"It's the most fitting tribute we could come up with," said Zizzo, a second-generation driver who races for his father, Tony. "It's the epitome of both Kenny's talent and the man who made it all possible."
"It's been an incredible and fun year for me working with the Zizzos," Youngblood said. "They are a hardcore group of racers and the family I never had."
Zizzo and his PEAK Motor Oil/Herculiner Top Fuel team may be one of the most underrated in the NHRA Full Throttle Series. At every race in which they compete, the Chicago-based crew is a threat and their competitors know the odds can easily favor Zizzo Racing this weekend when the chips are down. This weekend at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the Big O Tires NHRA Nationals, Zizzo Racing is going all in and won't be satisfied unless they're picking up a Wally at the cashier's window. Or the Winner's Circle. Whichever. The point being, they're racing for nothing less than a win in the desert.
This weekend, they return to zMAX Dragway in Concord, N.C., for the 4th Annual O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Nationals. Last year, Zizzo entered Sunday's eliminations sixth, his highest-ever qualifying effort since he began racing in the NHRA in 2003. Only by a mere .005 seconds was Steve Torrence able to earn his way to E2. This year, Zizzo has no plans to leave early.
At his home race at Route 66 Raceway
in June, Chicago native TJ Zizzo edged his way into the field, qualifying 16th,
but made a lot of noise when his PEAK Motor Oil/Herculiner NHRA Full Throttle
Series Top Fuel dragster took out No. 1 qualifier Spencer Massey in round one.
The run put an end to 40-straight A-to-B runs for the Don Schumacher Racing
pilot and gave Zizzo Racing a much-needed boost of confidence.
This weekend, the team heads to Indianapolis for the 57th Annual Mac Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals. The historic venue is another site where the small, family-owned team scored an upset when they beat Doug Kalitta in E1 last year on a holeshot. With nothing to lose and everything to gain, Zizzo is looking for round wins this weekend.
There's
something about a home game.
This
weekend at Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, TJ Zizzo and the PEAK Motor Oil/Herculiner
NHRA Full Throttle Series Top Fuel team will be front and center at their home
track for the O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Route 66 Nationals. The majority of the
team, along with primary sponsor PEAK and newly-signed marketing partner INDAK,
are natives of the area and looking forward to winning rounds in front of their
friends and families.
"We're so stoked to be racing so close to home at Route 66 Raceway," Zizzo said. "They've been great to us and have really made the track feel like our house. With all the friends and family we're going to have there, it's going to be a party!"
LINCOLNSHIRE,
Ill. - Racers race and when they don't, they tend to get, well, cranky.
"It's been a long time since Pomona," said PEAK Motor Oil/Herculiner Top Fuel pilot TJ Zizzo. "Do I remember how to drive a 300-mph fire-breathing beast?"
The question is rhetorical, but Zizzo Racing is champing at the bit to get back on the track. This weekend's NHRA Full Throttle Series event at Royal Purple Raceway is just what the doctor ordered.
In years past, Houston and the O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Spring Nationals represented the team's first race of the season. Zizzo Racing kicked off its 2011 campaign at Pomona this year, so it's a hungry team with a race under its belt arriving at Baytown this week.
LINCOLNSHIRE, Ill. - The last time TJ Zizzo and the PEAK/Herculiner NHRA Full Throttle Series Top Fuel dragster was on the track, the Illinois-native took a round-one loss to Cory McClenathen during eliminations in the season finale at Pomona, Calif. It was the first time the team had ended their season there and in continuing with first-time experiences, Zizzo Racing is returning to the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona for this weekend's 51st Annual Kragen O'Reilly NHRA Winternationals.
With the team competing at both the 2010 season finale and the 2011 season opener, it means Zizzo Racing has had less time than ever to prepare their dragster, but Zizzo, 35, said they're not worried about a shorter offseason.
"Our 'offseason' was shorter than the space between the races at Joliet and Indy last year," Zizzo said as he made last-minute preparations for his trip to Southern California. "A huge part of that has been the fact our team is still completely intact for the third-straight year. We all enjoy working and racing together and I think our performance in 2011 is really going to reflect that."
LINCOLNSHIRE, Ill. - After a holeshot loss to Antron Brown at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, TJ Zizzo and the PEAK/Herculiner NHRA Full Throttle Series Top Fuel team are ready to put that behind them. That opportunity comes this weekend at the 46th Annual Auto Club NHRA Finals at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona, Calif.
Zizzo, an Illinois native, has never been to the Golden State, much less raced there, but is looking forward to four days of nitro, as well as catching up with some friends who have promised to show him what California has to offer. The 35-year-old Top Fuel veteran is also planning to be on-hand for Monday's NHRA Full Throttle Series' awards ceremony.
