SUNDAY NOTEBOOK – IT’S CHAMPIONSHIP DAY IN RICHMOND
In today’s world of spender takes all, it is a breath of fresh air to see championships decided on the track in head-to-head competition.
And that is exactly what transpired at the IHRA Summit Racing Equipment World Finals presented by RacingJunk.com at Virginia Motorsports Park as nine drivers from all different backgrounds were awarded world championships at the International Hot Rod Association’s season finale Sunday in Dinwiddie.
Glenn Wright (Top Sportsman), J.B. Donati (Top Dragster), Gianni Cantusci (Super Stock), Phil Combs (Stock), Barry Ryan (Quick Rod), Steve Furr (Super Rod) and Chip Johnson (Hot Rod) all walked away winners of the Summit Tournament of Champions and J.P. Schuster (Box) and Matt Hawk (No Box) added wins in the Summit SuperSeries to earn the title of world champion – the first for all but two drivers.
“This is my first Ironman. I have been runner-up several times, been to all these Ironman Classic races, but I always choke,” Combs said. “Not today. Nobody gave me a shot to win this thing in Stock and I felt that they overlooked me. That really helped me rise to the occasion.”
After a grueling season, over 200 racers made their way to Virginia from 21 states and five Canadian provinces to participate in the Summit World Finals culminating with two championship tournaments Sunday afternoon. All of the drivers had to earn their way into the tournament and, once there, had to compete on the track to decide the champions in each of the nine classes.
One of the most unsuspecting winners from Sunday’s big race was Howell, Michigan’s Barry Ryan. A longtime racer in the Midwest, Ryan was so unassuming that final round opponent Nick Folk had to do an online search just to find some information about the man he was about to meet.
And even that didn’t help. Ryan hammered the tree with a .007 light and ran a near-perfect 8.901, 161.69 in the 8.90 index class to take the Quick Rod crown, his first career championship.
“As a racer, the name Folk scares you. So I was surprised when Nick’s dad Ron come up to us after the race and made the comment that Nick had never heard of us and he had to look us up on the internet. He then said that when he saw what we were cutting for lights he said ‘I think we have a problem. I don’t know who this guy is, but he is mowing people down,’” Ryan said. “That is quite the complement coming from that bunch.”
Ryan began the weekend with a win over Jim Morrison, followed by victories over Ed Toolis and Allen Lowery before receiving a bye into the final. Ryan earned his way into the TOC via a victory at the Mopar Nitro Jam at Grand Bend Motorplex in July.
Perhaps the biggest winner from this weekend’s event was Harrisburg, North Carolina’s Steve Furr. Furr won the Summit Sportsman Spectacular $5,000 race on Saturday before sweeping the Super Rod category again on Sunday behind the wheel of his 1968 Camaro to take the championship over Donald Webb, adding another $10,000 to his weekend total.
“I wasn’t expecting to win today because I won yesterday. I thought maybe I had used my luck up then,” Furr said. “This is a good deal. I am super excited to win, I can’t lie about that. And to have it come down to us, Cameron (Manuel) and Donald is fitting. It was the three of us all season long and to have all three of us do well is a perfect way to end this deal.”
Furr won his fourth career IHRA championship by hitting a .017 light and running a perfect 9.90, 159.38 in the 9.90 class to defeat Webb who was perfect on the tree, but ran too quick on the numbers. Despite not winning, Webb was the only driver to make two final rounds, finishing runner-up in Hot Rod as well.
Furr also defeated defending champion Cameron Manuel, Charlie Stewart, Rick Bayus and Chris Yates on his way to Sunday’s championship. Furr made the TOC via a second-place finish in Division 9.
The only driver to repeat as champion was Chip Johnson who earned the coveted No. 1 in the Summit SuperSeries last year. This year he will move that number over to his ’68 Camaro in Hot Rod after defeating Donald Webb in the final.
“Winning never gets old. What gets old is not turning the win light on,” Johnson said. “We have had a really bad year this year. We made a couple finals, but we were not up to what we are used to doing and this really means a lot and helps make up for what we have been through.”
Johnson, from Fayetteville, N.C., won on a double-breakout with a .002 reaction time and a 10.891, 130.13 in the 10.90 class. Johnson also had wins over Brian Crumpler, Matthew Robinson, Steve Dweck and Bill Clarke in the winning effort. Surprisingly, Johnson earned an invite to the TOC by winning at, where else, Virginia Motorsports Park last season.
While Johnson is a seasoned veteran, Stock racer Phil Combs celebrated his first major IHRA victory by winning the championship behind the wheel of his ’66 Nova. Combs snuck into the tournament with a third place finish in Division 3 and then defeated Wallace Dent Jr., Nick Folk, Terry Taylor and Michael Beard – all hitters in the Stock class – before meeting Brent Darroch in the championship round.
Darroch had a much better light, but Combs caught up with a 12.728, 97.11 on a 12.70 dial to pick up the win.
In IHRA’s two quickest classes, Henrico, Virginia’s J.B. Donati defeated Austin Cowan to pick up the win in Top Dragster, while Odessa, Texas’ Glenn Wright won in Top Sportsman over Al Burkett.
Wright piloted his beautiful 2009 GXP to wins over John Benoit, Dale Freeman, Mark Payne and Rob Harvischak before meeting Burkett in the final. Surprisingly, Wright broke his car in the semifinals and planned to simply stage the car and hope for a miracle and got just that when Burkett went red by four thousandths of a second.
Wright made the tournament via a third-place finish in Division 4.
In Top Dragster Donati navigated a tough field with wins over Scott Richardson, Stacy Hall and David Barr before meeting Cowan in the final. Donati had a .003 light in the final and ran a dead-on 7.306, 180.14 on a 7.30 dial, edging Cowan by inches at the line.
Donati earned his way into the Tournament of Champions after winning the Richmond qualifier back in July.
Finally, Gianni Cantusci took home the only foreign championship as the Stittsville, Ontario native claimed the championship in Super Stock behind the wheel of his 2000 Firebird. Cantusci just made it into the TOC via a third-place finish in Division 1, but it mattered little on race day as Cantusci defeated Gil Carty Jr., Jared Erichsen, Anthony Bertozzi and eventually Gilbert Johnson Jr. on his way to the title.
Cantusci hit a .016 light and ran a 10.273, 125.88 on a 10.26 dial to win by approximately two feet at the line over Johnson.
