Piedmont Dragway presented a scorcher of an event yesterday, as the facility's
trademark Big Dog series assembled a thriller show, even as temperatures soared
into the mid 90's. Almost as hot as the June sun, the red hot Ronnie Gardner
collected win number 2 last night, with the running of Big Dog's third event for
2008.
Gardner, once a dominate force in Big Dog during the
late 1990's and years following, went winless in 2007 as competition became
brutal with 7 different winners in 8 events last season. Driving for car owner
Jack Gaddy, Gardner is enjoying his best series start in years - winning the
season-opener - followed by last night's display of power and
consistency.
Repeating his qualifying performance from last month,
Gardner once again solidly muscled his way into the show with a #2 spot on the
qualifying sheet, as 23 capable race cars were trying to fight their way into
the 8-car roster that made up the main event. Gardner stopped the clocks with
a 4.28, 173mph on his best attempt through two rounds of
qualifying.
Show it, win it and take it to Indy. That's the plan for entrees in the
It’s not only hot, bad and fast, it’s the creation of legendary custom-car designer – RJ de Vera.
Fourteen-time NHRA Funny Car champion John Force had as much warning as
