Fullerton, CA (March 5, 2001)- The high hopes Eric Norris had entering the second race of the 2001 NASCAR Winston West schedule at “The Bullring” in Las Vegas were dashed when the veteran driver was unable to avoid several wrecks he played no part in. As a result of damage sustained to Norris’ front-end and radiator, the power-plant of Norris’ Jani-King Ford overheated, forcing Norris out of the race prematurely to a 22nd place finish in The NAPA 300.
“It’s just really unfortunate we didn’t get a chance to race to the finish tonight,” said Norris. “This Jani-King team worked their tails off all day long to give me a good car and I really believe we had a car capable of winning had we been able to stay out of trouble. In hindsight, we actually lost the race in qualifying.”
Drawing the dreaded number 1 position for the qualification session, Norris was the first to encounter an extremely loose race track, the result of a blown motor in the previous practice session for the modified division. Literally sliding around the track, the best Norris could do was post the 16th fastest qualifying time.
“When you start as far back as we did on a short track like The Bullring you are asking for trouble,” continued Norris. “But that’s part of racing. We know we can get back on track this weekend in Tucson.”
Norris, who fell to 6th place in the Winston West points standings, is anxious to return to the 3/8 mile paved oval at Tucson where he began his Winston West career in 1996, finishing 12th. The team will be taking a different car than the one raced in Las Vegas with visions of better luck and a podium finish. Norris’ major sponsor, Jani-King International, will be the title sponsor of the Tucson race, “The Jani-King Winston West 250.”
“It’s always great to have the Jani-King people attend our races, especially when they are a sponsor of the race itself. We’re going to give it all we got and hopefully this Jani-King team will be celebrating a win in The Jani-King 250 with our sponsor and friends. That would be a good day!”
“The Jani-King Winston West 250” will be broadcast on the Fox Sports Network on a tape-delayed basis to be announced shortly. Eric Norris and the Norris Racing Team will be spending their weekend in Tucson at the Embassy Suites Tucson International Airport (ph: 520-573-0700).
For more information on Eric Norris, visit www.NorrisRacing.com.