All World Champions receive $10,000 and a special championship Ironman trophy as the IHRA closes the book on the 2011 drag racing season. – Larry Crum
Sunday’s final results from the Summit Racing Tournament of Champions at Virginia Motorsports Park. The race is the final race of the IHRA Summit Racing World Finals:
TOP SPORTSMAN
Glenn Wright, Odessa, Texas, ’09 GXP, 26.650, 39.02 def. Al Burkett, Sandston, Va., ’95 Probe, foul.
TOP DRAGSTER
J.B. Donati, Henrico, Va., dragster, 7.306, 180.14 def. Austin Cowan, San Antonio, Texas, dragster, 7.237, 182.60.
QUICK ROD
Barry Ryan, Howell, Mich., dragster, 8.901, 161.69 def. Nick Folk, Durand, Ill., dragster, 8.938, 160.92.
SUPER ROD
Steve Furr, Harrisburg, N.C., ’68 Camaro, 9.900, 159.38 def. Donald Webb, Four Oaks, N.C., ’69 Camaro, 9.884, 141.43.
HOT ROD
Chip Johnson, Fayetteville, N.C., ’68 Camaro, 10.891, 130.13 def. Donald Webb, Four Oaks, N.C., ’70 Nova, 10.887, 124.19.
SUPER STOCK
Gianni Cantusci, Stittsville, Ont., ’00 Firebird, 10.273, 125.88 def. Gilbert Johnson Jr, LeCompte, La., ’91 Calais, 10.445, 125.24.
STOCK ELIMINATOR
Phil Combs, Demossville, Ky., ’66 Nova, 12.728, 97.11 def. Brent Darroch, Monaca, Pa., ’94 Camaro, 9.831, 131.90.
SUMMIT SUPERSERIES BOX
J.P. Schuster, Damascus, Ohio, dragster, 7.834, 170.04 def. Sammy Hollingsworth, Greenwood, S.C., dragster, 7.408, 175.96.
SUMMIT SUPERSERIES NO BOX
Matt Hawk, Tucson, Ariz., ’70 Maverick, 11.761, 111.53 def. Scott Vaughn, Stephens City, Va., ’64 Chevelle, 9.226, 143.54.
The joy behind the Summit SuperSeries is that anyone, anywhere can win it.
SCHUSTER, HAWK CLAIM SUMMIT SUPERSERIES CROWNS
Drivers from all across the United States, Canada and even a few additional nations have the opportunity to race for a track championship and hopefully ,with a little luck and a lot of skill, make it all the way from their local track to the big stage at the IHRA Summit Racing Equipment World Finals presented by RacingJunk.com at Virginia Motorsports Park to compete for a world championship.
And that is exactly the tale told by Matt Hawk and J.P. Schuster.
Both drivers won at their local tracks, both earned their way to the Summit SuperSeries World Championships in Virginia and both, after a long and tumultuous weekend, came out on top by winning the championship in their respective divisions as Hawk claimed the No Box title and Schuster the Box crown Sunday at VMP.
“This is just unbelievable,” Hawk said. “All these guys out here are great racers and to get a chance to race them and come out of here with the win is incredible. It would have been worth the trip had I lost first round, but this is just everything you could hope for and more.”
Hawk traveled all the way from Tucson, Ariz. – a journey of over 2,000 miles – to be in Virginia this weekend and compete for the No Box World Championship. Hawk, who calls Southwestern International Raceway home, qualified ninth on the 16-car ladder after three hits at the track and rode that position all the way to the finals.
Hawk recorded wins over Billy Janousek, John Castellaw and Mark Bridgers on his way to the finals where he faced off with Scott Vaughn from Virginia for the championship. Driving a gorgeous ’64 Chevelle, Hawk had the better light and ran an 11.761, 111.53 on an 11.75 dial to Vaughn’s 9.226, 143.54 on a 9.22 dial – a difference of roughly three feet at the line.
With the win Hawk claims the $10,000 prize, plus a brand new race trailer, a custom golf cart, a championship ring and trophy and more. Hawk earned his way to the World Finals via random draw, joining last year’s champion from Salt Lake City as repeat Wild Card champions.
Not a bad day for a student at the University of Arizona.
“I actually couldn’t miss class. My family brought the car here and I had to fly because I had class that I couldn’t miss,” Hawk said. “I guess this makes the trip home that much sweeter for everyone. Plus it gives me something extra to tell everyone when I get back home.”
In Box J.P. Schuster of Damascus, Ohio qualified 11th of the 15 cars in the field behind the wheel of his dragster and had a strong showing throughout the afternoon culminating with his first championship.
Schuster, who calls Quaker City Motorsports Park home, had wins over Derek Degnitz, Harvey Thompson and Thomas Plott on his way to the finals where he met up with top qualifier and South Carolina native Sammy Hollingsworth for the championship. Schuster ran a .022-second package with a 7.834, 170.04 on a 7.83 dial to edge Hollingsworth who ran too quick on the numbers.
“We started the week of with some transmission problems. We got that fixed and left for here on Thursday and had a pretty good weekend from there,” Schuster said. “During time trials everything went smooth. The car was there all weekend, the driver just had to make sure he was there.”
With the win Schuster claims the $10,000 prize, plus a brand new dragster courtesy of Miller Race Cars, a championship ring and trophy and more. Schuster earned his way to the World Finals via a victory at the Summit Team Finals event at Pittsburgh Raceway Park last month.
“We were in the right place at the right time. Things just went our way this year,” Schuster said. “These were the 16 best drivers in the world and it was definitely an honor to be among this group here this weekend.”
The 2011 Summit SuperSeries featured drivers from 14 states and three provinces with drivers hauling from as far away as Edmonton, Alberta and Tucson, Arizona to be on hand. – Larry Crum
THE PRESSURE IS ON – The rules are simple, winning is not.
The Summit Tournament of Champions is all about gathering the best of the best from any given season and having them battle it out “March Madness” style for the IHRA World Championships in Top Sportsman, Top Dragster, Super Stock, Stock, Quick Rod, Super Rod and Hot Rod.
To get to Virginia, drivers had to either win an IHRA Nitro Jam national event, win a special TOC-qualifying race or finish in the top three in their respective Summit Pro-Am division. In 2011, 33 total spots were available per class and after a grueling season, culminating with the last-chance TOC qualifier on Saturday with the Summit Sportsman Spectacular, racers are ready to hit the track and chase their dreams this afternoon in Virginia.
