10/4/2018
Keith Haney
Haney Happy with Test Performance Prior to NHRA Pro Mod at Dallas
Veteran Pro Mod driver and outspoken competitor Keith Haney made his 5.9-second, 250-mile-an-hour NHRA debut back in May on the quarter mile at Topeka, Ks., but it wasn't quite enough to break into the always tough NHRA E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod Series field. He tried again last month in St. Louis, but again met with disappointment, leaving him more determined than ever to qualify this weekend (Oct. 5-7) for the AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex, south of Dallas.
"There's no way to sugarcoat it; the first time went okay, second time wasn't worth a darn. And that's okay, too. I could give a million excuses, but it still wouldn't matter," the Tulsa-based new car dealer realizes as this weekend he makes the last of three scheduled NHRA Pro Mod appearances in 2018.
"I owe it to my sponsors, to everyone at Summit Racing, I owe it to Strange Engineering, I owe it to Lucas Oil, to Kryptonite Kustomz, I owe it to all of them for believing in me to do everything I possibly can to succeed. I need to show up and show out, it's that plain and simple."
To that end, Haney participated yesterday (Oct. 3), in a day-long test session at Xtreme Raceway Park in Ferris, Tx. He was joined at the new eighth-mile strip just 15 minutes up the highway from the Motorplex in Ennis, by car owner and crew chief Rickie Smith, tuner Brandon Switzer, crewmen Chad Hester, Kevin Pickett and Logan Wilson, along with past NHRA Pro Mod champion and Rickie Smith Racing teammate Khalid al Balooshi.
"I was real fortunate in that Rickie pulled me aside after St. Louis and said, 'Hey, we're going testing before Dallas and you don't have a choice.' I've had a lot going on in my personal and business lives lately, so I'm glad that that he insisted. It's what I needed," Haney freely admitted.
After making several test hits in the same nitrous-boosted 2017 Camaro that three-time NHRA Pro Mod series champ Smith drove to victory at the NHRA event early this year in Gainesville, Fl., Haney was left feeling encouraged and optimistic about his chances at the NHRA FallNationals.
"Everything went perfect," he declared. "I made five straight-down-Broadway passes with no problems, no issues, no drama. If it runs like that this weekend, things are going to get real interesting.
"And I say perfect because that's exactly how it went. When I got in the car, every run was fast and straight and smooth. The track was absolutely perfect, too, prepped just like an NHRA track. Those guys at Xtreme did a great job."
With just three events left in the 2018 NHRA Pro Mod season, Smith is currently embroiled in a close battle against points leader Mike Janis, with Steve Jackson not far behind in third after winning the last two events.
Haney said he can't worry about any of that. As the defending 2017 champion for both Pro Mod and Radial vs. the World classes in the all-eighth-mile Mid-West Pro Mod Series, he's no stranger to victory lane himself and would like nothing better than to add an NHRA FallNats title to his racing resume.
"You know, I've raced in Texas a lot and our Keith Haney Racing fans in Texas are absolutely awesome and there's nothing I'd love more than to give them something big to celebrate. Plus, Summit's main distribution
center for this region isn't far from the Motorplex. In fact, that's where I met the people from Summit early this year and we put a three-race deal together. So this all started in Dallas and I want to finish it in Dallas!
"Seriously, I'm not out here just to play around; I'm here to win," Haney stated. "For me, for my team, for my sponsors, and I don't care who's in the other lane. I don't care about the points one little bit. I could not care less about who wins or who loses a championship. I just care about winning, pure and simple, about getting to that finish line first."
Haney will participate in a pair of qualifying sessions for the NHRA FallNationals at 12:45 and 5 p.m. on Friday (Oct. 5), with two more rounds of qualifying on Saturday at 12:30 and 4 p.m. Elimination rounds for the Pro Mod class are scheduled to begin at 12:10 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 7.
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Photos courtesy Keith Haney Racing/Randy Curtis
ABOUT KEITH HANEY RACING
Based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Keith Haney Racing (www.keithhaneyracing.com) fields two cars in the Mid-West Pro Mod Series (MWPMS), as well as for select NHRA and PDRA races and one-off special events. Keith Haney Racing appreciates the support of sponsors Summit Racing Equipment, Lucas Oil, Strange Engineering, Kryptonite Kustomz, RacingJunk.com, Reher-Morrison Racing Engines, MoTeC Systems USA, Switzer Dynamics, Brandon Pesz Performance & Tuning, M&M Transmission, Menscer Motorsports, Total Seal, Mickey Thompson, Browell Bellhousing, Rickie Smith Racing, and Larry Jeffers Race Cars.