ALEXIS DEJORIA AND THE TEQUILA PATRÓN TOYOTA CAMRY FUNNY CAR TEAM MAKE THEIR BRISTOL NHRA DEBUT

NHRA Funny Car driver Alexis DeJoria and the Kalitta Motorsports Tequila Patrón Toyota Camry Funny Car team is back in Bristol, TN for the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. Not her first time to Bristol, DeJoria was the guest of honor last March at the NASCAR Food City 500 where she had an exciting and jam packed weekend, and expects even more of the same at this weekend’s race.

“I’ve been excited to race Bristol ever since my NASCAR appearance and saw the track for the very first time.  It’s so cool how the whole complex is built into the valley,” said the Rookie of the Year candidate, who never had the opportunity to race at Bristol back when she was making her rounds climbing the ranks in the Top Alcohol Funny Car circuit. “I wasn’t able to actually go down to the drag strip when we were there, but I could see it, and from what I hear, the surface is nice and smooth, and when the weather is right, you can put up some great numbers there.  I’ve also heard a lot of fans talk about the acoustics there and how they carry pretty well. Compared to the NASCAR cars, our cars are so loud, it’ll be neat to hear what it sounds like when we fire them up!”

Coming off their best race weekend to date, Team Patrón goes into the Bristol race armed with confidence and a car that has proven it can run top speeds. “Running that 4.040 really set the tone for the rest of the season,” said DeJoria of their career best run, achieved at the Englishtown Supernationals earlier this month. “We always knew we were capable of running those competitive numbers, but that pass proved it to everyone else, and gave us that extra kick of confidence that we needed.” 

Team Patrón said there are no plans to change anything mechanically in the suped-up supercharged Toyota Camry beforeBristol.  According to Jim Oberhofer, the VP of Kalitta Motorsports, “Our car was flawless all weekend long. We had that weird piston issue during eliminations, but that was an isolated incident, and we’ve since resolved it.”

Says DeJoria, “This should be a good weekend for us- our car has been consistent, our team is feeling good, and we have the excitement of racing at this track for the very first time. When we were here for the NASCAR race, we had the opportunity to meet the local fan base, and they were awesome! We were an NHRA team in NASCAR territory, but they embraced us with open arms.  I’m looking forward to going back in my Tequila Patrón Toyota Camry this weekend and putting on an exciting show for all our new Bristol friends.” 

Alexis DeJoria and the Kalitta Motorsports Tequila Patrón Toyota Camry Funny Car team will compete this weekend at the12th Annual Ford NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. Funny Car qualifying begins at 5:30PM on Friday. Prior, DeJoria will be signing autographs on Thursday, June 14th at Parkway Liquors in Bristol, TN, 3-4:30PM, and Pit Row Liquors in Bluff City, TN 5-6:30PM.