Daniels Races to Record-setting Fourth Straight NHRA Dodge HEMI® Challenge Triumph at U.S. Nationals

  • Jimmy Daniels wins fourth consecutive NHRA Dodge HEMI® Challenge event behind the wheel of his Super Stock 1968 Dodge Dart at Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis
  • Daniels pockets $15,000 winner’s share after defeating Ohio’s Rich Locker in his 1968 Plymouth Barracuda
  • Winning streak by Daniels increases to 19 consecutive round wins during U.S. Nationals
  • Dodge Garage, a digital content hub for muscle car and race enthusiasts, features highlights from NHRA action
August 30, 2019 , Indianapolis -  Making history in the NHRA Dodge HEMI® Challenge isn’t something new for Jimmy Daniels, and Friday night, the 23-year-old Pennsylvania native continued his undefeated streak at Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis by driving his Super Stock 1968 Dodge Dart to a record fourth consecutive event victory.

Daniels, the event’s No. 1 qualifier, defeated Ohio’s Rich Locker in his 1968 Plymouth Barracuda with a run 8.576 seconds at 156.01 mph in the final round of the 19th running of the special event, annually part of the U.S. Nationals. The victory was the sixth time a driver piloted the 1968 Dodge Dart to victory in the event. Daniel’s father, Jimmy Daniels, Sr., won the event in 2010 and David Barton won driving the same machine in 2000.

“We had some tough battles to get this fourth win, including that semifinal,” admitted Daniels. “This HEMI Challenge is everything. We work all year for this. It means a lot for us. Special thanks to Dodge for continuing to support these cars and to the NHRA for allowing them to have the HEMI Challenge here in Indy.

“Ray and Dave Barton provide us with awesome horsepower.  If it wasn’t for them, we would not be able to do this. I’m surrounded by my family here this weekend – my father, my mother, my girlfriend and my grandfather. This race is probably the coolest win of the four for me. Earlier this year, I lost my grandmother unexpectedly. We know she was watching over us tonight.”

Daniels’ quest for win number four began with a bye run as a result of his qualifying effort Thursday. His pass of 8.494 seconds was the best of the opening round and launched him into round two where he delivered another smooth lap of 8.512 to defeat Doug Fazzolare. His 17th consecutive round win at Indy came over 2017 HEMI Challenge runner-up Wendell Howes advancing Daniels to the semifinals where he faced a very game Jim Pancake in an all-Dodge Dart matchup. Pancake posted an impressive .017-second reaction time, but Daniels was able to power by and turn on the win light with a margin of victory being a mere 0.0027 seconds and approximately 7 inches.

Locker qualified his Barracuda eighth and advanced to round two making a solo run of 8.660 seconds at 153.32 mph before defeating Louisiana’s Stephen Loeffler. He took advantage of a starting-line error by last year’s runner-up Gary Wolkwitz, who was disqualified for leaving the starting line early to advance to round three. Locker used a strong light to beat 2001 winner Bucky Hess on a holeshot with a margin of victory of .0242 seconds to advance. 

In the final, Daniels grabbed the starting line advantage, but spun his tires just after the launch allowing Locker to grab the lead. Daniels’ gathered his machine under him and drove around Locker to secure the historic victory.

The NHRA Dodge HEMI Challenge showcases Super Stock/A-HEMI (SS/AH) NHRA Sportsman class competitors battling on the quarter-mile in 1968 Mopar package cars, powered by the legendary 426 HEMI engine. The Dodge Dart and Plymouth Barracuda Super Stockers are one of the earliest and most iconic iterations of the purpose-built vehicles created at the factory. The cars feature distinct race packages and are for use solely on the drag strip. The Dodge Dart and Plymouth Barracudas are precursors to the modern-day package car — the Mopar Dodge Challenger Drag Pak.

Dodge Garage: Digital Hub for Drag Racing News
Fans can follow NHRA Dodge HEMI Challenge and NHRA U.S. Nationals coverage at Dodge Garage, the one-stop portal for Dodge//SRT and Mopar drag racing news. The site includes daily updates and access to an online racing HQ, news, events, galleries, available downloads and merchandise.
@DodgeMoparMotorsports on Instagram
The @DodgeMoparMotorsports Instagram channel will share content capturing Dodge//SRT Mopar drivers in action in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, NHRA Sportsman grassroots racers competing in classes such as Factory Stock Showdown, Stock and Super Stock, as well as additional motorsports series.

About Dodge//SRT
Dodge//SRT offers a complete lineup of performance vehicles that stand out in their own segments. Dodge is America’s performance brand and SRT is positioned as the ultimate performance halo of the Dodge brand, together creating a complete and balanced performance brand with one vision and one voice.
 
For more than 100 years, the Dodge brand has carried on the spirit of brothers John and Horace Dodge, who founded the brand in 1914. Their influence continues today. For 2020, Dodge literally expands its high-performance Charger model lineup, adding a Widebody exterior to America’s only four-door muscle car. Powered by the 707-horsepower supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI® Hellcat V-8 engine, the 2020 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat maintains its reign as the most powerful and fastest mass-produced sedan in the world.
 
The 2019 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye is possessed by the Demon. Its 797-horsepower supercharged HEMI® high-output engine makes it the most powerful, quickest and fastest muscle car, reaching 0-60 miles per hour (mph) in 3.4 seconds, and the fastest GT production car with a ¼-mile elapsed time (ET) of 10.8 seconds at 131 mph. It also reaches a new top speed of 203 mph.

Joining the Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye is the 2019 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat, with its more powerful 717-horsepower engine, and the Challenger R/T Scat Pack Widebody, featuring fender flares from the SRT Hellcat Widebody, which add 3.5 inches of width to the 485-horsepower Scat Pack’s standard body. Also new for 2019 is the Challenger R/T Scat Pak 1320 with exclusive drag strip technology from the iconic Dodge Challenger SRT Demon. The Challenger R/T Scat Pack 1320 is a drag-oriented, street-legal muscle car and a blank canvas for the serious grassroots drag racer. The 2019 Dodge Durango SRT, America’s fastest, most powerful and most capable three-row SUV with a best-in-class tow rating of 8,700 lbs., completes the brand's performance lineup. These visceral performance models join a 2019 brand lineup that includes the Durango, Grand Caravan, Journey, Charger and Challenger — a showroom that offers performance at every price point.
 
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Mopar
Mopar is the global name for Stellantis genuine parts and authentic accessories.

A simple combination of the words MOtor and PARts, Mopar offers exceptional service, parts and customer-care. Born in 1937 as the name of a line of antifreeze products, Mopar has evolved over more than 85 years to represent both complete vehicle care and authentic performance for owners and enthusiasts worldwide.

Mopar made its mark in the 1960s during the muscle-car era with performance parts to enhance speed and handling for both on-road and racing use. Later, Mopar  expanded to include technical service and customer support, and today integrates service, parts and customer-care operations in order to enhance customer and dealer support worldwide.

Complete information on Mopar is available at www.mopar.com and the newly redesigned Mopar blog at www.blog.mopar.com. For more information regarding Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), please visit www.stellantis.com.

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Contact Information

Dan Reid
Stellantis
Office: (248) 512-0366
Cell: (248) 202-7697
Bill Klingbeil
Mopar Motorsports Media Relations
Office: 248-420-0262
bill.klingbeil@external.fcagroup.com
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