Raymond Commisso may not of have won Sunday's  Get Screened America Pro Mod Series event at the NHRA SuperNationals, but there weren't many people happier than Commisso at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park.

The Canadian restaurateur reached the semifinals in his R2B2 Motors Camaro after not racing for more than a month while tending to family matters following the death of his father. He said getting back in his racecar and running well was just the tonic he needed.

"This was a great weekend," Commisso said. "For me this was my first race of the year. The way I'm feeling after what we just did, it's like a fresh start. I feel like I wasn't even at those other races."

Doug Gordon picked up where he left off last year at Top Gun Raceway and the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series taking the win in Top Alcohol Funny Car and his fourth straight at Top Gun.  Gordon has not lost at the Fallon, Nev., facility since 2005.   (The Top Alcohol Dragster and Funny Car classes did not compete in the 2007 event.)

Gordon qualified No. 1 in his ‘07 Monte Carlo and beat Jessica Cherniack, Henderson, Nev., and second generation driver Steve Gasparrelli, West Covina, Calif., on his way to a final round match up with No. 2 qualifier John Lombardo Jr., Brea, Calif.   Gordon, of Paso Robles, Calif., ran consistent all day posting runs of 5.907 and 5.900 in rounds 1 & 2 then another 5.900 seconds at 244.56 mph in the final to Lombardo’s 6.232, 212.93 mph.

Medford, Ore., racer Mike Austin defeated Shawn Cowie in the final of Top Alcohol Dragster with a lap of 5.688 seconds at 250.55 mph while Cowie suffered mechanical problems.  Austin held off former Pacific Division Champion Chris Demke in the semifinals taking the win on a holeshot.

For the first time outside its national events, the California-based National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) awarded much-coveted “Wally” trophies to the winners of NHRA Unleashed, a brand-new, made-for-TV drag racing series featuring several “outlaw” eighth-mile classes and quarter-mile index classes that kicked off this weekend at Atlanta Dragway. Named after NHRA founder Wally Parks, the gold-colored trophy has long been considered the ultimate symbol of excellence for drag racers.

The gesture was not lost on drivers like Robert Mathis, who steered his nitrous-fed ’68 Camaro to the Dixie Pro Mod title with strong run against former ADRL Pro Nitrous World Champion Keith Baker in the final round.

Competition will resume at 10 AM, EST., beginning with the incomplete fifth round of Stock eliminator and other sportsman divisions.

Professional eliminations are slated for 11 AM.

Von Smith was able to fight off mother nature and a tough field in the NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Series at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park to get his second win of the season and in his career in the series.

In the finals, which were held on Monday due to rain postponing action on Sunday, Smith was paired up with Mike Castellana, who was in his first final round appearance of the year.  At the start Smith held an early advantage and never looked back on his way to the end of the quarter mile.  Smith posted a winning pass of 5.890 seconds at 247.52 mph to a losing run of 6.182 seconds at 196.87mph.

The added pressure, expectations and attention that comes with landing a new major sponsor seems to have brought out the best in Josh Hernandez.

A race after advancing to the final in Richmond while debuting his new Fight Me MMA sponsorship, Hernandez and his ’57 Chevy took it a step further on Saturday, winning in Pro Extreme at the ADRL Ford Drive One Summer Drags VI at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, MI.

“To come out with a new sponsor and within two races have a win, that’s what we’re in it for,” Hernandez said. “To be in that winner’s circle, nothing makes me happier.

Mike Edwards has no qualms about sharing his performance secret.

He’s first because he’s second.

“Well I am, I am second in my eyes,” Edwards contends. “God is first for sure.”

Following his seventh No. 1 qualifying effort, his latest at the NHRA SuperNationals, Edwards became the first NHRA Full Throttle professional drag racer to clinch a berth in the Countdown to 1. Edwards has led the NHRA Pro Stock point standings since February.

On Friday evening at the NHRA SuperNationals in Englishtown, NJ, Cory McClenathan ran a 3.752 elapsed time, the quickest run in the history of NHRA Top Fuel since 1,000 feet became the recognized racing distance. McClenathan believes if the conditions are conducive to quick runs on raceday, he’s confident he’ll either back up the provisional record or establish a new mark.

McClenathan confidence comes from not only his team but also the
students and their professors in the Motorsports Engineering program at Indiana Univ. Purdue Univ. at Indianapolis (IUPUI).

"We have been working very closely with IUPUI at Don Schumacher Racing, and those kids over there are just unbelievable when it comes to aerodynamics and the way a chassis should work. They were a big part of how we built our DSR car last year and different configurations we tried this year.”