| IHRA SOONER NATIONALS - EVENT NOTEBOOK | ||||
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EVENT FINAL - AN ALTERNATE TO THE WINNER’S CIRCLE
Kevin Jones, the fourth alternate after final qualifying, completes storybook weekend with Top Fuel Ironman victory at Tulsa Raceway Park
They had three days to get ready and head to Oklahoma, but the trip was more than worthwhile.
Jones drove past Bruce Litton, Indianapolis, to claim the first career Ironman for Sipple Family Racing. He carded a 5.138 at 260.71 mph to defeat Litton, who lost traction at half-track and lifted out of the run. Jones and crew chief Mike Sipple were thrilled with the victory, but they wish John “Doc” Sipple, the patriarch of Sipple Family Racing, could have been there to enjoy it with them.
“Doc” recently had a stint put in his heart and was back home in Kentucky recovering, unable to make the trip to Tulsa.
“This was the first time a Top Fuel team has ever pulled out of Berea without him in the rig,” Jones said. “It was kind of an emotional thing, but we knew we had to do what we had to do. If the Lord lays the way out for you, doggone it, that’s just the way it has to be. We may not understand it or like it, but if the grass is green the grass is green. You just have to follow that path.”
Dale Creasy Jr., the defending Knoll-Gas Torco Racing Fuels Pro Nitro Funny Car world champion from Beecher, Ill., continued his early-season success by stopping Andy Kelley in the final round. Creasy entered the event with a slim three-point lead over Jack Wyatt in the championship points standings, but he topped Wyatt in the semifinals before a 5.078/289.14 pass in the final round gave him the Ironman.
Rob Atchison, London, Ont., tightened up the championship points race with a victory over defending world champion Mark Thomas in the final round. Atchison, who had the quickest car all day, put together a 5.846 at 241.89 mph to claim the Alcohol Funny Car Ironman.
“This is getting fun,” Atchison said. “I still think the car has more to give, but we’ve figured out how to consistently get down the track and that’s half the battle. This class is getting really exciting. Terry Munroe is running well early and you know Mark and I are going to be there all year. Any time you can beat Mark in a round, whether it’s the final round or whatever, it’s a big deal.”
Pat Stoken, Eureka, Mont., won his first career national event when he defeated defending world champion Quain Stott in the Torco’s CompetitionPlus.com Pro Modified final.
Stoken was the first nitrous-powered Pro Modified to claim an IHRA national event victory since Mike Castellana captured the Ironman at the President’s Cup Nationals in Budds Creek during the 2005 season.
“This is great, it really hasn’t sunk in yet,” Stoken said. “I don’t know if there was ever a time during the race where I thought “you know, I could win this thing’ but the car was incredibly consistent and I was able to go rounds. I guess a nitrous car can win.”
Defending Torco’s CompetitionPlus.com Pro Stock world champion Pete Berner took an early step towards a successful title defense when he knocked off Brian Gahm in the final round. Berner posted a 6.419 at 216.27 mph with a .070 reaction time to top Gahm’s 6.414/216.03 with a .077 reaction time. Berner’s margin of victory was a scant .002 of a second.
“I knew I would have to be on my game because Brian is a two-time world champion,” Berner said. “That was the best drag race I have ever participated in. I actually had no idea who had won it and, truthfully, if Brian would have pulled it out I would have been thrilled for him.”
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SUNDAY NOTEBOOK - IHRA POSTPONEMENT EXTENDS SUSPENSE AT
TULSA
International Hot Rod Association fans
will have to wait nearly a month to see if top qualifier Bruce Litton will earn
his second Top Fuel victory in three races or just what will happen in the Nitro
Funny Car class, with Gary Densham and Tim Wilkerson, the top two qualifiers,
absent, honoring NHRA commitments at Englishtown, New Jersey.But they'll
have plenty of time to second-guess the hard-pressed IHRA and Tulsa Raceway Park
officials, who consulted evidently inaccurate weather forecasts before making a
decision Sunday to reschedule the Skull Shine
Sooner Nationals. Immediately after they announced the third race on the Knoll
Gas Nitro-Jam Series schedule will be completed Saturday, June 23, the Oklahoma
skies cleared and even though it remained breezy, it was dry and partly sunny
the rest of the day.
