Bristol Dragway is known as “Thunder Valley” not only because it cuts a path between mountains, but also because it can be home to incredible ­performances, and repaving has done nothing but aid those pursuits.
 

		EVENT NEWS EVENT NOTEBOOK POINTS AFTER EVENT ROUND-BY-ROUND RESULTS FINAL ROUND RESULTS			EVENT GALLERY

 
SUNDAY FINAL - TROXEL BECOMES FIRST WOMAN TO WIN IN TOP FUEL AND FUNNY CAR; SCHUMACHER, CONNOLLY ALSO WIN AT BRISTOL

Melanie Troxel became the first woman in NHRA history to win in both Top Fuel and Funny Car when she raced to the Funny Car victory Sunday at the O’Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.

Tony Schumacher and Dave Connolly also won in their respective categories at Bristol Dragway in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series event.

Troxel, who earned five Top Fuel victories prior to switching to Funny Car this season, joined her husband Tommy Johnson as one of 14 drivers in NHRA history to earn victories in both nitro categories when she powered her ProCare Rx Dodge Charger to a 5.066 at 310.27 to defeat rookie Mike Neff in the final round. She is the second female to win in Funny Car in NHRA history, following Ashley Force's gender-breaking victory last month in Atlanta.

“You know I haven’t even given that any thought,” said Troxel, referring to being one of fourteen drivers to get a win in both of NHRA’s nitro classes. “We were so focused on going out there and getting some round wins and getting a win. That’s kind of like icing on the cake.”

Tim Wilkerson remained in the POWERade Series points lead in Funny Car, 23 points ahead of Ashley Force, who lost to Troxel in the semis in the first all-female Funny Car elimination round in NHRA history.

Defending POWERade Series world champion Schumacher raced his U.S. Army dragster to his third win of the season in three consecutive final round appearances. Schumacher’s run of 4.555 at 306.81 against runner-up Larry Dixon’s U.S. Smokeless dragster gave him his second win at Bristol Dragway.

“Through the conditions we had all weekend, this was the perfect conditions to race in,” said Schumacher. “When you race someone that’s up ahead in the points it’s just a huge points spread. That was just a huge round.”

Schumacher strengthened his points lead over second-place Antron Brown by 131 points. Brown lost in the second round to Hillary Will.

In Pro Stock, Dave Connolly defeated Greg Stanfield in his second consecutive final round appearance, driving his Charter Communications Chevy Cobalt to a 6.731 win at 204.70 mph.

“It makes you appreciate everything that much more,” said Connolly, who missed the first three races of the season. “We got pretty lucky last weekend to go to the final round and then to come out here and I’m taking cones out here in qualifying and I would’ve never thought we would’ve made it to the winners circle, but we did.”

Former world champion Greg Anderson’s second round win was enough to push him to the top of the point standings, two points ahead of teammate Jason Line.

The NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series continues with the 20th annual O’Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals, May 30-June 1 at Heartland Park Topeka in Topeka, Kan.

 

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Sunday's final results from the Eighth annual O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals presented by Q at Bristol Dragway.  The  race is the eighth of 24 in the  NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series:

 

  

 

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SATURDAY - NEFF STAYS IN TOP SPOT AT THUNDER VALLEY NATIONALS; SCHUMACHER, JOHNSON ALSO NO. 1 QUALIFIERS IN BRISTOL

NHRA Pro Stock legend Warren Johnson added another No. 1 qualifying performance to his career stats, picking up his NHRA-record 138th Saturday at the O’Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway.

Tony Schumacher and Mike Neff also were No. 1 qualifiers in their respective categories at the eighth of 24 events in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.

Johnson powered his GM Performance Parts Pontiac GXP to a track record performance of 6.674 at 207.43 for the top spot; his second of the season and third at this track. 

“Both Kurt (Johnson) and myself have spent some time working on these cars and the crews have been spending just as much if not more,” said Johnson. “It’s come together pretty nicely. We’ve got a few areas we need to work on yet but hopefully we can shorten those things up in the next race or two and be competitive the rest of the season.”

Defending event and POWERade Series world champion Jeg Coughlin did not qualify in his Jegs.com Chevy Cobalt, ending a 70-race qualifying streak dating back to 2004.

In Funny Car, Neff’s run in his Old Spice Ford Mustang of 4.783 at 321.04 from Friday was enough to stay in the top spot and give the rookie his first No. 1 qualifying position of his career.

