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Tyler Bowers and Monster Energy Babbitt Kawasaki Take Second AMA Arenacross Championship

Apr 18, 2012

Tyler Bowers recently won his second consecutive AMA Arenacross Championship.

Tyler Bowers and Team Monster Energy Babbitt's Kawasaki recently rolled into Minneapolis, Minnesota eager to arrive at the Target Center, where Bowers was scheduled to race in the final AMA Arenacross event of the season. The rider was prepared for a battle, and in a good position. He had managed to earn twelve main event wins during previous races and the only obstacle standing between him and his second consecutive championship was to qualify for the main event on the final round of the series.

Fastest in qualifying on his KX250F, Bowers then managed to win his heat race. After taking the lead, the rider noticed a puncture on his rear tire. Aware that he couldn't risk missing the main, stopping was not an option. In fact, the rider never looked back and took the win.

Eager to continue his pursuit to end the season with a bang, the rider then focused on the Dash for Cash. In third place until the last corner of the race, Bowers maneuvered his way to the front for a victory when the leading two riders collided.

With momentum on his side and a championship title pretty well in the bag, Bowers was more than prepared for an exciting and fierce battle in the main event. Upon qualifying and clinching the championship, some riders in his situation might have very well been satisfied with coasting through the race, but Bowers is not geared that way. In fact, he was focused on finishing the season with a top-notched and memorable performance.

Tyler Bowers managed to earn twelve main event wins prior to the final round of the series.

Coming out of the first turn in the third position, Bowers went to work on the two drivers situated between him and the first place spot. Passing spots were sparse, forcing the rider to hold his third place position for a portion of the race until he finally managed to take over the number two spot. Although Bowers remained focused on taking the winning position from, Zach Ames, the opportunity never arose prior to the waving of the checkered flag. Tyler Bowers ended the final race with a second place spot on the podium and another championship title under his belt.

Going into the season, Bowers and the team were confident that they had a grip on what it would take to experience success on a consistent basis. Of course Bowers' riding skills would play a huge role and one might suspect that luck would occasionally be needed, but they were confident that a good running bike and team effort would distinguish them from the other riders in the circuit.

When asked about the importance of his team, Bowers said, "The team is super important to me because it has to be a very fine tuned machine with everyone working together, each with a unique purpose to achieve the amount of success we have in Arenacross," explained the rider. "Plus, a good team and great teammates create a positive environment at the races."

With two consecutive championships under his belt, Tyler Bowers is obviously a force to be reckoned with in the world of Arenacross racing. Referring to Bowers' riding abilities, team owner, Eddie Babbitt explained, "Tyler is always ready." When asked what separates Bowers from his competitors, Babbitt continued, "his ability to work through the pack when he gets a bad start, his ability to pick new lines no one else uses allows him to move forward."

Team Monster Energy Babbitt's Kawasaki and Tyler Bowers are also strong advocates of maintaining their bikes to the jot and to the tittle. That in mind, they depend upon K&N air and oil filters to keep their engines contaminant free. "We have been using K&N filters for six years now," explained Bowers, "and we have always seen horsepower gains on the dyno. This year we gained three-quarters of a horsepower."

When asked what fans can expect from Tyler Bowers and Team Monster Energy Babbitt's Kawasaki in the future, the rider said, "Another great season. I'd like to thank all my fans and sponsors, Team Babbitt's Monster Energy Amsoil Kawasaki, for sticking with me. There have been plenty of ups and downs along the road, and I'm proud to say I have such a dedicated group of people around me."

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

Eric Bowling Motorsports Starts 2012 with a Win at NHRA's Edgewater Sports Park

Apr 13, 2012

It's about the Benjamins and winning for Eric Bowling and his green rolling ATM.

How is it even possible that Bloomington, Indiana bracket racer, Eric Bowling could ever be in the position of being the Rodney Dangerfield of drag racing? It is way past time to show this accomplished racer a little love and a lot of respect. Bowling and his team started out their 2012 season in Cleves, Ohio at NHRA's Edgewater Sports Park, where he debut his new ride, and Bowling drove his Blazer straight to the winners circle. Now had this been his first victory, perhaps we'd understand, however Bowling has quite literally been bowling down the competition for years.

