A likely showdown between defending American Drag Racing League champion Bubba
Stanton of Potts Camp, Miss., NHRA Pro Modified champion-to-be Joshua Hernandez
of Conroe, Texas, and ADRL national record holder Jason Scruggs of
Saltillo, Miss., looms large this week as the ADRL
returns to Steve Earwood’s Rockingham Dragway for Dragstock
IV.
While Stanton is the current ADRL
points leader in the featured Pro Extreme class, Hernandez may be the hottest
Pro Modified driver on the planet. Wheeling the “Dr. Moon’s Rage” Chevrolet
for Howard Moon, the Texas driver has won five of seven races this season in the
NHRA Pro Mod Series and was runner-up in a sixth, all but locking up the AMS
Championship.
He also has enjoyed
previous success at The Rock where he was the Pro Modified Champion at the IHRA
Spring Nationals in 2006.
Dragstock IV is the
last of eight races in which drivers can earn points that will determine who
will compete for Flowmaster ADRL championships in the Battle of the Belts at Ennis, Texas.
The top eight drivers after Saturday’s eliminations will compete Oct. 12 in a
showdown event at Ennis,
Texas that will determine champions
in Pro Extreme, Pro Nitrous, Pro Extreme Motorcycle and Extreme 10.5 classes.
Pro qualifying for
Dragstock IV begins Friday with a single session at 8 p.m. followed Saturday by
12 noon and 3 p.m. sessions that will set the fields for final eliminations. A
single round of racing Saturday afternoon will set the stage for final
eliminations beginning at 7 p.m.