“It’s an awesome feeling,” said Neff. “You know I owe John Medlen (crew chief). He’s the one that makes the calls and makes that thing perform the way it does and he’s doing an outstanding job.”

Defending event winner and NHRA legend John Force qualified in seventh spot, while current points leader Tim Wilkerson sat No. 4 in the field.

Defending POWERade Series world champion Schumacher piloted his U.S. Army dragster to a 4.502 at 327.59 and the No. 1 qualifier in Top Fuel. It’s Schumacher’s second No. 1 qualifier of the season, 49th of his career and third at Bristol Dragway.

“I do not enjoy getting up and racing on Sunday when we have not found it yet,” said Schumacher. “There’s no good place except qualifying to find that limit. If you use up two of those mulligans on qualifying, then you’re going to have a good car on Sunday.”

Defending event winner Brandon Bernstein currently sits in the sixth spot, while second-place driver in the point standings, Antron Brown qualified fourth.

Sunday’s eliminations begin at noon and will be televised on ESPN2 HD.

 

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First-round pairings for professional eliminations Sunday for the Eighth annual O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals presented by Q at Bristol Dragway, the eighth of 24 events in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.  Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday. DNQs listed below pairings.

Top Fuel -- 1. Tony Schumacher, 4.502 seconds, 327.59 mph  vs. 16. Alan Bradshaw, 11.289, 85.45; 2. David Grubnic, 4.526, 311.85  vs. 15. Troy Buff, 7.602, 308.50; 3. Doug Kalitta, 4.536, 320.66  vs. 14. Todd Paton, 5.758, 157.15; 4. Antron Brown, 4.542, 330.15  vs. 13. Morgan Lucas, 4.728, 312.50; 5. Hillary Will, 4.570, 323.50  vs. 12. Cory McClenathan, 4.605, 317.72; 6. Brandon Bernstein, 4.571, 328.86  vs. 11. Bob Vandergriff, 4.598, 319.37; 7. Doug Herbert, 4.578, 316.97 vs. 10. Larry Dixon, 4.586, 321.19; 8. J.R. Todd, 4.584, 328.30  vs. 9. Rod Fuller, 4.584, 322.73.

Funny Car -- 1. Mike Neff, Ford Mustang, 4.783, 321.04  vs. 16. Tony Bartone, Chevy Monte Carlo, 4.904, 288.52; 2. Jim Head, Toyota Solara, 4.785, 323.89  vs. 15. Jerry Toliver, Dodge Charger, 4.901, 314.09; 3. Ashley Force, Mustang, 4.792, 324.98  vs. 14. Gary Scelzi, Charger, 4.896, 313.22; 4. Tim Wilkerson, Chevy Impala, 4.802, 318.24  vs. 13. Gary Densham, Impala, 4.880, 310.27; 5. Robert Hight, Mustang, 4.803, 311.63  vs. 12. Del Worsham, Impala, 4.842, 322.65; 6. Tony Pedregon, Impala, 4.821, 319.67  vs. 11. Melanie Troxel, Charger, 4.839, 318.62; 7. John Force, Mustang, 4.821, 308.78  vs. 10. Cruz Pedregon, Impala, 4.831, 313.29; 8. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.823, 318.02  vs. 9. Ron Capps, Charger, 4.831, 317.79.

Did Not Qualify: 17. Mike Ashley, 4.916, 313.07; 18. Jack Beckman, 4.932, 318.84; 19. Tommy Johnson Jr., 4.936, 301.00; 20. Bob Gilbertson, 4.967, 318.77; 21. Scott Kalitta, 7.306, 308.00.

Pro Stock -- 1. Warren Johnson, Pontiac GXP, 6.674, 207.43  vs. 16. Mike Edwards, GXP, 6.736, 204.94; 2. Kurt Johnson, Chevy Cobalt, 6.685, 206.29  vs. 15. Johnny Gray, Dodge Stratus, 6.735, 204.54; 3. Greg Anderson, GXP, 6.699, 205.66  vs. 14. Jim Yates, GXP, 6.734, 202.58; 4. Allen Johnson, Stratus, 6.704, 205.32  vs. 13. John Nobile, Stratus, 6.734, 205.41; 5. V. Gaines, Stratus, 6.709, 204.26  vs. 12. Max Naylor, Stratus, 6.731, 202.91; 6. Dave Connolly, Cobalt, 6.711, 205.54  vs. 11. Tom Hammonds, Cobalt, 6.730, 203.77; 7. Ron Krisher, Cobalt, 6.717, 205.22 vs. 10. Todd Hoerner, Stratus, 6.727, 204.98; 8. Greg Stanfield, GXP, 6.720, 204.51  vs. 9. Jason Line, GXP, 6.725, 205.91.

