in Topeka (Kan.). Personally, I'm good at moving on, and I think this entire team knows that was very uncharacteristic of us in Norwalk, so we'll be back to normal in Chicago."
Crampton has won races in Las Vegas, Topeka, and Bristol, Tenn., this season and has qualified in the top three five times in 12 races.
This weekend's event, in addition to being sponsored by Lucas Oil, is special for another reason: Route 66 Raceway is about three hours from the MLR shop in Brownsburg, Ind.
"It's always good to race close to home in the Midwest," Crampton said. "Friends and family can attend, so that's always a good thing. Chicago is a beautiful facility, one of the more beautiful on the tour. The whole area is outstanding as well, and it's on definitely high on the list of places you want to win. That's what we want to do this weekend."
Top Fuel qualifying sessions will be held at 5:15 and 8 p.m. ET, Friday, and 5 and 8 p.m., Saturday. Eliminations begin at 11 a.m., Sunday. ESPN2 will broadcast all the qualifying action from 10 p.m. to midnight, Saturday, and the elimination rounds from 2 to 5 p.m., Sunday.
