IHRA NORTH AMERICAN NATIONALS - EVENT NOTEBOOK
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SUNDAY NOTEBOOK - LAGANA DEFENDS TOP FUEL IN EPPING
Last season Bobby Lagana Jr. won his second career IHRA Knoll Gas Nitro Jam Top Fuel event at New England Dragway, claiming a final round win over his drag racing mentor and idol, Chris Karamesines. This year the opponent was different, but Lagana ended up in the same place Sunday afternoon by visiting the winner’s circle after a finals win over T.J. Zizzo during the Amalie Oil North American Nationals presented by New England Dodge Dealers.
Other professional winners include Dale Creasy Jr. (Nitro Funny Car), Mike Janis (Pro Modified), Mark Thomas (Alcohol Funny Car) and Frank Gugliotta (Pro Stock).
Lagana, from Scarsdale, N.Y. carded a 4.980 at 285.23 mph to secure the win over Zizzo, who ran a 5.714 at 171.93. Despite losing, Zizzo leaves the race No. 1 in the points chase over Bruce Litton.
“I really just wanted to qualify so we could come out here and have some fun on Sunday,” said Lagana Jr. “My dad, he came down to top end crying. He was so happy. Problem is now he wants to take a lap in the car.”
Mike Smith’s Knoll Gas Torco Racing Fuels Pro Nitro Funny Car debut was a success, but in the end he came up just short. Smith fell to defending world champion Dale Creasy Jr. with the Ironman on the line. Creasy Jr., Beecher, Ill., took a free run down the quarter-mile strip when Smith broke after his burnout and could not get his car into gear.
“Every time we get to the winner’s circle it feels like the first,” said Creasy Jr. “The whole season is going so well I hate to even bring it up.
“This weekend the car was going down the race track, the driver just couldn’t keep it together. I was struggling. And the more I thought about it, the more I struggled. First round I really tried to calm myself down and it worked,” added Creasy Jr.
Mark Thomas advanced to his fifth final round of the 2007 IHRA Nitro Jam campaign and built his national points lead by topping Rob Atchison in the final. Atchison did defeat Paul Noakes, who he fell to in the last two national events, in the semifinal but could not get past Thomas in the money run. Atchison is now second in the points, trailing Thomas.
“You always want to race hard and win in close races, and that’s what we did here,” said Thomas. “Rob and I are good friends, and it was just really cool that we ran so close, 5.80 to 5.80. It’s nice to keep that points lead going too.”
Mike Janis claimed his 16th career Torco’s CompetitionPlus.com Pro Modified Ironman, his first of the season, by stopping defending world champion Quain Stott in the final round. Notably the Pro Modified field proved diversity is back in the class as seven of the 16 car field were nitrous-powered entries.
Janis won by clocking a 6.087 at 235.64 mph after setting the world speed record earlier in the event with a 240.21 pass.
“After the year we’ve been having struggling, this is great,” said Janis. “I made it to the final in Grand Bend but couldn’t win. Small things have been biting us all year and today we ran consistent and it finally came together.”
Frank Gugliotta continued his march towards the top of the national points standings, winning his second consecutive national event. Gugliotta, who defeated Larry O’Brien in the final round last weekend in Martin, topped current points leader Robert Patrick in the final round in Epping. Gugliotta carded a 6.417 at 220.22 mph to defeat a red-lighting Patrick.
“To win two in a row, in two weekends, this feels really good,” said Gugliotta. “But you know how it is in this deal, you gotta ride it while you can. It can end at anytime.
”I’m really
proud of my team. We struggled this weekend, had some engine problems, but we
prevailed. That shows how good of a team we have and I’m really proud to be
racing with them.”
The next event on the $19.5 million Knoll Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series is the Suzuki Motor City Nationals presented by Heritage Newspapers and GM Performance Division, August 24-26, at Milan Dragway.
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Sunday's final results from the Amalie Oil North American Nationals presented by New England Dodge Dealers at New England Dragway. The race is the seventh of 11 in the $19.5 million 2007 Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series: 
Top Fuel -- Bobby Lagana Jr., 4.980 seconds, 285.29 mph def. T.J. Zizzo, 5.714 seconds, 171.93 mph.
