FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

KALITTA MOTORSPORTS / KB RACING, LLC
2008 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series
Event 3 of 24
ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals
Gainesville Raceway
Gainesville, Fla.
March 13-16, 2008

Media Contact: Todd Myers
tmyers@kalittaracing.com


Hillary Will, KB Racing, LLC Top Fuel dragster – No. 11 qualifier, advanced to the semifinals


Hillary Will and the KB Racing, LLC team march to the semifinals in Gainesville

GAINESVILLE, Fla., (March 17, 2008) – Yesterday, at the third event of 24-event NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series, the ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway in Gainesville, Fla., Hillary Will, driver of the 8,000-horsepower KB Racing, LLC Top Fuel dragster, made her first semi-final appearance since the event in Englishtown, N.J., last June.

Will qualified her rail in the No. 11 spot (4.624 seconds, 314.75 mph) for Sunday’s 16-car eliminations. She rolled to the starting line in round one to race No. 6 qualifier Cory McClenathan. On paper, McClenathan was favored to get the win, but Will had her team changed those plans in 4.582 seconds to set low elapsed time of the opening round and to defeat McClenathan’s losing effort of 4.619 sec. In the second round, Will and her KB Racing, LLC team stood tall once again with another upset victory over No. 3 qualifier Rod Fuller, 4.694 sec., 316.60 mph to 5.305 sec., 200.32 mph.

In the semifinals, Will and Brandon Bernstein gave the enormous crowd of drag racing fans in Gainesville a great side-by-side race down the famed quarter-mile drag strip. Both racers and their cars charged down the track with nearly flawless runs, but Bernstein was able to get to the finish line strip about 12 ft. further ahead to get the narrow victory, 4.672 sec., 325.14 mph to 4.666 sec., 322.73 mph.

“What a great weekend for my KB racing, LLC team,” Will, a 27-year old native of Fortuna, Calif., said. “My team works so hard to give me a great car to drive, and that was very apparent today. I can’t say enough about how much I appreciate everyone on my team and their dedication to winning. We’ve been struggling to get round wins this year, so this was just what we needed.”

Will and her KB Racing, LLC team, led by crew chief Jim Oberhofer, are testing Monday in Gainesville in hopes of fine-tuning their already very consistent race car. Will added, “We’re going to make a couple laps and try a few small things. Our car has been incredibly consistent so far this season, so we just want to see if we can maybe tweak a couple of things.”

Will is currently in 7th place in POWERade Top Fuel championship points (162). She is 143 points out of 1st place.

Will continued to maintain her foothold as the fastest female in the history of NHRA drag racing by running the fastest speed of the weekend (tie) in Gainesville, 330.63 mph (round one). At the first two events of this season, she set the track record for speed at both Phoenix Int’l Raceway (334.32 mph) and at the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona (Calif.) (334.56 mph). Her booming blast in California established her as the fastest female in the history of the sport.

A former standout in the Top Alcohol Dragster class, Will moved up to the quickest and fastest NHRA professional class, Top Fuel, in 2006 behind the wheel of a newly formed team owned by Las Vegas businessman Ken Black and managed by Kalitta Motorsports, the multi-car team founded and owned by drag racing icon Connie “the Bounty Hunter” Kalitta. She won her first Top Fuel event trophy in Norwalk (IHRA) in her rookie season and made her first NHRA final-round appearance in Memphis. She finished the season in tenth place in Top Fuel championship points in ‘06.

The ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals was the 3rd of 24 national events in the 2008 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.


About Kalitta Motorsports

Based in Ypsilanti, Michigan, Kalitta Motorsports is a Top Fuel and Funny Car drag racing team in the NHRA (National Hot Rod Association) POWERade Drag Racing Series. The racing operation was started in 1959 by now legendary drag racer and team owner Connie “the Bounty Hunter” Kalitta. His son, Scott Kalitta, drives the DHL Funny Car. Scott’s cousin, Connie’s nephew, Doug Kalitta drives the flagship Top Fuel dragster for Mac Tools. Native Australian Dave Grubnic drives the Kalitta Motorsports Top Fuel dragster, while Hillary Will drives the Ken Black-owned and Kalitta Motorsports-managed Top Fuel dragster.

Connie serves as head tuner for all Team Kalitta entries. He is assisted by crew chiefs Jim Oberhofer (Hillary Will-driven dragster) and Jon Oberhofer (Mac Tools dragster). Connie serves as crew chief on the DHL Funny Car with assistance from co-crew chief Glenn Mikres and as the crew chief on the Kalitta Motorsports dragster with assistance from co-crew chief James Riola.

Associate sponsors on all Kalitta Motorsports’ race cars include Red Line Oil, Summit Racing Equipment, Technicoat Companies, and K2M.

For more info about Kalitta Motorsports, please visit www.teamkalitta.com.


About KB Racing, LLC

KB Racing, LLC is owned by Las Vegas businessmen Ken Black and his son Kenny Black. In the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series, KB Racing, LLC fields two Summit Racing Equipment Pro Stock entries, one driven by Greg Anderson and the other by Jason Line, and a Top Fuel dragster, managed by Kalitta Motorsports and driven by Hillary Will.