Fuller makes ‘big-league’ debut at home track

By Brian Hilderbrand

Wednesday, April 13, 2005 | 9 a.m.

Thursday

7 a.m. -- Pit and spectator gates open.

9 a.m. -- Sportsman qualifying.

7-8 p.m. -- Free NHRA driver autograph session at ESPN Zone (New York New York Hotel & Casino).

Friday

7 a.m. -- Pit and spectator gates open.

8 a.m. -- Sportsman qualifying and eliminations.

9 a.m. -- Sport Compact qualifying.

Noon -- Sport Compact qualifying.

1 p.m. -- Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car qualifying.

2:30 p.m. -- Pro Modified qualifying.

3 p.m. -- Pro Stock (car) qualifying.

3:30 p.m. -- Top Fuel Dragster and Funny Car qualifying.

4:30 p.m. -- Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car qualifying.

5:30 p.m. -- Pro Modified qualifying.

6 p.m. -- Pro Stock (car) qualifying.

6:30 p.m. -- Top Fuel Dragster and Funny Car qualifying.

Saturday

7 a.m. -- Pit and spectator gates open.

8 a.m. -- Sportsman eliminations.

11 a.m. -- Sport Compact qualifying.

Noon -- Pro Stock (car) qualifying.

12:30 p.m. -- Top Fuel Dragster and Funny Car qualifying.

1:30 p.m. -- Pro Modified qualifying.

2 p.m. -- Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car qualifying.

3 p.m. -- Pro Stock (car) qualifying.

3:30 p.m. -- Top Fuel Dragster and Funny Car qualifying.

4:15 p.m. -- First round of Pro Modified eliminations.

4:30 p.m. -- First round of Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car eliminations.

5:15 p.m. -- First round of Pro Modified eliminations.

Sunday

7 a.m. -- Pit and spectator gates open.

9 a.m. -- Sportsman eliminations.

10 a.m. -- Pre-race ceremonies.

11 a.m. -- Final eliminations.

By his own estimate, Rod Fuller had made close to 500 passes down the quarter-mile at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. But none will be more special than the one he takes Friday afternoon.

After a nine-year absence from the NHRA Top Fuel ranks, Fuller returned to the class this year as the driver of the new David Powers Motorsports dragster. Fuller, a Las Vegas resident, will make his pro debut at The Strip in Friday's 3:30 p.m. Nitro qualifying session.

"I don't think I've ever been this excited to go to a race," Fuller said. "When I was a Sportsman racer, you kind of don't want to take people out there because you're just running Super Comp and they're asking 'Why aren't you in the big leagues?'

"Finally, I get to come home and showcase what I do. Now it's finally my time and I can take everybody in the world out there and show them what I do and show them that this is the big leagues."

Fuller, 33, briefly drove John Mitchell's "Montana Express" Top Fuel dragster in 1995 before returning to the Sportsman ranks, where he won 13 NHRA national events and 28 regional races the past nine seasons. It was only through tragedy that Fuller suddenly found himself in the running for a Top Fuel ride.

The late Darrell Russell, who was killed in a Top Fuel racing accident last June at Gateway International Raceway, had been in discussions with Houston businessman and friend David Powers about forming a team for the 2007 NHRA season. Russell's brother, Chris, also was to be involved in the team. After Darrell Russell's fatal accident, his brother and Powers decided to go ahead with the team and push up the start date to this season.

"This car was really built, and the team was built, to be Darrell Russell's in 2007," Fuller said. "With Darrell's passing, Chris and David said, 'Darrell wouldn't want us to just sit around and mope about this and quit racing; he'd want us to do it.'

"The hard part for them was to pick who they wanted to drive it. It would have to be somebody special and somebody that Darrell would want. Darrell was a Sportsman racer, so their first idea was they were going to take a Sportsman racer and give him a shot. They had to have the personality like what Darrell had; somebody that was real courteous and a good racer and not loud and obnoxious."

Chris Russell and Powers whittled their list to three drivers and finally settled on Fuller. Chris serves as the team manager and co-crew chief and Russell's parents also are a part of the team.

"Chris put this whole team together and Chris' dad and mom are with us on the team, so it definitely has a Russell feel to it. It's real therapeutic for them, to get to go out there and do this as a remembrance of Darrell."

Fuller qualified the car in its debut, at Pomona in February, for the fastest field in Top Fuel history before losing in the first round. The team skipped the second event of the season and then Fuller qualified 13th at Gainesville and suffered another first-round loss. Last weekend, at the Russell's hometown race in Houston, Fuller qualified the car eighth and earned the team's first round win, defeating Clay Millican in the opening round of eliminations.

Fuller met two-time Top Fuel champion and current points leader Tony Schumacher in the second round, where he gave Schumacher "a good run" before losing by about 26 feet.

"We didn't beat Schumacher, but we sure gave him a good run," Fuller said. "Everybody kept coming up to us and saying, 'Man, you really surprised us, this car really surprised us.' We knew what we had ... but we gained some respect (from the other competitors).

"Heck, that was only our third race and we're already qualifying in the top half of the field and already making it rounds. We beat Millican first round and he's won four straight IHRA world championships and they're in the top 10 in Top Fuel this year, so he's a formidable opponent. We've been to three races and qualified for the fastest field in Top Fuel history, we went to Gainesville and qualified there and went to Houston and qualified in the top half and made a round. Our progress is definitely speaking for itself."

Although the David Powers Motorsports is committed to running only two-thirds of the 23 national events this season, Fuller didn't hesitate when asked what a realistic goal for the season would be.

"For me, it would be winning a race because I'm used to winning a lot," he said. "Honestly, at Houston, I felt we could win that race. If we would have caught just a little bit of a break, we would have put Schumacher down and had a good shot at winning the race.

"Now we all have confidence, so I think we're dangerous. Unfortunately, we're not going to all 23 (races) because that increases your chances of winning, but if I was another team, I wouldn't take us lightly, that's for sure."

And Fuller said he couldn't imagine a better scenario than to pick up his first Top Fuel victory in the town he has called home for the past three and a half years.

"This is the first time I've ever run Top Fuel in my hometown and I've got close to 100 people coming out that are friends and family -- I need to win the race just to break even," he joked.

"I guarantee you there's nobody in Top Fuel who has been down this strip more than me. I know some little tricks ... I know what to do when the wind blows certain directions; I know where the sun is going to be at certain times of the day. Plus, I'll be sleeping in my own bed."