2011 NHRA SUPERNATIONALS - EVENT RESULTS
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SUNDAY FINAL - MASSEY COLLECTS SECOND CONSECUTIVE WIN OF THE SEASON; NEFF, JOHNSON, SMITH ALSO WINNERS IN ENGLISHTOWN
Spencer Massey raced to his second consecutive win of the season Sunday at the NHRA SuperNationals at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park.
Mike Neff (Funny Car), Allen Johnson (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won in their categories at the eighth of 22 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.
Massey drove his FRAM/Prestone dragster to a winning 3.821-second run at 319.07 mph to beat Top Fuel points leader Del Worsham on a holeshot. It was Massey’s second consecutive win of the season (Topeka) and fourth of his career.
“It’s awesome to beat the Alan Johnson/Al-Anabi/Del Worsham car in the final,” said Massey. “The Al-Anabi car has been on a roll and running killer numbers, so we knew we had to be on our 'A' game, that the car had to run well and I had to be on my game. I even had a Full Throttle to amp myself up before I got in there.”
Worsham kept the points lead with his fourth final round appearance of the season, while teammate and defending event winner Larry Dixon moved around seven-time world champion Tony Schumacher to take over the second-place spot in the point standings after his semifinal round appearance.
In Funny Car, Neff held off No. 1 qualifer Cruz Pedregon to grab his second win of the season. Neff drove his Castrol GTX Ford Mustang to a 4.071 at 314.09 winning run after Pedregon posted a red light start. It was Neff’s third career win and fourth consecutive final round appearance for the season.
“I knew he red-lighted,” said Neff. “I was sitting there waiting for the Tree to come down, and I heard him leave and knew he red-lighted because the Tree hadn’t come down yet. I looked over and saw that his bulb was red, then I looked up and saw our win light on. By that time, I had already hit the gas and was taking off and saw our win light on. I wanted to see what it would run, then I was saying ‘Don’t drive over the centerline or something.' Wouldn’t you lose if you did that? Yeah, maybe I should have lifted.”
The win strengthened Neff’s points lead over the Funny Car class, while Pedregon fell just seven points from moving up to the third spot in the point standings.
Pro Stock’s Allen Johnson held off rookie sensation Vincent Nobile to pick up his first win of the season. Johnson drove his Team Mopar/J&J Racing Dodge Avenger to a 6.689 at 210.64 for the win after Nobile posted a red-light start in the final round. It was Johnson’s ninth win of his career.
“It was a dream to have an all-team final round and to have it happen this early in the season is a dream come true,” said Johnson, who provides engines for Nobile. “I’m very proud of our engine guys and Mark (Ingersoll, crew chief) who makes the tuning calls. Vincent is a fierce competitor and I’m sure we’re going to tangle a few more times before this is over.”
The win moved Johnson up to seventh in the point standings, while leader Jason Line kept control of his points lead over the category with his second round appearance.
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Smith on his Al-Anabi Racing Buell held off points leader Karen Stoffer to grab his first win of the season. Smith’s run of 6.900 a 191.73 was enough to beat Stoffer on a holeshot and give the 2007 world champion his first win of the season and 13th win of his career.
“I won my first race here in 2006, so I’ve always liked racing at this track,” said Smith. “When I saw these (pewter 60th anniversary edition) Wally trophies I said to myself I wanted to win at least one this year so I’m glad I did.”
The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series will return to action at the Ford NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals presented by Tri-Cities Area Ford Dealers, June 17-19 at Bristol Dragway.
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SATURDAY FINAL QUALIFYING - PEDREGON GRABS NO. 1 IN ENGLISHTOWN; WORSHAM, LINE, KRAWIEC ALSO TAKE TOP SPOTS AT OLD BRIDGE TOWNSHIP RACEWAY PARK
Cruz Pedregon raced to the No. 1 qualifying position in Funny Car Saturday at the NHRA SuperNationals at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park.
