Marty Thacker - Indy Divisional Wrap-Up

Thacker Earns 3rd Win in a Row in Indianapolis

Clinches Jeg’s All-Star Spot​

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Marty Thacker and the Rapid Transit Race Team headed to O’Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis, Indiana this past weekend for the opener of the Division 3 Lucas Oil Series. And after a few setbacks and a lot of hard work the Team drove away Sunday night with a brand new Wally and a spot in the prestigious Jeg’s All-Star race later this season.

"Wow! To say the least, 2008 has been a roller coaster ride for this Rapid Transit Team. After finding out most of our funding was pulled, we determined that we have enough to run a limited schedule on our own. Then, on the first pass of the year we crashed the car and it appeared that we were going to be out of the game for a while. Initially, we were told not to worry, that we had another car at our disposal, but then that deal got pulled back. So, just when we thought we weren’t going to make it to Indy, the great folks at Spitzer Race Cars front & back halved our car in record time and my crew got her ready to make it here,” said Thacker.

The Rapid Transit blown alcohol dragster qualified #5 for the event with a 5.47 at 262 MPH. In the first round of eliminations, Thacker left first and never looked back earning the win light and lane choice in the second round with at 5.46 at 264 MPH. The semi-final match-up, Thacker left first again and ran a 5.45 at 267 MPH to advance to the finals and clinch the Division 3 Jeg’s All-Star spot. In the finals, the Team earned their 10th round win in a row at ORP, when they ran 5.43 at 267 MPH to earn the Wally.

“After we finally got here, we ended up blowing up a motor and driving all over the track in qualifying to end up in the #5 position. But we never gave up and after 2 long nights of work from the crew, some more help from Spitzer’s, and a few more blessings from above and I'm standing in winners circle Sunday evening. You gotta love drag racing!"

"We didn't run the ETs we were capable of on Sunday, but it was mostly because I was being cautious with the new equipment and our limited budget this season. The engine was making the beans and the Hoosiers were hooking hard. I just never brought the clutch in hard enough. I think now that we have this data on the new set-up, and a full race under our belt, we'll be back to our more aggressive approach soon."

For their next event The Rapid Transit Race Team will head to Norwalk, Ohio for the Division 3 Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Event.

Quick Facts

• This weekend Thacker earned his third race win and 10th round win in a row at ORP.
• In 2007, the Rapid Transit Race Team reached 6 final rounds and earned three wins including the U.S. Nationals. This earned them a 6th place in the National points standings and a 2nd place finish in the Division 3 points chase.
• Thacker will participate in the Jeg’s All-Star race for the 6th time in the last 7 years in June representing Division 3. In the past two years he has won and runner-upped in this event showcasing the best of the best across the country.
• The Team set a personal best ET of 5.26 at the TORCO Racing Fuels National event in Richmond, Virginia in 2006.
• The Team, based out of Robinson, Illinois, has won 5 UDRA National Championships and 2 NHRA Divisional championships.

Please visit the official team website www.rapidtransitracing.com.

Visit the websites of our current associate and product sponsors at the following websites:

Hoosier Racing Tire – www.hoosiertire.com

Fatheadz – www.fatheadz.com

Submitted by: Shanna Snyder-Bell
Contact Person: Marty Thacker
Contact email address: mlthacker@marathonpetroleum.com