Talk about making a good first impression.

Tim Tindle of Santa Rosa Beach, Fla. had never raced in IHRA competition before this weekend, but that mattered very little on Sunday as Tindle put down four unbelievably consistent laps to pick up his first victory in IHRA Pro Modified competition Sunday at Rockingham Dragway.

And making his win even more impressive was that Tindle had to knock off defending IHRA Pro Mod champ and No. 1 qualifier Kenny Lang (Grande Pointe, Manitoba) to do so.

“It is just awesome. I red lighted against Kenny the last time we raced in a round where we had the fastest car,” Tindle said. “It was nice to get one back.”

Tindle dominated from start to finish as Lang had some trouble early in his run. Tindle ran a 6.013 at 235.19 mph to pick up the win while Lang coasted across the line on an 8.015 E.T.

“That thing was on a rail. I told Quain (Stott) we should bracket race this thing,” Tindle said.

Tindle had an unbelievably consistent afternoon to take home the win, putting down laps of 5.981, 6.009, 6.013 and 6.028 during Sunday’s eliminations. Lang, on the other hand, saw his great weekend come to an close without even getting a chance to challenge for the victory.

Still, it was a nice turnaround for the Canadian after struggling at the season opening Summit Racing Equipment Mardi Gras Nationals. Lang knocked North Carolina’s own Rickie Smith from the top of the Pro Mod “pole” Saturday night to claim the No. 1 qualifying position for the weekend.

But in the finals, it was all Tindle.

“Running yesterday we pretty much had the track figured out,” Tindle said. “It was a great weekend. Everybody treats you well, it is a nice race track. The proof is in the pudding.”

Tindle made his IHRA debut a memorable one, smoking John Russo in the semi-finals with a 6.013 pass at 235.19 mph as Russo never got going, crossing the line with a 6.466 E.T. at 158.58 mph. Lang reached the finals by knocking off IHRA Pro Mod legend Ed Hoover in a pedal fest at mid-track.

Both cars were near even at half-track when the smoke started to roll from both entries. Lang, however, was able to hang on, pushing forward with a 6.290 run at 231.64 mph to Hoover’s 6.978 pass at 172.76 mph.

In the quarters it was Lang on a bye run, Hoover over Burton Auxier, John Russo over Rickie Smith and Tindle over Ray Commisso.

Despite the early exit, Commisso remains on top of the Pro Mod points with 172 markers, while Hoover moves to second with 146 points. Lang (133), Tindle (114) and Gray (105) round out the top five. 

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