2010 NHRA SPRINGNATIONALS - EVENT RESULTS
 |
||||||
 |
||||||
 |
||||||
SUNDAY FINAL - DIXON DEDICATES MILESTONE 50TH CAREER WIN TO SON DARIEN
Larry Dixon outlasted Antron Brown in a thrilling pedal-fest in the Top Fuel final at the 23rd annual O’Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals Sunday at Houston 
Raceway Park to win for the second time this season and the 50th time in his career.
The other winners at the fifth event in the 23-race NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series were Matt Hagan (Funny Car), Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle).
The win in the Al-Anabi dragster – a 4.541-second pass at 222.36 mph to Brown’s 4.638 at 173.32 – moved Dixon into eighth place on the all-time NHRA Full Throttle Series wins list, breaking a tie with former owner and NHRA legend Don “The Snake” Prudhomme (49 career wins).
“That’s more than I thought I’d ever do in my lifetime … and I’m not done living yet,” said Dixon, who proceeded to dedicate the win to his three-year old son Darien who was hospitalized earlier in the week with a bacterial infection. “He’s a tough, tough kid. He wanted us to win this race for him and we did. We’re going to bring this trophy home to him.”
Dixon moved into second place and he’s within 28 points of Cory McClenathan, whom he defeated in the semifinals.
Technically, Dixon also broke a tie with Jeg Coughlin (6.599 at 210.77), who moments earlier collected his 49th career Pro Stock win over Allen Johnson (6.596 at 210.77). Coughlin won No. 49 in his JEGS.com Chevy Cobalt on a holeshot, using a 21-hundredths edge on the starting line to build a lead over Johnson’s Team Mopar Dodge Avenger that he never relinquished.
“This is a special place to me,” said Coughlin, who won his first career Pro Stock race here in 1997 and his first career Super Stock race here in 1994.
In Funny Car, 2009 Rookie of the Year contender Hagan collected his first career win with a 4.390-second pass at 247.57 mph in his DieHard Dodge Charger to runner-up Jeff Arend’s 4.714 at 231.20 in the DHL Toyota Camry.
“Other than my wife and kids, this is the best feeling in the world,” said Hagan, whose breakthrough came in his 33rd career race and third career final round. “Thank God we got it today. That’s the first hurdle you have to go over to win a championship.”
With the win, Hagan passed teammated Jack Beckman and Ron Capps in the standings and he’s within 70 points of first-place John Force, who spun his tires in a first-round loss to No. 16 qualifier Tony Pedregon.
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, three-time champion Hines won for the first time in 2010 aboard his Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson with a 6.998-second pass at 196.02 that was just icing on the cake as defending Series champion and current points leader Hector Arana fouled.
Hines moved up from 10th place in the standings all the way to fourth and he’s just 70 points shy of Arana.
“To get the race win and all those points is a breath of fresh air for this team,” said Hines, who became the first Harley rider to win a Wally at Houston Raceway Park in the 23-year history of the event. “Coming here for (23) years and never winning a Wally … to win a Wally here in Houston is sweet.”
The NHRA Full Throttle Series resumed racing this upcoming weekend with the 11th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
SATURDAY - FORCE EARNS 133rd CAREER NO. 1, FIVE SHY OF WARREN JOHNSON ON ALL-TIME LIST
Dixon, Edwards and Arana round out No. 1 qualifiers
NHRA legend John Force inched one step closer to the one major NHRA milestone that eludes him – all-time No. 1 qualifiers – when he set the Funny Car pace at the 23rd O’Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals presented by Pennzoil on Saturday.
The other No. 1 qualifiers at the fifth of 23 races in the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season were Larry Dixon (Top Fuel), Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana (Pro Stock Motorcycle).
The No. 1 qualifier for Force – a 4.021-second pass at 316.08 mph from Friday night – was his second this season and the 133rd of his career, pulling the driver of the Castrol GTX Ford Mustang to within five of Warren Johnson (138) for first place on NHRA’s all-time No. 1 qualifiers list.
Force, who has been the Funny Car points leader all season, will open with No. 16 qualifier Tony Pedregon and the NitroFish Chevy team when final eliminations begin Sunday at 11 a.m. and he’ll have a shot at the national record.
He needs to make a pass of 4.061 or better to back up his 4.021, which is two-hundredths quicker than Ron Capps’ 4.023 mark set at Phoenix in February, 2009.
“Warren’s a true legend, but I’m thinking about, I get two shots at that record,” Force said. “There’ll be two shots, first round when it will be coolest and (if I don’t get it there) I’ll have to make it to the final to get another shot. If the condition’s are right, we will go for it first round.”
After a lengthy delay to clean the track after the penultimate Top Fuel pass, Larry Dixon (3.772 at 323.19) and Antron Brown (3.777, 318.09) combined for the quickest side-by-side race at 1000 feet. It was Dixon’s first No. 1 of 2010 and the 41st of his career in the Al-Anabi dragster.