Del Worsham (Top Fuel), Jason Line (Pro Stock) and Eddie Krawiec (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also took the top spots in their respective categories at the eighth of 22 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.
Pedregon laid down an impressive run on a cool and overcast day during the third round of qualifying Saturday afternoon to take the top spot away from recent winner Robert Hight. Pedregon made a blistering 4.048-second run at 302.82 mph in his Snap-on Tools Toyota Camry to take his second No. 1 qualifier of the season, 41st of his career and fourth at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park.
“We have a good car, that’s for sure,” said Pedregon. “We’re fourth in points, so I’d say we’re definitely a top-four car. We’re in great company. Just to be able to make that statement is incredible given the talent and the budgets the Force and Schumacher teams have, and we’re just a little ol’ one-car team here. I’m just proud that we can make that kind of statement early in the season like this.”
Hight stayed second in the field while four-time Englishtown and defending world champion John Force sits fifth entering Sunday's 11 a.m. eliminations.
In Top Fuel, Worsham was the only driver to keep the top spot from Friday night. Worsham’s run in his Al-Anabi Racing dragster of 3.785 at 322.34 gave the Top Fuel points leader his second No. 1 qualifier of the season and seventh of his career.
“It would be awesome to win this race in both classes,” said Worsham, a two-time Englishtown Funny Car winner. “The last time we qualified No. 1 was in Charlotte and it worked out for us. The team did a great job, and Sheik Khalid’s here this weekend so it would be great to go out there and do a good job for him tomorrow.”
Recent race winner Spencer Massey will start second in the field Sunday, while seven-time world champion and 2008 Englisthown winner Tony Schumacher will start third.
Pro Stock points leader Line took the No. 1 spot away from sophomore driver Shane Gray in the first session of Saturday qualifying. Line powered his Summit Racing Pontiac GXP to a run of 6.508 at 212.16 to give the 2006 Pro Stock world champion his second No. 1 qualifier of the season and 19th of his career.
“We were looking for a safe run; we were too safe on all of them,” said Line. “I’ve got a really good hot rod right now but the truth is there were several cars that should have run 6.49 and they didn’t get all of it. We’ll see what we’ve got tomorrow. That’s what counts the most.”
Line’s 6.508-second run, along with New Jersey native Bob Benza’s 16th qualifying time of 6.571 makes it the quickest Pro Stock field in NHRA history.
Krawiec on his Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson held off rookie Jerry Savoie to grab the No. 1 qualifier in Pro Stock Motorcycle. Krawiec’s run of 6.819 at 195.62 gave the New Jersey native his first No. 1 qualifier of the season and seventh of his career.
“We stepped up today and more importantly, the wind died down,” said Krawiec. “That has a big impact on us (Pro Stock Motorcycle racers). Racing at Englishtown, I’m excited to be here with my friends and family. I just need to focus on race day and wrap it up. This is home but there is no more pressure on me; I’m not going to treat it any differently.”
With Krawiec’s 6.819-second run and 16th-place Junior Pippin’s 6.987-second run, history was made as the first all-six second field in NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle history was set. The previous record field had a bump spot of 7.014 seconds, set at this year’s Tire Kingdom NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville.
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QUALIFYING - PRO SESSION 3
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FRIDAY QUALIFYING - HIGHT SITS NO. 1 IN ENGLISHTOWN; WORSHAM, GRAY, SAVOIE ALSO IN PROVISIONAL TOP SPOTS AT OLD BRIDGE TOWNSHIP RACEWAY PARK 
Robert Hight raced to the qualifying lead in Funny Car Friday night at the NHRA SuperNationals at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park. Del Worsham (Top Fuel) , Shane Gray (Pro Stock) and Jerry Savoie (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also took the provisional top spots in their respective categories at the eighth of 22 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series. 
