Montecalvo’s Hot Streak One of Top Stories For Hardee’s Gateway Drags III

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O’FALLON, MO (August 4, 2010) - After winning ADRL UTI Dragpalooza VI presented by Safety-Kleen on July 23, John Montecalvo didn’t realize it gave him two straight ADRL wins.A night later at the UTI Inaugural Texas Drags, the Extreme Pro Stock driver had three in a row and now has a chance for five heading into this weekend’s Hardee’s Gateway Drags III.It all left him shaking his head as he marveled about his astonishing run.“This is just incredible,” Montecalvo said. “I missed the first race of the year and now I’m (first in the points standings). Things are looking good.”Montecalvo has been red-hot in the summer months, winning the Ford Drive One Summer Drags in June and following with a double-win at Houston Raceway Park in July. To add to it, Montecalvo was the No. 1 qualifier at both the Summer Drags and the Texas Drags.With the Hardee’s Independence Drags IV being completed on Friday at Gateway International Raceway (GIR), Montecalvo has a chance to further cement his points lead in XPS and give him an improbable five wins in a period of eight weeks.That remarkable run is one of the main storylines as the ADRL heads to GIR for what should be an eventful weekend.Here’s a look at five more major storylines heading into the Hardee’s Gateway Drags:1. Big Crowds - Last year, the ADRL drew so much fanfare the gates had to be closed at GIR on both Friday and Saturday.In the process, the Gateway Drags II drew more than 100,000 people, making the ADRL’s hometown race the biggest event in GIR and ADRL history.The ADRL expects to see another overflow crowd this weekend and it’s clear the ADRL has had a major impact in the St. Louis-area. Racing fans will flock to GIR this weekend, making it a must-see event over the two days.2. Two Races in Two Days - For the second straight event, the ADRL will cram two events into one weekend.The Independence Drags IV, which was postponed in Topeka in early July due to rain, will be completed on Friday and the Gateway Drags will be completed the following day.In a span of two weeks, four races will have been completed in the ADRL. For those that didn’t win in Texas, the onus to perform well on another double-race weekend will be big.“There’s that little added pressure with coming out of the box and racing, but you have to come with your game face on” Pro Extreme driver Joshua Hernandez said. “You have to step up to the plate.”3. Who Wants It In Pro Nitrous? - The answer is a lot of people, apparently, as five drivers have won events in the 2010 points race.Rickie Smith won a pair in Texas to emerge as the hottest driver in the class, but when two of the class winners (Lee Adkins and Khalid Al-Balooshi) are out of the top nine, you know things are tight.4. Things Getting Interesting in Extreme 10.5 - Just when Gary White seemed to be running away with things in Extreme 10.5, the plotlines have suddenly thickened.White won two races in a row in May and June, but Billy Glidden surprised many with a double-win in Texas.Jeff Naiser also just went 3.99 in testing, throwing himself into the top contender mix. Add Todd Moyer, Spiro Pappas and Chuck Ulsch - who was the first XTF driver to reach the 3-second mark after doing it at the Gateway Drags II last year - and it’s one more deep class in the ADRL.5. Down the Home Stretch - After the double-race weekend at GIR, only two September races will remain before the LenMar Motorsports World Finals VI on October 22-23 in Ennis, TX.That means there’s very little time for drivers to get into the top eight for “The Battle For The Belts.” Things must be on point this weekend and for the next seven weeks if drivers and teams want to be racing for a championship.Other things to watch: Joshua Hernandez has become the hottest driver in a loaded Pro Extreme class, winning two of the past three races. Will he stay just as hot in St. Louis?Did Travis Davis find a dent in Ashley Owens’ armor? Davis won once in Texas to end Owens’ perfect 2010 and will return to the site of his first ADRL victory. Owens, meanwhile, rebounded to win the UTI Inaugural Texas Drags the next night in a class that continues to get deeper.

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