2017 NHRA SPRINGNATIONALS - HOUSTON RESULTS
SUNDAY - PRITCHETT, CAPPS AND BUTNER PICK UP VICTORIES AT THE 2017 NHRA SPRINGNATIONALS
Leah Pritchett piloted her Papa John’s dragster to the Top Fuel victory Sunday at the 30th annual NHRA SpringNationals at Royal Purple Raceway.
Ron Capps (Funny Car) and Bo Butner (Pro Stock) were also winners in their respective categories at the fifth event of 24 on the 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series schedule.
Pritchett raced a 3.781-second pass at 321.96 mph to defeat Steve Torrence who ran a 3.787 at 322.11 in his Capco Contractors dragster. This is Pritchett’s fourth career victory and third of the season.
“Our goal was to leave as the points leader and that was not easy at all,” said Pritchett, who takes over the points lead with the victory. “Going into the final we said this is our bounce back and we’re going to keep it interesting. Never been in a position to really be counting points and I know it is early in the season, but I’m definitely enjoying that.”
Pritchett raced past Scott Palmer, Doug Kalitta and defending champion Antron Brown en route to the victory. Torrence faced Shawn Reed, Troy Coughlin Jr. and No. 1 qualifier Clay Millican before seeing Pritchett in the final round.
Defending Funny Car champion, Ron Capps, claimed his first victory of the season when he outran Robert Hight with a 4.004 pass at 284.33 in his NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger R/T. Hight pushed his AAA Texas Chevy Camaro to a 4.107 at 202.88 in his first runner-up effort this season. It is Capps’ 51st career win and third at Houston.
“These things become so hard to win these days,” Capps said. “But you take things for granted where I felt like we should’ve won at any of those first three races of the season. NHRA Mello Yello Funny Car division has to be the most competitive thing in the world right now; its cut-throat.”
Hight experienced engine problems and crossed the center line before the finish line while Capps’ engine violently exploded as he reached the finish.
Capps pushed past Todd Simpson, 16-time world champion John Force and teammate Jack Beckman before facing Hight in the finals. Hight defeated Jim Campbell, J.R. Todd and fellow John Force Racing teammate Courtney Force before falling to Capps.
Butner obtained the first Pro Stock win of his career when he raced his Jim Butner’s Auto Chevy Camaro to a 6.550 pass at 212.26 to defeat No. 1 qualifier Jeg Coughlin Jr. Coughlin Jr. raced his JEGS.com / Elite Performance Chevy Camaro to a 6.562 at 212.03 in his first final round appearance since Seattle in 2015. This was Butner’s seventh final round appearance.
“Any win that you stand on that stage, Super Stock, Super Street or whatever it is (the feeling) never gets old. It’s a great feeling and you can’t explain it unless you experience it,” Butner stated. “To make four consecutive win lights is very tough and a lot harder than I expected.”
Butner defeated Allen Johnson and Greg Anderson before facing Coughlin Jr. in the finals. Coughlin Jr. lined up against Chris McGaha and Tanner Gray en route to his finals appearance.
The 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season continues at the Eighth annual NHRA Four-Wide Nationals April 28-30 at zMax Dragway.
SATURDAY - C. FORCE, MILLICAN AND COUGHLIN JR. EARN NO. 1 QUALIFYING POSITIONS AT HOUSTON
Courtney Force secured the Funny Car No. 1 qualifier Saturday at the 30th annual NHRA SpringNationals at Royal Purple Raceway.
Clay Millican (Top Fuel) and Jeg Coughlin Jr. (Pro Stock) were also No. 1 qualifiers in their respective categories at the fifth event of 24 on the 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series schedule.
Defending race winner, Force, set both ends of the track record with a pass of 3.851-seconds at 330.23 mph in her Advance Auto Parts Chevy Camaro during Friday’s qualifying to earn her 12th career No. 1 qualifier.
“It definitely feels good to come back to a track that we were able to win at last year,” Force said. “I feel like we’ve got a more consistent race car which was a goal coming off of Las Vegas testing. I feel like we’re heading in the right direction.”
