KENT, Wash. (August 3, 2014)— Pacific Raceways was the site of another semi-final finish for Alexis DeJoria and the Kalitta Motorsports Patrón XO Cafe Toyota Camry Funny Car team during the 27th annual NHRA Northwest Nationals on Sunday afternoon. The picturesque track which sits in the shadows of Mt Rainier played host to the final race of the three-event Western Swing.
Throughout qualifying, the Patrón XO Cafe team made three good runs out of the allotted four, picking up three bonus points along the way for having the second and third quickest runs of the session. Their 4.101-second run from Q2 put them in the No. 4 qualifying spot going into Sunday’s eliminations, and gave them the advantage of lane choice versus their first round opponent- Tony Pedregon.
In round one, DeJoria made a 4.140-sec at 300.40-mph run, easily defeating Pedregon’s 4.663-sec pass. DeJoria, a two-time Funny Car event winner, faced Jack Beckman in round two. Again, the team had the lane advantage and was able to take the win with their 4.202 versus Beckman’s 4.385.
The second round win would advance them to the semi-finals where they would be matched up against John Force. Unfortunately, it was in the semis where Team Patrón’s day would end. Both DeJoria and Force made good runs (4.252 vs 4.301), but Force had the immediate advantage, as he left the starting line before DeJoria and was able to take the win on a hole shot.
Although the team was not able to move up from their No. 6 spot in the Countdown to the Championship points ranking, they were able to narrow the gap between themselves and the fourth and fifth place drivers, and are now within just one round win of the No. 4 spot. With just two races left before the Countdown rankings are set, the XO Cafe team, which currently has 961 points, are hoping to continue to chip away at points and work their way up into the top half. Their next chance will be at the 33rd annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in Brainerd, Minn., Aug 15-17. For more information please visit www.alexisdejoria.com, Follow Us on Twitter @ADR_Nitro771, or Like Us on Facebook Alexis DeJoria.
TV Schedule
Eliminations
- August 3, 7PM-10PM EST
- ESPN2
About Alexis DeJoria
Alexis DeJoria, daughter of the famed John Paul DeJoria, co-founder of John Paul Mitchell Systems and proud owner of Tequila Patrόn, is a professional NHRA race car driver, competing in the nitro Funny Car class on the Kalitta Motorsports team. Alexis drives the Patrόn XO Cafe-sponsored 2014 Toyota Camry. Alexis, who had all the opportunity in the world to pursue any type of career, felt strongly about following her passion, and her need for adrenaline drove her to pursue the unlikely profession of auto-racing. The determination to ‘blaze her own trail’ continues to drive her and push her to higher levels in male dominated sport of drag racing.
About Kalitta Motorsports
Based in Ypsilanti, Mich., Kalitta Motorsports is a Top Fuel and Funny Car drag racing team in the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. The team was founded and is owned by drag racing icon Connie “the Bounty Hunter” Kalitta. For more than 50 years, Connie has been involved in the sport as a driver, tuner, and an owner. Kalitta Motorsports is one of the most successful teams in the history of auto racing with five world championships and over 50 national event titles in five different professional drag racing sanctioning bodies since it was established by Connie in 1959.