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The same is true for T.J. Zizzo who will make his third consecutive start flying the PEAK, HERCULINER and O'Reilly banners on his Top Fuel Dragster. "Doesn't everyone block off their calendar for Indianapolis," Zizzo asked. "When summer and the NHRA regular season ends, all eyes turn to this race. We're excited about being there."
Brian Bohlander, Motorsports Marketing Manager for the PEAK and HERCULINER brands, is looking forward to the race also. "We're excited to be with Zizzo Racing and T.J again this season," he said. "This race marks the end of the regular season in drag racing, and there's something special about racing here on Monday. Being part of this event is the perfect place for us to kick off the antifreeze season."
In a special promotion with O'Reilly Auto Parts stores on PEAK Motor Oil, Dee Irey, an O'Reilly Store Manager from the California, Missouri store, won the opportunity to be an honorary crew member for Zizzo Racing. Dee will be in Indianapolis and will be part of the team on Sunday. "The fulfillment of this promotion is exciting because it provides a unique opportunity for an O'Reilly Team Member to be part of a professional race team with behind the scenes access that very few people ever experience," Bohlander explained.
"We're going to have a lot of fun with our new crew member," Zizzo added. "I'll have to look in our crew manual to see what the initiation will be for Dee this weekend," he laughed. "All kidding aside, we're looking forward to meeting her and having her be part of the team. I love learning about the challenges in running a successful store and of course they love the behind the scenes look at running a Top Fuel race team."
Professional qualifying for the 55th Annual U.S. Nationals begins Friday, September 4th with eliminations on Monday, September 8th.
LINCOLNSHIRE, Ill. -- Zizzo Racing will join the NHRA Drag Racing tour this weekend for the O'Reilly NHRA Midwest Nationals in Madison, Illinois, just outside of St. Louis. Driver T.J. Zizzo is looking forward to the race.Â
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"It's time to take off these winter boots and put on my driving shoes," Zizzo said from the family-owned auto body shop. "Our whole team is ready to get out of the shop and get on the race track. We haven't been to St. Louis is a couple of seasons. For us this track is kind of in the neighborhood. We're looking forward to getting out to the track and seeing all of the O'Reilly associates as well."Â
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The new season brings a fresh look to the PEAK/O'Reilly Dragster. Brand & Motorsports Marketing Manager at Old World Industries, Brian Bohlander, states "We're excited about the start of the season. Â The team has worked long hours this winter on the little details to find an advantage since the Top Fuel field is now so competitive. Â We are also very happy with the new car design that also includes one of PEAK's newest products, PEAK Performance Motor Oil. Â Phil at Rage Wraps put the final design elements and graphics together with some 'old school' pinstriping on top of the car and it makes this hot rod look fast standing still!"Â
Continue reading Fresh look for Zizzo's PEAK / O'Reilly Dragster .
"The truck was in the neighborhood," Zizzo chuckled. "After a Sunday team meeting we all decided to continue our testing for 2009."
"We're like a bunch of bears who don't want to go into hibernation. We know winter is PEAK Antifreeze season and with winter coming we wanted to race as much as possible to start 2009 off right."
"We're excited about being here," he continued. "I expect it to be a tough race and one that we'll have to make some adjustments to be competitive."
Continue reading Zizzo to compete in IHRA World Finals .
"Route 66 brings back some memories," T.J. Zizzo, chuckles. "When we raced here in 2005, we blew up everything we owned trying to qualify. It was the greatest learning experience. We won't blow everything up this time. Hopefully we've learned a little since then."
The Lincolnshire, Ill. based team considers Route 66 Raceway it's home track and it provides unique opportunities for sponsors like HTP America and 426 Brand.
Robbie Vasquez of 426 Brand thinks Zizzo's style fits nicely with his clientele. "We like T.J.'s style," Vasquez said. "I think we're very similar in the way we go about things. We're looking forward to being apart of his team in Chicago and I hope we get to do more in the future."
To learn more about 426 Brand visit: http://426brand.com
To learn more about HTP America visit: http://htpweld.com/
Continue reading Zizzo gets his kicks on Route 66 with 426Brand.com and HTP America.