In the first round of eliminations Force, who will be in pursuit of her first victory this season, will face Jeff Diehl. Ron Capps is qualified second with a 3.884 at 326.56 in his NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger R/T and will race Todd Simpson and John Force and his PEAK Chevy Camaro are in third and will line up against Del Worsham.
Millican piloted his Parts Plus / Great Clips dragster to the fifth No. 1 qualifier of his career with a track elapsed time record of 3.722 at 328.22. He will face Steve Chrisman in the first round.
“It is really cool for me to qualify No. 1 by a thousandth,” Millican stated. “Since we did qualify No. 1, my plan is to go out there and stomp on that loud pedal four times and turn on that win light four times. These races are getting harder and harder, but we have a good car.”
Defending world champion, Antron Brown, is qualified second with a 3.723 pass at 322.50 in the Matco Tools dragster and will face Terry Haddock. Doug Kalitta is in the third qualifying position.
In Pro Stock, Coughlin Jr.’s 6.557 pass at 210.70 in his JEGS.com / Elite Performance Chevy Camaro held up from Friday to clench his first No.1 qualifying position since 2014. He won his first race here in the fall of 1997 after only two starts in Pro Stock.
“Car feels great and the track is really holding up nicely,” Coughlin Jr. said. “This is the site where I started my Pro Stock career 20 years ago. To get my first professional win here was extremely special. This was like the Disney Land of race tracks for Pro Stock as I was coming into the class.”
Bo Butner is second with a 6.560 at 210.80 in his Jim Butner’s Auto Chevy Camaro and will line up against Alan Prusiensky in the first round of eliminations. Veteran Greg Anderson and his Summit Racing Equipment Chevy Camaro are qualified third and race Richie Stevens, husband of two-time world champion Erica Enders, in round one.
Eliminations for the 30th annual NHRA SpringNationals begin at 11 a.m. on Sunday. Catch the action on FOX Sports 1 beginning at 6 p.m. ET.
Sunday's first-round pairings for eliminations for the 30th annual NHRA SpringNationals at Royal Purple Raceway, the fifth 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. Clay Millican, 3.722 seconds, 325.69 mph vs. 16. Steven Chrisman, 5.767, 119.17; 2. Antron Brown, 3.723, 322.50 vs. 15. Terry Haddock, 3.980, 301.74; 3. Doug Kalitta, 3.731, 327.03 vs. 14. Terry McMillen, 3.891, 316.97; 4. Steve Torrence, 3.743, 321.58 vs. 13. Shawn Reed, 3.869, 320.43; 5. Brittany Force, 3.745, 327.27 vs. 12. Troy Coughlin Jr., 3.862, 316.82; 6. Leah Pritchett, 3.747, 326.87 vs. 11. Scott Palmer, 3.832, 316.52; 7. Bob Vandergriff, 3.781, 320.43 vs. 10. Shawn Langdon, 3.825, 314.53; 8. Tony Schumacher, 3.783, 321.50 vs. 9. Troy Buff, 3.810, 289.01.
Funny Car -- 1. Courtney Force, Chevy Camaro, 3.851, 330.23 vs. 16. Jeff Diehl, Toyota Solara, 11.833, 68.24; 2. Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 3.884, 326.56 vs. 15. Todd Simpson, Camaro, 8.421, 85.90; 3. John Force, Camaro, 3.890, 325.53 vs. 14. Del Worsham, Toyota Camry, 4.139, 267.00; 4.Robert Hight, Camaro, 3.894, 329.67 vs. 13. Jim Campbell, Charger, 4.126, 299.73; 5. Cruz Pedregon, Camry, 3.897, 324.98 vs. 12. J.R. Todd, Camry, 4.016, 322.65; 6. Jack Beckman, Charger, 3.907, 327.90 vs. 11. Matt Hagan, Charger, 3.974, 322.19; 7. Tommy Johnson Jr., Charger, 3.934, 321.12 vs. 10. Jonnie Lindberg, Camry, 3.961, 323.50; 8. Tim Wilkerson, Ford Mustang, 3.946, 322.34 vs. 9. Alexis DeJoria, Camry, 3.946, 323.43.
