In the first rounds of qualifying at the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing
Series event presented by Budweiser at Southwestern Int’l Raceway, Mike
De Palma of Glendale, Ariz., sits atop the Comp Eliminator field and
Peoria, Ariz., racer Tibor Kadar leads in Super Stock. Tucson
residents Lance Samson and Tom Patterson are the No. 1 and 2 qualifiers
in Sportsman Motorcycle presented by Harley Davidson. The race kicked
off Friday and will wrap up on Saturday.
De Palma, wheeling his ’98 Firebird, covered the quarter-mile in 8.261
seconds, just enough to put him ahead of No. 2 qualifier Dean Carter,
also a resident of Glendale. Tucson’s Jeff Sams is currently the No.
10 qualifier in the category.
Kadar drove his ’92 Camaro to the top of the Super Stock field with a
9.618-second pass. No. 2 qualifier Frank Grossi of Upland, Calif., and
No. 3 qualifier Eric Bell of Chandler, Ariz., are just off the pace.