"The first real glimpse of dry weather
isn’t until Tuesday or Wednesday,” said IHRA's earnest President Aaron Polburn
said Sunday after consulting the computers. “So it’s impossible to run this race
as scheduled. It’s a tough call to have to make, but we feel it’s the right one,
based on weather forecasts and all the rain we’ve already
experienced.”
Weather particulars aside, the Tulsa crowd, welcoming IHRA racers back for a national event for the first time since 1994, will get to watch some intriguing developments. In Top Fuel, Luigi Novelli's improved performance only will make him more upset-minded against Litton in the opening round, which also will see two-time finalist T.J. Zizzo meet Bobby Lagana, the man he defeated to win at Rockingham in Race No. 2. Scotty Cannon will have some time to rest his back after recent surgery before going against Mike Strasburg, and Doug Foley (a two-time top qualifier this season) will meet Oklahoma favorite son Scott Palmer. The Tulsa trip turned out doubly ugly for Scott Weis, who failed to qualify for the eight-car field. While servicing the car Saturday night, he cut a finger and ended up in a hospital emergency room, receiving five stitches. In Nitro Funny Car action, rookie Jon Capps, who led the field at Rockingham and was runner-up there, will have his chance in Round 1 to avenge his loss to Jack Wyatt. He clocked his first pass at more than 300 mph (300.60 in 5.051 seconds in his first qualifying chance and a career-best 304.05-mph speed the next day in securing the No. 3 spot), and the Vegas Fuel- and Warren Cat-sponsored driver said he is ready for Wyatt.
"I definitely feel like we owe Jack
one," Capps said. "He took a win away from us in Rockingham, and I'd love to
repay him here tomorrow. We're really excited to have qualified for our third
consecutive race and also be third in the point standings.
"Everyone over here is so tough," he said,
"and with several NHRA teams coming in to test for Topeka we knew it was going
to be a solid field. The track is definitely capable of holding a 4.80 run. We
were working more towards our tune up for eliminations tomorrow. Paul [team
owner/crew chief] is just trying to get a good tune up for race day. The Vegas
Fuel team has been doing a great job all weekend, and I can't mention enough how
much I appreciate our guys and how hard they work."
Points leader and reigning
champion Dale Creasy Jr. will benefit from Densham's expected no-show on the
make-up date. Creasy and Densham were to be first-round opponents. Wilkerson was
scheduled to face Andy Kelley. No. 4 qualifier Terry Haddock and Todd Simpson
will face each other.
With second-year Pro Modified
driver Scott Cannon acing out track-speed recordholder Mike Janis by
44-hundredths of a second for low elapsed time (at a track-mark 6.053 seconds),
that class should see some fun action, too. And with Shannon Jenkins, Jim
Halsey, and Danny Rowe among the top five on the grid, the lineup is strong from
top to bottom, where Joe Mulligan and his '68 Camaro anchor the field at 6.381
seconds. The fact that 2005 series champion Mike Castellana missed the cut, last
among 21 entrants, shows the caliber of competition.
Pete Berner has taken charge of the Pro Stock class, with his runner-up finish at Rockingham and No. 1 performance in Tulsa qualifying, which includes both ends of the track records (6.370-second E.T., 219.72-mph speed). He credits Dave Braswell's talk-of-the-pits carburetor magic that complements his reliable Jon Kaase power. Rob Atchison is back in the Alcohol Funny Car mix for the first time this year. Maybe the Ottawa Senators' appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals has been an inspiration for the three-time champion from London, Ontario. Atchison said he's just hitting his stride and that the 11-race season is early. That could spell trouble for fellow Chevy Monte Carlo drivers Terry Munroe and six-time champ Mark Thomas, who will line up third and fourth, respectively. Munroe and Thomas have traded final-round results to open the season, and Atchison's top-qualifier award put the brakes on Munroe's modest streak. Canadian Larry Dobbs opened eyes as the early leader at Tulsa and eventual No. 2 qualifier. IHRA is returning this year for the first time since the 1994 Grand American Nationals -- which, incidentally, featured Shannon Jenkins beating Scotty Cannon in the Pro Mod final round. The make-up of the classes has changed, the E.T.s and speeds are quicker and faster, and it's certainly nothing like bracket racer and popular local engine builder Gene Carter remembers. Carter, 81 (yes -- no misprint), who's entered in the 2007 Sooner Nationals with his snazzy-looking '62 Corvette, began drag racing in 1952 at Pampas, Texas, when the entry fee was a mere 25 cents and action took place on the half-mile. He said he recalls one race that had such a large car count that it had eight lanes operating at once. But this June 23 make-up day at Tulsa Raceway Park will bring a new chapter to the IHRA history books.
