Massey returns to Texas looking for first win of 2011

April 27

Spencer Massey, the Texas native who drives the FRAM/Prestone Top Fuel dragster for Don Schumacher Racing, comes home to the Lone Star State gunning for his first win of the 2011 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season this weekend at the 24^th annual NHRA Spring Nationals here at Royal Purple Raceway.

“I can’t think of a better place to win my first race,” said the 28-year-old from Fort Worth. “I will have a lot of family and friends around me, and my ‘racing family,’ the people I grew up racing with and against in Texas, will all be here. I love coming back and hanging out with them; it will be great!”

Heat might provide a challenge this weekend to drivers and crew chiefs alike, with air temperatures expected in the mid to high 80s which could produce track temperatures well above 100 degrees. Massey welcomes this weather because he believes the FRAM team is ready for it.

“We’re coming around to Phil and Todd (Shuler and Okuhara, co-crew chiefs) weather,” he explained. “They really know how to set up the car for a hot track, so I’m really confident going into this race.

“In general, I think we have a really good race car going into this weekend. We made it to the final round in Charlotte (two weeks ago) and I think we’re ready to take on the rest of the field.”

Massey enters the weekend in fifth place of the NHRA Full Throttle Top Fuel championship standings trailing leader Del Worsham, Larry Dixon and his DSR teammates Antron Brown and Tony Schumacher.

He does lead the Top Fuel category in “leaving.” Through 16 rounds of racing, Massey has beaten his opponent from the starting line 13 times, losing twice and tying once.

“I want to be first at the tree,” he said. “I take pride in my reaction times; it is one of those things I can do as a driver to help put the FRAM car into the winner’s circle.”

Success on the professional side has eluded Massey in Texas. In his rookie-of-the-year 2009 season he qualified fifth at this event, but went out in the first round, while in that season’s Dallas event, he made it to the semifinals. Last year here, in his lone NHRA Top Fuel race of the season, he qualified 15^th before departing in round one.

“We’ve never sealed the deal here or in Dallas,” he said. “It would be very nice to win this one in FRAM colors and I know Phil and Todd can give me the car to do it.”