Hight, who is coming off his third win of the season two weeks ago in Topeka, drove his Auto Club Ford Mustang to a 4.090-second pass at 310.34 mph to become the provisional top qualifier in Funny Car. If it stands it would be his first No. 1 qualifier of the season, 39th of his career and second consecutive at Raceway Park.
“Jimmy Prock (crew chief) told me that we weren’t going to get crazy, but we were going to just try to get down the track because that’s what we’ve been lacking,” said Hight. “We haven’t been consistent until Sunday at Topeka. We’ve had some good luck here in qualifying but I’ve never won here, and this is one of them that you want to win. It’s as big as Gainesville and Indy because there’s so much history here.”
Points leader and Hight teammate Neff sits 14th while defending event winner Bob Tasca is third after two qualifying sessions. In Top Fuel, Worsham drove his Al-Anabi Racing dragster to a 3.785 at 322.34 in the final qualifying session of the day to take the provisional No. 1 spot. If it stands, it would be Worsham’s second of the season and seventh of his career.
“When conditions like that come along, I’m glad that Alan Johnson is the tuner of my car because, man, what a job he and the team did,” said Worsham. “We smoked the tires the first run, and we smoked the tires the last run in Topeka, on E2, and you think they might be conservative, but a guy like Alan just went right out there for the throat. I the words of Alan, we went from the (outhouse) to the henhouse in one run.” 
Defending event winner and world champion Larry Dixon will enter Saturday qualifying fourth in the field, while recent race winner Spencer Massey sits second. In Pro Stock, Gray raced to the provisional top spot in his Service Central Pontiac GXP just one race after capturing his first win of the season. If his run of 6.510 at 212.46 stands it would be his first career No. 1 qualifier.
“Right now, I just think we are on a roll but it’s like a roller coaster and right now we’re on the top of the hill,” said Gray. “A lot of guys have it better than we do. We’re just trying to get better each day.”
Rookie Savoie rode his White Alligator Racing Suzuki to the top of the field in Pro Stock Motorcycle with a run of 6.836 at 192.74. If it stands, it would be the first of his career.
“After our loss in Atlanta, we stumbled on a couple of things that were not exactly right with the Motorcycle,” said Savoie. “Mark (Peiser, crew chief) wanted to come to Englishtown and see what kind of progress we’ve made on the changes we’ve made. I feel very blessed to be here. This is my fourth race and they’ve all been good. I don’t know if it will hold up, but it’s good for now.”
Qualifying continues Saturday with sessions at Noon and 2:30 p.m. Sunday’s eliminations begin at 11 a.m.
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MANZO LEADS FRIDAY SPORTSMAN QUALIFIERS
To finish off day number two at the 42nd annual SuperNationals in Englishtown, NJ, Frank Manzo, Dan Page and Charlie Greco landed themselves into 
the number one qualifying positions in Top Alcohol Funny Car, Top Alcohol Dragster and Competition Eliminator respectively.
With two rounds of Top Alcohol Funny Car qualifying in the books Frank Manzo once again proved himself as the man to beat running back-to-back 5.49’s both at well over 260-mph. Mickey Ferro settled himself into the second position running a 5.556 at 261.27 during the second qualifying session. Alexis De Joria and her Tequila Patron Monte Carlo held onto the third position running a 5.605 at 262.44 mph. John Anderika made his initial appearance of the event, during the second session, running quick enough to earn himself the number four qualifying position, just behind De Joria, with a 5.608 at nearly 255 mph.
Dan Page’s performance in round one of qualifying held up as 5.298 quickly became the elapsed time to beat in Top Alcohol Dragster.
After a less than stellar trip down the racetrack in the morning session, Duane Shields rocketed down the quarter mile claiming the number two spot with a 5.355 while also posting the top speed of the event at 272.67 mph. Monroe Guest continued to struggle in his Tigerflow dragster leaving the starting line both sessions only to quickly find himself up in tire smoke. Mike Comella in his first national event appearance currently ranks fourth running 5.381 at nearly 260mph.
