Reigning JEGS ProMod Challenge champion Josh Hernandez thrilled a partial hometown crowd when he pushed his way into the No. 1 qualifying position Saturday morning at the 21st annual O'Reilly Spring NHRA Nationals presented by Pennzoil.

The Conroe, Texas-based Hernandez was one of four racers that recorded five-second passes in qualifying, with his 5.962 at 242.50 mph in the AMS Staff Leasing Camaro the quickest of the pack. Ray Commisso (5.967), Friday leader Steve Engel (5.970), and Gainesville winner Joe Baker (5.981) also dipped into the five-second range. Reigning JEGS ProMod Challenge champion Josh Hernandez thrilled a partial hometown crowd when he pushed his way into the No. 1 qualifying position Saturday morning at the 21st annual O'Reilly Spring NHRA Nationals presented by Pennzoil.

The Conroe, Texas-based Hernandez was one of four racers that recorded five-second passes in qualifying, with his 5.962 at 242.50 mph in the AMS Staff Leasing Camaro the quickest of the pack. Ray Commisso (5.967), Friday leader Steve Engel (5.970), and Gainesville winner Joe Baker (5.981) also dipped into the five-second range.

Taylor Lastor provided some early excitement when his parachutes failed to deploy after a 6.11 at 238 mph. Lastor ended up plowing through the top-end sand trap and into the safety catch-net. He was unhurt in the ordeal but his car was damaged beyond repair. He ended up skipping post-race inspection, which negated his run and allowed Harold Laird to enter the elimination field in the 16th slot.

The final bump spot was a quick 6.171 at 230.10 mph.

Eliminations begin at 4 p.m Saturday.
 
Final order after 3 rounds of qualifying in JEGS ProMod at the 21st annual O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals presented by Pennzoil:


Psn   Num Driver, Home Town, Car Type                Qual-ET  Qual-Spd

  1    1 Joshua Hernandez, Conroe TX, '68 Camaro        5.962  242.50
  2 1090 Raymond Commisso, Toronto ON, '68 Firebird     5.967  244.87
  3  320 Steve Engel, Shandon OH, '63 Corvette          5.970  241.02
  4 2103 Joe Baker, Milton FL, '63 Corvette             5.981  241.24
  5   38 Danny Rowe, Laguna Hills CA, '68 Camaro        6.011  238.34
  6 1152 Tony Pontieri, Bolton ON, '57 Bel Air          6.020  236.96
  7    3 Jay Payne, Ontario CA, '68 Camaro              6.056  236.59
  8 1986 John Russo, Middleton MA, '68 Firebird         6.058  241.50
  9  763 Kirk Kuhns, Yorba Linda CA, '41 Willys         6.058  234.33
10    9 Rick Stivers, Lexington KY, '67 GT             6.070  235.15
11 1212 Scott Ray, Greenville OH, '53 Corvette         6.086  232.39
12    8 Shelly Payne, Ontario CA, '05 Stratus          6.089  233.36
13    6 Tim Tindle, Santa Rosa FL, '67 GT              6.095  235.35
14 1211 Mike Ashley, Melville NY, '68 Camaro           6.104  239.23
15 1941 Eddie Ware, Marietta GA, '67 Firebird          6.163  230.69
16    7 Harold Laird, Baton Rouge LA, '63 Corvette     6.171  230.10

                       Not Qualified
17 1853 Thomas Patterson, Spring TX, '41 Willys        6.269  227.46
18  113 Chip King, Semora NC, '69 Daytona              6.270  229.59
19 5835 Raymond Vettel, Phillips NE, '70 Barracuda     6.391  219.08
20  348 Brad Personett, Elkhart IN, '53 Corvette       6.523  228.61
21   24 Troy Coughlin, Delaware OH, '06 GTO            6.796  229.04
22  777 Steve Wiley, Liberty Hill TX, '68 Camaro       6.868  189.98
23  501 Mike Knowles, Grand Junction CO, '68 Camaro    6.875  220.33
24  402 Taylor Lastor, Knoxville NC, '67 Camaro        9.551  108.65