A likely showdown between defending American Drag Racing League champion Bubba Stanton of Potts Camp, Miss., NHRA Pro Modified champion-to-be Joshua Hernandez of Conroe, Texas, and ADRL national record holder Jason Scruggs of Saltillo, Miss., looms large this week as the ADRL returns to Steve Earwood’s Rockingham Dragway for Dragstock IV.

While Stanton is the current ADRL points leader in the featured Pro Extreme class, Hernandez may be the hottest Pro Modified driver on the planet.  Wheeling the  “Dr. Moon’s Rage” Chevrolet for Howard Moon, the Texas driver has won five of seven races this season in the NHRA Pro Mod Series and was runner-up in a sixth, all but locking up the AMS Championship.

He also has enjoyed previous success at The Rock where he was the Pro Modified Champion at the IHRA Spring Nationals in 2006.

Dragstock IV is the last of eight races in which drivers can earn points that will determine who will compete for Flowmaster ADRL championships in the Battle of the Belts at Ennis, Texas.  The top eight drivers after Saturday’s eliminations will compete Oct. 12 in a showdown event at Ennis, Texas that will determine champions in Pro Extreme, Pro Nitrous, Pro Extreme Motorcycle and Extreme 10.5 classes. 

Pro qualifying for Dragstock IV begins Friday with a single session at 8 p.m. followed Saturday by 12 noon and 3 p.m. sessions that will set the fields for final eliminations.  A single round of racing Saturday afternoon will set the stage for final eliminations beginning at 7 p.m.

A likely showdown between defending American Drag Racing League champion Bubba Stanton of Potts Camp, Miss., NHRA Pro Modified champion-to-be Joshua Hernandez of Conroe, Texas, and ADRL national record holder Jason Scruggs of Saltillo, Miss., looms large this week as the ADRL returns to Steve Earwood’s Rockingham Dragway for Dragstock IV.

While Stanton is the current ADRL points leader in the featured Pro Extreme class, Hernandez may be the hottest Pro Modified driver on the planet.  Wheeling the  “Dr. Moon’s Rage” Chevrolet for Howard Moon, the Texas driver has won five of seven races this season in the NHRA Pro Mod Series and was runner-up in a sixth, all but locking up the AMS Championship.

He also has enjoyed previous success at The Rock where he was the Pro Modified Champion at the IHRA Spring Nationals in 2006.

Dragstock IV is the last of eight races in which drivers can earn points that will determine who will compete for Flowmaster ADRL championships in the Battle of the Belts at Ennis, Texas.  The top eight drivers after Saturday’s eliminations will compete Oct. 12 in a showdown event at Ennis, Texas that will determine champions in Pro Extreme, Pro Nitrous, Pro Extreme Motorcycle and Extreme 10.5 classes. 

Pro qualifying for Dragstock IV begins Friday with a single session at 8 p.m. followed Saturday by 12 noon and 3 p.m. sessions that will set the fields for final eliminations.  A single round of racing Saturday afternoon will set the stage for final eliminations beginning at 7 p.m.

If there is an unknown in the Pro Extreme class, it’s Scruggs.  A solid fifth in points, he is returning to the track on which he set the existing ADRL records of 3.813 seconds, 198.44 miles per hour a year ago.  Moreover, he has focused on becoming the first to break the 200 mph barrier in just one-eighth of a mile.

“We didn’t know what to expect last year,” Earwood said, “but the fans did.  We put more people in the stands in one day for Dragstock than we have for any other race.  You’ve got late model Corvettes and Fords and Pontiacs racing against ‘57 Chevys, ‘41 Willys coupes, ‘53 Studebakers.  It’s a great contrast and a great show.  It’s been a long season and even I’m looking forward to it.”

Others expected to challenge in Pro Extreme are 2005 series champion John Lynam of Beaufort, S.C., who’s raced in more final rounds than anyone in series history (eight); Mike Bell of Asheboro, N.C., a former IHRA Pro Stock Champion (1995) who drove Roy Hill’s Ford Mustang to an ADRL victory earlier this year at Houston, Texas; defending champion Joey Martin of Milton, Fla.; and Herman “The Hermanator” Sheppard of Ehrhardt, S.C., last year’s runner-up.

In Pro Nitrous, former IHRA and NHRA Pro Mod champion Shannon Jenkins will defend his Dragstock championship at the wheel of a new 2006 Pontiac GTO.  He’ll battle with three other Alabama drivers – current points leader Johnny Pilcher of Chancellor, defending series champ Keith Baker of Dothan and Jamie Hancock of Opelika, Ala., the 17-year-old son of 2006 Rockingham runner-up James Hancock.

Opposing the Alabama Gang will be veteran Charles Carpenter of Harrisburg, N.C., who has won twice this season in his 1955 Chevy Bel Air; Terry Housley of Lenoir City, Ala., presently third in points; Texans Doug Riesterer and Thomas Myers; long distance winner Dennis Radford of Baker City, Ore.; and Winston-Salem’s Rod Houck.

