28 April 2011
Mark Mariani is looking to win back-to-back Nitro Champs at Sydney Dragway this weekend (Friday, April 29 to Sunday, May 1).
Mariani will drive one of three Top Fuel cars entered by Rapisarda Racing/Titan Cranes team at the Nitro Champs.
And while Mariani has not raced since round three at Willowbank in January, the Sydney-based second-generation Top Fuel racer believes he can win a second Nitro Champs.
Mariani won his first (Australian National Drag Racing Association) ANDRA Pro Series Top Fuel championship event at last year’s Nitro Champs.
Mariani will drive the ex-David Baca car with US-based Rapisarda Racing consultant and crew chief, Glenn Mikres, tuning the car with the crew that work on the team’s US NHRA car.
Mariani capped off his first full-season driving for Team Rapisarda, finishing fourth in the 2009-2010 ANDRA Pro Series Top Fuel championship, then driving the Rapisarda US-based car at the final two 2010 (National Hot Rod Association) NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Top Fuel championship events, the Las Vegas (Nevada) Nationals in October and the 46th annual NHRA Finals at Pomona (California) in November.
Mariani qualified 15th at Las Vegas, then won his first round elimination race. He qualified in 21st place at Pomona, missing the 16-car field by 0.098-seconds.
Mariani gained 61 points from the two events to finish equal 29th out of the 45 racers who took part in the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle series.
“It will be good to be back in their seat again after not racing since the rained-out Willowbank event. I’m looking forward to the weekend and to be back in the car again. I have been champing at the bit to get back behind the wheel again,” Mariani said.
“I can still remember all the passes I did in the US like it was yesterday, and it’ll be good to be working with Glenn (Mikres) and the US crew again.
“Before we went to the US, Glenn and I had been working on staging the car and improving my driving technique. I’ll be really keen to put all that into practice at Sydney this weekend.”
Mariani said while Top Fuel race over 1000 feet (304.8 metres) in the NHRA, he is looking forward to racing over the traditional quarter-mile (403.5 metres) at Sydney Dragway and better his personal best time of 4.776-seconds, recorded at the Winternationals (Willowbank) last June.
While Mariani recorded two 300-mph passes over the 1000-foot in the US, he is also keen to run his first 300mph pass in Australia, bettering his current best 296.63mph (477.27km/h) speed.
“Racing to the 1000-foot was an experience. But, I am happy to go the extra 300-feet (91.44 metres) and run over the quarter-mile at Sydney. And while my best speed (in the US) was 307.44mph (494.67km/h), I still have not run over 300mph in Australia and that’s a goal I want to achieve this weekend.”