While not all of the qualified drivers are in Virginia, a total of 180 drivers qualified for the 2011 field including 19 former world champions combining for 43 IHRA world championships. The field is also very diverse with drivers hailing from 21 states and five Canadian provinces.
Now it is put up or shut up time. Now is what these drivers have worked toward all season long.
With all of the drivers having won a major race or shown extreme consistency on the Summit Pro-Am tour, all are proven winners. And that is what makes the TOC so special. Winners, champions and more all gathered in one place to duke it out for the World Championship.
Who wins it all? Check back with CompetitionPlus this afternoon to find out.
IT’S ALL IN THE FAMILY – Drag racing is a sport known for its family atmosphere.
For spectators, nowhere else can you spend an entire day roaming the pits, meeting the drivers and enjoying a sport that allows more fan access than any other. But what about the racers?
As it turns out, racers get to enjoy the same unique experience that drives fans to the sport by the thousands. While on the track it is mano a mano, off the track it is fathers, sons, wives and daughters enjoying time together all brought to together by their love of one sport.
And sometimes, that family dynamic is taken a step further.
White it is certainly not uncommon for several members of the same family to hit the track on race day, what is rare is just how many are on hand this weekend in Virginia.
Dozens of families traveled to Virginia Motorsports Park this weekend to take part in the IHRA Summit World Finals, not just for support, but to compete against one another for a trophy.
Whether in the Summit Sportsman Spectacular or battling it out in the Summit Tournament of Champions, this weekend’s event is filled with feuding families and a few fun rivalries.
“It makes the weekend more enjoyable when you get to spend it with the entire family, but it can also be a lot more stressful when you have two cars to worry about instead of just one,” said Lisa Bolton, IHRA Division 1 champion in Stock who is vying for a World Championship on Sunday. “It is an interesting dynamic that is definitely unique to drag racing. I think it is part of what makes this sport so enjoyable, you can get everyone involved from the kids on up.”
Lisa is not the only member of the Bolton family going for a championship this weekend as husband Eddie dukes it out for the Hot Rod crown as well. Many times, the family even brings their young children along for a fun weekend at the track all centered on competition.
Another family at work this weekend is the Wright family from Odessa, Texas. Son Kamron Wright won the Summit Pro-Am Top Sportsman championship in Division 4, with his father Glenn finishing just behind in third. Not only will both drivers be going for a world title in the same weekend, they may have to face each other to do it.
“It is always fun racing dad,” Kamron said. “But I think the fun factor is toned down just a bit when it is for a championship. At that point it isn’t as much fun as it is treating him like he is just another driver.”
Defending Super Rod World Champion Cameron Manuel is another driver who knows a thing or two about families in racing. While Manuel rarely races his fiancé Amanda, who has her own car this weekend, he does have the added pressure of driving cars for two different families. That’s right, Manuel not only drives a car for his own family, but he has the added pressure of keeping his nose clean and the car safe for his second entry owned by, you guessed it, his in-laws.
“It is not really any added pressure. They told me to go drive the car, have fun and do what I needed to do,” Manuel said. “I just want to win for them.”
Other families, like Kevin and Kathy Fisher, the Bayus family – which has its own zip code at races to fit all of its driving family members – and dozens more familiar names like the Folks, the Elrods and more are all on hand this weekend to race for big money, championships and even a few bragging rights.
If nothing else, the family dynamic at the racetrack at least makes for an interesting ride home.
SATURDAY NOTEBOOK – WINNERS CROWNED IN SATURDAY’S SUMMIT SPORTSMAN SPECTACULAR
In the late 90s there was no drag racer more feared than Anthony Bertozzi.
Hailing from Ashland, Va., a date with Bertozzi on the race track usually resulted in a loss for the driver in the other lane as Bertozzi accumulated 16 championships and over 60 national event victories over his storied career.
And it appears he isn’t quite done just yet.
Bertozzi and his race team absolutely dominated Saturday’s Summit Racing Equipment Sportsman Spectacular as Bertozzi Racing visited three final rounds including wins in Super Stock himself and Quick Rod with racer Tommy Cable and finishing runner-up in Top Dragster to give the Bertozzi camp quite a payday during the second day of the IHRA Summit Racing Equipment World Finals presented by RacingJunk.com at Virginia Motorsports Park.
Bertozzi also won the Summit Sportsman Spectacular race at Maryland International Raceway in Super Stock back in July, giving him a clean sweep in his most accomplished class.
“It would have been nice to double, but I certainly can’t complain with the results,” Bertozzi said. “We were able to put three cars in the finals and win two which was exciting for us. We also won this thing back in July so I guess this event just fits us.”
In addition to Bertozzi and Cable, Gary Williams (Top Dragster), Rob Harvishak (Top Sportsman), Steve Furr (Super Rod), Ashley Parker (Hot Rod) and Brandon Peterson (Stock) also claimed wins during Saturday’s Summit Sportsman Spectacular. And for two of the drivers, Saturday’s win also meant a free ticket to the remainder of this weekend’s festivities to compete in the Summit Tournament of Champions on Sunday as Cable and Parker get a shot at another big payday.
“This is what we came here for. When we packed up to come here winning this event was all that was on our mind,” Parker said. “We weren’t qualified in the TOC, so to win today and get to keep racing is really a dream come true for us.”
Bertozzi defeated Aaron Allison in the final of Super Stock and finished runner-up in Top Dragster to Bradenton, Florida’s Gary Williams.
Bertozzi’s Super Stock win came in a double-breakout with a near-perfect .001 reaction time and a 9.098, 147.29 on a 9.11 dial. Allison ran a 9.023, 149.46 on a 9.06 dial in the runner-up effort. In Top Dragster Williams hit a .004 light and ran a 7.233, 174.08 on a 7.23 light, trumping Bertozzi’s perfect light and a 7.148, 169.68 on a 7.13 dial.
Bertozzi qualified 34th in Super Stock and 18th in Top Dragster and did not need use of the re-entry round in Super Stock to stay alive, reaching the finals the old-fashioned way. In Top Dragster both Williams and Bertozzi took advantage of the re-entry round after losing in round one to stay in the hunt.
The re-entry round of the Summit Sportsman Spectacular is its own round for first-round losers.