Did Not Qualify: 17. Steve Schmidt, 6.737, 204.82; 18. Larry Morgan, 6.737, 203.86; 19. Jeg Coughlin, 6.739, 205.13; 20. Dave Northrop, 6.739, 204.08; 21. Kenny Koretsky, 6.740, 204.20; 22. Matt Hartford, 6.742, 204.48; 23. Rickie Jones, 6.751, 204.66; 24. Justin Humphreys, 6.758, 204.35; 25. Steve Spiess, 6.771, 203.86; 26. Rickie Smith, 6.795, 203.28; 27. Ben Watson, 6.795, 202.09; 28. Vinnie Deceglie, 6.815, 202.52.

 

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FRIDAY - NEFF, SCHUMACHER, JOHNSON, CLAIM PROVISIONAL NO. 1 QUALIFYING SPOTS IN THUNDER VALLEY

 

Mike Neff raced to the provisional top spot in Funny Car Friday as he looks to collect the first No. 1 qualifier of his career at the eighth annual O’Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.

Neff drove his Old Spice Ford Mustang to a 4.783-second pass at 321.04 mph to become the provisional top qualifier at Bristol Dragway.

Tony Schumacher and Kurt Johnson were also No. 1 qualifiers in there respective categories at the eighth of 24 events on the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.

“We really had a good weekend (in St. Louis),” said Neff, who’s coming off his first runner-up finish of his career. “To be able to come here and have a couple good runs on Friday, you just want to continue the momentum and right now I just feel like we’ve started to get a little good mojo going.”

Defending event winner and NHRA legend John Force stood in the seventh spot after two rounds of qualifying, while current points leader Tim Wilkerson sat No. 4 in the field.

Defending POWERade Series world champion Schumacher piloted his U.S. Army dragster to a 4.502 at 327.59 provisional low qualifying effort. It would be Schumacher’s second No. 1 qualifier of the season, 49th of his career and third at Bristol Dragway.

“It’s very difficult to make power and Alan Johnson knows how to make it,” said Schumacher. “We’ve got a great crew chief, plain and simple. We can run in a wide variety of conditions and fortunately for us we can run well on race day.”

Defending event winner Brandon Bernstein currently sits in the seventh spot, while second-place driver in the point standings, Antron Brown, was fourth with two qualifying sessions complete.

Coming off his win in St. Louis, Pro Stock’s Kurt Johnson drove his ACDelco Chevy Cobalt to a track-record time of 6.687 at 206.16 to lead the 16-car field. He is in position to earn his second No. 1 qualifier of the season, 29th of his career and first at Bristol.

“We kind of threw everything at it and it hooked up,” said Johnson. “You know, this is the best racetrack that we’ve ever raced on at Bristol Motor Speedway. You know the area is Thunder Valley and this is just a cool place to race.”

Current Pro Stock points leader Jason Line sits in the fifth spot while defending event and POWERade Series world champion Jeg Coughlin is in the 16th spot in the field.

Qualifying continues Saturday with sessions at 12:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. Sunday’s eliminations begin at noon.

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Results Friday after the first two of four rounds of  qualifying for the Eighth annual O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals presented by Q at Bristol Dragway, eighth of 24 events in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.  Qualifying will continue Saturday for Sunday's final eliminations.

Top Fuel -- 1. Tony Schumacher, 4.502 seconds, 327.59 mph; 2. David Grubnic, 4.526, 311.85; 3. Doug Kalitta, 4.536, 320.66; 4. Antron Brown, 4.542, 330.15; 5. Hillary Will, 4.570, 323.50; 6. Doug Herbert, 4.578, 316.97; 7. Brandon Bernstein, 4.581, 325.92; 8. J.R. Todd, 4.584, 328.30; 9. Rod Fuller, 4.584, 316.23; 10. Cory McClenathan, 4.619, 312.50; 11. Bob Vandergriff, 4.636, 319.37; 12. Larry Dixon, 4.648, 313.73.  Not Qualified: 13. Troy Buff, 4.657, 308.50; 14. Morgan Lucas, 4.795, 312.50; 15. Alan Bradshaw, 12.549, 75.76.

