NHRA News: Summit Racing Equipment adds teams to its roster (2/8/2004)

Summit Racing Equipment adds teams to its roster

By Bob Frey, NHRA announcer
2/8/2004

Mark Pawuk

Summit Racing Equipment continues to expand its NHRA involvement with the addition of six teams to its roster. In addition to its long-standing relationship with Pro Stocker Mark Pawuk, Summit Racing Equipment will now be an associate sponsor on the Pro Stock cars of Greg Anderson and Jason Line, Warren and Kurt Johnson, and Larry Morgan, as well as the Funny Car of Tim Wilkerson.

"We are constantly striving to increase our presence and exposure on the NHRA POWERade tour," said Jeff Winters, Summit Racing Equipment's motorsports marketing manager. "With the addition of these six teams to our lineup we can expect to see the Summit name in the winner's circle at every race this year."

The powerhouse teams selected by Summit Racing reflect the best talent in the Pro Stock class as well as one of the most respected names in the Funny Car ranks.

"Mark Pawuk has done a great job for us over the years and he continues as our primary major sponsorship," Winters said. "But the Pro Stock class is so competitive and any time you have the opportunity to add drivers and teams of this caliber to your lineup, you just can't pass it up. We're looking for a great year both on and of the track at Summit Racing."

The new teams account for seven NHRA POWERade championships, 149 national event wins, and 13 U.S. Nationals' championships. Anderson and Wilkerson won the sport's most prestigious race last year, while Line, the team driver for Anderson and car owner Ken Black, is also considered a serious threat to win the 2004 NHRA Rookie of the Year award.

Greg Anderson

Tim Wilkerson

Johnson, who accounts for a lot of those winning numbers, said this is a great opportunity for his team. "It means a lot for us to join the Summit Racing family," the six-time series' champion said. "They already have a great representative and a strong presence in the class with Mark, but I'm glad that when they decided to add to their racing program they included Kurt and me. This will be a team effort this year as we all strive to produce a championship for Summit."

Morgan, a two-time Indy champ added, "the folks at Summit have always been great supporters of the Pro Stock class and the addition of our team and the others only serves to show the faith they have in our class. It's great to be part of the Summit Racing family."

Wilkerson said being picked by Summit Racing indicates how far his program has come in the past couple of seasons.

"Three seasons ago I was racing part time," Wilkerson said. "Now I enter this year as the Indy champ, a top 10 team, and I get to add a great company like Summit Racing to my sponsor list. Things are going well in the Levi, Ray and Shoup pit area right now."

This announcement comes on the heels of Summit Racing's renewal of their highly successful sponsorship of the NHRA's weekly bracket racing program that culminates in the crowning of national champions at the Automobile Club of Southern California Finals in November as well as the announcement that they will continue to be the "Official Mail Order Company" of NHRA.

"We're so pleased with the response that we get from the racers and fans who follow NHRA drag racing," Winters said. "And with our increased exposure and addition of these new associate sponsorships, we expect that a lot of race teams will also be following Summit Racing right into the winner's circle."

The world's largest mail order and online supplier of high performance automotive parts, Summit Racing Equipment is headquartered in Tallmadge, Ohio, with another location in Sparks, Nev. For information on Summit's complete product offering, or to get a free catalog, call 1-800-230-3030 or visit www.SummitRacing.com.

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