2017 NHRA NATIONALS - LAS VEGAS-1 RESULTS
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SUNDAY - BROWN, JOHNSON JR. AND T. GRAY PICK UP VICTORIES AT LAS VEGAS
Antron Brown piloted his Matco Tools dragster to the Top Fuel victory Sunday at the 18th annual DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Tommy Johnson Jr. (Funny Car) and Tanner Gray (Pro Stock) were also winners at the fourth event of 24 on the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series schedule.
Brown, who won the event in 2016, raced to a 3.747-second pass at 321.04 mph to defeat Don Schumacher Racing teammate Tony Schumacher who ran a 3.809 at 325.14 in his U.S. Army dragster. This is Brown’s 46th career Top Fuel victory and first of the season. It was also Don Schumacher Racing’s 300th team win.
“Today was tough battles,” Brown said. “When you race two of your teammates you know you got a battle on your hands because you all have the same quality parts. And when you go up there you have to throw everything up there. Especially with Tony he hasn’t been an eight-time champion for nothing buddy he knows how to race. We had to push hard.”
Brown, who has been racing Top Fuel for 10 years, has won a race every year of his Top Fuel career. He is the only racer in NHRA history to have a win in 10 consecutive seasons. He raced past Scott Palmer, No. 1 qualifier Steve Torrence and two-time 2017 event winner Leah Pritchett en route to the finals. Schumacher faced Terry McMillen and Doug Kalitta before seeing Brown in the final round.
In Funny Car, Johnson Jr. claimed his first victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway since 2001 when he outran rookie Jonnie Lindberg with a 3.933 pass at 323.66 in his Make-A-Wish Dodge Charger R/T. It is his 15th career win and first of the season. Lindberg pushed his Head Racing Toyota Camry to a 4.016 at 302.14 in his second consecutive runner-up effort in 2017.
“Today was a pretty trying today,” Johnson Jr. said. “It was pretty hot. Probably the hottest track we’ve seen this season yet. The guys did a great job. When we came out first round and were low ET by at least three hundredths I thought, ‘Oh, it’s going to be a good day.’ This is just a great facility. When I come in the gate I have a good feeling because I’ve had some success here, a win prior to this, and a couple runner-up finishes.”
Johnson Jr. pushed past Jim Campbell, Robert Hight and 16-time world champion John Force before facing Jonnie Lindberg in the finals. Lindberg defeated Cruz Pedregon, Jack Beckman and Gary Densham before falling to Johnson Jr., who moves to second in the points standings. Lindberg is now eighth.
Gray, who is only 17 years old, became the youngest Pro Stock winner in NHRA history when he raced his Gray Motorsports Valvoline Chevrolet Camaro to a 6.681 pass at 206.61 to defeat Bo Butner and his Jim Butner’s Auto Chevy Camaro on a holeshot in the finals. Butner raced to a 6.678 at 206.76 but his reaction time of .088 at the start was too slow for Gray’s .010.
“I can’t thank everybody enough,” Gray said. “My crew is definitely the reason I’m here. I do a small part. It feels really cool. I was pretty nervous. This was something I wanted to do since I was real young and I finally got the opportunity to do it. When I started this deal I told my dad I wanted to be the youngest Pro Stock winner. To be able to do that feels really cool.”
Gray is now fourth in the points standings after taking on Drew Skillman, Greg Anderson and defending world champ Jason Line before reaching the finals. Butner lined up against Alan Prusiensky, two-time champ Erica Enders and veteran Jeg Coughlin en route to his finals appearance.
The 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season continues at the 30th annual NHRA SpringNationals April 21-23 at Royal Purple Raceway.
SATURDAY - ANDERSON WINS K&N HORSEPOWER CHALLENGE; TORRENCE, C. FORCE AND LINE ARE NO. 1 QUALIFIERS AT DENSO SPARK PLUGS NHRA NATIONALS
Greg Anderson raced to victory in the K&N Horsepower Challenge defeating Shane Gray in the final round on Saturday at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Anderson powered his Pro Stock Summit Racing Equipment Chevy Camaro to a 6.684-second pass at 205.47 mph to better Gray’s 6.699 at 206.26 to claim the $50,000 prize and the opportunity to walk away from the weekend with more than $100,000. With a victory at tomorrow’s DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals, Anderson could earn an additional $50,000 including a $25,000 sweep bonus.