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TOP FUEL
Berner originally ran the Jon Kaase-built “Shaft” in Rockingham. The new engine exhibited lots of potential, but was fairly green to the team. They spent most of the weekend acquainting themselves to its likes and dislikes. Then in an interesting twist, the then unnamed engine rode Berner to the final round. FRIDAY NOTEBOOK - TOP FUEL
ZIZZO ZIPS -- For a driver who said he’s still trying to get a handle
on his set-up, T.J. Zizzo is beconing a force to be reckoned with. The
Rockingham winner and San Antonio runner-up set both ends of the track record
Friday in capturing the early lead with a 4.649-second pass and a 314.68
speed.
He said fresh funding from sponsor Race News Magazine is making a difference for him and the Dave Settles-led crew. He said driving the car aggressively never had been a luxury for him before this season. “I was never able to do that,” he said, “because we never had the budget. In years past, I would just take my foot off the throttle and coast. If the guy in the other lane was going down the race track then, I wasn’t in the mood to hunt him down. But now we have a little different mentality because of Race New Magazine. We have the opportunity to hop on the gas and do whatever you need to do to get down the quarter-mile.”
And that’s exactly what he did Friday night.
BACK TO REALITY - T.J. Zizzo said his experience at Rockingham Drag way --
where he won he Spring Nationals -- brought him down to earth, actually.
“It was cool to win, but reality set in once I got home,” he said. “The IHRA had arranged for me to do an interview with a radio station in Ohio, and I did it over the phone from home. You could hear my son crying in the background and my daughter whining, and I thought, ‘Well, this is reality, man.’ “You might win a race, but when you go home, you’ve got the same complaints, no matter if you win or lose,” Zizzo said. “You still have to be a dad and a husband. You still have to feed the cats. You still have to go sand Bondo and deal with customers. I found that pretty hilarious. You’re supposed to be professional, and you have to go into another room during a live radio interview.”
FOLEY FALTERS SO FAR -- Terry McMillen found himself in some
distinguished Top Fuel company Friday night. Also unqualified after the first
session was Doug Foley, the No. 1 qualifier at the first two races of the season
(at San Antonio and Rockingham).
Traction trouble left Foley with an 8.002-second elapsed time at 89.94 mph. Following him in the order were Scot Weis, Jim Cavalieri, Kevin Jones, and Michael Gunderson. BACK JUST FINE - Scotty Cannon admitted his Seelye-Wright
dragster didn't run quick enough tonight to hurt his back tonight, but even if
it did post low elapsed time - everything is just fine. Cannon underwent surgery
to repair two damaged disks less than a month ago.
Tonight, a blown reverser among other examples of parts
attrition limited his performance to a 6.414 elapsed time at only 128 miles per
hour.
"My back feels good," Cannon said. "I have been sticking to my
routine of resting when I can. I managed a good night's sleep last night. I've
been taking the ibprofen to keep things feeling okay.
"it just wears down at the end of the day."
WHIPLASH, SORTA - Cannon vividly remembers the time he almost
suffered a severe case of whiplash during one of his visits to Tulsa Raceway
Park in the mid-1990s. Cannon's Pro Modified was rear-ended ... eh, he backed
into a fellow competitor following his burnout.
Former Pro Modified competitor Chuck Peterson had gotten
crossed up and nailed the wall before coming to a stop in Cannon's lane.
Unbeknownst to Cannon, a stalled Peterson had a front-row seat to his opponent's
high-speed back up. The resulting collision destroyed what was left of
Peterson's 1970 Chevelle and a gaping hole in the rear of Cannon's
car.
Tempers flared briefly between the drivers, with Peterson
asking Cannon, "Why didn't you stop?"
Cannon instinctively responded, " These don't
have rear-view mirrors in them, you know."
Cooler heads prevailed, as did a huge amount of fiberglass
repair kit.
The resourceful Cannon went on to win the
event.
MCMILLEN WORKING DAY AND NIGHT -- All racers had to wait out rain delays and
a lightning show before getting started Friday with the Sooner Nationals. But
the schedule might have been more of drain on Terry McMillan than anybody else.
