POMONA, Calif. (February 14, 2016) — Alexis DeJoria celebrated her 100th event as a professional nitro Funny Car pilot with a career-best run of 3.942-seconds during Saturday’s final qualifying session at the 56th annual Circle K NHRA Winternationals.
DeJoria, pilot of the Kalitta Motorsports Tequila Patrón Toyota Camry, earned the No. 4 qualifying position and advantage of lane choice over Sunday’s round one opponent, Jim Campbell, with her higher seeded qualifying effort.
Team Patrón crew chief Tommy DeLago tuned DeJoria’s Toyota Camry, now back in the signature colors of the ‘Patrón Silver’ livery for the first time since 2013, to a winning ET of 3.968-seconds, advancing them on to round two.
The quarterfinals found DeJoria matched up against Kalitta Motorsports teammate and reigning Funny Car world champion Del Worsham. DeJoria again had the advantage of lane choice. With her Patrón car in the left lane and Worsham’s DHL entry in the right, the stage was set for a battle between the two 10,000-horsepower Toyota Camrys to see who would represent Kalitta Motorsports in the semifinals.
Unfortunately for Team Patrón, their day would end after round two. The black and green Camry spun the tires at half track, and because Worsham had already pulled ahead, DeJoria made the smart decision to shut the car off.
“We qualified well in fourth and won the first round. I had to race my teammate in the second round, and that didn’t go as planned unfortunately, but I’m looking forward to Phoenix and luckily that’s not too far away,” said DeJoria, who made history at this event two years prior when she became the first woman to break the three-second barrier in Funny Car.
Next stop on the 2016 tour finds the teams of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Phoenix, Arizona, February 26-28. Alexis DeJoria and the Kalitta Motorsports team enter the event ranked in the Top Ten. 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.