For the third straight year, NAPA AUTO PARTS Dodge Funny Car driver Ron Capps will be competing in the All-Stars Karting Classic during the Performance Racing Industry (PRI) trade show at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla., on Thursday, Dec. 11.
The third annual event, organized by the Stars Of Karting in conjunction with the PRI show, will be held on a newly redesigned seven-turn purpose-built track adjacent to the convention center and will be covered by Fox Sports for 2009 airing. Lap times are expected to be in the 19-to-22-second range.
Capps will again drive for the Motorama Kart Parts-Birel team and will join drivers from other motorsports disciplines, such as Ryan Hunter-Reay, Marco Andretti, Jamie McMurray, Scott Speed, Buddy Rice, his Motorama Karts-Birel teammate Vitor Meira, Michael Valiante, AJ Allmendinger, Ed Carpenter, Cristiano Da Matta, Townsend Bell, Joey Hand, Jan Heylen, Nelson Philippe, Alex Lloyd, Oswaldo Negri Jr. and Raphael Matos in 25-lap prefinal and 40-lap main events.
Capps’ TAG kart, with a Birel chassis, will be sponsored by NAPA AUTO PARTS, the primary sponsor on the Funny Car he races for Don Schumacher Racing in NHRA competition.
“Man, you look down the list of who has raced every year in this event and it’s some of the best road racers in the world, whether they’re Grand-Am, ALMS, Indy Car, or NASCAR drivers,” says Capps, who finished eighth in the NHRA Funny Car point standings this season.
“It’s a very, very demanding event. It’s pretty neat with the lights set up in the parking lot and the grandstands right there. But it’s also very bumpy. After I left the event the past two years it took me two to three days to mend my body. When the race was over, I couldn’t even move my arms. When I saw that the other drivers who have many years of road-racing experience were feeling the same way, it made me feel a little bit better.”
There’s no question Capps finds not only enjoyment but value in competing in other racing venues, which he does regularly. “I really feel that doing all this other racing enhances my hand-to-eye coordination,” he says. “It keeps me in shape. And I think it helps the car control and the feedback I’m able to give to my crew and crew chief Ed McCulloch in NHRA. Besides that, it’s a lot of fun. And I’m so passionate about representing NAPA not only when I’m racing the NAPA Funny Car. I want to give them the best exposure that I possibly can at all times. So when I’m invited to do these other races it’s wonderful to be able to take NAPA AUTO PARTS into an arena where they may not be represented. That’s big for me.
“To be able to spread the word about what we do in NHRA racing is also very important to me. I always feel like I’ve got the weight of the drag-racing community on my shoulders when I do these things and it’s why I’m so adamant about trying to do well and not getting in over my head.”
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