The Elkhart, Indiana, driver was a guest on a local TV trackside program called
“Day Break.”
Despite getting up with the chickens, McMillen had something to crow about by the end of the first day of qualifying. He already had nabbed the provisional fifth spot in the Alcohol Funny Car lineup as he prepared to run the Torco-sponsored dragster in evening action. He didn’t fare as well in Top Fuel. He aborted the run because of tire shake and needs Saturday’s chances to break into the field of eight. He closed the day 12th with a 10.056-second, 86.72-mph clocking. Later Friday morning, IHRA officials suspended all on-track activity until further notice. Excessive rain all day Thursday prevented race teams from moving into the pits, and that delayed Friday racing. A shower at about 5 p.m. set back the program even further.
NITRO FUNNY CAR
TEACHER KNOWS BEST - Nitro Funny Car qualifying Friday night was
complete sham -- make than Densham, complete Densham. The veteran racer and
former schoolteacher from Bellflower, California -- who entered late while
enjoying an extended break in the National Hot Rod Association schedule --
claimed both the track elapsed time and speed records in his ’07 Chevy Impala
SS. He did it with a run of 4.887 second at 311.05 mph.
CAPPS CONTINUES ROLL -- Jon Capps, coming off an outstanding showing at
Rockingham as top qualifier and runner-up to Jack Wyatt, appears to be
continuing his hot streak in Paul Smith‘s ‘05 Chevy Monte Carlo. He opened
qualifying with a 5.051-second elapsed time at 300.60 mph that was strong enough
for the provisional No. 2 position. Just three-hundredths of a second behind him
is another NHRA regular, Tim Wilkerson, who was a late entry looking for some
extra seat time in his new Impala. Wilkerson took it for a 5.089-second spin at
292.20 mph.
Wyatt sits fourth after one session with a 5.180/267.91 from his ‘06 Dodge
Stratus.
LOOKS LIKE RIGHT MOVE - Bob Gilbertson might be having some financial
concerns about running Powerade Drag Racing Series events. He has chosen to skip
next weekend’s race, the O'Reilly Auto Parts Summer Nationals at nearby Topeka.
But he has
elected to put his restricted resources into the IHRA championship
chase, and it’s paying off. He’s in the Nitro Funny Car field for now, at least,
sixth Friday night with a 7.934-second elapsed time and 125.23 speed.
Gilbertson already has skipped a few NHRA races this year, and he said he regrets the budget restraints that have plagued him "Once again this was a tough decision to make," Gilbertson said. "The same factors that caused us to miss Las Vegas and St. Louis figured into the equation. The new diesel engine emissions law that was implemented January 1, 2007 has had a direct impact on our racing budget. Freightliner, the largest truck manufacturer in the world, is one of my company's biggest customers, we supply them with air tanks and they've seen their sales drop off 40 percent and they've laid off over 6,000 people so far and with that, the demand for air tanks has dropped like a rock. They don't expect sales to improve until the fourth quarter and look to increase production then and into 2008. "With the ever increasing cost of diesel fuel, the huge expense of traveling to Kansas for this race would be outrageous. I regret having to do this . . . but it's decision I'm forced to make. We will re-join the NHRA tour at Chicago and we'll also compete at the following race at Englishtown. I want to apologize to all my sponsors and fans who support this team and wanted to see us in Topeka but it's something I'm forced to do to keep this team alive for the rest of the season. just had to do."
PRO MODIFIED
HARD WORKING MAN -- Rickie Smith put in a full day of work
Friday.
He took the tentative No. 2 qualifying position in the Pro Modified class with a 6.203-second, 225.41-mph effort in his first full pass in his brand-new ’63 ’Vette -- after earning the No. 5 spot Friday in the Pro Stock category in his ’07 Chevy Cobalt.
HAGAN SHOWS WELL AGAIN - Matt Hagan, who has qualified his ‘68 Torco
Accelerator Camaro in the top half of the field at the past three national
events, said he and his crew “haven't been so pumped up about an event in as
long as I can remember. I guess the weekend off and the good results we've been
getting have made everyone really eager to get back out there and race."
He predicted he would be in the top half of the field at Tulsa Raceway Park, and he was right. Hagan closed the first day of qualifying in fourth place with a 6.214-second elapsed time at 228.23 mph. The question is whether that will start to pay off on race day. "We're making great progress, and that's bound to pay off," Hagan said. "We'll just keep chiseling away at it, and sooner or later we're bound to end up in a final or get that big first win."