In 2010 Bowling won 21 of 24 final round appearances and put over 600 passes on his 1969 Camaro. He followed that up in 2011 by winning 20 of 23 final round appearances in even fewer rounds than 2010. Yet, it took an article by Drag Race Central titled "Eric Who?" to make people sit up and take notice.

Bowling's late father started taking him to the track when he was still a kid, which led to him starting his own race career in 1998. Today Bowling still competes in the very same 1969 Camaro that his dad used to race. Bowling won his first points championship in 1999 and has since collected a total of 13 championships at three different race tracks in Indiana, including two IHRA Summit Super Series Points Championships, and most impressively three straight titles at Lyon's Raceway Park, the 2010 and 2011 Division 3 "NHRA "Track of the Year."

What's the back-story with your new ride and what how did you decide on the going with the Blazer?

Bowling fired-up his 2012 season by winning in Cleves, Ohio at NHRA's Edgewater Sports Park.

"I've always wanted a big tired car. This past fall my father-in-law Don called me and said 'I got your new race car.' I asked what it was and he said 'You'll just have to come see for yourself.' When I got there I saw this bright green Blazer sitting on his trailer. I asked him where in the world he found that thing and he said he followed a guy who had it on a trailer into a salvage yard and asked him if he was going to junk it. The guy said yup, and my father-in-law asked him what he'd take for it and the guy said $200. Don paid the man and the rest is history. I can't take much credit as I was always racing while Don was doing the building. I made its first debut last fall and won the first race we entered with it."

You got into drag racing through your dad, but did you have an interest in other types of racing too?

"Before drag racing I was into motocross. After many broken bones I decided to try drag racing. My dad was always into cars and racing and my first car that I drove to high school was my 1969 Camaro Z/28. My dad took me a few times when it still had the DZ302 and Muncie 4-speed in it. My father passed away in 1995, and since the car had been titled in my name since I was two months old, I figured the car is safer on the track than on the streets, so we made it into a racecar. After winning the first race I ever entered I was hooked. I have raced it every year since 1998 and have won 13 points titles and have over 200 event wins in it. That Camaro is like home to me, but she's tired and needs some major changes made. I've put over 5,000 passes on her and I need to give her some much needed much deserved TLC. This gave us yet another reason for building the Blazer."

Bowling estimates he's put over 5,000 passes on the trusty 1969 Camaro Z/28 that his dad gave him.

I like the Benjamins banner running around the bottom of the car, what was your thinking with that?

"The $100 bills on the Blazer started out being a way to cover a paint blemish. I didn't want just plain vinyl, and I had seen a helmet with $100 bills on it, so we got this idea and figured needed to put the money on the truck. Plus I was also thinking about how it could help me on the race track. For example at the race in Edgewater a couple weeks ago, some buddy's and me were standing back talking and someone in the background says, 'What kind of cocky SOB shows up at a track with $100 bills on their car?' I just laughed and thought to myself, I'm already in this guy's head and we haven't even pulled into staging yet. Trust me, it gets looks from just about everyone, whether that's good or bad I'll let you be the judge of that. We joke and call it 'The ATM Machine.'"

What race goals have you set for the 2012 season?

"This offseason was my best as far as getting support from new marketing partners. I was able to get Mickey Thompson Tires, Ohio Crankshaft, Cometic Gasket, Spy Optics, QA1, and then to be able to add K&N to this lineup was huge. I plan on running a few more big money events, the first being the Ohio Crankshaft No Box Nationals coming up in June which I won in 2008. I also plan to go over to support Luke Bogacki's deal in July. I have won three straight points titles at Lyons Raceway Park and I plan to race there quite a bit this season to possibly make it four in a row. But I'm not yet completely committed to that, as I will be doing a little more travelling than normal this year. I will also start dabbling in some top bulb stuff now that I have a car that I know will do well in the heat of the summer. The biggest thing going on for me in 2012, though, is my wife and I are expecting a new crew member to the team in late June. We are really excited for him to get here."

