Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Marnell has new car, crew chief for ‘03

Thursday, Jan. 9, 2003 | 10:04 a.m.

Brian Hilderbrand covers motor sports for the Las Vegas Sun. His motor sports notebook appears Friday. He can be reached at bh@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4089.

NHRA Pro Stock owner/driver George Marnell of Las Vegas is gearing up for the 2003 NHRA season with a new racecar and a new crew chief.

Marnell, who earned his second NHRA victory last season and finished 11th in the Pro Stock points standings, will begin testing a new Pontiac Grand Am later this month under the guidance of longtime driver, mechanic and crew chief Buddy Ingersoll.

"Buddy and I have been friends for a long, long time," Marnell said. "I looked at a number of different possibilities, talked to numerous individuals and really studied this thing to try and find the best person for our program (and) that person just happened to be Buddy.

"He's probably one of the best chassis guys in the business and that's what our program has been lacking. Buddy's expertise will go a long way in helping us get the right setup for our racecar."

Although he won the NHRA season opener at Pomona last year and remained in the top 10 in points for all but the final month of the season, Marnell's car developed a chassis problem in mid-September and he failed to qualify for three consecutive national events while racing with a cracked rear-end housing.

As a result of his late-season troubles, Marnell finished five points out of 10th place in the final NHRA Pro Stock standings.

"You better believe I was disappointed," Marnell said of last season. "But considering how tough the category is, the main thing is to keep it in perspective. We struggled during the second half of the season and ran into some difficulties with the racecar that presented a twofold dilemma.

"One was the problem itself, which was in the chassis, then actually finding what component had failed, and finally, getting back to our baseline. That consumed valuable time and resources and is the major reason we finished where we did."

On the other hand, Marnell said, it was gratifying to know that he could compete with the best in the class when his car was on.

"Pro Stock is loaded with a lot of great drivers with good power who know how to use it," he said. "The fact that we can be competitive in a class with this many excellent professionals, it's really quite a thrill to be a part of it.

"To know that every time you line up against somebody, you're lining up against the best in the business, and if you can walk away with a victory, that's a big, big plus. Although the competition level is very, very high, winning is tremendously gratifying when it happens."

Among the drivers who have committed to take part in the test are Doug Kalitta, Rhonda Hartman-Smith, John Smith, Melanie Troxel, Gary Scelzi, Del Worsham, Scott Weis and Las Vegan Duane Shields. Additional drivers are expected to commit prior to the test.