PRO STOCK CALL HIM OPPORTUNISTIC - That’s what Robert Patrick called himself, in so
many words, Friday night after setting Tulsa Raceway Park’s
elapsed-time track record en route to the early No. 1 qualifying position.
The Virginia driver, who won the season-opening Amalie Oil Texas Natonals from the top spot, edged reigning world champion Pete Berner with a 6.408-second, 216.31-mph opening salvo. And he warned that his ‘07 Ford Cobra has the potential to lower that E.T. during Saturday’s final two sessions. “That run wasn’t nearly as aggressive as we wanted to be,” Patrick said, “but exactly as we needed it to be. We had no data on this track, but we had a good idea of what it would hold. I don’t think we left a lot on the table tonight.
“We’ll study what we did tonight, so we can tweak and tune things up and
we’ll step up things tomorrow. If it’s there,” he said, “we’re going for
it.”
With rain having its effect on the track, it wasn’t prepped as much as drivers might have liked to see. In other words, it was green. “That’s the nature of drag racing,” Patrick said. “This is not an easy sport. You don’t always get optimum conditions served up on a golden platter. You have to take what you can get and make the most of it. That’s what we did tonight and things turned out pretty good.” Patrick won’t be satisfied with “pretty good,” not when his second No. 1 qualifying award of the season is at stake. So Berner, Oklahoma native Dean Goforth, of Holdenville, and the rest of the better Friday qualifiers can plan to watch out for Patrick. Some drivers might be frustrated for leaving performance on the table, but not Berner. That’s exactly what the current Pro Stock champion intended to do during the first day of qualifying at Tulsa. He indicated that he wanted to leave just enough on the table to not overpower the track. “We wanted to get down the track as our first objective,” Berner said. “We learned enough tonight that I think we can step up even more tomorrow. The track was not that bad tonight. In fact, I’d say that right lane was pretty good tonight.”
Berner drove his Jon Kaase-powered, Rick Jones-built GTO to the No. 2 spot
with a 6.410-second elapsed time.
He said finding the right shot on an unfamiliar track is almost like being in the Showcase Showdown on the popular television game show The Price is Right. You try to predict a number the closest to the real price without going over. But he said he had lots of confidence in his baseline set-up. “I wasn’t afraid in the least with what we had,” Berner said. “The key was not to get after it too much and shake the tires. I was pretty confident that we had a top five car going out there. “We went back through our log books to the test sessions we had last week and set the car up just like we had it in St. Louis,” Berner said. “The two tracks are very similar, and because of that, we felt that was the best path to take. I think we will be solidly in the 6.30s before qualifying ends.”
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FRIDAY - LET THE MIRACLES BEGIN
UPDATE: 6:30 pm, CST - After a 90-minute sportsman session, thunder and lightning hit once again bringing a halt to competition. In the time before the rains hit, all but two sportsman classes were run to completion.
The track drying is underway and should be done in time to start the professional classes at 7:30 PM.
UPDATE: 1:53 PM, CST - The IHRA's determination, not to mention hard work, appears to be paying off in fighting the after-effects of yesterday's storm.
The sportsman teams are being parked and the revised schedule now shows the starting time as 3 PM.
Fingers are crossed as another round of thunderstorms are forecast for this afternoon.
11:02, CST -
The IHRA's staff is working hard to overcome the handicap the
weather has dealt them. Early this morning, crews began bringing in
rock and other materials to combat the flooded facility.
Today's
sportsman action looks like a wash except for a round of ET bracket
cars. They will run to prevent the professional categories from facing
a totally green racing surface. According to the IHRA's Skooter Peaco,
the goal is to get in at least one professional session and that will
require a miracle.
Some of the race teams, although recognizing the IHRA's efforts, were upset at the condition of the facility.
THURSDAY - NOT A GOOD START BEFORE THINGS
BEGIN
Heavy rains have created a mess for the day before the IHRA
Skull Shine Sooner Nationals at Tulsa Raceway Park was scheduled to begin.
Parking was halted for the sportsman entries in order to let the grounds dry
out.
The professional entries should be fine with the allotment of
asphalt for their rigs. As of 6 PM on Thursday, the bulk of the sportsman racers
were still parked in the “holding” area.