“There was enough time sitting there. The track tightened up. Alan (Johnson) went into his magic box, twisted a few knobs and man it stuck,” Dixon said. “It was pulling before 300 feet. I was just hoping it would hold on and it certainly did.”
In Pro Stock, Edwards led the quickest field in NHRA history with his 6.539-second pass at 211.93 mph from Friday in his Penhall/Interstate Batteries Pontiac GXP. The No. 1 was Edwards’ 14th in the last 15 races dating back to last season.
Edwards capped the strong qualifying run with the second-fastest run in NHRA history, a 212.43 mph pass in Q4, and he will meet Rickie Jones (6.584) who rounded out the quickest field in Pro Stock history, in R1 Sunday.
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Hector Arana’s 6.856 at 193.49 from Friday remained No. 1. The time was the fourth-quickest Pro Stock Motorcycle pass in NHRA history and it continues a remarkable run that includes of course the 2009 NHRA Full Throttle Series championship.
“All I can say is I’ve been blessed and I haven’t gotten lost … yet,” said Arana, who rides the Lucas Oil Buell. “I’m really pleased and hoping for the best on Sunday.”
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
First-round pairings for professional eliminations Sunday for the 23rd annual O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals presented by Pennzoil at Houston Raceway Park, the fifth of 23 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series. Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday. DNQs listed below pairings.
Top Fuel -- 1. Larry Dixon, 3.772 seconds, 323.19 mph vs. 16. Del Cox Jr, 4.151, 283.43; 2. Antron Brown, 3.777, 321.96 vs. 15. Spencer Massey, 4.147, 295.08; 3. Tony Schumacher, 3.785, 321.81 vs. 14. Brandon Bernstein, 4.040, 298.47; 4. Doug Kalitta, 3.829, 322.34 vs. 13. Bobby Lagana Jr., 3.960, 306.19; 5. Cory McClenathan, 3.837, 318.54 vs. 12. T.J. Zizzo, 3.955, 299.73; 6. Steve Torrence, 3.839, 313.80 vs. 11. Morgan Lucas, 3.939, 296.63; 7. Shawn Langdon, 3.860, 314.24 vs. 10. Troy Buff, 3.936, 293.28; 8. Terry McMillen, 3.891, 313.73 vs. 9. David Grubnic, 3.916, 312.71. Did Not Qualify: 17. Terry Haddock, 4.698, 284.93.
Funny Car -- 1. John Force, Ford Mustang, 4.021, 316.08 vs. 16. Tony Pedregon, Chevy Impala, 4.296, 260.16; 2. Ashley Force Hood, Mustang, 4.042, 314.90 vs. 15. Jeff Diehl, Chevy Monte Carlo, 4.264, 291.70; 3. Robert Hight, Mustang, 4.051, 312.64 vs. 14. Paul Lee, Chevy Impala SS, 4.246, 298.54; 4. Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 4.059, 314.09 vs. 13. Cruz Pedregon, Toyota Solara, 4.246, 292.71; 5. Matt Hagan, Charger, 4.091, 311.99 vs. 12. Melanie Troxel, Charger, 4.176, 303.64; 6. Jeff Arend, Solara, 4.095, 309.98 vs. 11. Jim Head, Solara, 4.129, 304.94; 7. Del Worsham, Solara, 4.096, 305.84 vs. 10. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.124, 305.15; 8. Jack Beckman, Charger, 4.097, 311.63 vs. 9. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 4.098, 306.12. Did Not Qualify: 17. Todd Simpson, 4.678, 240.47.
Pro Stock -- 1. Mike Edwards, Pontiac GXP, 6.539, 212.43 vs. 16. Rickie Jones, GXP, 6.584, 209.79; 2. Ron Krisher, Chevy Cobalt, 6.548, 211.33 vs. 15. Justin Humphreys, GXP, 6.584, 210.08; 3. Allen Johnson, Dodge Avenger, 6.549, 211.73 vs. 14. Johnny Gray, GXP, 6.582, 210.34; 4. Jeg Coughlin, Cobalt, 6.555, 212.23 vs. 13. Bob Yonke, GXP, 6.579, 210.44; 5. Greg Anderson, GXP, 6.560, 211.53 vs. 12. Kurt Johnson, Cobalt, 6.575, 210.14; 6. V. Gaines, Avenger, 6.563, 211.20 vs. 11. Ronnie Humphrey, GXP, 6.573, 211.26; 7. Jason Line, GXP, 6.566, 211.43 vs. 10. Shane Gray, GXP, 6.571, 210.64; 8. Greg Stanfield, GXP, 6.566, 211.30 vs. 9. Rodger Brogdon, GXP, 6.569, 211.39.
