Tuesday, Jun. 24, 2008

Police, NHRA to study fatal accident

NEWARK, N.J. -- The New Jersey State Police and National Hot Rod Association will conduct separate investigations into the accident that killed Funny Car driver Scott Kalitta on Saturday at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown.

Kalitta, 46, died from multiple injuries after his car crashed in the fourth round of qualifying.

"We don't have an update," NHRA spokesman Jerry Archambeault said Monday in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "We are going through the process of seeing what occurred and what happened to determine what we can do to make the sport safer, like we have always done in the past."

Archambeault said an outside agency will lead the NHRA's investigation, aided by association officials and team members.

Kalitta's Toyota Solara was traveling at 300 mph when it burst into flames. A few seconds later, the car crashed into a wall at the end of the track and exploded. The state police fatal accident unit also will investigate the crash, Sgt. Julian Castellanos said.

"We will look at the vehicle, the electronics, the conditions of the track and, in this case, we have the rare chance to study the (video) footage of the accident," Castellanos said, adding that the unit also may examine toxicology results.

The state police investigation is expected to take four to six weeks, Castellanos said.

Michael Napp, the president and co-owner of Raceway Park, didn't want to comment on the accident.

"It is under investigation, and we don't want to speculate," Napp said. "We take track safety very seriously."

Kalitta, a Palmetto, Fla., resident, started his career at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in 1982. His father, Connie Kalitta, was a longtime driver and team owner known as "The Bounty Hunter," and his cousin, Doug Kalitta, drives in the Top Fuel division.

Since starting in 1955, there have been nine deaths at NHRA national events -- four in Top Fuel, three in Funny Car and two in Pro Stock, spokesman Anthony Vestal said.

Darrell Russell was the last driver to have a fatal accident at a national event, in St. Louis in 2004.

Funny Car driver Eric Medlen of Oakdale died last year following an accident during a testing session in Gainesville, Fla.

GILLILAND IS PUMPED -- Driving for an underfunded race team mired in the slow rebuilding process, David Gilliland has found that strong runs are hard to come by.

But on a road course he's raced before, Gilliland, who made stops at Stockton 99 Speedway, found himself running with the leaders and showcasing the potential Yates Racing has after three-plus years of struggles. The California native finished a career-best second in the Toyota/Save Mart 350 on Sunday at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma -- the team's best result since Dale Jarrett won at Talladega in 2006.

"From where we were last year to these 16 races (this year) ... I mean, it's 180 degrees from where it was, and I think it still has the potential to get better," Gilliland said. "I feel like our performance has improved 90 percent from what it was last year."

Quietly and methodically, Gilliland and teammate Travis Kvapil have pumped life back into a once-proud race team that seemed on the verge of collapse this time last year. Jarrett and Elliott Sadler had long fled the team, and the big-budget sponsors followed.

Gilliland and Kvapil have combined for five top 10s this season. Kvapil is 18th in points with a revolving door of temporary sponsorship, and Gilliland is 21st with limited help from freecreditreport.com.

Both are higher in the standings than big-budgeted drivers Kurt Busch, Casey Mears and even Sadler, who has only notched six top 10s since leaving Yates with 14 races left in the 2006 season.

Gilliland showed his team can indeed run up front, and maybe even challenge for wins.

"Yates Racing is definitely coming back, and I'm proud to be a part of it," he said.

SAVE MART EXTENDS DEAL -- Save Mart Supermarkets, title sponsor for Toyota/Save Mart 350 since 1992, signed a five-year extension over the weekend with Infineon Raceway, guaranteeing its name on this event through 2013. Including the extension, Save Mart's 22-year sponsorship deal is among the longest in NASCAR's Cup series.