Pro Stock -- 1. Jeg Coughlin, Chevy Camaro, 6.557, 210.70 vs. Bye; 2. Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.560, 211.03 vs. 13. Allen Johnson, Dodge Dart, 6.645, 208.84; 3. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.563, 211.10 vs. 12. Alan Prusiensky, Dart, 6.625, 209.01; 4. Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.573, 210.44 vs. 11. Richie Stevens, Dart, 6.615, 208.52; 5. Tanner Gray, Camaro, 6.575, 210.57 vs. 10. Alex Laughlin, Camaro, 6.611, 209.36; 6. Jason Line, Camaro, 6.576, 211.20 vs. 9. Vincent Nobile, Camaro, 6.604, 209.59; 7. Drew Skillman, Camaro, 6.587, 210.87 vs. 8. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.598, 210.14.
FRIDAY - MILLICAN, C. FORCE AND COUGHLIN JR. LEAD QUALIFYING AT NHRA SPRINGNATIONALS
Clay Millican powered his Parts Plus / Great Clips Top Fuel dragster to the qualifying lead Friday at the 30th annual NHRA SpringNationals at Royal Purple Raceway Park.
Courtney Force (Funny Car) and Jeg Coughlin Jr. (Pro Stock) were also provisional leaders in their respective categories at the fifth of 24 events on the 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season schedule.
Millican, who is still seeking his first NHRA Top Fuel win, set the track elapsed time record with his 3.722-second run at 325.69 mph during the second qualifying session.
“I got to do my favorite thing and go out there and stomp on the loud pedal,” said Millican. “I didn’t expect to go No. 1; I really didn’t. I hope it’s a typical Houston day tomorrow at 100 degrees and we stay No. 1.”
Antron Brown, three-time and defending Top Fuel champion, is qualified in the second position with a 3.723 pass at 322.50 in his Matco Tools dragster, Doug Kalitta is qualified third in the Mac Tools dragster and Brittany Force is fourth.
Courtney Force set both ends of the track record with her 3.851 run at 330.23 during the second qualifying session in her Advanced Auto Parts Chevy Camaro SS Funny Car. Force won here last season and is hoping to secure her first win of the season.
“I don’t care if I have a million distractions to get the car running down there. To run a 3.85 and to get that track record on both ends felt amazing,” Force said. “To do it in front of all of these fans down here in Texas, at the track that we won at last year; we’ve definitely got something to prove.”
Defending world champion Ron Capps is qualified in the second position with a 3.884 at 326.56 in his NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger R/T, John Force is third in his PEAK Chevrolet Camaro SS and Cruz Pedregon is fourth after running a career best 3.897.
In Pro Stock, Coughlin Jr. raced his JEGS.com / Elite Performance Chevy Camaro to the qualifying lead with a 6.557 pass at 210.70 in the second round of qualifying. Coughlin Jr. is in pursuit of his first No. 1 qualifier since the 2014 Las Vegas spring race.
“The Q2 run was a really nice run,” Coughlin Jr. said. “It feels fantastic. The car was letter perfect and I hardly touched the steering wheel the whole way down. It is a testament to the Elite Performance groups’ hard work as we transitioned into Chevrolets this year.”
Bo Butner is in the No. 2 spot with a 6.560 at 210.80 in his Jim Butner’s Auto Chevy Camaro, Greg Anderson is third in the Summit Racing Equipment Chevrolet Camaro and rookie Tanner Gray is fourth.
Qualifying for the 30th annual NHRA SpringNationals continues Saturday at 1:15 p.m. with the final qualifying session slated for 4:00 p.m.
Friday's results after the first two of four rounds of qualifying for the 30th annual NHRA SpringNationals at Royal Purple Raceway, fifth of 24 events in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. Qualifying will continue Saturday for Sunday's final eliminations.
Top Fuel -- 1. Clay Millican, 3.722 seconds, 325.69 mph; 2. Antron Brown, 3.723, 322.50; 3. Doug Kalitta, 3.731, 327.03; 4. Brittany Force, 3.745, 327.27; 5. Leah Pritchett, 3.747, 326.87; 6. Bob Vandergriff, 3.781, 320.43; 7. Tony Schumacher, 3.814, 307.51; 8. Shawn Langdon, 3.825, 314.53; 9. Scott Palmer, 3.832, 316.52; 10. Shawn Reed, 3.869, 320.43; 11. Steve Torrence, 3.980, 258.52; 12. Troy Coughlin Jr., 4.094, 209.07; 13. Terry McMillen, 4.254, 208.04; 14. Terry Haddock, 4.701, 168.77; 15. Steven Chrisman, 5.767, 119.17; 16. Troy Buff, 7.023, 87.97.
