Qualifying has been very, very good to Top Fuel driver Steve Torrence.

That trend continued in a big way for the Kilgore, Texas resident Friday night.

Torrence clocked an NHRA national record time of 3.671 seconds at 325.69 mph to snare the provisional No. 1 spot at the Sonoma (Calif.) Nationals.

“We just went out there and set the national record,” said Torrence, who pilots his family-owned Capco Contractors dragster. “I was kind of nervous going up there watching the cars in front of us. I knew the track was getting really, really tight and you could feel the air cooling down. I saw (Richard) Hogan (one of Torrence’s crew chiefs) turning knobs and when conditions get like this the track is just unbelievably tight and you can go out there and miss it just a little bit and its shows a lot more. You have to really hit the nail on the head just like they did to go like that. When it made it through I did the best I could to keep it in the groove and I looked up and saw that 60-something and I just started hollering because I knew it was fast. I was pretty pumped up to say the least.”

Torrence has already captured a career-best seven No. 1 qualifying spots this season, including at the last race – the Mile-High Nationals in Denver – last weekend.

Before this season, Torrence had a total of five No. 1 qualifying performances. In 2016, Torrence has had Bobby Lagana and Richard Hogan tuning his dragster. He also added renowned tuner Alan Johnson, who has won 15 NHRA national championships, as a consultant.

“I don’t want to wake up yet, just in case it is a dream,” said Torrence, who sat out the Norwalk event with a health issue. “Seven No. 1 qualifiers so far this season is all just to my team because I haven’t done anything different. I’m not the guy making it go quick. I’m not the guy working on it. Those guys have given me an unbelievable race car and made, knock on wood, zero mistakes. We did miss the Norwalk race and that definitely has been a hugre motivation to me as wanting to have a little more hunger and drive and intensity. I had the little health scare and it kind of changed my perspective on things and I’m digging and clawing for what we want. We have an alliance with Brittany (Force), but we are still a one-car team and we’re standing toe-to-toe with the big dogs and I think they’re not liking it too much.”

Torrence, who arrived at Sonoma third in the points, isn’t making any bold predictions for the rest of the season.

“I’m not going to set my sights that far ahead, we’re done with Friday and we still have two qualifying laps (Saturday), and race day and quite a few races between here and there,” Torrence said. “So, we’re not going to set any expectations and nothing at this point is a disappointment unless we just fall on our face and can’t make it to a race or something. The way that these guys have prepared this car and the way they have stuck together as a team is second to none. We are going to try to continue marching forward and not count what we’ve accomplished until the end of the year and we will just see where we stand then.”

Having this success – and not being one of the powerhouse teams – means a lot to Torrence.

“It’s huge and the people we represent are mainly the Capco people and those are my friends and family at home,” Torrence said. “The work their butts off day-in-and-day-out to support us and they’re proud of what we do and I’m proud to be out here representing them.”