Dave "Aussie Dave" Grubnic, driver of the Kalitta Motorsports Top Fuel dragster Hometown: Brisbane, Australia Residence: Ennis, Montana Birth Date: August 6, 1962 Years Racing: 14 Wins/Final Rounds: 2/13 Best Elapsed Time: 4.448 Best Speed: 333.58 Car owner: Connie Kalitta Crew chief: Connie Kalitta, Co-crew chief: James Riola

In 1995, before he made the trip halfway around the world to the United States and before he had acquired his now common moniker of “Aussie Dave,” Dave Grubnic was a 35-yearold regional manager for Ford Motor Company in his hometown of Brisbane, Australia. He enjoyed his job, but he was more than willing to trade in his jacket-and-tie wardrobe for a firesuit and a helmet and a chance to drive Top Fuel dragsters in the NHRA. Grubnic took a big chance and left his homeland to pursue his dream. Having never even been in the cockpit of a nitro-fueled race car, he arrived in California slightly over a decade ago and started his lofty drag racing pursuits. Since then, the ever-smiling and lanky racer has been blazing down tracks across the States on the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series tour. In early 2004, Grubnic landed his dream rail ride when he was hired by drag racing icon and Kalitta Motorsports’ team owner Connie Kalitta. In 2004, he won the lucrative and coveted Budweiser Shootout in Las Vegas, becoming only the fourth driver in the special event’s 20-year history to win its $100,000 prize in his first attempt, and he picked up an emotional and long overdue first NHRA national event win in May, 2005 in Topeka, Kansas to become the first non-native North American to win a Top Fuel trophy. In March of 2006, he won the prestigious Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla. He collected the title trophy at one the NHRA’s most attended events at historic and record-breaking Gainesville Raceway. After a 2007 season that saw Grubnic race to three semi-final rounds, he will again pilot the 8,000-horsepower, nitro-fueled Kalitta Motorsports Top Fuel dragster in the 2008 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series. When he is not rocketing down the quarter-mile, Grubnic enjoys riding motorcycles, working on computers and day trading. © 2008 Kalitta Motorsports