Nitro Funny Car -- Dale Creasy Jr., Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.211, 292.52 def. Mike Smith, Chevy Camaro, broke.
Pro Modified -- Mike Janis, Chevy Cobalt, 6.087, 235.64 def. Quain Stott, Chevy Corvette, 18.234, 52.65.
Alcohol Funny Car -- Mark Thomas, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.800, 247.11 def. Rob Atchison, Monte Carlo, 5.803, 246.21.
Pro Stock -- Frank Gugliotta, Chevy Cobalt, 6.417, 220.22 def. Robert Patrick, Shelby Cobra, foul.
Top Sportsman -- Jason Lynch, Cavalier, 7.199, 183.00 def. Gary Bingham, Grand Am, 7.243, 183.79.
Top Dragster -- Wayne Hoffman, Dragster, 7.253, 183.97 def. Jeff Brown, Dragster, 7.248, 182.82.
Quick Rod -- Jim Ditucci, '23-T Ford, 8.903, 159.64 def. Joe Hoyle, Dragster, 8.874, 163.29.
Super Rod -- Chuck Rothermel, Cutlass, 9.921, 161.69 def. Charlie Kenopic, '27-T Ford, 9.951, 150.26.
Hot Rod -- Kenny Underwood, Camaro, 10.936, 129.82 def. Dennis Altman, Camaro, 10.926, 131.41.
Super Stock -- Joe Santangelo Jr., Camaro, 11.236, 90.21 def. Anthony Bertozzi, Grand Am, 13.338, 67.68.
Stock -- Jim Boudreau, Camaro, 10.411, 125.67 def. Gregory Gay, Super Bee, 10.888, 121.35.
ET Bracket -- Scott Curtis, Monte Carlo, 9.857, 134.30 def. Jared Kinson, Camaro, 9.809, 134.79.
ET Box -- Scott Curtis, Monte Carlo, 9.864, 132.74 def. Alan Elliott, Dragster, 7.674, 173.74.
ET No Box -- Jared Kinson, Camaro, 9.837, 132.66 def. Mike Piela, Mustang, 9.989, 133.87.
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SATURDAY NOTEBOOK - MASSIVE CROWD SEES GILBERTSON NO. 1 NITRO FUNNY CAR QUALIFIER
Bob Gilbertson, Gastonia, N.C.,
qualified No. 1 in Knoll Gas Torco Racing Fuels Pro Nitro Funny Car during the
Amalie Oil North American Nationals presented by New England Dodge Dealers. Gilbertson covered the New England Dragway quarter-mile in 4.953 seconds at
309.91 mph, also earning Last Man Standing in front of the capacity
crowd.
Other professional No. 1 qualifiers include TJ Zizzo (Top Fuel), Mike Janis (Pro Modified), Terry Munroe (Alcohol Funny Car) and Brian Gahm (Pro Stock).
Trailing Gilbertson in Nitro Funny Car qualifying is Andy Kelley and Mike Smith, two and three. Points leader Dale Creasy Jr. sits fourth, followed by Jack Wyatt, Mitch King, Jeff Diehl and Terry Haddock.
Zizzo topped the Knoll Gas Torco Racing Fuels Pro Nitro Top
Fuel class with a 4.610, 320.13, which earned the
Lincolnshire,
Ill., driver Last Man Standing as well. Terry McMillen
qualified second, 4.663, followed by Scotty Cannon 
and Bobby Lagana Jr. Current
points leader Bruce Litton is fifth. His lead over Zizzo is less than one round,
and the two will meet in the first round of
eliminations.
In Torco’s CompetitionPlus.com Pro Modified, Janis, Lancaster, N.Y., used the afternoon qualifying session to set the No. 1 mark at 6.064, 239.74. The speed is fast enough to give him the world record if he can back up the run. He’s trailed by Ed Hoover, who earned the Last Man Standing. Shannon Jenkins sits third and Jason Hamstra, who won the last IHRA event in Martin, Mich., is fourth. Harold Martin holds the bump spot.
