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POMONA, pre-race: CMKXtreme Machine Funny Car driver Jeff Arend will head into the 40th annual Auto Club of Southern California NHRA Finals seeking to end the season on a positive note. The pilot of the 320-mph CMKXtreme Machine Corvette will enter the final race of the year attempting to qualify for his 17th race in 19 starts this season. The 41-year-old Canadian native will be looking to build some momentum for 2005 with a strong finish at Pomona.

Arend and the CMKXtreme Racing team suffered a disappointing DNQ at the Las Vegas NHRA Nationals two weeks ago. The team's failure to make the 16-car field ended a 14-race qualifying streak that began at the first Chicago race in May. Following the Chicago race, Arend moved from 18th to 16th in the POWERade point standings over the course of the next three races and he has maintained the 16th position in the standings since June.

Arend's failure to qualify in Las Vegas was tempered by the announcement that CMKXtreme Racing will continue to sponsor the former NHRA Funny Car national event champion in 2005. Veteran crew chief Paul Smith, an NHRA Division Two Hall of Fame member, will return to make the tuning calls and he will have a new chassis and body to work with when the CMKXtreme Racing team returns to Pomona next February.

"I really feel like we've had a good year," said Arend, "especially when you consider that we threw the entire operation together in two weeks. We were able to qualify for almost every race we attended, despite all of the tire issues and rule changes this season. Paul Smith has given me a safe, consistent race car all year and the crew has done an outstanding job. With a new chassis and body and two months instead of two weeks to prepare for the season, I think we'll be competitive right from the start. Our goal for 2005 is a solid Top 10 finish for the CMKXtreme Machine Funny Car."

The Pomona Fairplex quarter-mile is a track that Arend knows very well. Not only is it home track for the transplanted Canadian, who now resides in San Dimas, Calif., but he also worked at the facility for several years as an instructor at Frank Hawley's Drag Racing School. "I probably learned as much from watching other people as I have from going down the track myself," Arend said. "We'll have lots of family and friends and plenty of CMKX shareholders to cheer us on at the NHRA Finals. We really want to end the year on a high note and give our fans something to look forward to in 2005."