Photos by Robert Richard
QUALIFYING NOTEBOOK – SALEMI DELIVERS WHEN IT MEANS THE MOST; BUTNER IS BAD TO THE BONE… STILL
1 – PUTTING THE SCREWS TO THEM – Melanie Salemi’s Friday was one engine explosion away from becoming a total write-off. Instead, she ended the night parked in the No. 1 spot.
The defending Pro Boost event winner drove Eddie Whelan’s screw-blown Al-Lee Installations “Purple Reign” ’68 Firebird to a 3.580 at 208.68 mph in the final qualifying session. That number stood as the quickest pass of the day at Darana Motorsports Park.
Nothing about the path there was easy. Salemi failed to make a clean run in the opening session, then hurt an engine hard in the second round.
Her family-run crew hustled in a fresh motor, but something didn’t sound right during warmup. They yanked that one out, installed another brand-new engine, and rolled straight to the lanes.
The first full hit on that combination was the run that mattered. Salemi laid down the 3.580 and forced everyone else to chase.
“It was a sigh of relief, honestly, when I looked up at the scoreboard and saw the .58 come up,” Salemi said. “Of course, we get back to the pit and we’re expecting everybody’s gonna keep going faster. I had not done very well during the day so I was one of the first cars out there. It was really cool to be able to come back to the pit and we had our ears glued to the PA system and trying to just keep our morale. I think we had a bigger party in our pit after the last pair went down than we’ve had in a while. It was pretty cool.”
Two-time Pro Boost world champion Jason Harris stayed close with a 3.586 at 210.50 in the “Party Time” Harold Denton tribute ’69 Camaro. Johnny Camp, fresh off Thursday’s postponed Carolina Nationals win, qualified third with a 3.594 at 211.10 in the “Hells Bells” Camaro.
2 – NO PRESSURE AT ALL – Marcus Butner says he isn’t thinking about defending a world championship, but his right foot and scoreboard numbers are telling a different story. The North Carolina driver opened the East Coast Nationals by snatching the No. 1 qualifying spot in Pro Nitrous.
After the first session, Butner was outside the 16-car field and in need of a turnaround. Under the lights, he and tuner Jay Cox answered with a 3.636 at 208.20 in the Musi-powered Butner Construction “Heartbreaker” ’69 Camaro.
The run backed up a season that already started strong with a semifinal finish at the Carolina Nationals. It also reminded the field that the reigning champion didn’t forget how to wear the target.
“I try not to think about [defending the championship] because it is pressure,” said Butner. “At the end of the day, I’d love nothing more than to win another championship, back-to-back. Several people have done it. What do they say – the first one may be a mistake, the second one ain’t? We’re just gonna take it one round at a time. Everybody out here can run just as good as anybody else, any time of the day. It’s gonna be so hot. We ran good today here in the heat, but it’s tricky. We won’t just play it safe, treat everybody the same because anybody can beat you any time.”
Defending event winner Tim Paap qualified second with a 3.642 at 206.32 in his Paap Auto Body Corvette. Mike Achenbach, fresh off Thursday’s postponed Carolina Nationals win, landed third with a 3.644 at 206.32 in his ’20 Camaro.
3 – PERFECT HANDOFF – Fletcher Cox left Darana with a Thursday night Pro Street win and turned Friday into Andy Mac’s moment. The longtime crew member and veteran grudge racer took over the wheel and drove straight to the top spot.
In the third and final qualifying session, Mac piloted Cox’s Phil Shuler-tuned, nitrous-fed “Training Day” ’69 Camaro to a 3.895 at 193.74. The run delivered Mac his first No. 1 qualifier award and the fourth for the car.
It was the kind of handoff most teams talk about but rarely pull off cleanly. Cox won the delayed Carolina Nationals final, then stepped aside and watched his team keep rolling.
Mac made sure the momentum didn’t stall. He put the Camaro on the pole and added another layer to one of the weekend’s better stories.
Cox isn’t done making headlines, either. He plans to make his Pro Boost debut at the next race.
“It’s pretty special to carry on something that [Cox] started, that we started with him,” Mac said. “Just being in the right spot at the right time and taking the opportunity to carry on where he left off. I just want to thank Fletcher for trusting and allowing me to drive his car and being part of a winning team. It’s not just one person that does this. We all do it. There’s endless hours and nights that go into this stuff. Winning is not done at the racetrack. It’s won at the shop. We just bring what we do there to here and let everybody see us perform and try to win.”
Richard Reagan qualified second with a 3.927 at 196.85 in his screw-blown ’91 Mustang. Blake Denton took third with a 3.959 at 201.19 in the “Bonnie” ’69 Camaro formerly driven by Lizzy Musi.