Drivers from more than 20 states are expected to compete in an event that also will feature exhibition runs by jet-powered dragsters (at 8:15 and 10:15 p.m. Saturday) and a winners’ circle party Saturday night starting at 10:25 p.m.
 
In the Extreme 10.5 class, points leader Mike Hill of Washington, Ga., will try to win for the fourth straight time at The Rock.  Hill has won the last three Outlaw Pro Street events at Rockingham Dragway – two in 2006 and one earlier this year. 

However, the biggest threat to his continued reign probably won’t come from a driver in the current Top 10.  The man most likely to challenge Hill will be defending champion and national record-holder Steve Kirk of Monroe, Ga.  Kirk set the Rockingham Dragway record at 4.482 seconds earlier this year and lowered the ADRL national record to 4.325 seconds at the wheel of a 1963 Chevrolet Corvette.
   
Adult tickets for the race are $10 for Friday’s qualifying session, $25 for Saturday’s program or $30 for the weekend.  Tickets for children 6-12 are $5 per day.  Children under six are free when accompanied by a ticketed adult. 

 

Current ADRL point standings entering this week’s Dragstock IV series finale at Rockingham Dragway (Top eight drivers in each class to compete in the Battle for the Belts, Oct. 14, in Ennis, Texas):

 

 Pro Extreme – 1. Bubba Stanton, Potts Camp, Miss., 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 2,078; 2. Joshua Hernandez, Conroe, Texas, 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air, 1,568; 3. Travis Swearingen, Grain Valley, Mo., 1941 Willys, 1,375; 4. Jason Scruggs, Saltillo, Miss., 1963 Corvette, 1,338; 5. Joe Baker, Milton, Fla., 2002 Dodge Neon, 1,164; 6. John Lynam, Beaufort, S.C., 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 1,151; 7. Dwayne Watkins, Rosemark, Tenn., 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air, 1,060; 8. Brian Daniels, Jackson, Ohio, 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 920; 9. Bill Clanton, Rome, Ga., 1953 Studebaker, 885; 10. Mike Bell, Asheboro, N.C., 2007 Ford Mustang, 868.

 

 Pro Nitrous – 1. Johnny Pilcher, Chancellor, Ala., 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 2,090; 2. Charles Carpenter, Harrisburg, N.C., 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air, 1,477; 3. Terry Housley, Lenoir City, N.C., 1941 Willys, 1,468; 4. Keith Baker, Dothan, Ala., 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 1,379; 5. Doug Riesterer, Victoria, Texas, 1968 Chevrolet Camaro, 1,355; 6. Thomas Myers, Granbury, Texas, 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 1,174; 7. Dennis Radford, Baker City, Ore., 1970 Plymouth Barracuda, 1,159; 8. Rod Houck, Winston-Salem, N.C., 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 949; 9. Jamie Hancock, Ophelia, Ala., 1998 Chevrolet Corvette, 938; 10. Shannon Jenkins, Tuscaloosa, Ala., 2007 Pontiac GTO, 908.

 

 Pro Extreme Motorcycle – 1. Coodee Thomas, Stone Mountain, Ga., Suzuki, 981; 2. Jack Young, Decatur, Ala., Suzuki, 919; 3. Steve Drake, Xenia, Ohio, Suzuki, 801; 4. Scott Ray, Ocala, Fla., Kawasaki, 603; 5. Ashley Owens, Decatur, Ala., Suzuki, 599; 6. Louie Grist, Pontotoe, Miss., Suzuki, 591; 7. Richard Holder, Jacksonville, Fla., Suzuki, 567; 8. T.T. Jones, Harvest, Ala., Suzuki, 558; 9. Eddie Gonder Jr., Richmond, Va., Suzuki, 538; 10. Mantez Thompson, Decatur, Ala., Suzuki, 506.

 

 Extreme 10.5 – 1. Mike Hill, Washington, Ga., 2006 Ford Mustang, 914; 2. Rodney Rosenstiel, Pace, Fla., 1970 Opel GT, 840; 3. Bill Jewett, Gulf Shores, Ala., 2004 Ford Mustang, 815; 4. Steve Gorman, Whitesboro, Texas, 2001 Pontiac Grand Am, 592; 5. Kenny Kneece, Trenton, S.C., 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 493; 6. Michelle Wilson, Azle, Texas, 2000 Pontiac Firebird, 488; 7. David Janes, La Plata, Md., 2006 Pontiac Grand Am, 426; 8. Todd Tutterow, Yadkinville, N.C., NA, 333; 9. Marcus Birt, Gray, Ga., 1968 Chevrolet Camaro, 329; 10. Michael Neal, Pace, Fla., 1992 Chevrolet Lumina, 254.