Alcohol Funny Car driver Munroe, Beaver, Pa., who entered the event second in points, earned top qualifier and Last Man Standing. His 5.771, 242.54, was enough to outlast No. 2 qualifier Rob Atchison, current points leader Mark Thomas and Paul Noakes. Neal Parker locked up the bump spot with a 5.962.
Gahm, Lucasville,
Ohio, used a 6.343 ET to take the No. 1 spot in Torco’s
CompetitionPlus.com Pro Stock, as well as the
Quarter-Max Pro Stock Challenge.
His speed of 221.27 tied the world record set by Robert Patrick at New England
Dragway in 2006. Patrick finished second, followed by Frank Gugliotta, Rob
Mansfield and Pete Berner. Dan Sweeney, Groton,
Mass., qualified twelfth.
Professional eliminations are scheduled for Sunday at 10:30 a.m., 12 noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. The Amalie Oil North American Nationals presented by New England Dodge Dealers is the seventh of eleven events on the $19.5 million 2007 Knoll Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series.
First-round pairings for professional eliminations Sunday for the Amalie Oil North American Nationals presented by New England Dodge Dealers at New England Dragway, the seventh of 11 events in the $19.5 million 2007 Knoll Gas Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series. Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday.
Top Fuel -- 1. T.J. Zizzo, 4.610 seconds, 321.04 mph vs. 5. Bruce Litton, 4.917, 298.21; 2. Terry McMillen, 4.663, 297.68 vs. 6. Jim Cavalieri, 5.007, 233.12; 3. Scotty Cannon, 4.768, 305.98 vs. 7. Jeff O'Neill, 5.080, 296.05; 4. Bobby Lagana Jr., 4.854, 267.27 vs. 8. Mitch King, 11.725, 71.11.
Nitro Funny Car -- 1. Bob Gilbertson, Dodge Stratus, 4.953, 309.91 vs. 5. Jack Wyatt, Stratus, 6.224, 153.61; 2. Andy Kelley, Pontiac Firebird, 5.101, 294.43 vs. 6. Mitch King, Chevy Corvette, 6.546, 138.70; 3. Mike Smith, Chevy Camaro, 5.429, 270.59 vs. 7. Jeff Diehl, Firebird, 9.939, 81.38; 4. Dale Creasy Jr., Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.633, 184.14 vs. 8. Terry Haddock, Stratus, 10.688, 90.59.
Pro Modified -- 1. Mike Janis, Chevy Cobalt, 6.064, 239.74 vs. 9. Scott Cannon, Pontiac Firebird, 6.164, 214.93; 2. Ed Hoover, Chevy Corvette, 6.071, 235.35 vs. 10. Quain Stott, Corvette, 6.165, 232.55; 3. Shannon Jenkins, Pontiac GTO, 6.090, 234.57 vs. 11. Jim Halsey, Chevy Camaro, 6.179, 230.02; 4. Jason Hamstra, Corvette, 6.096, 230.13 vs. 12. Burton Auxier, Corvette, 6.180, 225.67; 5. Matt Hagan, Corvette, 6.098, 234.74 vs. 13. Pat Stoken, Camaro, 6.209, 228.96; 6. Mike Castellana, Ford Mustang, 6.121, 230.49 vs. 14. Steve Salvadore, Firebird, 6.216, 229.27; 7. Chip King, Dodge Daytona, 6.145, 235.93 vs. 15. Danny Rowe, Corvette, 6.285, 230.25; 8. Kirk Kuhns, Willys, 6.160, 224.51 vs. 16. Harold Martin, Pontiac Grand Am, 6.285, 221.67.
Alcohol Funny Car -- 1. Terry Munroe, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.771, 242.54 vs. 5. Larry Dobbs, Chevy Corvette, 5.878, 240.04; 2. Rob Atchison, Monte Carlo, 5.794, 244.96 vs. 6. Scott McNiece, Olds Cutlass, 5.919, 238.89; 3. Mark Thomas, Monte Carlo, 5.833, 247.07 vs. 7. Frederick Tigges, Dodge Avenger, 5.958, 241.89; 4. Paul Noakes, Ford Mustang, 5.842, 243.77 vs. 8. Neal Parker, Monte Carlo, 5.962, 236.88.