Bertozzi recorded wins over Michael Beard, Mark Nowicki, Emily Volkman, Tracy Robbins and Nick Chiles in Super Stock, while Williams had wins over hitters Gary Koebbe, Steve Dweck, Gary Bingham, Michael Ferraro and Cameron Manuel in Top Dragster.
Bertozzi’s teammate Tommy Cable of Hughesville, Md. drove his dragster to the Quick Rod crown over Pennsylvania’s Brian Martel. Cable ran an 8.891, 168.35 in the 8.90 class to take the win. Cable qualified 27th and recorded wins over Tony Gray, Tommy Johns, Vernon Rowland, Brett Nesbitt and Jeremy Mason to take the win and advance to the TOC.
Cable joins Parker who won seven rounds in Hot Rod to take the $5,000 win and advance to Sunday. Parker, of New Bern, N.C., defeated Donny Urban in the final when both cars went red, however Parker went red least by three thousandths to take the win. Parker also had wins over T.G. Paschal, Andrew Stirk, Brian Baker, Matt Weston and Sam Lovetro Jr. driving his ’69 Mustang.
There was nearly a Summit Sportsman Spectacular double in Stock as well as July runner-up Brandon Peterson finished first on Saturday behind the wheel of his ’97 Camaro. Peterson ran a 10.985, 116.52 on a 10.97 dial to defeat legend Michael Beard in the final. Beard ran a 11.196, 110.28 on an 11.14 dial.
“I tried to stay calm all day and just try and run my normal race,” Peterson said. “I just took it round by round like I always do, but then I got to the final against Michael (Beard).
“When you run a guy like Michael Beard in the finals of any race you have to be on it because he is the best. When I was sitting there waiting to run I was so nervous and I started to shake a little which isn’t like me. To beat Michael and get in this thing is just incredible.”
Peterson also had wins over Nick Folk, Tyler Bell, Monty Cornwell, Seth Phillips, Johnny Fisher and George Cable Jr.
Rob Harvischak of Warren, Ohio recorded the win in Top Sportsman over Jeff Rudisill. Harvischak drove his ’68 Camaro to a 7.340, 187.50 on a 7.36 dial while Rudisill went red. Harvischak qualified dead last and even lost round one, but recovered with a Saturday sweep with wins over Tim West, Bill Wilson, Russell Marr, Eric Donovan and Glenn Wright.
Finally Super Rod competitor Steve Furr of Harrisburg, N.C. defeated Billy Smith. Furr ran a 9.887, 158.26 in the 9.90 class. Furr qualified 19th and rolled to wins over T.G. Paschal, Scott Lawton, Chuck Rothermel, Dale Dryden and Johnny Cobb.
The IHRA Summit Racing Equipment World Finals presented by RacingJunk.com will conclude on Sunday with the Summit Tournament of Champions and Summit SuperSeries World Championships.
CAN’T LOSE FOR WINNING – Sometimes it’s just not your day.
Then again, sometimes it is.
For Rob Harvischak, it seems nearly every day is his lucky day. At least recently, Harvischak has been on quite a role behind the wheel of his 1968 Camaro Top Sportsman entry as it seems every obstacle put in his way has only served as a stepping stone on his way to victory.
Consider this. Earlier this year at the IHRA Northern Nitro Jam at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Michigan, Harvischak was having a rather unspectacular weekend and even oiled down the track during one of his runs. It seemed like the whole weekend was going to be a waste of a trip The result of that race? He won the whole thing.
Fast forward to this weekend and Harvischak found himself in another tough spot. After a few hits at the track on Thursday set the car up for a successful weekend, the wheels essentially fell apart on Friday. Usually a very consistent car, Harvischak’s best pass after two rounds of qualifying was a disappointing 16.149, 66.10 placing him dead last on the charts.
To make matters worse, he lost first round.
“I just couldn’t get down the track. I think between the good air here and the horsepower we were making we shook the tires real hard and that is certainly not like us,” Harvischak said. “We go down the track pretty good. We made two runs on Thursday and it went right down the highway. We figured it was all ready to go for Friday, but that wasn’t the case.”
But there is something special about the IHRA’s Summit Sportsman Spectacular that makes it extremely attractive to racers – other than the $5,000 payout – and that is the fact that first round losers get another shot.
While it certainly isn’t common for a national-level event to have a re-entry round, this isn’t exactly any ordinary race. With so much on the line, the IHRA made sure it wouldn’t be easy as losing racers aren’t simply placed back on the ladder. First round losers must first battle through a re-entry round against other losers for the right to get back in.
And that is where Harvischak’s weekend began to turn around.
After losing to top qualifier Glenn Wright in round one, Harvischak won his way back in with a victory over Ray Abell Friday night. From there it was nothing but smooth sailing and blue skies for the team from Warren, Ohio.
“To be honest, I didn’t want to go back out there. Everyone was on me to get back out there. They kept telling me ‘you have got to get back on the horse’ and we bought our way back in,” Harvischak said. “We drove all this way, we had to pull the trigger at some point. From then on we had a little luck on our side and ended up in the final.”
Once back in the race, Harvischak went to work on Saturday anew. He defeated Tim West, Bill Wilson, Russell Marr, Eric Donovan and eventually Glenn Wright – the same Glenn Wright that knocked him out in round one – before meeting Jeff Rudisill in the final. Once there Harvischak posted a 7.340, 187.50 on a 7.36 dial while Rudisill went red.
From last on the charts and out of the race to eventual winner, Harvischak showed that a little perseverance can certainly pay off. Throw in his disastrous weekend in Michigan two months ago, yet another win, and you have to wonder if there is a higher power on the side of the Harvischak bunch.
“All I know is hopefully something goes wrong early so we can get it out of our system on our way to winning this thing tomorrow,” Harvischak said with a laugh. “I don’t know what it is about us having all this bad luck and still being successful, but we will take any luck we can get.”
NO MORE TOYS – There is a first time for everything – and that includes winning races.
Just ask Ashley Parker.
Parker is a savvy racer with a cool little hot rod and a drive to win. The only problem is that win never came.
In fact, things got so bad that Parker actually convinced a relative to make him an Ironman out of spare parts just so he could hold some resemblance of trophy in his hands from time to time to remind him why he races. It has been nearly a decade since that faux trophy was made and still it is the only award in his trophy case.
That is, of course, until he gets home.