Did Not Qualify: 17. Steve Spiess, 6.590, 210.24; 18. Larry Morgan, 6.600, 210.01; 19. Mike Trumble Jr, 6.601, 209.26; 20. Warren Johnson, 6.606, 210.14; 21. John Nobile, 6.609, 209.79; 22. Jim Cunningham, 6.623, 209.26; 23. Erica Enders, 6.624, 209.23; 24. Steve Schmidt, 6.649, 208.23; 25. Mark Buehring, 6.708, 205.63; 26. John Gaydosh Jr, 6.811, 202.27.
Pro Stock Motorcycle -- 1. Hector Arana, Buell, 6.856, 195.25 vs. 16. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 7.068, 194.63; 2. Eddie Krawiec, Harley-Davidson, 6.863, 197.10 vs. 15. Redell Harris, Buell, 7.028, 187.26; 3. Andrew Hines, Harley-Davidson, 6.870, 196.93 vs. 14. Junior Pippin, Buell, 7.010, 193.32; 4. Craig Treble, Suzuki, 6.874, 192.91 vs. 13. Mike Berry, Buell, 6.970, 191.05; 5. Matt Smith, Buell, 6.881, 193.65 vs. 12. Angie Smith, Buell, 6.964, 188.46; 6. LE Tonglet, Suzuki, 6.910, 193.79 vs. 11. Karen Stoffer, Suzuki, 6.945, 192.30; 7. Michael Phillips, Suzuki, 6.919, 197.13 vs. 10. David Hope, Buell, 6.932, 193.21; 8. Jim Underdahl, Suzuki, 6.932, 195.28 vs. 9. Douglas Horne, Buell, 6.932, 193.07. Did Not Qualify: 17. Joe DeSantis, 21.167, 235.31.
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
FRIDAY - FORCE EARNS PROVISIONAL NO. 1, CLOSES IN ON ALL-TIME RECORD
Brown, Edwards and Arana round out No. 1 qualifiers
The ageless John Force earned the provisional pole in Funny Car with a 4.021-second pass at 316.08 mph on the first day of qualifying at the 23rd annual O’Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals Friday.
The other provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the fifth of 23 races in the 2010 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season were Antron Brown (Top Fuel), Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana (Pro Stock Motorcycle).
Force, now 60 years old, has already won twice this season in his Castrol GTX Ford Mustang and if the No. 1 holds up it would be the 133rd of his career, leaving him just five shy of Warren Johnson (138) on the all-time No. 1 qualifier list. It’s really the one major NHRA milestone that the 14-time NHRA champion and current points leader does not possess.
Force co-crew chief “Mike Neff said ‘Hang on. I’ll give you eight cylinders and a smooth clutch transition and you keep it in the groove’ – which I know how to do – ‘and it’ll go down there’ … and it went,” Force said of the run that was the second quickest at 1000 feet.
The stunning pass continues a season-long resurgence for Force, who has led the points from Day 1 in 2010 after a three-year stretch from 2007-2009 in which he never led the points.
“My dad always told me, ‘If there’s no oranges on the ground, shake the tree and you’ll have lots of oranges’ and I just kept shaking the tree … I shook our tree and out of it comes, so far so good,” Force said.
There were also a couple of spectacular explosions in the final Funny Car session, first Robert Hight’s Auto Club Ford popped near the finish line and then Tony Pedregon’s NitroFish Chevy blew up sending his body up some 25 feet in the air. Neither driver was injured.
Brown, who won his first career race in Top Fuel at Houston Raceway Park, secured the provisional No. 1 with his 3.803-second pass at 317.64 mph in his Matco Tools dragster.
“After (crew chiefs Brian Corradi and Mark Oswald) saw the Force run, that 4.02, that was pretty sporty, they decided to push it,” said Brown, who was just two pairs behind Force after a 7.339 Q1 pass. “We were just really stoked (with the run).”
In Pro Stock, defending NHRA Full Throttle Series champion Edwards earned the provisional No. 1 with a 6.539-second pass at 211.93 mph in his Penhall/Interstate Batteries Pontiac GXP. This would be Edwards’ 14th No. 1 in the last 15 races dating back to last season.
“The track was just really good, we feel like we might have left a little out there,” Edwards said.
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Hector Arana continued his impressive run dating back to 2009 with a 6.856 at 193.49 aboard his Lucas Oil Buell. The time was the fourth-quickest Pro Stock Motorcycle pass in NHRA history.
“It’s been 14-to-15 years since we’ve had these conditions here in Houston,” Arana said. “The conditions here are awesome.”
Qualifying at the O’Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals concludes with the third and fourth sessions on Saturday when the fields will be set for Sunday’s final eliminations.