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

K&N's Dan Fletcher Mixes it Up in Las Vegas and Grabs 76th NHRA National Event Win

Apr 13, 2012

Dan Fletcher masterfully drove his K&N Chevy Cobalt to his 76th NHRA National victory.

Not having too much time to enjoy reaching the tremendous landmark of seventy-five NHRA National event wins just a little over a month ago, K&N's juggernaut sportsman racer, Dan Fletcher won his third NHRA National event of the season in just four events. Like he started off the season in Pomona, this time Fletcher got the win in Competition Eliminator during the Summitracing.com NHRA Nationals at the Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, all while also doing very well in a class we don't see him compete in all too often, Super Comp.

Although Fletcher has racked up an outstanding number of accolades over his racing career, the Churchville, New York racer has a few more he would like to add, including winning a NHRA National event in Super Comp. "I had my own Super Comp car a few years ago, but frankly I didn't do that well with it," he confessed. "Since I've been driving some other people's cars, I've driven much better in theirs than I ever did my own. This weekend, I borrowed Justin Lamb's really nice Racetech car, albeit not a super-fast car only running about 170 MPH. I had a great opportunity to win in Super Comp this weekend and I really want to check that one off my list, because when I do that would be wins in five classes."

For not running the longer cars much, Fletcher showed the pro that he is by going five tough rounds in a car and class he doesn't normally compete in. "I got down to six cars and would have had the bye into the final," he explained. "The car was going faster than it was supposed to in the quarter-finals and 'hurricane winds,' crosswind, tailwind, this-that-and-the-other and the car is supposed to be going three or four [hundredths] under and I kill my three or four. I'm .025 on the tree to his .042 and he's behind me and that's where he stayed. So, it's a double breakout with four-thou difference between us and I'm just on the wrong side."

I had my own Super Comp car a few years ago, but frankly I didn't do that well with it.

Even though it was Fletcher with the win at Pomona in his K&N Comp Eliminator car, he hadn't been really pleased with its performance out of the gate for 2012. "The car was a big pile of dirt at Pomona and we really didn't deserve to win," he said. "We went to Phoenix and it was still bad. So we had to go home and do some work. We had to go through the chassis and send the motor back and spend some money. We found some issues here, there and wherever and then we were off to Vegas. We weren't the fastest car there, but at least we were in the top half [qualified field] with a car that was capable of winning. I drove pretty well and the car ran well and at least we didn't embarrass ourselves. At Phoenix, frankly it was embarrassing."

On the way to successfully defending his Comp Eliminator title from the spring 2011 Las Vegas race, Fletcher qualified his K&N B/EA '08 Chevy Cobalt at number nine and thanks to the rare odd number of cars that made up the field, would position himself on the ladder to have a shot at a single in later rounds. Fletcher made a great pass in round one against Brian Fitzpatrick, with a .002 RT to Fitzpatrick's .056 and easily took the stripe al while being able to stay completely safe on his index.

Round two he faced Tom Mettler and again Fletcher nailed the tree with a .010 and took a whopping .080 starting line advantage. This was a very important round as the winner would earn themselves a bye in the next round. Fletcher made an easy race of it and took the stripe for the round win, although it cost him a CIC hit on his index that he would have to carry for the rest of the event.

Showing that he was certainly on his driving game, Fletcher posted a perfect .000 reaction time during his quarter-final bye and on to pair up with Clint Sallee. Both drivers came into the matchup carrying their own CIC, Fletcher with the slight disadvantage. Sallee, try as he may with the better reaction time, but this one was going to Fletcher by less than a blink of an eye at the stripe. Taking an even bigger CIC hit and running .552 under his 8.38 class index, Fletcher squeezed one out at the finish line staying just five inches ahead or .001 as he paved his way into the finals.

Whether Fletcher is behind the wheel of one of his more recognizable pair of K&N '69 Chevy Camaros or a friend's car, he only trusts his motors to the kind of protection that only K&N filters can provide.