After years of trying, Parker finally broke through on Saturday with his first ever major event win, taking the Hot Rod crown at the Summit Racing Equipment Sportsman Spectacular at Virginia Motorsports Park. Now, not only does Parker get a real Ironman to sit beside his old friend, he gets a big check and a shot at the world championship on Sunday to go with it. That’s right, the New Bern, N.C. native also earned a spot in the Summit Tournament of Champions along with his win and will get to continue his weekend with hopes of walking away an IHRA World Champion if he can do it all again on Sunday.
“This is unbelievable,” Parker said in victory lane. “I have waited so long for this. We have had to overcome so many obstacles to get here. I didn’t know if we would ever get here. I don’t think it has even had time to sink in.”
Hopefully it will sink in quickly, because Parker has work to do.
When the Tournament of Champions was created in 2009, it was devised to give all drivers a chance to win an IHRA World Championship and allow those drivers to race for the win instead of outspending the competition. While Parker doesn’t have the same resume as some of the other drivers on the tour, he did prove himself on Saturday against some of the best racers in the world in the biggest class on the property. Now he gets to prove his worth further with an even bigger test tomorrow.
“We came here with one goal and one goal only – get into the Tournament of Champions,” Parker said. “We know everybody else here has that same goal, but you can’t stop believing. Heck, look at us.”
On Saturday Parker qualified 38th in the 62-car field and ended his day defeating Donny Urban for the Hot Rod title. Parker also piloted his 1969 Mustang to wins over T.G. Paschal, Andrew Stirk, Brian Baker, Matt Weston and Sam Lovetro Jr. to take the win.
So with the real deal now in his possession, what does Parker plan to do with his old Ironman which was actually on hand in Virginia to witness the big win?
“I haven’t really thought about it. You know, my cousin-in-law made that thing for us because we had never won a major event and it has been eight years since then,” Parker said. “The wait just makes winning even that much sweeter. We will probably hold onto it for good luck.
“All I know is that I am pumped and ready to go all the way tomorrow.”
THEY’RE FAST AND FURIOUS – No state is better known for its racing more than the great state of Texas.
And in Texas, perhaps no family is more competitive than the Wright family.
Between father Glenn and son Kamron, the Wright family is one of the most exciting to watch in all of drag racing. And this year, the duo put on a show rarely seen in sports. While it certainly isn’t all that uncommon to see families competing against one another in a competitive atmosphere, rarely do championships come down to two members of the same family.
Unless, of course, you are the Wrights.
Driving a pair of beautiful Top Sportsman entries, Glenn and Kamron, of Odessa, along with Forney native Russell Marr, battled one another for the Division 4 Summit Pro-Am championship with son besting father to take the Division 4 – essentially the Texas division – championship in 2011.
Kamron, piloting his gorgeous 2010 Chevrolet, bested his father by 59 points to take the divisional crown as Glenn finished third in the division. Sandwiched between the Wright family was Marr, who threw his weight around and finished in the runner-up position.
Now the Wright family, along with Marr, are in Virginia having won their way into the 2011 Summit Tournament of Champions via their podium finishes in Division 4. And now it is up to the Texas trio to show the rest of the field why you don’t mess with Texas and why you don’t want to line up against the Wright family on race day.
“It has been a great year for all of us,” Kamron said. “The whole year was one big fight between me, my dad and Russell Marr. We actually have a fun little rivalry going and to actually beat my dad was a fun way to gain some bragging rights. Now I have to try and back it up this weekend against a really tough field.”
Indeed this year’s Top Sportsman field in the Summit Tournament of Champions is one of the toughest of the year with the most entries of any other class for the invitation-only field. Kamron will benefit from a first-round bye thanks to his division championship, but after that, anything goes.
“We took a few hits at the track on Thursday and hopefully we can get this thing tuned up and ready to race on Sunday,” Kamron said. “It is excited to have the bye, but after that it will be time to get down to business.”
What is unique about the Wright family, more than anything, is how unassuming the team truly is. Just Glenn, Kamron and a few family members, the Wright family campaigns some of the most competitive cars in all of drag racing and they do it all from their little shop in Odessa.
“It is just me, my dad, my brother, my son and my mom out here. We really don’t have much else in the way of help,” Kamron said. “We are just a bunch of machinists from Odessa and that is basically it. Heck my son is listed as our crew chief. He is only 4-years-old, but that just shows how small our team is.
“And the cars are just like us. We don’t run any nitrous, they are all motor. I am actually probably running one of the smallest motors out here as well. Needless to say, it is always cool to succeed with the odds against you.”
Kamron, who has been racing since he was 8-years-old, now hopes that another strong showing this weekend and a little “Texas Power” will help propel him to his first career championship – or at least another win over his dad.
“This is my third year at the World Finals and hopefully the third time’s the charm,” Kamron said. “All of the cars are running good and dad qualified No. 1 on Friday for the Sportsman Spectacular in the new GXP so it should be interesting how this thing turns out. I can’t wait.”
IT’S GOOD TO BE THE KING – Every sport has its legends.
Richard Petty in NASCAR, Michael Jordan in basketball, Jerry Rice in football, Wayne Gretzky in hockey and so on and so on. Oh, and don’t forget Anthony Bertozzi.
While he doesn’t have the immediate recognition as the aforementioned stars, Bertozzi’s accomplishments in the sport of drag racing, more specifically with the International Hot Rod Association, are nothing short of spectacular.
Consider this. During his lengthy drag racing career, Bertozzi has compiled more championships and more national event victories than any other racer in IHRA history, pro or sportsman.
Bertozzi has an astonishing 16 career IHRA championships, over 60 national event victories and countless wins on the Summit Pro-Am Tour. And the scary part? He isn’t slowing down.
“I haven’t been racing as much as I used to, but that doesn’t mean I am slowing down,” Bertozzi said. “In the 90s I was a lot younger and I was racing as much as I could. Now I am getting a little older, but I still have that drive.”
Over Bertozzi’s storied career, he has compiled 16 career championships including seven in Super Stock, six in Modified, two in Top Dragster and one in Stock Eliminator. But the kicker is Bertozzi hasn’t won a title since 2007, a trend he is hoping to buck this weekend.
“The competition is a lot tougher today. When I first started, you had to figure out a lot more stuff on your own,” Bertozzi said. “Now, it’s like you can buy all the right equipment and there’s so much more technology out there. It’s just not as easy to win a championship as it used to be.”