“It’s been a great start to the season, first of all,” Anderson said. “This day is all about fun. All about thanking K&N for all they do for this class, for this sport and a whole big pile of cash at the end of the rainbow and we found our way there. It’s just a lot of fun. We have a chance to double up tomorrow. It adds more pressure but more fun for tomorrow. It’s going to be a great day tomorrow.”
He opened the challenge as the No. 2 seed and outran Drew Skillman, and Ken Black Racing teammate Bo Butner to advance to the finals. It was Anderson’s sixth victory, second consecutive, in the Pro Stuck bonus event.
In other racing, Steve Torrence (Top Fuel), Courtney Force (Funny Car) and Jason Line (Pro Stock) secured the No. 1 qualifying positions in their respective categories at the fourth of 24 events on the 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series schedule.
Torrence held on to the top spot with his 3.720 run at 327.03 in his Capco Contractors dragster from Friday. This is the 14th No. 1 qualifier of his career and first of the season.
“We seem to have a good handle on the conditions here in Las Vegas,” Torrence said. “When we come here, we typically run well right out of the trailer. We usually run well on Q1 and then we build on that. And that’s huge for going rounds on Sunday but even just even doing well in qualifying for having a good base and a good platform to tune off of.”
Eight-time world champ Tony Schumacher and his U.S. Army dragster are in the No. 2 spot and will face Terry Haddock in the first round of eliminations. Brittany Force is third in her Monster Energy dragster.
Courtney Force holds The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway’s elapsed time track record in Funny Car with her No. 1 qualifying pass of 3.867 at 327.66 in the Advanced Auto Parts Chevy Camaro.
“This is an awesome run for our team,” Force said. “To head down there and run a 3.86 to set the track record. That definitely felt good. It was a great run for us. We’re excited about it. It all comes down to tomorrow, though. Our main goal is going rounds tomorrow and heading to the winner’s circle in Vegas.”
This was the 11th No. 1 qualifier of Force’s career. She will face Gary Densham in the first round of eliminations. Matt Hagan is qualified in the second position and will line up against 2015 Funny Car champ Del Worsham. Tim Wilkerson is in the third spot.
Line maintained his No. 1 qualifier status with his 6.647 pass at 206.29 in his Summit Racing Equipment Chevy Camaro from the weekend’s first qualifying session on Friday.
“The strategy is to go out there and go as fast as you can every time,” Line said. “Obviously try to do the best job you can to get every bit of performance out of the race car. Its’ not just me. I’m just one small part of it. I’m the guy who can mess it up. [Crew chief] Rob [Downing] and the guys do a really good job of getting the race car down the racetrack. It’s a very good hot rod right now.”
This is Line’s 53rd No. 1 qualifier of his career. Veteran Jeg Coughlin is qualified second in his JEGs.com / Elite Performance Chevy Camaro and will race Tom Huggins.
Eliminations for the DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals will begin at noon on Sunday. Watch the action live on FOX Sports 1 at 6 p.m. ET.
Sunday's first-round pairings for eliminations for the 18th annual DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the fourth of 24 events in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday. DNQs listed below pairings.
Top Fuel -- 1. Steve Torrence, 3.720 seconds, 327.35 mph vs. Bye; 2. Tony Schumacher, 3.739, 326.87 vs. 15. Terry Haddock, 10.509, 51.35; 3. Doug Kalitta, 3.758, 319.60 vs. 14. Steven Chrisman, 8.759, 78.81; 4. Brittany Force, 3.760, 323.58 vs. 13. Steve Faria, 5.450, 122.95; 5. Leah Pritchett, 3.778, 324.98 vs. 12. Troy Buff, 3.972, 237.92; 6. Clay Millican, 3.781, 323.74 vs. 11. Tripp Tatum, 3.828, 317.72; 7. Troy Coughlin Jr., 3.790, 310.27 vs. 10. Terry McMillen, 3.825, 319.82; 8. Antron Brown, 3.792, 322.42 vs. 9. Scott Palmer, 3.819, 316.67.
