CHANDLER, Ariz. (February 28, 2016)— 2014 CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Nationals winner Alexis DeJoria returned to Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park with the hopes of picking up her career fourth Funny Car Wally and first of the 2016 NHRA season.
After struggling to make it down the track throughout the first three rounds of qualifying, including suffering from a broken blower shaft- a rare mechanical malfunction- in round three, DeJoria and her Tequila Patrón Toyota Camry team stepped up in the final session and laid down a 4.026, moving them up to the eleventh position on the Funny Car ladder.
The Patrón Funny Car pilot, who recently celebrated her 100th pro Funny Car event at the previous race, found herself going head-to-head with Jack Beckman in Round One of Eliminations on Sunday morning. DeJoria had the advantage off of the starting line with her quick 0.074-second reaction time. Both DeJoria and Beckman charged hard down the 1,000-foot stretch, but Beckman pulled ahead at the end, running a 3.939 to DeJoria’s 3.964-second effort.
Despite the first round exit, DeJoria feels confident in the team behind her.
“Qualifying was rough for Team Patrón but we always turn it around on race day. No matter what happens in qualifying, we always seem to knock out a really good run in the first round,” said DeJoria.
“I had a good light, got him off the tree and we ran our best time of the weekend, so you can’t be too upset about that. Unfortunately, Beckman’s car was just a little bit faster at the end.”
“I can leave today knowing that we have the package on race day. We just have to get those consistent runs down during qualifying to give us that momentum and starting position advantage going into race day. We’ll be looking forward to Florida in a few weeks.”
The Kalitta Motorsports Tequila Patrón Toyota Camry Funny Car team has three weeks off before they take to the track next for the history-rich NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, Florida. Team Patrón leaves Phoenix with 87 points and ranked eighth in the NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship points standings. For more information, please visit www.alexisdejoria.com, Follow Us on Twitter, Instagram and Periscope @ADRnhra, or Like Us on Facebook Alexis DeJoria
About Alexis DeJoria
Alexis DeJoria, daughter of John Paul DeJoria, co-founder of John Paul Mitchell Systems and proud owner of Tequila Patrόn, is a professional NHRA racecar driver, competing in the nitro Funny Car class on the Kalitta Motorsports team. Alexis drives the Tequila Patrón-sponsored 2016 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 the sport of NHRA drag racing.
About Tequila Patrón
From hand-harvesting the highest-quality 100 percent Weber Blue Agave, to the traditional, time-honored distillation process and individual labeling, numbering, and inspection of each bottle, Patrón tequila is crafted with meticulous precision and care. Though Patrón has grown to become one of the most-recognized and respected luxury spirits brands in the world, it is still exclusively produced in the Highlands of Jalisco, Mexico, in the same small batches and with the same commitment to quality and craftsmanship. For more information about Patrón tequilas and liqueurs, please visit www.patrontequila.com.