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
Results Friday after the first two of four rounds of qualifying for the 23rd annual O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals presented by Pennzoil at Houston Raceway Park, fifth of 23 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series. Qualifying will continue Saturday for Sunday's final eliminations.
Top Fuel -- 1. Antron Brown, 3.803 seconds, 317.64 mph; 2. Larry Dixon, 3.808, 320.74; 3. Steve Torrence, 3.839, 313.80; 4. Doug Kalitta, 3.847, 318.17; 5. Tony Schumacher, 3.848, 318.99; 6. Cory McClenathan, 3.856, 318.54; 7. Shawn Langdon, 3.860, 314.24; 8. Terry McMillen, 3.891, 313.73; 9. David Grubnic, 3.916, 312.71; 10. Troy Buff, 3.936, 293.28; 11. Morgan Lucas, 3.939, 296.63; 12. T.J. Zizzo, 3.982, 277.72. Not Qualified: 13. Terry Haddock, 4.055, 284.93; 14. Bobby Lagana Jr., 5.361, 125.82; 15. Brandon Bernstein, 6.324, 102.14.
Funny Car -- 1. John Force, Ford Mustang, 4.021, 316.08; 2. Robert Hight, Mustang, 4.051, 312.64; 3. Ashley Force Hood, Mustang, 4.060, 312.06; 4. Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 4.089, 310.77; 5. Jeff Arend, Toyota Solara, 4.095, 309.98; 6. Jack Beckman, Charger, 4.097, 311.63; 7. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 4.098, 306.12; 8. Jim Head, Solara, 4.129, 300.33; 9. Del Worsham, Solara, 4.137, 302.62; 10. Melanie Troxel, Charger, 4.176, 303.64; 11. Matt Hagan, Charger, 4.179, 295.46; 12. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.183, 302.75. Not Qualified: 13. Tony Pedregon, 4.242, 236.01; 14.
Paul Lee, 4.254, 298.54; 15. Todd Simpson, 4.335, 240.47; 16. Jeff Diehl, 5.193, 151.39; 17. Cruz Pedregon, 6.052, 110.79.
Pro Stock -- 1. Mike Edwards, Pontiac GXP, 6.539, 211.93; 2. Jeg Coughlin, Chevy Cobalt, 6.557, 212.23; 3. Ron Krisher, Cobalt, 6.557, 211.03; 4. Greg Stanfield, GXP, 6.566, 210.83; 5.
Jason Line, GXP, 6.567, 211.20; 6. Ronnie Humphrey, GXP, 6.573, 211.26; 7. V. Gaines, Dodge Avenger, 6.574, 211.20; 8. Shane Gray, GXP, 6.575, 210.24; 9. Allen Johnson, Avenger, 6.580, 211.73; 10. Justin Humphreys, GXP, 6.584, 210.08; 11. Johnny Gray, GXP, 6.584, 209.82; 12. Rodger Brogdon, GXP, 6.585, 210.83. Not Qualified: 13. John Nobile, 6.591, 209.79; 14. Kurt Johnson, 6.591, 209.62; 15. Steve Spiess, 6.594, 210.24; 16. Greg Anderson, 6.598, 210.90; 17. Larry Morgan, 6.599, 209.79; 18. Rickie Jones, 6.602, 209.65; 19. Warren Johnson, 6.603, 209.98; 20. Bob Yonke, 6.620, 210.44; 21. Mike Trumble Jr, 6.635, 209.26; 22. Jim Cunningham, 6.653, 209.23; 23. Steve Schmidt, 6.662, 208.23; 24. Mark Buehring, 6.721, 205.13; 25. John Gaydosh Jr, 6.797, 202.27; 26. Erica Enders, 13.980, 60.25.
Pro Stock Motorcycle -- 1. Hector Arana, Buell, 6.856, 195.25; 2. Andrew Hines, Harley-Davidson, 6.870, 196.93; 3. Eddie Krawiec, Harley-Davidson, 6.875, 197.10; 4. Matt Smith, Buell, 6.881, 193.65; 5. Michael Phillips, Suzuki, 6.919, 197.13; 6. Jim Underdahl, Suzuki, 6.932, 195.28; 7. Douglas Horne, Buell, 6.932, 193.07; 8. David Hope, Buell, 6.935, 193.21; 9. LE Tonglet, Suzuki, 6.964, 192.30; 10. Craig Treble, Suzuki, 6.965, 192.91; 11. Mike Berry, Buell, 7.005, 190.65; 12. Junior Pippin, Buell, 7.010, 193.32. Not Qualified: 13. Redell Harris, 7.037, 186.92; 14. Karen Stoffer, 7.210, 168.43; 15. Joe DeSantis, 7.283, 190.16; 16. Steve Johnson, 7.802, 138.58; 17. Angie Smith, 8.903, 99.84.
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