Funny Car -- 1. Courtney Force, Chevy Camaro, 3.867, 327.66 vs. 16. Gary Densham, Ford Mustang, 5.263, 138.23; 2. Matt Hagan, Dodge Charger, 3.868, 330.96 vs. 15. Del Worsham, Toyota Camry, 4.577, 236.75; 3. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 3.876, 331.28 vs. 14. Robert Hight, Camaro, 4.495, 272.83; 4. Ron Capps, Charger, 3.877, 324.12 vs. 13. Jonnie Lindberg, Camry, 4.297, 231.04; 5. Jack Beckman, Charger, 3.886, 329.18 vs. 12. Cruz Pedregon, Camry, 4.213, 222.84; 6. Tommy Johnson Jr., Charger, 3.887, 328.46 vs. 11. Jim Campbell, Charger, 4.180, 308.00; 7. John Force, Camaro, 3.924, 329.34 vs. 10. Phil Burkart, Charger, 4.133, 297.16; 8. Alexis DeJoria, Camry, 3.936, 327.27 vs. 9. J.R. Todd, Camry, 3.936, 324.67.
Did Not Qualify: 17. Jeff Arend, 5.504, 131.92; 18. Bob Bode, 6.753, 98.74; 19. John Hale, 7.203, 96.51.
Pro Stock -- 1. Jason Line, Chevy Camaro, 6.647, 206.76 vs. Bye; 2. Jeg Coughlin, Camaro, 6.652, 206.92 vs. 15. Tom Huggins, Dodge Dart, 6.829, 199.85; 3. Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.655, 206.67 vs. 14. Alan Prusiensky, Dart, 6.748, 205.01; 4. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.660, 206.20 vs. 13. Allen Johnson, Dart, 6.736, 204.91; 5. Tanner Gray, Camaro, 6.665, 206.76 vs. 12. Deric Kramer, Dart, 6.722, 204.57; 6. Vincent Nobile, Camaro, 6.666, 206.32 vs. 11. Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.713, 206.45; 7. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.674, 206.20 vs. 10. Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.712, 205.47; 8. Drew Skillman, Camaro, 6.683, 206.26 vs. 9. Shane Gray, Camaro, 6.703, 206.92.
K&N Horsepower Challenge final finish order (1-16) at the 18th annual DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The event is a special bonus race within a race for Pro Stock.
1. Greg Anderson; 2. Shane Gray; 3. Bo Butner; 4. Erica Enders; 5. Allen Johnson; 6. Jason Line; 7. Drew Skillman; 8. Vincent Nobile.
Saturday's K&N Horsepower Challenge final results from the 18th annual DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The event is a special bonus race within a race for Pro Stock.
K&N Horsepower Challenge -- Greg Anderson, Chevy Camaro, 6.684, 205.47 def. Shane Gray, Camaro, 6.699, 206.26.
K&N Horsepower Challenge final round-by-round results from the 18th annual DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The event is a special bonus race within a race for Pro Stock.
ROUND ONE -- Shane Gray, Chevy Camaro, 6.950, 204.51 def. Vincent Nobile, Camaro, 17.490, 44.28; Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.677, 206.23 def. Drew Skillman, Camaro, 16.178, 50.03; Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.670, 205.19 def. Allen Johnson, Dodge Dart, Foul - Red Light; Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.723, 206.26 def. Jason Line, Camaro, Foul - Red Light;
SEMIFINALS -- Gray, 6.714, 206.92 def. Enders, 13.796, 61.80; Anderson, 6.669, 206.20 def. Butner, 6.719, 206.67;
FINAL -- Anderson, 6.684, 205.47 def. Gray, 6.699, 206.26.
FRIDAY - C. FORCE, TORRENCE AND LINE ARE CURRENT NO. 1 QUALIFIERS AT DENSO SPARK PLUGS NHRA NATIONALS
Courtney Force powered her Advanced Auto Parts Chevy Camaro Funny Car to the qualifying lead Friday at the 18th annual DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Steve Torrence (Top Fuel) and Jason Line (Pro Stock) were also provisional leaders in their respective categories at the fourth of 24 events on the 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season schedule.
Force set the track elapsed time record with her 3.867-second run at 327.66 mph during the first qualifying session.
“We’re starting the weekend on the right note,” Force said. “Running a 3.86 like that and to go to the top spot and set the track record, it definitely feels good. I’m proud of my guys. It feels good to get it running down there. It was a great run for us to kick of the weekend but we’re hoping we can hold onto it for tomorrow.”
Matt Hagan, who already has two wins under his belt in 2017, is qualified in the second position with a 3.868 pass at 330.63 in his Mopar Express Lanes Dodge Charger R/T, Tim Wilkerson is qualified third in the Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Shelby Mustang and defending world champ Ron Capps is fourth.
Torrence piloted his Capco Contractors dragster to a 3.720 at 327.03 Friday afternoon to lead Top Fuel qualifying. Torrence finished the 2016 season with eight No. 1 qualifiers and is hoping to secure his first of the 2017 season.