Whether it was in Super Comp or Comp Eliminator, the immense wind, and its ever-changing direction over the course of the event, kept things interesting for Fletcher and his fellow racers. "The wind was pretty bad in both [cars]," he noted. "The run I lost in Super Comp, I'm in the left lane and I'm spun around looking at the guy the whole pass and as I'm staring at him backwards, I could just feel the car being buffeted left and right. It was a rather disconcerting feeling. The Comp car is a 2,000 pound car on a radial tire and the wind can really get to that car, but you know honestly, it really wasn't that bad. When you come out from past the stands there, with the crosswind that we had at times, you would get hit with a pretty big blast. The car just must be round and aerodynamic enough that it didn't really affect me too bad. You could feel it, but it was manageable."

Fletcher rolled into the Competition Eliminator final, his 115th final at a NHRA National and even though he was down by .02 in CIC compared to his competitor, he masterfully drove his K&N Chevy Cobalt to his 76th NHRA National victory. Fletcher made his quickest pass of eliminations right when he needed to with a 7.816 on his 8.33 index and just shy of .02 at the stripe over Doug Lambeck.

Whether Fletcher is behind the wheel of one of his more recognizable pair of K&N '69 Chevy Camaros or a friend's car, he only trusts his motors to the kind of protection that only K&N filters can provide. "We put more passes on our engines between freshen-ups than a lot of the racers out here," he pointed out. "When you are doing all this to put food on the table, you can't take a chance of trusting what is in essence your family's livelihood to anything that could be subpar, I just go with the best to start with and protect my investments with K&N. Our K&N oil filters and air filters are a big part of why we can safely get so many runs on our cars."

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

Jason Line Tightens Up Top Spot in 2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge

Apr 13, 2012

If it wasn't for K&N and the K&N low qualifier award, we would have come out of Vegas empty handed.

With now just seven events remaining to gain points and position for the 2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge, Jason Line earned his second NHRA Pro Stock pole of the season, his seventh since the points started over for the Challenge, during the most recent NHRA event at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the 13th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals. Line continues to hold down the top spot in the Challenge with a 115-point lead over K&N's Mike Edwards.

Since the commencement of the 2012 race season, Jason Line has been quite deadly during qualifying, taking not only fifty percent of the pole positions thus far, but for the two he didn't, still going into race day no less that second on the ladder and in the process, earning a whopping 680 points for the K&N Horsepower Challenge out of the 700 maximum. Second highest points earner for the first four races of the season goes to K&N's Mike Edwards with 650, who earned a number one at Phoenix and third to Allen Johnson with 610, picking up the remaining pole so far this season at Gainesville.

During Las Vegas, Line was flat unbeatable in qualifying as he was number one out of the gate during Friday's first session and never looked back. He not only held on to the number one spot over the course of qualifying, he outran the field, making the quickest run of each of the four sessions.

Wind played a fairly big factor for all teams competing during the Las Vegas event. "That place is kinda crazy," said the current K&N Horsepower Challenge point leader. "You never know which way the wind is blow. One minute its blowing one direction and the next it's another. It's always kind of a tough place to race because of that. We came out of the box good and that's always a great way to start because then you can kinda chip away at it. A lot of times you get behind the eight ball, but this was a good qualifying event for us. My car has been really good, actually phenomenal."

A lot of times you get behind the eight ball, but this was a good qualifying event for us. My car has been really good, actually phenomenal.

"If it wasn't for K&N and the K&N low qualifier award, we would have come out of Vegas empty handed," he confessed. "We have a great race car and were number one qualifier, but the driver just needs to get a little more intense on race day. I gotta say though, I really like hanging those K&N plaques on my wall and the bonus they provide is fantastic."

Over the course of qualifying, Line first laid down a 6.679, tying Allen Johnson in E.T., but holding the all-important tie breaker with his faster 206.99 MPH for the number one position. He then came back and made his best run of all the sessions during the afternoon shot, when he found another whole two hundredths of a second and a nice 6.659. That number would remain the top spot even though both sessions on Saturday. Although Line has a nice lead over Mike Edwards for the top spot in the 2012 K&N Horsepower Challenge, he's far from comfortable with it. "We don't have a stranglehold on it, because we definitely don't," he commented on his position in the standings. "You know, I say it every year, but I want to win that thing one of these years and we just seem to keep coming up short."