Funny Car -- 1. Courtney Force, Chevy Camaro, 3.851, 330.23; 2. Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 3.884, 326.56; 3. John Force, Camaro, 3.890, 325.53; 4. Cruz Pedregon, Toyota Camry, 3.897, 324.98; 5. Jack Beckman, Charger, 3.931, 327.11; 6. Jonnie Lindberg, Camry, 3.961, 323.50; 7. Alexis DeJoria, Camry, 3.995, 320.97; 8. J.R. Todd, Camry, 4.250, 223.65; 9. Tim Wilkerson, Ford Mustang, 4.551, 183.67; 10. Matt Hagan, Charger, 4.862, 167.76; 11. Robert Hight, Camaro, 5.315, 135.97; 12. Del Worsham, Camry, 6.346, 104.53; 13. Tommy Johnson Jr., Charger, 7.144, 86.40; 14. Todd Simpson, Camaro, 8.421, 85.90; 15. Jim Campbell, Charger, 8.527, 74.10.
Pro Stock -- 1. Jeg Coughlin, Chevy Camaro, 6.557, 210.70; 2. Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.560, 211.03; 3. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.563, 211.10; 4. Tanner Gray, Camaro, 6.575, 209.79; 5. Jason Line, Camaro, 6.576, 211.20; 6. Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.591, 210.44; 7. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.602, 209.85; 8. Vincent Nobile, Camaro, 6.611, 209.59; 9. Alex Laughlin, Camaro, 6.620, 209.36; 10. Drew Skillman, Camaro, 6.623, 209.72; 11. Allen Johnson, Dodge Dart, 6.656, 208.84; 12. Alan Prusiensky, Dart, 6.667, 209.01; 13. Richie Stevens, Dart, 6.888, 188.07.
SPORTSMAN RESULTS
TOP ALCOHOL DRAGSTER (SESSION ONE)
1 1 B/AD Joey Severance, Woodburn OR, Hadman-NRE 5.274 274.00 274.00
2 415 B/AD Lee Callaway, Baytown TX, Hasse-BAE 5.365 268.97 268.97
3 5 B/AD Chris Demke, Sunland CA, Uyehara-BAE 5.378 268.17 268.17
4 35 A/FD Robin Samsel, Marion IN, MLR-BAE 5.408 265.80 265.80
5 4934 A/FD Steve Collier, Benton LA, Copeland-BAE 5.421 260.36 260.36
6 4 A/FD Megan Meyer, Olathe KS, Copeland-BAE 5.426 265.74 265.74
7 464 A/FD Buddy Domingue, Port Neches TX, Hadman- 5.444 275.67 275.67
8 412 TA/D David Brounkowski, Cypress TX, Bowen-Ch 5.503 252.00 252.00
9 4028 B/AD David Sheetz, Lake Jackson TX, Santos-B 5.505 258.07 258.07
10 4255 A/FD Alex Laughlin, Bluff Dale TX, MLR-NRE 5.699 259.01 259.01
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TOP ALCOHOL FUNNY CAR (SESSION ONE)
1 2 Doug Gordon, Paso Robles CA, '15 Camaro 5.535 267.59 267.59
2 8 Annie Whiteley, Grand Junction CO, '15 Camaro 5.585 268.87 268.87
3 433 Bryan Brown, Gainesville TX, '16 Camaro 5.612 263.31 263.31
4 54 Bill Bernard, Littleton CO, '09 Mustang 5.657 242.28 242.28
5 10 Steve Gasparrelli, West Covina CA, '17 Camaro 5.682 261.47 261.47
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STOCK (FINAL SESSION)
1 373 FS/B Bill Skillman, Greenwood IN, '12 Mustang 8.869 10.00 -1.131
2 439 FS/A Stephen Bell, Shreveport LA, '15 Camaro 8.595 9.70 -1.105
3 4109 D/S Sheila Holt, Houston TX, '66 Nova 10.426 11.50 -1.074