But Bertozzi hasn’t had this good of a chance to win a championship in a long time. Bertozzi had a spectacular year in 2011, winning a big payday at the first Summit Sportsman Spectacular at Maryland International Raceway in July while visiting several final rounds on the Summit Pro-Am Tour culminating with a Super Stock championship in Division 1.
Now Bertozzi brings that momentum into this weekend’s event with the hopes of adding career championship No. 17 to his resume this weekend in Virginia – just a few miles down the road from his home in Ashland.
And if he doesn’t do it, he hopes someone else will. In addition to campaigning his own Super Stock and Top Dragster machines, he has half a dozen other cars in his camp going for big wins this weekend.
None of those cars, however, have had quite the success as his legendary 1998 Grand Am, a familiar sight at victory lanes across the United States.
“We are exciting about this weekend and it would mean a lot to add another trophy to my collection,” Bertozzi said. “I’ve won a lot of money in that Grand Am. Me and that Grand Am go a long way back and hopefully it can carry me to another big win this weekend.
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FRIDAY NOTEBOOK – GETTING CLOSER TO THE BIG DAY!
Day 1 is in the books and of the hundreds of drivers on hand at Virginia Motorsports Park on Friday, all are one step closer to taking their own sizable chunk out of the huge weekend purse at the IHRA Summit Racing Equipment World Finals presented by 
RacingJunk.com in Dinwiddie.
The opening day of the IHRA World Finals was all about the Summit Racing Equipment Sportsman Spectacular as drivers qualified and finished a single round of eliminations, in addition to the re-entry round, all on Friday. The open-field Summit Sportsman Spectacular will conclude on Saturday before the IHRA moves into its championship portion of the program with the Summit Tournament of Champions and Summit SuperSeries.
Until then, drivers not already qualified for the Summit Tournament of Champions are left scratching and clawing in the Summit Sportsman Spectacular to try and get in. Non-qualified drivers have extra incentive to win as a win may just move them into the TOC later in the weekend. Not to mention the $5,000 prize awarded to the seven winners on Saturday.
Through one round of eliminations, four of Friday’s top qualifiers are still alive in the Summit Sportsman Spectacular including top dogs Glenn Wright (Top Sportsman), Mark Nowicki (Super Stock), Terry Taylor (Stock) and Arlie Boggs (Super Rod). The other three class top qualifiers, Alan O’Brien (Top Dragster), Jerry Langley (Quick Rod) and Bitsy Satterly (Hot Rod) did not survive the brutal opening day as hundreds of the best sportsman racers crammed into Virginia Motorsports Park for a truly historical race weekend.
In fact, of the 35 drivers to qualify in the top five of their respective class, only 23 are left standing attesting to the incredible stiff competition awaiting drivers this weekend.
In IHRA’s premier doorslammer class Wright, of Chesapeake, Va., took the Top Sportsman top spot with a solid 6.863, 199.32 lap in the beautiful Virginia fall air. Maryland native Robert Jones qualified second, followed by William Brown, Wayne Rogers and Matthew Buck. All five drivers survived day one eliminations and will live to race another round – one of only two classes with a perfectly intact top five.
In IHRA’s quickest and fastest sportsman class, Top Dragster top qualifier Alan O’Brien out of Ronceverte, W.Va. wasn’t as lucky as he lost in round one by a few feet at the line. Things didn’t go any smoother for the rest of the top qualifiers as only second-place qualifier Gordon Cole and fifth-place man Brett Nesbitt survived round one. Fourth place qualifier Gordon Cole did re-enter on Friday and won, living to fight another day.
Some of IHRA’s toughest competition came in the Super Stock and Stock ranks as over 100 drivers battled it out in the two classes.
In Super Stock Gaylord, Michigan’s Mark Nowicki was the top qualifier, followed by North Carolina’s Steven Johnson, Norm Hall, David Latino and Bryan Worner. Of the top five qualifiers all but Latino moved on in round one, although Latino did re-enter and win, staying in the hunt for the $5,000 prize and keeping the Super Stock top five intact.
Stock top qualifier Taylor out of Lumberton, N.C. also remained alive after a solid day one behind the wheel of his ’75 Corvette. Also qualifying in the top five were North Carolina’s Michael Moller, Adam Keir and Amanda Justice. Surprisingly, only Taylor and Keir will be racing on Saturday.
Wrapping up the weekend was the Rod classes with only Super Rod’s Boggs surviving the day. Boggs, out of LaPorte, Texas, qualified No. 1 and won his first round to move on. The rest of the top five included North Carolina’s T.G. Paschal, Greg Slack, Bo Upton and Donald Webb with all five still alive on Saturday.
Quick Rod suffered the most casualties of any class with one upset after another leaving fifth place qualifier Vernon Rowland as the highest qualifier to win in round one. Point man Jerry Langley out of Mechanicsville, Md. lost twice on Saturday, joining second-place qualifier Richard Bernier. Fourth-place qualifier Scott Lazarus is also out of competition.
Finally, Hot Rod saw top qualifier Bitsy Satterly of Lawrenceburg, Ky. lose in round one , joining second-place qualifier Daryl Griffin and Harold Honeycutt. Only Kentucky’s Ricky Roe and Texas’ Marlon Goates managed to keep their hopes of winning the big prize.
The Summit Sportsman Spectacular will conclude Saturday afternoon followed by time trials for the Summit Tournament of Champions and Summit SuperSeries immediately following. The weekend will conclude on Sunday with the running of the two championship tournaments.
REPPIN’ THE MOUNTAIN STATE – There are a lot of racers representing a lot of different states at this weekend’s IHRA World Finals at Virginia Motorsports Park.
But perhaps none has the support of an entire state behind them more than West Virginia’s Greg Fowler.
Hailing from the small town of Point Pleasant, a town known for its Mothman legend, being home to one of the first battles of the American Revolution and dozens of other unique occurrences, Fowler has added his own name to Point Pleasant lore with his recent success and good works behind the wheel of his 1980 Camaro campaigning the Hot Rod class with the International Hot Rod Association.
Fowler has also used his drag racing fame to bring awareness to numerous causes in his home state including the Friends of Coal initiative and numerous smoking prevention programs.