Funny Car -- 1. Mike Neff, Ford Mustang, 4.783, 321.04; 2. Jim Head, Toyota Solara, 4.785, 323.89; 3. Ashley Force, Mustang, 4.792, 324.98; 4. Tim Wilkerson, Chevy Impala, 4.802, 318.24; 5. Robert Hight, Mustang, 4.803, 311.63; 6. Tony Pedregon, Impala, 4.821, 319.67; 7. John Force, Mustang, 4.821, 308.78; 8. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.823, 318.02; 9. Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 4.831, 317.79; 10. Cruz Pedregon, Impala, 4.831, 313.29; 11. Melanie Troxel, Charger, 4.839, 318.62; 12. Del Worsham, Impala, 4.842, 322.65.  Not Qualified: 13. Mike Ashley, 4.845, 304.12; 14. Bob Gilbertson, 4.847, 318.77; 15. Jerry Toliver, 4.848, 308.57; 16. Tony Bartone, 4.896, 285.47; 17. Jack Beckman, 4.933, 318.84; 18. Scott Kalitta, 4.956, 308.00; 19. Gary Scelzi, 5.001, 247.16; 20. Tommy Johnson Jr., 5.068, 256.70; 21. Gary Densham, 5.263, 211.93.

Pro Stock -- 1. Kurt Johnson, Chevy Cobalt, 6.687, 206.16; 2. Greg Anderson, Pontiac GXP, 6.699, 205.66; 3. Warren Johnson, GXP, 6.716, 206.57; 4. V. Gaines, Dodge Stratus, 6.728, 203.80; 5. Jason Line, GXP, 6.734, 205.82; 6. John Nobile, Stratus, 6.734, 204.54; 7. Mike Edwards, GXP, 6.736, 204.54; 8. Johnny Gray, Stratus, 6.737, 204.39; 9. Larry Morgan, Stratus, 6.737, 203.58; 10. Matt Hartford, Stratus, 6.742, 204.48; 11. Allen Johnson, Stratus, 6.747, 204.91; 12. Tom Hammonds, Cobalt, 6.747, 203.12.  Not Qualified: 13. Steve Schmidt, 6.752, 204.45; 14. Todd Hoerner, 6.755, 204.76; 15. Rickie Jones, 6.765, 203.98; 16. Jeg Coughlin, 6.765, 203.71; 17. Greg Stanfield, 6.769, 203.31; 18. Ron Krisher, 6.775, 203.58; 19. Jim Yates, 6.775, 202.58; 20. Dave Northrop, 6.782, 203.37; 21. Rickie Smith, 6.782, 202.97; 22. Max Naylor, 6.788, 201.70; 23. Steve Spiess, 6.789, 203.09; 24. Kenny Koretsky, 6.807, 202.88; 25. Vinnie Deceglie, 6.933, 176.79; 26. Justin Humphreys, 14.248, 58.56; 27. Ben Watson, 16.239, 66.19; 28. Dave Connolly, 25.794, 25.39.
 

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EVENT PREVIEW - FORCE RACING BRINGS MILESTONES TO BRISTOL DRAGWAY

 

In what is shaping up to be one of the most competitive Funny Car seasons in NHRA history, John Force and his daughter Ashley have teamed up to provide plenty of early season buzz with some memorable milestone performances.

First, at Las Vegas in early April, 25-year-old Ashley became the first female to lead the Funny Car point standings with a runner-up finish in her Castrol GTX Ford Mustang. John then arrived at Atlanta Dragway in late April and became only the second driver in NHRA history to attend 500 NHRA events, joining Pro Stock legend Warren Johnson on that short list.

Then, in an attempt to win his 1,000th eliminations round at the same race, John lost to his daughter in the final round. That emotional gender-barrier breaking victory – which John called “the greatest win of his life” – elevated Ashley to the distinction of first female to win a Funny Car race in the 57-year history of NHRA.

At the following event in St. Louis, John managed to score his incredible 1,000th round win, defeating longtime rival Ron Capps in the opening round.

Indeed, it has been a whirlwind few weeks for John Force Racing.

“You can’t win without a good crew, sponsors like Castrol, Ford, the Auto Club and Old Spice and crew chiefs like Austin Coil and Bernie Fedderly,” John Force said.  “Five hundred races just means you showed up a lot.  But winning a thousand rounds, that means that at a point in time, we were pretty good.”