Pro Stock -- 1. Brian Gahm, Ford Mustang, 6.343, 221.27 vs. 9. John Montecalvo, Chevy Cobalt, 6.385, 219.61; 2. Robert Patrick, Shelby Cobra, 6.358, 219.65 vs. 10. Rickie Smith, Cobalt, 6.388, 218.97; 3. Frank Gugliotta, Cobalt, 6.363, 219.90 vs. 11. Elijah Morton, Ford ZX2, 6.396, 219.33; 4. Rob Mansfield, Pontiac GTO, 6.364, 220.55 vs. 12. Dan Sweeney, GTO, 6.397, 218.48; 5. Pete Berner, GTO, 6.365, 220.22 vs. 13. Jeff Dobbins, Ford Escort, 6.403, 219.65; 6. John Nobile, Mustang, 6.370, 219.58 vs. 14. Bob Bertsch, Mustang, 6.409, 219.79; 7. Cary Goforth, Cobalt, 6.375, 220.22 vs. 15. Dean Goforth, GTO, 6.442, 216.90; 8. Steve Spiess, Cobalt, 6.377, 219.61 vs. 16. Anthony Paone, GTO, 6.461, 217.25.
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HEADS ARE ROLLING?
An IHRA official was observed transporting what appeared to be a body bag from the property early Saturday morning. The speculation is that this could be the remains of the race director or the official who made the decision to run Top Dragster in the Friday night pro session resulting in lengthy oil down delays and eventual cancellation of the day's activities.
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FRIDAY NOTEBOOK – NOT A
GOOD START, SMITHS-A-PLENTY THIS WEEKEND AND A PRO STOCKER ENDORSES THE FUEL
CARS
RAIN, RAIN, GOES AWAY -
The day started out wet but not soggy at the Amalie Oil North American
Nationals. Eventual the wet conditions gave way to beautiful weather and the
sportsman was able to begin racing around 2 p.m. in front of a somewhat sparse
crowd. The forecast for the rest of the weekend calls for mild temperatures as
well as dry conditions which equals plenty of exciting racing.
Unfortunately for IHRA
officials, racers and fans, cold temperature, down-time and the on-set of dew
led to the decision.
TOP FUEL
NO FUEL FRIDAY - There was
no nitro going down the quarter-mile on Friday at New England Dragway. IHRA
officials decided to limit nitro qualifying to two sessions on Saturday in an
effort to put on a better show for the fans.
FUNNY CAR
A PAIR OF SMITH'S –
Veteran crew chief and car owner Paul Smith was once again helping Mitch King
in Epping. Smith tuned King to a runner-up finish at the last two IHRA races in
Grand Bend, Canada and
NO MONEY, NO FUNNY- Independent Funny Car campaigner Terry Haddock has long been know for making the most with what whatever he's got, and now he has a new body to race with. Haddock took delivery of a Dodge Stratus body Thursday afternoon at Epping. The car was still adorned with the Brut stickers from the sponsor of former owner Don Schumacher, who used the body on the car driven by Ron Capps. All the pertinent stickers were removed by Friday morning, with only the Torco Racing Fuels logo still attached to the rear quarter panel.
SWINGING WITH THE JUNGLE –
Bob Gilbertson isn’t taking chances this weekend. He’s bringing the Jungle Jim
tribute body with him this weekend.
"I had Jungle riding
with me last year in the final and he bought me some luck," Gilbertson
said. "Since then we've had the
body repaired and it's always been the most popular Funny Car body at any race
we go to. Jungle has a lot of history at
New England Dragway and the rabid
Gilbertson is also hungry
as he needs a win this weekend to keep his points hope alive; with a good
showing he has a chance at the 2007 title.
"It's make it or
break it time for me and this team," Gilbertson added. "A win here will give us the points we
need to stay in contention for the championship so we're going to pull out all
the stops, if we can duplicate last year's performance and get the qualifying
points, the record points and win the race we'll be in good shape to fight down
to the wire for the title. We've got
four more races after Epping and if we get on a roll we'll be there at the
end."