“[The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway] has always been good to me,” Torrence said. “We came here and won in the fall and have run well here pretty much every time we’ve been here. We had a lot of data coming in but we struggled with some consistency. We came out of the box trying some stuff and it worked and we’re happy with the outcome.”
Eight-time world champion Tony Schumacher and his U.S. Army dragster qualified second with a 3.739 run at 326.87, Brittany Force is third in her Monster Energy dragster and points leader Leah Pritchett is fourth.
In Pro Stock, Line raced his Summit Racing Equipment Chevy Camaro to the qualifying lead with a 6.647 pass at 206.76 in the first session. Line has been the No. 1 qualifier at the first three 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events.
“We have a really good hot rod and we have had all year,” said Line, the reigning Pro Stock world champion. “It’s exciting. It makes it fun to drive and as long as I do my job we’ve got a great chance of winning the race. Tomorrow with the K&N Horsepower Challenge, it’s our big day, we have a chance to win some money so I’m excited about the weekend.”
Veteran Jeg Coughlin is in the No. 2 spot with a 6.652 at 206.29 in his JEGS.com / Elite Performance Chevy Camaro, Bo Butner is third in the Jim Butner’s Auto Chevy Camaro and Greg Anderson is fourth.
Qualifying for the DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals continues Saturday at 1:10 p.m. with the final qualifying session slated for 3:40 p.m. The K&N Horsepower Challenge, Pro Stock’s race within a race, will be contested at 1:10, 3:40 and 4:45 p.m.
Friday's results after the first two of four rounds of qualifying for the 18th annual DENSO Spark Plugs NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, fourth of 24 events in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. Qualifying will continue Saturday for Sunday's final eliminations.
Top Fuel -- 1. Steve Torrence, 3.720 seconds, 327.03 mph; 2. Tony Schumacher, 3.739, 326.87; 3. Brittany Force, 3.760, 323.58; 4. Leah Pritchett, 3.780, 314.68; 5. Clay Millican, 3.781, 304.60; 6. Antron Brown, 3.794, 319.90; 7. Troy Coughlin Jr., 3.804, 292.08; 8. Scott Palmer, 3.819, 316.67; 9. Troy Buff, 3.972, 237.92; 10. Doug Kalitta, 4.020, 223.25; 11. Terry McMillen, 4.472, 176.56; 12. Tripp Tatum, 4.492, 174.68; 13. Steve Faria, 5.450, 122.95; 14. Steven Chrisman, 8.759, 78.81.
Funny Car -- 1. Courtney Force, Chevy Camaro, 3.867, 327.66; 2. Matt Hagan, Dodge Charger, 3.868, 330.63; 3. Tim Wilkerson, Ford Mustang, 3.876, 331.28; 4. Ron Capps, Charger, 3.917, 324.12; 5. Alexis DeJoria, Toyota Camry, 3.936, 327.27; 6. J.R. Todd, Camry, 3.949, 318.84; 7. Cruz Pedregon, Camry, 4.213, 222.84; 8. Jack Beckman, Charger, 4.351, 223.28; 9. John Force, Camaro, 4.356, 198.26; 10. Phil Burkart, Charger, 4.408, 293.03; 11. Bob Bode, Charger, 6.753, 98.74; 12. Robert Hight, Camaro, 7.168, 90.94; 13. John Hale, Chevy Impala, 7.203, 96.51; 14. Gary Densham, Mustang, 7.412, 118.98; 15. Del Worsham, Camry, 7.931, 85.23; 16. Jonnie Lindberg, Camry, 8.408, 94.80.
Not Qualified: 17. Jim Campbell, 8.546, 76.60; 18. Jeff Arend, 8.830, 77.60; 19. Tommy Johnson Jr., 8.874, 77.44.
Pro Stock -- 1. Jason Line, Chevy Camaro, 6.647, 206.76; 2. Jeg Coughlin, Camaro, 6.652, 206.92; 3. Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.655, 205.79; 4. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.660, 206.07; 5. Tanner Gray, Camaro, 6.665, 205.22; 6. Vincent Nobile, Camaro, 6.666, 206.32; 7. Shane Gray, Camaro, 6.703, 206.29; 8. Drew Skillman, Camaro, 6.703, 192.71; 9. Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.713, 206.45; 10. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.714, 205.63; 11. Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.719, 203.06; 12. Deric Kramer, Dodge Dart, 6.738, 203.68; 13. Allen Johnson, Dart, 6.749, 204.82; 14. Tom Huggins, Dart, 7.027, 197.31; 15. Alan Prusiensky, Dart, 7.578, 133.55.
