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Pivotal Win for Lang Motorsports/NitroMoose
Bruce Biegler - August 27, 2008
 Overall IHRA Pro Modified points leader Kenny Lang scored a very timely but also somewhat unlikely victory during last weekend’s IHRA Skull Shine Sooner Nationals held in Tulsa Oklahoma. With the win, Lang, driver of the the NitroMoose Motorsports Team ’53 Corvette, managed to extend his 2008 IHRA Championship points margin by a small but still beneficial amount. The Grand Pointe, Manitoba based racer now leads the IHRA World Championship chase by 62 points with two events remaining on the 2008 calendar.
Lang’s win, driving his Al Billes’ tuned supercharged machine, came during very hot atmospheric conditions, a situation which normally swings the advantage to the opposition nitrous-injected entries within the Pro Modified category. Lang also faced and met the challenge head-on of his closest points competitors, eliminating Mike Janis, Tommy D’Aprile and Mike Castellana in very important consecutive rounds of racing on Sunday. Lang had entered eliminations after qualifying 6th overall.
“Because of the conditions I’d have to say that this win was a bit unexpected,” admitted Lang. “We managed to take out three of our top championship contenders in head-to-head competition and I think that speaks volumes about the talent of our team. We are trying to control our own destiny. In this sport it all comes down to racing on Sunday and that happened to work out for us.”
The win was in fact Lang’s 3rd IHRA national event title of the season which is more then any other Pro Mod competitor in IHRA circuit racing this season.
 “We’ve accomplished a lot so far this season but there is still some meat left on the bone,” he explained. “At Tulsa we managed to increase our points margin a bit. Any lead is better then none -- but it’s really not a comfortable margin. With only two events left we will need to have our “A” game ready because this class is nothing but tough competitors.”
Lang does however feel that the concluding two IHRA races (at Epping, NH Sep. 5-7th, and at Rockingham NC, Oct. 17-19th) may offer his team a slight advantage.
“It’s likely there will probably be better air at both those events and that should work in our favor,” he added. “Having Al Billes with us all the way through this season is a big plus. We have a ton of horsepower to work with now but we are going to try some new things coming up. I’d like to chase the IHRA World record before the season ends.”
Lang is attempting to become the very first Canadian to ever win a national championship title for the Pro Mod class which was first established back in 1990.
(Bruce Biegler Photos)
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