4 – FINISHING UP DARLINGTON – Johnny Camp (Pro Boost), Mike Achenbach (Pro Nitrous) and Fletcher Cox (Pro Street) all claimed wins in Thursday’s conclusion of the rain-delayed Darlington event which was postponed due to cold conditions.
5 – PITTMAN TO THE TOP OF 632 – Jeff Pittman’s steady climb in Pro 632 hit another milestone Friday night when he earned his first career No. 1 qualifier award at Darana Motorsports Park.
Coming off a runner-up finish in Thursday’s postponed Carolina Nationals, Pittman drove his Hickory Enclosed Trailers ’68 Chevelle to a 4.147 at 171.29. The run continued the momentum he has built since joining Alan O’Brien’s Greenbrier operation last season.
With Patrick Barnhill tuning and Barry Allen supplying the power, Pittman has looked more settled in the class this year. Friday’s result backed that up.
“It’s really a good thing,” said Pittman. “We’ve come close several times and just got knocked out. This year we’ve really kind of tuned the program up. It seems to be going a lot smoother, things are working a little bit better, and I’m a whole lot more comfortable in the car. This whole deal is about little bitty bits and pieces of rewards here and there. I think we’ve got a good piece to go into race day with, and we came pretty close the other night in the finals for the Darlington race. So I hope we can one-up that position. That’s our goal.”
JC Beattie Jr. qualified second with a 4.169 at 170.45 in his ’18 Camaro. Carson Hoyle was third with a 4.178 at 169.23 in his ’69 Camaro.
6 – MORE FROM MCGEE – Connor McGee arrived at Darana already holding momentum, then added more to the pile Friday night. The defending world champion and defending event winner grabbed the No. 1 spot in Super Street and put one side of a new class E.T. record on the board.
Fresh off Thursday’s postponed Carolina Nationals victory, McGee drove his Fulton-powered Brian’s Heating & Cooling ’90 Mustang to a 4.467 at 160.29. He now needs a 4.511 or quicker in eliminations to officially back up the mark.
McGee’s offseason work has clearly carried into race season. He now heads into eliminations with another target on his back.
“Really what it takes is what everybody doesn’t see,” McGee said. “We went into Darlington testing, made some good runs, tested some things out. But what people don’t see is the 10 times we’re going to the track in the offseason to get runs, make 330 hit after 330 hit and blow stuff up and try new things and change stuff. All the stuff that we do outside of the scheduled events is what really makes things happen. You can’t just show up and expect to be good. You have to go in, practice, and be ready.”
Austin Vincent qualified second with a 4.548 at 152.80 in his ’88 Mustang. Ryan Altman was third with a 4.657 at 150.51 in the ’02 Camaro.
7 – FOWLER IS THE TOP SPORTSMAN – Elite Top Sportsman turned into a horsepower shootout Friday, with three different combinations stacking 3.77-second runs at Darana Motorsports Park. When the smoke cleared, Jamie Fowler was back on top.
For the second straight race, Fowler claimed the No. 1 spot in his nitrous-fed, Fulton-powered Pee Dee Fleet ’69 Camaro with a 3.772 at 198.41. Consistency is becoming his early-season calling card.
Scott Duggins took second on speed with a 3.773 at 196.19 in his ProCharged ’63 Corvette. Reigning world champion Bryan LaFlam qualified third with a 3.773 at 195.68 in his roots-blown ’67 Mustang.
8 – WESTFALL GETS HIS FIRST NO. 1 – Bruce Westfall turned progress into payoff Friday night, earning his first Elite Top Dragster No. 1 qualifier award at Darana Motorsports Park.
The Granville, Ohio, racer drove his supercharged ’25 Race Tech dragster to a 3.719 at 196.53 to lead the field after finishing just outside the top three at the season opener. It was the next step forward for a team trending the right way.
Josh Duggins qualified second with a 3.725 at 200.62 in his ’14 Maddox dragster. Gray Kimble took third with a 3.761 at 198.23 in his ’18 Miller dragster.
9 – THE LEADER OF THE 32’S – Taylor Holland led the racers bumped outside Elite Top Dragster, using a 4.168 at 168.60 to claim the No. 1 spot in Top Dragster 48. It gave his team the next-best path after missing the elite field.
Mike Alexander Jr. came up one spot short of the 16-car Elite Top Sportsman field, but still left with the top position in Top Sportsman 32. His 4.172 at 172.30 in a ProCharged ’63 Corvette put him at the head of that ladder.
10 – ON TAP – Saturday starts early at Darana with final Jr. Dragster qualifying at 9 a.m. The Edelbrock Bracket Bash presented by Philadelphia Racing Products time trial and opening round of sportsman eliminations follow.
Pre-race ceremonies and the first round of professional eliminations begin at noon.