Thanks to his effort, Fowler’s support has blossomed from the sleepy little town on the Ohio River to that of the entire state culminating with being recognized by West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin last year when he made the 2010 IHRA Tournament of Champions. Today Fowler’s car even flies the state colors and features the familiar flying WV on the side, all of which was debuted when he met the governor last year.
“It is hard to believe someone from a small town like Point Pleasant can have the kind of success I have and actually make a difference,” Fowler said. “Last year when the governor recognized me we painted the car for the occasion and it was a really neat deal. The other benefit is that the more success I have on the track the more awareness I can bring to these programs.”
And it is those programs that keep Fowler going.
When Fowler isn’t tearing up the track in Division 1 on the Summit Pro-Am Tour, the same division in which Fowler claimed the 2011 Hot Rod championship, he is taking his car to schools throughout the state talking about something near and dear to his heart – smoking prevention.
“The West Virginia tobacco folks have teamed up with me and I take my car to schools of all ages, sometimes two and three days a week” Fowler said. “I travel with another man who had his voice box removed and we talk about the hazards of smoking. It is especially important to me as I recently found out that I have emphysema due to my poor decisions in the past.
“I use this car to spread the word about what smoking can do.”
Fowler has also used his car to promote the benefits of coal, an important issue in the state of West Virginia.
And if there is one thing Fowler has learned over the years since teaming up with these programs is that the more success he has on the track, the more awareness he brings to the programs.
“Success always helps. I had a really good year this year and schools are lining up to have us come to their school, I can hardly keep up,” Fowler said.
And success is something Fowler knows plenty about. Fowler has had plenty of great seasons racing with the IHRA, but perhaps none as memorable as 2011. Fowler piloted his blue and gold Camaro to a Division 1 championship this season with two wins in three final rounds.
Thanks to that championship performance, Fowler earned another ticket to the Summit Tournament of Champions this weekend in Virginia and this time he is hoping to take things a step further by taking home his first career championship, a win that would simply be icing on a long and successful career.
“I don’t know how many more years I have racing this thing, so winning a championship would be incredible,” Fowler said. “Winning a title would mean I accomplished my ultimate goal which is another thing I teach kids. It is important to have goals and have something to strive toward and it is safe to say there is no bigger goal for me right now than walking out of here with a trophy.”
THAT’S A LONG HAUL – You think your drive to work is long?
Ask Chris Melnyk about his trip.
Melnyk drove 2,500 miles and a spent a full four days on the road to be in Virginia this weekend for his second job – driving a racecar – with hopes of taking home the ultimate prize as he competes in his first Summit SuperSeries World Championship at the IHRA World Finals this weekend.
Melnyk, from Edmonton, Alberta, finished runner-up in the Summit Team Finals event at Castrol Raceway last month and joined three – yes three – other drivers in making the 2,500 mile trek from northern Canada to southern Virginia for a shot at the most lucrative prize package in all of grassroots racing.
“It was a long, long, long trip,” Melnyk said with a laugh. “And it was windy for about 800 miles. I left Sunday morning and got here on Wednesday. When you make a trip that long, it better pay off.”
Melnyk joined three of his buddies in making the trip to participate in the No Box class this weekend against 15 other competitors, including the man who beat him in Edmonton Dean Smith. The pair are also joined in Virginia by fellow Canadian Tim Richards out of the Summit Team Finals event in Edmonton.
Melnyk was the top qualifier in the No Box class at the Canadian Team Finals in mid-September, making it all the way to the final round before losing to Smith when he lit the dreaded red bulb by four thousandth of a second. Still, even with the loss, Melnyk still earned his ticket to the IHRA World Finals via his final round finish and looks forward to getting a little revenge – and trying his luck against racers from across the country – at VMP this weekend.
“It is tons of motivation to keep your eyes on the prize. “Melnyk said. “We had a really good season from start to finish. Everything was just working perfect and then when we went to the Team Finals it all came together.
“We qualified No. 1, got the bye and then ended up red-lighting in the finals. Now we get a chance to try our hand against the best from across the country. I am really looking forward to this weekend.”
So after making a trip that will essentially add up to 5,000 miles and over a week on the road when all is said and done, what is Melnyk hoping to take away from this weekend more than anything?
“I am just looking forward to having fun,” Melnyk said. “Although a little money to take home with us certainly won’t hurt.”
Summit SuperSeries drivers will be competing for $10,000 in both the Box and No Box classes plus various additional prizes including a brand new dragster, trailer, golf cart and more. Summit SuperSeries competitors will hit the track for the first time on Saturday with a few test runs before battling for the World Championship on Sunday.
THIS ONE’S FOR DAD – There is nothing harder than losing a parent.
But to lose a parent just a few weeks before the biggest race of the year can be absolutely heartbreaking, especially for a family as entrenched in the sport of drag racing as the Carty family.
Gil Carty Jr. and his father Gil Sr. have been two of the most recognizable figures anywhere in drag racing over the past few decades, so when Gil Carty Sr. suffered a fatal heart attack last month, the entire IHRA racing community was clearly shaken.
But as they say, with every storm comes a rainbow and Gil Carty Jr. is just hoping that being back out on the track this weekend can provide a bit of healing as he tries to make it through a very trying weekend with the help and support of his friends and family.
“I know my father would want me here,” Carty said, fighting back tears. “Right now I am just out here with my friends, trying to get this behind me.”
Carty is qualified in the Summit Racing Equipment Tournament of Champions in Super Stock, piloting his familiar ’67 Nova to a third place finish in Division 9 with two wins and one runner-up finish in 2011. Carty, from Wytheville, Va., is also competing in the Summit Sportsman Spectacular this weekend in Super Stock and Hot Rod.
But even with so much on the line, including his first career championship, Carty admits that the most important thing to him this weekend is simply getting his heart back in the game, something he knows will take a long time.
“We are just here, that is about all I can say right now,” Carty said. “It would probably mean something special to win this weekend, but honestly that is the farthest thing from my mind. Right now I have to find my heart before I can get back to what I love. But I am sure it will come with time. Right now I am just trying to make dad proud.”
RUTHLESS DOMINATION – You wouldn’t think a small-town boy like Cameron Manuel could possibly fit into the same category as famous criminals such as Al Capone, Jesse James and Bonnie and Clyde.
Then again, you wouldn’t think Manuel would be as ruthless as he has over the past two years either. But that is exactly the case for the young man from the hills of North Carolina as Manuel has left a wake of fallen racers all across the south, eliminating his competition one-by-one on rural tracks all across the United States and taking the loot all for himself.