4 4022 F/SA Jeff Teuton, Houma LA, '10 Challenger 10.784 11.85 -1.066
5 4137 B/SA Keith Bakies, Alexandria LA, '99 Camaro 10.250 11.25 -1.000
6 4691 H/SA Darrell Erwin, Kennedale TX, '69 Camaro 11.174 12.15 -0.976
7 4520 C/SA David Latino, Donaldsonville LA, '00 Corv 10.425 11.40 -0.975
8 400D B/SA Slate Cummings, Ponchtoula LA, '00 Corvet 10.302 11.25 -0.948
9 424 C/SA Mike Park, Rosenberg TX, '67 Mustang 10.452 11.40 -0.948
10 4214 FS/D Sam Lusco, Houma LA, '13 Camaro 9.655 10.60 -0.945
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SUPER STOCK (FINAL ORDER)
1 4102 FSS/B Jack Hodge, Muskogee OK, '12 Mustang 8.226 9.20 -0.974
2 445 GT/IA Aaron Stanfield, Bossier City LA, '87 Cam 9.699 10.65 -0.951
3 455 GT/MA Burlin Taylor, Hammond LA, '84 Camaro 10.280 11.20 -0.920
4 4006 GT/LA Dale Hulquist, Crosby TX, '98 Grand Am 10.132 11.05 -0.918
5 4343 SS/GA Craig Gualtiere, Amarillo TX, '67 Nova 9.653 10.55 -0.897
6 373 FSS/C Bill Skillman, Greenwood IN, '10 Mustang 8.757 9.65 -0.893
7 4192 FSS/F Brett Candies, Thibodeaux LA, '12 Camaro 9.321 10.20 -0.879
8 400N GT/OA Norvell Bowers, Sulphur Springs TX, '83 F 10.572 11.45 -0.878
9 4444 SS/KA Norman Marsden, Santo TX, '66 Nova 10.374 11.25 -0.876
10 402 FSS/C David Janac, Caldwell TX, '16 Mustang 8.807 9.65 -0.843
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TOP DRAGSTER (SESSION ONE)
1 4767 Brad Barone, Picayune MS, Haas-BAE 6.217 227.04 227.04
2 49 Darian Boesch, Kenner LA, ProFab-Chevy 6.230 221.23 221.23
3 4059 Jim Thorp, Mertzon TX, TNT-Chevy 6.273 221.13 221.13
4 10 Jenifer White, Conroe TX, Spitzer-Chevy 6.279 218.34 218.34
5 44 Ross Laris, Raceland LA, American-Chevy 6.288 225.79 225.79
6 4608 Michael Kile, Westlake LA, Spitzer-R-M 6.313 220.91 220.91
7 4 Aarom Stanfield, Bossier City LA, Undercover-GM 6.335 214.14 214.14
8 4072 Chase Murray, Orange TX, Spitzer-Chevy 6.346 216.20 216.20
9 9 J.R. Baxter, Waxahachie TX, Miller-Chevy 6.413 205.76 205.76
10 5 Phil Unruh, McPherson KS, Miller-Chevy 6.417 215.86 215.86
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TOP SPORTSMAN (SESSION ONE)
1 451 Bob Gulitti, Tomball TX, '11 Camaro 6.692 208.49 208.49
2 4011 Royce Freeman, Lindsay OK, '16 Camaro 6.787 206.23 206.23
3 43 Vince Hoda, D'Iberville MS, '68 Camaro 6.914 198.64 198.64
4 4001 David Wix, Westlake LA, '05 Grand AM 6.917 200.80 200.80
5 4059 Jim Thorp, Mertzon TX, '09 GXP 6.924 200.71 200.71
6 2709 Jason Lynch, Cedarhill TN, '03 Grand Am 7.010 200.26 200.26
7 400H Travis Leach, Houston TX, '96 Firebird 7.081 195.19 195.19
8 464 Bengt Blomberg, Cypress TX, '97 Firebird 7.084 190.46 190.46
9 4043 Chris Arnold, Mt. Belvieu TX, '02 Cavalier 7.129 200.50 200.50
10 4769 Henry Kindle, Angleton TX, '98 Dakota 7.258 188.91 188.91
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