Fuller escapes heated situation
Rod Fuller is used to his rear-engine Top Fuel Dragster occasionally catching on fire.
But the Las Vegas resident -- whose nickname has been "Hot Rod" since birth -- wasn't expecting a blaze to ignite a week ago while driving a few blocks from home in his exotic 2001 Lamborghini Diablo.
When he smelled smoke in the exotic sports car, he began to slow from around 45 mph. Then it began getting hot. He had nearly stopped the car when he bailed after seeing flames flickering from the engine compartment behind him. The car blew up moments later.
"I was never that scared in one of my race cars," he said.
The 36-year-old Arkansas native hopes a different hot streak ignites when professional categories begin racing Friday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals.
Fuller is behind last year's pace, when he won the second event of the year and came to Las Vegas as the points leader. He'll start Friday ranked sixth, and he has advanced to only one semifinal round.
His disappointing run began after October's NHRA Powerade Drag Racing Series event at Las Vegas, when he became the fifth driver to win a national event title the day after winning the NHRA's Top Fuel all-star race.
"I don't know if it will ever get bigger than that day," he said.
He took his share of $200,000 in prize money won over the weekend for David Powers Motorsports and invested in the Lamborghini, which sells for more than $100,000 when not reduced to molten metal and plastic.
"It always had been my dream to win a big race in my hometown -- and that was my dream car," he said.
His slump began the week after his double at Las Vegas, when he lost in the first round of the year's final event, and Tony Schumacher went on to win that weekend and edge Fuller by 19 points for the series championship.
Four weeks later, Fuller had knee surgery to repair an injury he sustained while playing volleyball at a sponsor's function last year. He aggravated the knee last summer by jumping a fence to reach a restroom during a race.
Then the fire.
"There's a lot of drama in my life. It's really weird," he said.
• SPORTSMAN -- Qualifying will begin at 9 a.m. today for four NHRA categories, including Competition Eliminator, Super Stock, Stock Eliminator and Super Gas.
Professional categories -- Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock -- and Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car will begin racing Friday.
• MEET DRIVERS -- Fuller and about 20 other top racers will participate in a free autograph session from 6:30 to 7:30 tonight at the Palms. Among those scheduled to attend are Warren Johnson, Melanie Troxel, Cruz Pedregon, Antron Brown, Jeg Coughlin Jr. and Hillary Will. ...
Coughlin, Cory McClenathan, J.R. Todd, Morgan Lucas, Dave Grubnic and Jack Beckman will compete in a special go-kart race at 9 tonight at Pole Position Raceway (4175 S. Arville). Admission is free.
Contact reporter Jeff Wolf at jwolf@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0247.