Perhaps the new king of IHRA drag racing would be better known as Cameron “Hitman” Manuel.
So how does he do it? How does Manuel dominate the way he does at such a young age? The answer might surprise you.
“It is simple really. I tell myself that if I stick to the plan it doesn’t matter what everyone else does, I should win,” Manuel said. “I try to stick to my own plan and not worry about the other person. As long as I stick to the plan I should be good.”
Sounds simple enough, but no one has taken a blueprint for success and turned it into wins quite like Manuel. Over the past two years Manuel has compiled nearly a dozen Summit Pro-Am victories leading to three Pro-Am championships in two classes, several high profile victories and an IHRA World Championship in Super Rod in the fall of last year. And to make things even sweeter, Manuel is qualified in not one, but two different classes at this weekend’s IHRA World Finals in Virginia as he looks to repeat in Super Rod and add a Top Dragster title as well.
That is a lot of Ws on the resume of a young man who wasn’t quite sure he would ever enjoy the kind of success he is seeing today. But here he is today, the hottest driver in the IHRA and the favorite to win nearly everywhere he goes.
“I stressed for years over winning. I remember when I started out at 16 I thought this was going to be the easiest thing in the world. Sure I won a few races, but it was so stressful because I lost a ton more than I won,” Manuel said. “It wasn’t until 2009 that I got really happy with my driving and in 2010 I started seeing some progress on the track.
“Ever since then it has been a nice joyride.”
While joyride might be a nice description for Manuel, frustrating would be the word most used by other racers. Frustrating because no matter when or where a race is held, if Manuel is on the property, you can bet you are going through him for the win.
So what is behind his sudden rise to fame? One word, confidence.
“The turnaround in my racing went hand in hand with my confidence in driving. I always had confidence in myself, but I would second guess decisions on and off the track all the time, non-stop,” Manuel said. “Now it is a lot easier. When I roll to the starting line I figure out exactly what I need to do and I tell myself that if I do that than 99 percent of the time I am going to win. The only time I am going to lose is if I make a mistake. That makes it a whole lot easier to race comfortably.”
While Manuel’s success rate is not exactly 99 percent on the track, it is close. This season alone Manuel racked up six Summit Pro-Am victories in seven finals, won the Division 2 championship in Super Rod and Top Dragster and visited the final round of one of the biggest sportsman races of the year at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in August. Throw in his Super Rod World Championship, Summit Allstars win and another divisional crown from last year and you have a driver that has taken himself from the realm of also-ran to legitimate drag racing star.
Now Manuel enters the IHRA Summit Racing Equipment World Finals with a target on his back and the weight of his recent success on his shoulders. But with a renewed confidence and two families supporting his every move, there is no reason to believe Manuel’s success won’t continue well into the future.
“I really have to thank my parents and my future in-laws. Without them none of this would be possible,” Manuel said. “Hopefully this is just the first chapter in a long and exciting racing story.”
And the scariest thing – Manuel has two younger brothers waiting in the wings, one of which picked up their first career win at the Division 2 season finale at Darlington Dragway in September. “My brothers are great racers too,” Manuel noted.
It appears it is only a matter of time.
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THURSDAY PREVIEW – GETTING READY FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP DANCE
IN THE AIR TONIGHT – There is nothing quite like high school football on a cool, crisp Friday night.
The smell of popcorn, cheerleaders shaking their pom-poms, the crunch of helmet-on-helmet – there is just something special about the ritual of fall and football.
But football won’t be the only thing making headlines this Friday night.
In the small town of Dinwiddie, just a few miles south of Richmond, another fall classic will roar to life this weekend as the International Hot Rod Association brings its familiar Summit Racing Equipment World Finals to famed Virginia Motorsports Park for three days of thrilling drag racing action beginning this Friday night.
And in preparation for this weekend’s big World Finals weekend, featuring three separate races and over $200,000 in cash and prizes up for grabs, hundreds of drivers took to the track under the lights on Thursday to get in a little testing before tomorrow’s big race.
Despite a few sprinkles earlier in the day, a steady of stream of racers poured into VMP throughout the day followed by an afternoon test session open to drivers in all nine classes on the property. Racers traveled from as far away as Edmonton, Alberta to be a part of this weekend’s triple-header that will have over 35 states and six Canadian provinces represented in Virginia.
Unique to this year’s Summit Racing Equipment World Finals will be the fact that sportsman racers will have the weekend to themselves with no pros on the property. IHRA’s professional categories wrapped up competition earlier this year at the Northern Nitro Jam in Michigan, leaving only sportsman racers to battle it out at the World Finals.
Racing will get underway on Friday beginning at 10 a.m. with the Summit Racing Equipment Sportsman Spectacular. The majority of the racers on the property are on hand for this race with $5,000 going to the winner and a shot at making it into the Summit Racing Equipment Tournament of Champions later in the weekend up for grabs.
Racing will continue on Saturday beginning at 10:30 a.m. with the final rounds of the Sportsman Spectacular followed by time trials for the invitation-only Summit Racing Equipment Tournament of Champions and Summit SuperSeries.
The weekend will conclude on Sunday with the running of both championship tournaments and the crowning of champions in nine IHRA classes.
Check back with Competition Plus throughout the weekend for features and reports from all of this weekend’s action at Virginia Motorsports Park.
WHO ARE THE PLAYERS? – The Summit Racing Equipment Tournament of Champions is held at the conclusion of each season and features a runoff of the top sportsman drivers in each of IHRA’s seven sportsman classes to decide the world champions in each class. This program decides championships on the track and gives all racers an even playing field regardless of their geographic location or financial ability to travel.
Debuting in 2009, the Tournament of Champions has the added support of Summit Racing Equipment and is expected to evolve into one of the premier sportsman programs in the country.
Entry into the Summit Racing Tournament of Champions is earned through a national event victory on the Nitro Jam tour, a victory in a special Summit Racing TOC qualifier or by finishing in the top three in one of the six divisions on the Summit Racing Equipment Pro-Am tour. To add to the value of competing in the Summit Pro-Am Tour, all Summit Pro-Am champions also earn a first round bye in the tournament.
Click here for an in-depth look at this weekend’s championship-determining program to be contested during the IHRA Summit Sportsman Spectacular at Virginia Motorsports Park in Dinwiddie, Va.
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