Championship Drag Racing

NHRA SummitRacing.com Nationals
Las Vegas, NV
(April 14-17)

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Erica Enders GK Motorsports Chevy Cobalt Pro Stocker

Las Vegas, Saturday: Erica Enders has an extra day off this weekend and she's not happy about it. The 21-year-old Houston resident isn't racing Sunday at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Enders doesn't want any extra days off, to be perfectly honest. She wants to race.

Enders and the Cagnazzi Chevy Cavalier team posted a DNQ this weekend, forcing Enders to watch the elimination rounds from the sidelines.

The best run of the weekend was a 6.910-second lap at 199.58 mph, just missing the 16-car field.

"The entire team is frustrated because we're just like everyone else out here. No one wants to work this hard and not get to race on Sunday," Enders said. "We don't have a lack of dedication, work or check writing. We are capable of keeping up with the rest of the field and I know we're going to get there."

The team had just three chances to qualify after the first run was aborted. The battery shorted after the burnout and the car shut off, forcing Enders to miss the first run of qualifying.

"It would have been a big help to get that first run," Enders said. "We could have used the data and it would have been a better way to start the weekend. It was real tough going into the fourth qualifying session with a real hot track, knowing we weren't in the show. We tried and it just didn't work out this time. We are going to go back to the shop, keep working and make it all turn around."

Roy Simmons said Enders is doing everything she can to help the team perform well every pass.

"In two rounds that she has raced in so far this season Erica has been more than competitive," the tuner said. "She's hungry to compete and win and she's holding up her end of the bargain. We're looking forward to a long future of racing together."

With her typical youth and enthusiasm, Enders is already looking ahead to the next event. The team will test at Bristol Dragway before the race is held April 29 – May 1. The team starts a two-day test session at Bristol on Tuesday.

"We are going to have a new car in Bristol and I can't wait to get there Tuesday and get a few test runs under my belt with the new car," she said. "I am really looking forward to being at Bristol this week before going back for the national event. It's close to the Cagnazzi Racing shop in Charlotte and we're going to use every minute of our time off before Bristol to get ready."

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