Team Mopar Driver Allen Johnson Seeks

Courtesy of Darren Jacobs Second Win at Atlanta Dragway

COMMERCE, Ga. -- MoparR Dodge Avenger NHRA Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson returns to action this week at a track that he is very familiar with and at which he has experienced a good amount of success over the years - Atlanta Dragway, site of the 31st Annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals, May 13-15.

Johnson won at Atlanta in 2002 after qualifying third, claiming the second Pro Stock victory of his career. The Team Mopar veteran has since gone on to claim six more event wins. Last season the native of Greeneville, Tenn., was the top qualifier at the Southern Nationals, setting low elapsed time (ET) of the event with a pass of 6.634-seconds at 208.23 mph.

"It's close to home," said Johnson, when asked about his past success at Atlanta. "It was our home track for the longest time until Bristol came about. We've done a lot of testing down there over the years. We can wait until the last minute to go down there and work on the engines and some development stuff a little longer. We are always pumped and primed when we get to that track."

Johnson continues to build upon the early part of the 2011 season and is currently ninth in the NHRA Pro Stock point standings. The J&J Racing team owner and driver advanced to the second round of the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals last month in Charlotte, N.C.

"I feel like we are really close with the Mopar Dodge Avenger," shared Johnson. "I've been driving pretty well and we are right there, I think. We just have to be patient. We could have gone to the finals at Houston with what we ran in that first round, but it was just the wrong draw against the only car that had a better time than us. I'm looking forward to Atlanta, and I think we can go some rounds."

Johnson involved in relief efforts after severe tornadoes hit his hometown of Greeneville, Tenn.

Prior to heading to Atlanta, Johnson has been involved in relief efforts following the deadly tornadoes that ripped through the South on April 27. Three tornadoes touched down just a couple of miles from his home in Greeneville, Tenn., with seven people losing their lives in the destruction. The community, including Johnson and employees at his business, Greeneville Oil and Petroleum, have banded together since the tragedy to aid in the cleanup.

"We are helping out with the disaster relief as best as we can," said Johnson. "A number of my company employees are helping out with funds and fuel and things like that. We'll continue to help out as best as we can and wish all those affected nothing but the best."

Johnson's Statistics of Note

At Atlanta Dragway
. Claimed the event win in 2002, defeating Tom Lee, Kurt Johnson, Darrell Aldermen and Greg Anderson . Scored the No. 1 Qualifier in 2010 and advanced to semifinals, defeating Warren Johnson and Kurt Johnson . 1-0 in final round appearances at the venue

2011 Season
. Ninth overall in the NHRA Pro Stock point standings . Advanced to the second round at the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals . Claimed first round win of the season at SummitRacing.com Nationals in Las Vegas . Qualified No. 3 at the season-opening NHRA Winternationals . Johnson and his J&J Racing team aided Dodge Motorsports NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Kurt Busch in qualifying for the NHRA Gatornationals in his very first Pro Stock event . Broke the 6.50-second barrier in a February test session at Bradenton Motorsports Park, uncorking a 6.498-second elapsed time, an unofficial record for a Pro Stock car

2010 Season
. Finished sixth in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship Pro Stock playoff standings . Claimed four consecutive No. 1 Qualifier Awards (Dallas, Reading, Las Vegas, Pomona 2) to end the season . Scored a victory at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals, his second straight win and third in four years at his primary sponsor's race . Advanced past the first round at 21 of 23 events . Posted a 37-21 round win record, the most round wins of his career . Advanced to at least the semifinals in 12 of 23 events . Advanced to the final round at the NHRA event in Norwalk, Ohio . Scored his second final-round appearance of the season at the NHRA event in Topeka . Claimed his 200th career round win at the NHRA St. Louis race . Advanced to four straight semifinals to start the season in his new Mopar Dodge Avenger . Banked his first final-round appearance of the year at the NHRA Houston event

2009 Season
. Clinched a spot in the 2009 NHRA Countdown to 1 six-race playoffs . Captured wins at Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals in Denver and O'Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals in Topeka . Finished seventh in NHRA Full Throttle Pro Stock point standings . Made three finals appearances, scoring a runner-up finish at NHRA Gatornationals . Captured seventh career No. 1 Qualifier Award at NHRA event in Seattle, reaching the semifinals . Made eight semifinals appearances . Posted a 30-20 round win record for the season

