TORRENCE LEADS TOP FUEL STANDINGS – BILLY TORRENCE, THAT IS

Written by Susan Wade, photos by Richard Brady, NHRA    Mon, 2019-02-25 07:00

 



Torrence leads the Top Fuel standings once again.

But it’s not the same Torrence NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series fans might expect.

It’s part-time racer Billy Torrence rather than his reigning class-champion son Steve, who took over the standings last year after winning this race at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park at Chandler, Ariz., and utterly dominated the field – and led for a stretch of 10 in 13 events in 2017.

Billy Torrence shared the winners circle with Funny Car’s Matt Hagan, who scored a runaway victory over JR Todd, and Pro Stock’s Jeg Coughlin, who earned his 62nd overall victory and fourth here.

Now Steve gets to watch his 60-year-old dad have his turn in the spotlight in a matching Capco Contractors Dragster – leading the points for the first time in his 34-race career.

Torrence the Elder defeated Leah Pritchett in the final round of Sunday’s Magic Dry Organic Absorbant Arizona Nationals to remain perfect in final rounds. It’s also only his second victory in as many final appearances. Both came when he was the event’s No. 1 qualifier.

He earned his first triumph since last Aug. 19 at Brainerd, Minn., using a 3.965-second elapsed time at 326.40 mph to leave Pritchett’s traction-plagued Mopar Pennzoil Dragster far behind on the 1,000-foot course.

She finished the pass in a disappointing 9.568 seconds at 75.68 mph in her bid for a third Phoenix victory in four years and first overall victory since last July at Denver.

Torrence advanced past three racers seeking their first victories: Terry Totten in the Mr. Magoo Dragster; Mike Salinas, who according to conventional wisdom is on the verge of winning in his Scrappers Dragster; and Jordan Vandergriff, the second impressive rookie sensation to debut in consecutive races.

“It’s wonderful. It’s just a blessing to be out here. I would like to have raced Steve in the final. That didn’t work out. But it just worked out great,” Torrence said. “It was a tough weekend for the weather, for the NHRA. But it came out great. We’re proud to be out here, representing NHRA.

“It’s so humbling to be able to come out here and race with my family,”  he said.  “It’s top of the world, really, top of the world.  And I can’t say enough about the guys that put this car together.  We are really blessed as a family to be able to do this and have some success at it and I give God all the glory.”

His son, who experienced a rare first-round loss Sunday, did provide some encouragement and counsel.

“He just told me to keep on doing what I was doing. I asked him if there was anything I needed to do different, and he said, ‘Looks like you’re doing a good job. Just keep on doing that and just be comfortable.”   

Pritchett reached her 14th final round past Cameron Ferre, Terry McMillen and Antron Brown.

Torrence said Saturday night he didn’t plan to enter the March 14-17 Amalie Oil Gatornationals at Gainesville, Fla., the third of 24 events on the tour. His plan was to return at Las Vegas for four-wide action, then compete at Houston, not far from his Kilgore, Texas, home.

“They’ve got me penciled in to run as many as 14 [events],” he said. “I’ll race all of them that it’s not detrimental to win.”

If he should find himself in a Countdown-eligible situation, Torrence said, “I’d have to talk to The Powers That Be about that right there. I’m here on invitation only, so they’ll let me know.

“All those guys have to work double-hard to get me out [to the racetrack]. Several of the guys who work on my team are part-time. So it puts an additional burden on Steve’s bunch, too, It’s a big deal, and I’m just grateful that they let me come out, because I’m not the one with the Top Fuel career. I’m still pipeline.

“I have a super-team, really two super-teams. Steve’s teams works on my car and prepares it, and my part-time guys maintain it. I get the best of both worlds. So when I come out , I have a car that’s capable of winning anytime,” he said.

Steve Torrence’s Richard Hogan-led crew with dedicated brothers Bobby and Dom Lagana in the brain trust work with crew chiefs Walt Przybyl and Jason McCulloch. 

 

 

 
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