also played down concerns about the merger possibly runni

Championship drag racing team owner Don Schumacher once spotted Leah Pritchett racing Nostalgia Funny Cars and brought her to Indianapolis for a test session prior to the U.S. Nationals. She proceeded to earn her NHRA Nitro Funny Car license with Don Schumacher Racing.That was eight years ago. At this years U.S. Nationals on Labor Day weekend, Pritchett raced her Don Schumacher Racing Top Fuel car into the NHRAs six-race Countdown to the Championship for the first time.Pritchett entered nationals tied with Terry McMillen for 10th in points. Both drivers were eliminated in the first round, but because Pritchett outqualified McMillen by six positions (she was 10th; he was 16th), she beat him by one point for the final Countdown position.Actions speak louder than words, Pritchett said. I said I was going to make the Countdown and we did. Im going to give everybody one hell of a run for their money for this championship.By Pritchett making the Countdown, which begins Friday at zMAX Dragway in Concord, North Carolina, all eight DSR teams are in title contention: four in Top Fuel and four in Funny Car. It is Pritchett, however, who is the surprise of the group.?Four races into the season, Pritchetts team, owned by Bob Vandergriff Jr., abruptly shut down. After the unexpected death of the teams financial backer and C&J Energy Services founder Josh Comstock, Vandergriff announced his retirement. Pritchett hastily put together a deal for the Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX with Lagana Family Racing, but she had nothing solidified for the next event. Pritchett then turned to Schumacher.I went ahead and hired Leah, even though I didnt have a car for her to race, Schumacher said. I did put a team together a couple of races later. Shes been employed by me ever since the Atlanta race [in May].Pritchett was responsible for obtaining the teams funding -- $125,000 per race. That money pays for things such as parts, fuel, per diem for crew members and hotel rooms. In the first 18 races this season, she missed only one because of a lack of a sponsor. She currently has sponsors for four of the six Countdown events, but Schumacher has assured her shell be at all of them.Schumacher supplies the cars, which have to be built, the transporter for them and the full-time crew at the shop to build and prepare the cars.Im very impressed by her effort, hard work to get that done [acquire funding] and her willingness to do anything necessary sponsorship-wise, Schumacher said. Shes a talented driver, quick on the starting line. Shes very good with TV, very good with sponsors and a very good teammate, which is very important to my organization. She needs to fit in with everyone, and she does a very good job of that. It makes a great situation.Deb Williams is a North Carolina-based writer and former editor. She has covered auto racing for United Press International, USA Today and The Charlotte Observer. Nike Shoes China . -- For the first time in two months, an opponent was standing up to Alabama. Wholesale Nike Shoes . Spiller left Week 3s 27-20 loss to the New York Jets with a thigh injury, but fully practiced with the team all week and expects to be ready to go on Sunday. https://www.fakenikeshoeswholesale.com/ . Sgt. Eric ONeal says most of the arrests at Monday nights game were for public drunkenness, though one person was taken into custody on suspicion of trying to steal a seat from the stadium. Fake Nike Shoes . Westbrook has missed 27 games since having a procedure on Dec. 27 to deal with swelling in his injured right knee — the third operation on the knee in nine months. Fake Nike Shoes From China . The Swede became the first golfer to win the PGA Tours FedEx Cup and European Tours Race to Dubai in the same season. "It is still taking a little time to sink in what Ive achieved this week as was the case when I won the FedEx Cup but then it just kept getting better and better as the days went on and I am sure this will be the same," he said. BOSTON -- The Latest on the merger of daily fantasy sports companies DraftKings and FanDuel (all times local):2:05 p.m.A top daily fantasy sports player says hes watching closely how the merger of the nascent industrys leading companies -- DraftKings and FanDuel -- might impact his livelihood.Saahil Sud, a 27-year-old Boston resident, says hes concerned the newly formed company would have the clout to substantially raise fees on players.If the companies also merge their game platforms that could also limit how many contests high volume players like Sud can enter.The companies have assured players they wont be making major changes at least through the next NFL season while the deal is being finalized. Theyve also promised to keep fees competitive.Meanwhile Dustin Hecker, a Boston lawyer whos been following the industry, suggests the merger isnt any guarantee the companies remain viable in the long run.He notes that both companies remain unprofitable, still face legal uncertainty and will largely be operating as separate entities in the short term.---11:40 a.m.DraftKings and FanDuels executives say the last year of battling with regulators across the country for their industrys survival helped bring about the merger of the once bitter daily fantasy sports rivals.DraftKings CEO Jason Robins, who will take over as chief executive of the combined company, told The Associated Press Friday following the merger announcement that the costly legal war showed how much of a common vision and common goal the two companies shared.ddddddddddddFanDuel CEO Nigel Eccles, who will serve as board chairman, also played down concerns about the merger possibly running afoul of federal antitrust laws.He says the merger will help competition in the relatively new industry, which is an offshoot of traditional, season-long fantasy sports.Eccles says a combined company will help better push for regulatory clarity around the games, which have been likened to illegal sports betting.---9:33 a.m.Daily fantasy sports rivals DraftKings and FanDuel have agreed to merge after months of speculation and increasing regulatory scrutiny.The two companies made the announcement Friday but didnt release financial terms. The deal isnt expected to be finalized until later in 2017 and still requires federal approval.Industry experts say the merger will likely raise anti-trust concerns with regulators since the companies control nearly 90 percent of the market.Company officials say the merger will help cut costs as the two fight to remain legal in states across the country.Daily fantasy sports competitions are online games in which players pick teams of real life athletes and vie for prizes based on how those athletes perform in actual games.But state regulators have questioned whether the competitions amount to illegal sports betting. ' ' '