The K&N Horsepower Challenge is unique in that it provides eight elite NHRA Pro Stock teams a shot to run off in just three short rounds for a substantial payday. The last person standing will earn, not only some of the biggest bragging rights in all of drag racing, but also the largest single race payout in all of NHRA Pro Stock with its $50,000 check.

"If things keep going the way they are, obviously the worst case scenario is that we start that race with a great starting position," he said of the upcoming Challenge race to be held in early July at Norwalk. "Best case is that we start with the best spot and that's number one. It's really quite a battle right now between Mike [Edwards] and myself. We seem to be the two teams who have the most consistent cars during qualifying. I think it's really going to come down to the last race right before the shootout. We'll see, hopefully we can hang on."

The teams have Easter weekend to grab some quick rest and time with their families before it's right back to business for the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, April 13-15 at zMax Dragway in Concord, North Carolina.

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

Aleksandr Grinchuk Three-Time Ukrainian Drift Racing Champion Readies for 2012

Apr 13, 2012

Supporting Aleksandr Grinchuk's efforts for a fourth consecutive Ukraine title is his new title sponsor.

You don't become the three-time Ukrainian Drift Racing Champion by resting on your laurels or taking a single minuscule detail for granted. On the increasingly popular Ukrainian Drift Racing scene, Grinchuk is the man with the bounty on his head everyone else is looking to cash in on, yet this season Grinchuk is more determined than ever not to allow that happen.

Grinchuk won the Ukrainian title in 2009, 2010, and in 2011, he was awarded with the ultimate title of being the Absolute Drift Champion of Ukraine. To claim that highly coveted prize a driver must win all three of the Ukrainian drift championships, the TuningFest Drift Edition Championship, Vinnitza Grand Prix Championship and the most prestigious the Ukrainian Drift Championship (UDC). The possession of all three titles is the only way to be crowned king of the Ukraine drift scene, and Grinchuk has gone to extraordinary measures to not surrender that definitive designation.

Grinchuk and his reengineered car with the brand new paint scheme will debut next month in Kharkiv, Ukraine.

"In the beginning of 2012 my car and I made several big changes," said Grinchuk. "The first and biggest change is that we have a new big title sponsor for 2012. Also we have changed our tire supplier. All these changes forced us to completely modify to the new racing colors for our car."

"The new look of the car is not the only thing which was changed during the offseason," adds Grinchuk. "It took a lot of efforts to make the car lighter, faster and more powerful. That is why we put our car on a severe diet, during which a lot of metal details were removed from it. Then we assembled new engine with two larger turbochargers. And at last we made some changes in the transmission to produce more comfortable gear shifting with our new power."

In 2011 Grinchuk was crowned Absolute Drift Champion of Ukraine using K&N filters, and it's one of only things that remain the same on this year's 2012 championship car.

The Ukrainian drift racing season starts in early May with the first event being held in Kharkiv, the second largest city in the Ukraine. This race will signal the first stage of Ukrainian Drift Series (previously called the Drift Edition series). In the week following this event, the first stage of another series will get underway, the Ukrainian Drift Championship in the capital of Ukraine, Kyiv.

"And one week after that we will start the first stage of the third Ukrainian Series which is called VFDD," explains Grinchuk. "I think May is going to be the most intense month of the season."

"In the middle of the summer my native city of Odessa is going to play host to two stages of two different European championships. King of Europe Drift series plans its fifth stage in July in Odessa. And the event of Eastern European Drifting Championship will take place in August. So I plan to take part in four stages of UDC series, five stages of UDS series, two stages of VFDD series, two events of international drift series in Ukraine and several projects with my new sponsors," continues Grinchuk.

"Last year we used K&N racing air filters and K&N high performance oil filters for all the season. We were very pleased with the results! This year we continue our partnership with the K&N brand and continue to use K&N products on the car to defend my title of the Absolute Drift Champion of Ukraine for the fourth time."

Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world.

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