NEW GIG - Following the
resignation of former team driver Paul Lee, the J&B Motorsports IHRA Torco
Pro Nitro Funny Car team reached an eleventh hour agreement with Michigan local
Rob Bruce to drive during this past weekend's IHRA Torco Race Fuels Nationals
at Knoll Gas Motorsports Park. Despite
limited experience, Team Owners Jeff and Bonnie McGaffic were impressed at how
quickly the driver they dubbed 'Ricky Bobby' adapted to their 8,000 HP Nitro
Funny Car this past weekend.
As of the Thursday prior
to the event, the team was without a driver.
Fellow Nitro Funny Car and Top Fuel racer Mitch King referred Bruce,
from nearby
"We tried to call
several drivers to come in and drive for us this weekend," explained
McGaffic. "None of the drivers we
knew that would fit the car were available to drive the whole weekend. Mitch told us about this guy Rob Bruce who
lived a few hours from the track and was a competent driver with an IHRA
license and would fit the car. We called
him on Friday and he dropped what he was doing and showed up at the track a few
hours later. Needless to say, we were
impressed with his zeal and commitment from the get-go."
"We missed the Friday
session getting him fitted for the car," McGaffic continued. "While getting things ready to go for
Saturday, he kept talking about wanting to go fast, so we nicknamed him "Ricky
Bobby." He was a great guy and
worked well with our team. We had a lot
of fun with him."
In his first pass in a
competitive Nitro Funny Car, Bruce rocketed to half track, running a 3.45 at
250 mph, which was the third quickest E.T. and second fastest mph. Low qualifier and eventual winner Mike
Ashley's half track speed was only two mph faster during that session. The car started spinning the tires slightly
further down track, prompting Bruce to lift.
Despite not qualifying, the team was impressed with his driving prowess.
"The first pass out,
he took it down the track straight as a string," cited McGaffic. "We feel we've fixed the issue that was
causing us so many problems earlier in the year. On the first pass Saturday, it went 250 mph
to half track. Mike Ashley, the No. 1
qualifier only went 252 mph, so it was on a heck of a pass. Just past half track it started to break the
tires loose and he lifted. We didn't
qualify, but we showed the car that took us to four finals last year is
back."
NEED THE FUEL CARS – It’s
a rare occurrence when Pro Stock racers say their performance depends on the
nitro-powered cars for their success, but Robert Patrick did.
The Torco’s
CompetitionPlus Pro Stock point leader Patrick, who hails from
“This track always seems
to come around after the fuel cars run on it, to put down rubber. The fuel cars
don’t run until Saturday afternoon. It may be Saturday night before we can run
to our true potential. The 330 on down is the key for us. When they lay that
fresh rubber down, we can run strong.”
Another variable to strong
performances in the Torco’s CompetitionPlus Pro Stock division will depend on
Mother Nature. In seasons past, the incredible atmospheric conditions
attributed to this track were a given. Not so this season, said Patrick, since
the event is contested a month earlier than normal. Patrick said that shouldn’t
pose a problem.
“I just don’t see us having
the weather we are used to having when we come to Epping,” Patrick said. “But
then again, Brian Gahm set the record in 1,500 air, so I don’t think that is
something that is a prerequisite for the record. I think the potential for a
record is there.”
UP AND DOWN THE HIGHWAY -
After wounding an engine in the quarter-finals last weekend in Martin, Bob
Bertsch took the 'long way' from Martin to Epping. The team made the trek to horsepower
guru/engine builder Jon Kaase's shop in Winder,
Despite a lengthy road
trip, Bertsch, from
"We left Georgia at ten p.m. Wednesday night," said Bertsch. "I met my son in Pennsylvania today and we plan to be at the track by Friday morning. We found a few broken pistons that were causing our loss of power and vacuum. We have been losing vacuum slowly since Grand Bend, so it might have been hurt all last weekend. That gives us a lot of hope to run that well down on power. Now we just have to get the power we've picked back up to the ground. The track in Epping is pretty close to sea level, so it should be fast this weekend. We're definitely looking forward to it, and hope to make a great showing for Rislone Engine Treatment, Bar's Leaks and our associates Share Capital and Ram Clutches."
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