Race officials have confirmed those on the outside or those
who arrived after the rain, must wait until Friday at 8 AM to park. Because of
this, sportsman qualifying/time trials are expected to be delayed for much of
the day. As of now, the 6:30 PM professional qualifying session appears to be on
schedule.
The rain may be just one of the more recognizable problems
facing the IHRA. Reportedly, one portion of the paved pits appears to be
cracking under the weight of the larger race transporters. – Roger
Richards
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THURSDAY NOTEBOOK - SIZING UP THE COMPETITION
Nitro Funny Car drivers Gary
Densham and Tim Wilkerson have decided to use the down-time in the National Hot
Rod Association schedule to compete in the IHRA's Skull Shine Sooner Nationals
this weekend at Tulsa Raceway Park.
Densham, running select Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam™ events in 2006, won two races and finished seventh in the standings. He was No. 1 qualifier and runner-up at the March season-opener at San Antonio. And one of the hottest drivers he'll encounter tjhis weekend is veteran Jack Wyatt, who's fresh from his third straight victory at North Carolina's Rockingham Dragway. Wyatt is back at home, back in the nation's midsection. And the Corydon, Iowa, resident said this weekend's event is one in which he hopes to capitalize on his momentum.
"Tulsa and the season beyond are what's important," Wyatt said, referring
to the third event of the Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series. "We're really
just getting started. In spite of our good fortune with win lights lately, the
car hasn't really run well yet. A test session or two would be great, it's just
not in the budget. So, we have to use event qualifying to test new stuff -- and
sometimes that can bite you."
Wyatt's crew included volunteers and support from Suburban Machine, Brian
Olson Paint & Body, and Tom Stephens Racing. "We were small in number but
big in heart," Wyatt said. And he indicated he's planning for another strong
performance as he tries to close the three-point gap that reigning champion Dale
Creasy Jr. has in the standings.
Also pre-registered in the class
for this weekend are Jon Capps, the top qualifier and runner-up at Rockingham,
as well as Bob Gilbertson, Terry Haddock, Andy Kelley, Todd Simpson, Paul Lee,
and James Day.
In other Funny Car action, San Antonio winner Terry Munroe has a
seven-point edge over Rockingham winner and current Alcohol Funny Car champion
Mark Thomas. The two have split the final-round decisions in the first two races
this year.
But three-time champion Rob Atchison is in third place, and he has a bit of
an edge on the field. He was able to test following the Rockingham race. "We
have been working on our program, and we think we are on the right track to
start running more consistent and faster," he said. "We managed to get some
testing in at Grand Bend Motorplex (in Ontario), and the track surface was
perfectly prepared and we got to make six hits."
Pro Modified class leader Scott Cannon will be trying to hold off Danny Rowe and Ed Hoover, while his father, Scotty, is recovered from recent back surgery and looking to improve from his No. 5 position among the Top Fuel contenders.
"The doctor knew I hadn't planned to race until Friday and felt my recovery
process was good enough that I could do it," Cannon said. "I explained the steps
we had made within the car to make it friendlier on my body."
Cannon's dragster, which Evan Knoll owns and Seelye-Wright sponsors, is
equipped with a special seat prepared by Innovative Safety Products in
Charlotte, North Carolina.
"I knew I would make it back," Cannon said. "I had gone through the same
thing back in 1997, and I made it back in the same amount of time. I survived a
trip to Australia and did OK down there. I know [my back] will be fragile, but
the doctor doesn't seem to think the acceleration with the new seat and belts
will be a problem."
Cannon damaged two disks in his lower back during a Friday run at the IHRA
Spring Nationals at Rockingham. He underwent surgery days later to repair a
reccurring injury that dated back to 1997.
Top Fuel leader T.J. Zizzo, who was runner-up to Bruce Litton at the
season-opening Texas Nationals and winner at Rockingham, has a 45-point margin
over Litton..
"Our goal when we left Rockingham, in addition to being consistent, was to
be No. 1 in the points, and we were able to do that," he said. "But we realize
that wins are few and far between, so you have to enjoy them when they
come.
There are a lot of ways to lose in this sport, so when you win, you have to take advantage and try to learn as much as possible. We’ve been able to make 12 runs at just two races so far this season, and it has really helped. We figured out that that was 33 percent of all the runs we made last season. We're running the new tire for the first time, and we're still working out the bugs."
