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For Immediate Release
Contact: Dave Densmore, denswood@aol.com / 214-244-0008, mobile

 

TORRENCE RESUMES BID FOR PLAYOFF BERTH
Texan Aims to Build on Record-Breaking Performance at Mopar Mile-High Nationals

July 17, 2014 -- Rejuvenated after a welcome break from a brutal summer racing schedule, Steve Torrence resumes his pursuit of an NHRA playoff berth this week on a track on which his Capco Contractors Top Fuel dragster put up record-breaking performance numbers just one year ago.

            When the 31-year-old Texan returns this week  to Bandimere Speedway for the 35th renewal of the Mopar Mile-High Nationals, he will do so as the fastest man ever to have negotiated the track’s high altitude, 1,000 foot race course.

            In qualifying No. 1 last year, Torrence shattered track records tor time (3.880 seconds) and speed (319.60 miles per hour).   Unfortunately, he couldn’t leverage that advantage on race day which brings him back to the track they call “the mountain” with an entirely different mindset. 

            “We’ve been working on trying to calm this thing down on race day,” explained the four-time tour winner who rolls into Denver in sixth place in the Mello Yello driver standings. 

            “We know we’ve got a bad fast hot rod but in the heat of the day it just doesn’t want to go down the racetrack,” admitted the graduate of Kilgore College.  “It just hasn’t  responded well to going slower.  It’s just wanted to go faster and faster and faster.  We’ve been trying to fix that, so we’ll see.”

A former Top Alcohol Dragster World Champion (2005), Torrence got off to the best start of his pro career this season before hitting a rough patch he hopes is now behind him.

            After reaching the semifinals at six of the first seven races, the avid outdoorsman bowed out in the first round at the next five events before rallying two weeks ago at Norwalk, Ohio, to beat three-time former World Champ Larry Dixon. 

            He hopes that single round win was a portent of better things to come. 

            “We’re in a pretty good spot in the points,” he said.  “You’d like to be in the Top 5 (going into the Countdown) and we think that’s do-able.  We just need to start going rounds like we were doing earlier in the year.”

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