Mopar® Will Turn Up the Heat with its $10,000
Bonus at the 22nd Annual Dodge Chili Bowl
Nationals
from
Darren Jacobs, Center Line, Mich. (January
4, 2008) — For the seventh straight
year, Mopar® will turn up the heat at the
22nd Annual Dodge Chili Bowl Nationals by
offering its $10,000 bonus check for any
Mopar-powered midget car driver who takes
home a win in the prestigious event. More
than 35 Mopar-powered entries (among a
current field of 277 midget cars) will
compete for the Mopar $10,000 bonus at the
Chili Bowl Nationals’ 50-lap main event
on Jan. 12, 2008 at the Tulsa Expo Raceway
in Oklahoma. Combined with the $10,000
winner’s check, the Mopar bonus offers
drivers with a Mopar power plant the
opportunity to double their purse with a
victory.
Both Tony Stewart and Tracy Hines banked
the Mopar $10,000 bonus with their
victories at the Chili Bowl Nationals in
2002 and 2005, respectively.
“Our Mopar bonus has become a tradition
at the Chili Bowl Nationals,” said Rob
Richard, Director of Global Mopar Parts,
Sales and Service Marketing, Chrysler LLC.
“Only Mopar offers this type of bonus
purse at the event. With more than 35
Mopar-powered midget entries, Team Mopar
will be a threat to claim the ‘Golden
Driller’ trophy once again. Drivers
running our Mopar power plant have a
chance for a very handsome payday if they
can bring home the event win.”
Kasey Kahne, Gary Scelzi and Jerry
Coons Jr. are part of the Team Mopar
contingent vying for the Mopar $10,000
bonus
A number of high-profile drivers are among
the more than 35 Mopar-powered entries
ready to battle it out for the Mopar
$10,000 bonus.
NASCAR Nextel Cup standout Kasey Kahne
begins his second year as owner of
Mopar’s factory-backed team in World of
Outlaws (WoO) Sprint and USAC Sprint and
Midget competition, Kasey Kahne Racing (KKR).
In addition to his own ride, Kahne will
also field midget cars piloted by his
rising young USAC hotshoes, Brady Bacon
and Brad Sweet. Rounding out the KKR
“Four Horseman” at the Chili Bowl is
WoO veteran Joey Saldana, fresh off a
career-best season that included 13 wins
and a runner-up WoO Series finish.
Four-time NHRA POWERade champion Gary
Scelzi drives the Mopar/Oakley Dodge
Charger R/T Funny Car for Don Schumacher
Racing, and was one of only four Funny Car
drivers to qualify for the 2007 NHRA
POWERade Countdown to 1 two-race title
shootout. Scelzi will have the rare chance
to pursue his other passion – circle
track racing. Owner of the Gary Scelzi
Motorsports Mopar/K&N Filters/Oakley
midget piloted regularly by his
17-year-old phenomenon driver, Michael
Faccinto, Scelzi will seize the chance
provided by the NHRA off-season to take
the wheel of his midget car at the Chili
Bowl Nationals.
After scoring his second straight USAC
Midget championship under the Team Mopar
banner in 2007, Wilke-PAK Racing’s Jerry
Coons Jr. will seek to kick off the 2008
season in grand style by capturing the
$10,000 Mopar bonus and his first-ever
Chili Bowl Nationals championship.
Coons’ stellar 2007 season was
recognized by the American Auto Racing
Writers and Broadcasters Association with
first team honors in the “Short Track”
category.
Several other Mopar-powered drivers
scheduled to compete at the Chili Bowl
Nationals include 2007 Badger Midget Auto
Racing Association (BMARA) champion Brad
Kuhn, young NASCAR-bound and former KKR
driver Kevin Swindell, and two additional
future stars, 16-year-old Dakoda Armstrong
and 17-year old Darrin Bolton.
The 22nd Annual Dodge Chili Bowl
Nationals event details
The 22nd Annual Dodge Chili Bowl Nationals
begin on Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2008, with
pre-qualifying. Qualifying is set for
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. The Bass
Pro Shops Championship Saturday will be
televised live on HBO Pay-Per-View for the
first time. The live broadcast begins at 8
p.m. ET on Saturday, Jan. 12, 2008. For
ordering information, visit www.hbo.com/events/chili/.
70 Years of Mopar
When Chrysler bought Dodge in 1928, the
need for a dedicated parts manufacturer,
supplier and distribution system to
support the growing enterprise led to the
formation of the Chrysler Motor Parts
Corporation (CMPC) in 1929.
Originally used in the 1920s, Mopar (a
simple contraction of the words MOtor and
PARts) was trademarked for a line of
antifreeze products in 1937. It was also
widely used as a moniker for the CMPC. The
Mopar brand made its mark in the 1960s –
the muscle car era. The Chrysler
Corporation built race-ready Dodge and
Plymouth “package cars” equipped with
special high-performance parts. Mopar
carried a line of “Special Parts” for
super stock drag racers and developed its
racing parts division called Mopar
Performance Parts to enhance speed and
handling for both road and racing use.
Today, Chrysler LLC’s Global Service
& Parts division is responsible for
the manufacturing and distribution of
nearly 250,000 authentic Mopar replacement
parts, components and accessories for
Chrysler, Jeep® and Dodge vehicles sold
around the world. To assure quality,
reliability and durability, all Mopar
parts and accessories are designed in
strict adherence to Chrysler engineering
standards.
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Visit Chrysler’s Media Services Web
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additional Chrysler news. For additional
information about Mopar, log on to http://www.mopar.com
or http://www.moparspeed.com.
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