SPORTSMAN RESULTS
TOP ALCOHOL DRAGSTER (AFTER ONE SESSION)
1 76 TA/D Johnny Ahten, Santa Clarita CA, Attac-B 5.322 265.53 265.53
2 7 TA/D Garrett Bateman, Albany CA, Hadman-BAE 5.345 268.01 268.01
3 1 TA/D Joey Severance, Woodburn OR, Hadman-NRE 5.351 269.13 269.13
4 3 B/AD Shawn Cowie, Surrey BC, Hadman-BAE 5.372 260.31 260.31
5 5 B/AD Chris Demke, Sunland CA, Uyehara-BAE 5.460 265.06 265.06
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TOP ALCOHOL FUNNY CAR (AFTER ONE SESSION)
1 4 Shane Westerfield, Anaheim CA, '16 Camaro 5.531 265.59 265.59
2 77 Jay Payne, Claremont CA, '17 Camaro 5.545 262.13 262.13
3 3 John Lombardo Jr., Brea CA, '16 Camaro 5.593 263.26 263.26
4 676M Chris Marshall, McMinnville OR, '17 Camaro 5.664 256.31 256.31
5 568 Cody Perkins, Bluffdale UT, '04 Firebird 5.968 238.13 238.13
6 771 Charles McLaws, Winslow AZ, '04 Firebird 5.973 246.12 246.12
7 729 Nick Januik, Las Vegas NV, '16 Camaro 7.935 122.77 122.77
8 10 Steve Gasparrelli, West Covina CA, '17 Camaro 8.459 112.78 112.78
9 799 Sean Bellemeur, Placentia CA, '17 Camaro 9.175 95.40 95.40
10 757 Mike Doushgounian, San Martin CA, '13 Monte Ca 9.584 98.38 98.38
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COMP ELIMINATOR (AFTER ONE SESSION)
1 5 A/AA Alan Ellis, Mapleton UT, '23-T Ford 6.655 7.26 -0.605
2 3 C/SMA Jeff Lane, North Bend WA, '10 Cobalt 8.225 8.83 -0.605
3 705 C/TA Tony Mandella, Eastvale CA, '01 S-10 8.573 9.17 -0.597
4 1781 C/EA Dan Fletcher, Churchville NY, '08 Cobalt 8.229 8.82 -0.591
5 7009 C/SM Ross Wilson, Rancho Cucamonga CA, '05 Sun 8.435 8.98 -0.545
6 8 A/EA Ralph Van Paepeghem, Garden Valley ID, '3 7.504 8.01 -0.506
7 75 H/A Randy Jones, Monarch Beach CA, '92 Camaro 9.070 9.46 -0.390
8 4548 D/A Keith Mawhee, Carrollton TX, '02 Cavalier 8.075 8.46 -0.385
9 10 D/SMA Doug Lambeck, Irvine CA, '08 Sunfire 8.730 9.11 -0.380
10 550 A/DA Will Hatcher, Satanta KS, Chassis Craft 8.060 7.24 0.820
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STOCK (AFTER ONE SESSION)
1 7402 A/SA Tibor Kadar, Phoenix AZ, '64 Fairlane 10.201 11.19 -0.989
2 7593 C/SA Richie Pauley, Saugus CA, '68 Mustang 10.626 11.59 -0.964
3 777 F/SA Earl Blake, Las Vegas NV, '68 Barracuda 11.108 12.05 -0.942
4 3540 FS/G Charley Downing, Britton MI, '13 Mustang 10.627 11.55 -0.923
5 5400 FS/E Al Corda, Elk Mound WI, '15 Camaro 10.236 11.14 -0.904
6 732 G/SA Phil Mandella Jr., Upland CA, '69 Chevelle11.298 12.20 -0.902
7 627 T/SA Brian Seaburg, Belfair WA, '72 Comet 13.739 14.64 -0.901
8 5526 A/SA Dwayne Scheitlin, Brighton CO, '71 Challe 10.301 11.19 -0.889
9 5702 H/SA Barry Pollard, Regina SK, '76 Roadrunner 11.474 12.36 -0.886
10 7155 C/SA Leo Glasbrenner, Chino CA, '68 Firebird 10.710 11.59 -0.880
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