2008 Season
. Finished seventh in NHRA Pro Stock standings . One of only 10 drivers to qualify for NHRA Countdown to 1 six-race playoffs . Won K&N Horsepower Challenge bonus event at Norwalk, recording perfect .000 reaction time to defeat Greg Anderson for victory . Powered to three No. 1 Qualifier Awards . Made eight semifinals appearances . Posted two straight runner-up finishes at Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals and Schuck's Auto Supply NHRA Nationals . Racked up 28-24 round win record

2007 Season
. Finished career-best fourth in NHRA Pro Stock point standings . One of only four Pro Stock drivers to qualify for inaugural NHRA Countdown to 1 playoff . Claimed win at Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals in Denver

2006 Season
. Finished sixth in NHRA Pro Stock standings, scoring win at Seattle

Career
. Qualified for Countdown to Championship in all four years since NHRA adopted playoff format in 2007 . Claimed eight career NHRA Full Throttle Pro Stock wins . Captured 15 career No. 1 Qualifier Awards . Claimed more than 200 career round wins . Has a career best elapsed time of 6.545-seconds and a career best speed of 211.73 mph . Recorded 21 career final round appearances . Competed in 300th race at 2009 NHRA St. Louis event . Scored second career win at Atlanta in 2002 and finished eighth in point standings . Seized first career win in 1999 at Richmond and went on to claim first top 10 finish in standings . Made NHRA Pro Stock debut in 1996, driving a Mopar-powered Dodge Avenger

Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals The 31st Annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals is scheduled to take place May 13-15 at Atlanta Dragway in Atlanta, Ga. Two-and-half-hours of qualifying coverage will air on Saturday, May 14 beginning at 7 p.m. (ET) on ESPN2 and ESPN2HD. Three hours of eliminations coverage will air on Sunday, May 15, beginning at 7 p.m. (ET) on ESPN2 and ESPN2HD. For more information on the NHRA, log on to http://www.nhra.com.

Mopar-First Features
Mopar has introduced numerous industry-first features including:

. Camper trailers: first to introduce off-road camper trailers . Vehicle-information apps: first to introduce smartphone vehicle-information applications, a new channel of communication with consumers . Electronic owner manuals: first to introduce traditional owner manuals in a DVD and brief user-guide format . Electronic Vehicle Tracking System (EVTS): first to market with a new interactive vehicle tracking device that sends owner a text when vehicle is driven too fast or too far based on pre-set parameters . 2011 Mopar Challenger Drag Pak: first to introduce a 500-plus cubic-inch V-10 drag-race package car . Wi-Fi: first to offer customers the ability to make their vehicle a wireless hot spot . WiTECH: first to support vehicle diagnosis and software updates leveraging off-the-shelf personal computers and a dedicated wireless tool network

About the Mopar Brand
Mopar is Chrysler Group LLC's service, parts and customer-care brand.

Mopar distributes approximately 280,000 parts and accessories in more than 90 countries and is the source for all original-equipment parts for Chrysler, JeepR, Dodge and Ram Truck vehicles. Mopar parts are unique in that they are engineered with the same teams that create factory-authorized vehicle specifications for Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge and Ram vehicles-a direct connection that no other aftermarket parts company can provide. A complete list of Mopar accessories and performance parts is available at http://www.mopar.com.

More than 70 Years of Mopar
When Chrysler bought Dodge in 1928, the need for a dedicated parts manufacturer, supplier and distribution system to support the growing enterprise led to the formation of the Chrysler Motor Parts Corporation (CMPC) in 1929.

Mopar (a simple contraction of the words MOtor and PARts) was trademarked for a line of antifreeze products in 1937. It also was widely used as a moniker for the CMPC. The Mopar brand made its mark in the 1960s-the muscle-car era. The Chrysler Corporation built race-ready Dodge and Plymouth "package cars" equipped with special high-performance parts. Mopar carried a line of "special parts" for super-stock drag racers and developed its racing parts division called Mopar Performance Parts to enhance speed and handling for both road and racing use.