For Hernandez, Focus is the key to St. Louis

Madison, Ill. (June 22, 2005) – When Joshua Hernandez straps himself into the seat of the Tommy Lipar Racing Dr. Moon’s Rage ’57 Chevy this weekend at the Sears Craftsman NHRA Nationals in Madison, Ill., he won’t be thinking about anything other than reacting to the Christmas Tree as quickly as possible.

“I won’t let myself get distracted at all – I plan to focus completely on the things I need to so I can get down the track,” the rookie Pro Mod driver said.

“My team has this car tuned so well, I know we can definitely go rounds if I do my job,” he said.

I the second round of eliminations last weekend in Englishtown New Jersey, Hernandez was reminded of a very valuable lesson: don’t look down. While staging his car against Thomas Patterson, Hernandez looked down for a fleeting second, and, when his gaze returned to the Christmas tree, saw yellow lights and thought it was time to release the brake and race. His lapse caused him to red light and lose a race he felt he should have won.

“I don’t want to dwell on what happened last week, I just want to learn from it and move forward,” Hernandez explained.

“I can assure you, though, that when I get to the line, I won’t be looking anywhere but straight ahead. I want the guys [on the team] to know that I am doing my job and that I won’t let that mistake happen again.

“This weekend will be a lot of fun. We have a great car, and I know the fans will definitely get quite a show from all of the Pro Mods. I think it’s such an amazing class – full of exciting runs and really cool looking cars,” he said.

Qualifying for the TLR/AMS Pro Modified Challenge event at Gateway International Raceway begins on Friday with Pro Mod sessions at 4:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday’s schedule includes the final qualifying run at 4:30 p.m. and round one of eliminations scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Final eliminations begin at 4:30 p.m. on Sunday and run through the evening.

For same day coverage of this event, visit the Torco Race Fuels-sponsored www.competitionplus.com.

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