Like Wyatt, Zizzo said the season -- although it has just 11 races with the
cancellation of the Mansfield, Ohio, event because of track-construction delays
-- is young and his team is just starting to function like a machine.
"We've only gone to two races so far this season, so I think that's
something our competition will have to worry about later on. We haven't even hit
our stride yet. We're still trying to figure this combination out."
Among those also set to compete in
Top Fuel are Doug Foley, Terry McMillen, Chris Karamesines, Scott Weis, Mike
Strasburg, Jim Cavaleri, Fred Farndon, Kevin Jones, Mitch King, Luigi Novelli,
Jack Ostrander, Michael Gunderson, and Oklahoma native Scott
Palmer.
John Montecalvo, the Rockingham winner and San Antonio runner-up, has a
slim lead over closest Pro Stock rival Robert Patrick.
Tulsa Raceway Park owner Dan Guterman said that when he bought the track
three years ago, his business group did it with the idea of luring the IHRA back
for a national event for the first time since 1994. Wider lanes on the racing
surface, new pavement in the pit area, a new tower, new restrooms, additional
grandstands, new concessions area, improved access roads, upgraded track
lighting, and concrete walls support Guterman's declaration that "our goal, from
Day One, was to host an IHRA national event."
The Tulsa Sports Commission added its support. Executive Director Mike
Dodson pledged to "deliver a first-class experience for race fans." Pre-race
festivities will begin Thursday, May 24, with a chance for fans to get a sneak
peek at points leader Creasy Jr.'s Torco-sponsored Nitro Funny Car and Bobby
Lagana's Twilight Zone Top Fuel dragster. The display in downtown Tulsa at
Bartlett Square, at the corner of Main Street and 5th Street, will be from 11:30
a.m. to 1 p.m.
"I love any opportunity to get out and meet the fans," Lagana said. "It's
going to be a blast, hanging out downtown with Dale and letting the fans in
Tulsa get an up-close look at our cars. I hope a lot of people come out to spend
some time with us."
Pro qualifying will begin with a round at 6:30 Friday night. Pro qualifying
Saturday is scheduled for noon and 6:30 p.m. Final eliminations for the pro
classes Sunday will start at 10:30 a.m.
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TOUGH SESSION - When the flames remain on the track after the car has competed it‘s engine explosion, chances are the track will need a bit of cleaning up.
ZIZZO ZIPS -- For a driver who said he’s still trying to get a handle
on his set-up, T.J. Zizzo is beconing a force to be reckoned with. The
Rockingham winner and San Antonio runner-up set both ends of the track record
Friday in capturing the early lead with a 4.649-second pass and a 314.68
speed.
BACK TO REALITY - T.J. Zizzo said his experience at Rockingham Drag way --
where he won he Spring Nationals -- brought him down to earth, actually.
BACK JUST FINE - Scotty Cannon admitted his Seelye-Wright
dragster didn't run quick enough tonight to hurt his back tonight, but even if
it did post low elapsed time - everything is just fine. Cannon underwent surgery
to repair two damaged disks less than a month ago.
MCMILLEN WORKING DAY AND NIGHT -- All racers had to wait out rain delays and
a lightning show before getting started Friday with the Sooner Nationals. But
the schedule might have been more of drain on Terry McMillan than anybody else.
The Elkhart, Indiana, driver was a guest on a local TV trackside program called
“Day Break.”
TEACHER KNOWS BEST - Nitro Funny Car qualifying Friday night was
complete sham -- make than Densham, complete Densham. The veteran racer and
former schoolteacher from Bellflower, California -- who entered late while
enjoying an extended break in the National Hot Rod Association schedule --
claimed both the track elapsed time and speed records in his ’07 Chevy Impala
SS. He did it with a run of 4.887 second at 311.05 mph.
elected to put his restricted resources into the IHRA championship
chase, and it’s paying off. He’s in the Nitro Funny Car field for now, at least,
sixth Friday night with a 7.934-second elapsed time and 125.23 speed.
HARD WORKING MAN -- Rickie Smith put in a full day of work
Friday.
CALL HIM OPPORTUNISTIC - That’s what Robert Patrick called himself, in so
many words, Friday night after setting

Heavy rains have created a mess for the day before the IHRA
Skull Shine Sooner Nationals at Tulsa Raceway Park was scheduled to begin.
Parking was halted for the sportsman entries in order to let the grounds dry
out.