Said Ashley: “It's a great time for women in racing. With Danica (Patrick) winning in IndyCar, I think it's exciting for the fans to finally have a woman winner in Funny Car, but I know it's the 10 guys on my team who got me to this point. I'm proud to be a female in the seat, but it's Guido' and Ron (crew chiefs Dean Guido' Antonelli and Ron Douglas) and my crew guys who really got me here. The thing about drag racing is you can go from hero to zero very quickly. We're enjoying (success) now, while we have it, but we know it's a tough group we race against.  You never want to get ahead of yourself.  Qualify first, then one round at a time.”

With their career achievements noted in the NHRA record book, both drivers will again turn their focus exclusively to the POWERade Series points battle at the O’Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, May 16-18 at historic Bristol Dragway. With more than 16 high-horsepower Funny Car favorites racing for position in the Countdown to 10 cut, which takes place following the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals on Labor Day weekend in Indianapolis, a strong finish at each of the next 11 events will be critical.

Brandon Bernstein (Top Fuel), John Force (Funny Car) and Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock) are the defending winners of the race at the scenic Tennessee quarter-mile dragstrip, which will be televised on ESPN2 HD.

John Force, who has won 14 POWERade Series world championships in Funny Car, is determined to get back to the winner’s circle and add to his record 125 career victories after a spectacular crash nearly ended his racing career last September at the Texas Motorplex near Dallas.

Ashley’s next assignment: win race No. 2 and continue to maintain her position in the POWERade Top 10.

Meanwhile, journeyman Tim Wilkerson continues to have a breakout season in Funny Car and leads the 7,000 horsepower category for the first time in his career with two victories and four No. 1 qualifying positions.

“Being the points leader is everyone’s dream and it’s what you come out here for,” said Wilkerson, driver of the Levi, Ray & Shoup Chevy Impala. “But there is no way I could ever dream this up, really.  I’m confident in our car and the abilities of our crew, but I really didn’t think we could pull this off.  I’m kind of happy so many guys are struggling because it makes me really look good.  But right now we are going to cherish our No. 1 spot.”

Robert Hight, Tony Pedregon, Jack Beckman and Del Worsham also have earned victories this season in Funny Car and will be among the favorites in the category at Bristol Dragway.

In Top Fuel, Tony Schumacher has started strong in his U.S. Army dragster, posting two victories in four final round appearances.

“Last year at this time, we were clearly struggling and already had five first round losses,” said Schumacher, a winner at Bristol in 2004. “What a difference a year makes, right? I can guarantee you that Alan Johnson (crew chief) and the guys will be looking for ways to improve even more.”

The five-time NHRA world champ’s main competition has come from former Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Antron Brown, who has opened the season with two victories in three final rounds in his Matco Tools dragster, while racing on four wheels instead of two. Larry Dixon, Rod Fuller and Cory McClenathan have all earned wins and have proven to be the early Countdown to the Championship contenders in Top Fuel.

Six different winners have emerged in seven races in Pro Stock, with two-time Bristol winner Greg Anderson the only repeat winner of the year. His teammate, Jason Line, leads the POWERade Series standings in his Summit Racing Pontiac GXP, while defending Bristol winner Coughlin, Kurt Johnson, Mike Edwards and V Gaines have all visited winner’s circle this season. Local favorite Allen Johnson from nearby Greeneville is sure to have many friends and family cheering him on on his J&J Racing Team Mopar Dodge Stratus.


SCHEDULE: Pro qualifying sessions are scheduled for 4 and 6:30 p.m. on Friday, May 16. Qualifying continues at 12:30 and 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 17 and final eliminations begin at noon on Sunday, May 18.

TICKETS: Tickets are available for the O’Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. Call Bristol Dragway at (423) 989-6900, or check out www.bristoldragway.com.

ON TV: ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will televise two hours of qualifying highlights at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 17. ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will televise NHRA Race Day, a 30-minute pre-race show, at 11 a.m. (ET) on Sunday, May 18. ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD will televise three-and-a-half hours of race coverage beginning at 6:30 p.m. (ET) on Sunday, May 18.

LUCAS OIL SERIES: The O’Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals also will feature competition in four categories in the NHRA Lucas Oil Series, where the future stars of the NHRA POWERade Series earn their racing stripes. Lucas Oil Series qualifying and eliminations begins at 9 a.m. on May 16.