Competition Eliminator was able to get in their final round of qualifying before NHRA officials informed them they would not run first round until tomorrow. Charlie Greco took away the number one qualifying position in his ’10 Cobalt, running a8.669, -0.791 under L/AA index. Benham was able to hold on to the number two position running 8.884, -0.756 under the I/SM index, bettering his run from yesterday. Sal Biondo was able to get things rolling ending his day in third position as his Cavalier found itself running -0.737 under. Current world champion Ackerman was able to make a move from the bottom of the ladder but still finds himself separated from the leaders in thirteenth position.
Following round one of Super Stock half of the Biondo brothers will continue on to race in round two. Peter Biondo left better off the starting line cutting a 0.008 reaction time but running too far off his dial giving the round number one win to Kent Hanely. The other half of the Biondo duo, Sal Biondo, took out his competition leaving two thousands better and then running dead on his dial at the top end. Shane Carr and his ’08 Cobalt took out number ten qualifier Bob Bagely as he left no room on the racetrack with a 0.004 reaction time and running dead on his dial with a zero at the finish line.
Forty-four stockers raced their way through round one for a chance to run again on Saturday. Of the fourty-four winners number one qualifier Don Fezell will move on to round number two after a bye in round one, along with Jim Bourdreau winning by only five thousandths of a second over Lee Zane and both the Linke cousins Russell “Bubba” and Jeanne. Number two qualifier Derek Atwill saw red as he left five thousandths too soon giving Frank Aragona Jr. an automatic spot in round number two. Division one champion from 2010 Dusty Lowell will also race again on Saturday as his competition left too early. - Lauren Jones
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FRIDAY - PRO SESSION ONE
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THURSDAY QUALIFYING - SPORTSMAN RACERS OFF TO GOOD START IN QUALIFYING
At the end of a warm and sunny afternoon filled with sportsman drag racing at Englishtown Raceway Park in Manalapan, New Jersey, drivers Scott Benham,
Benham outlasted the rest of the Competition Eliminator field driving his ’06 Chevy Cavilier 8.953, -0.687 under the I/SM index of 9.64 seconds. Kevin Robb easily held onto the second qualifying position clocking in a 7.289 on a D/ED index of 7.94, -0.651. Current world champion Al Ackerman found himself at the bottom of the qualifying sheet after he struggled in both qualifying sessions. Ackerman’s teammate Kyle Cultrera landed himself in the middle of the twenty four cars qualifying as he continues to adjust his newly acquired Competition Eliminator running 0.494 under the H/EA index.
Old Bridge New Jersey native Douglas Linke edged himself into the top spot in Super Stock holding off Lee Zane by only one thousandth of a second. Linke drove his GT/MA Firebird 10.865, -0.885 under the index of 11.75. Zane was not far behind running 9.016 under an index of 9.90, -0.884. Linke’s brother, Russell, landed himself a couple positions behind in fourth running his ’73 Corvette -0.813 under the SS/JA index.
To finish off the day in the Stock category, Don Fezell kept his ’08 Ford Mustang in the number one position of the eighty-nine car field posting a 9.497 on the scoreboard, -1.103 under the AA/S index of 10.60. Derek Atwill made the trip down from our neighboring country of Canada and currently finds himself in the number two spot running -1.101 under the A/SA undex of 11.00 in his ’10 Dodge Challenger. Second-generation Linkes, Russ “Bubba” and Jeanne, children of Doug and Russell in the Super Stock category, found themselves mid-pack, both eight tenths under there respective indexes.
With another day of sunshine and warm weather on the radar for tomorrow the number one position in each category will still be up for grabs during Friday’s qualifying sessions. Competition and Super Stock qualifying continues on Friday while the Stock field is set. Super Comp and Super Gas time trials resume. The Top Alcohol divisions also make their first runs on Friday. - Lauren Jones
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THURSDAY SPORTSMAN QUALIFYING -
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