2007 -- IHRA SEASON IN REVIEW
#1 IHRA Texas Nationals - San Antonio, Texas
Over the years Bruce Litton has grown accustomed to the bridesmaid role, but he
has never liked it. While Clay Millican was reeling off six consecutive Knoll
Gas-Torco Racing Fuels Pro Nitro Top Fuel world championships Litton was always
right there in his rear view mirror. The Indianapolis-native finished second
three times (’02, ’03 and ’04) and third the three other years Millican was
dominating the class.
Now he is ready for his time in the sun.
Litton knocked off T.J. Zizzo in the final round of the season-opening Amalie Oil Texas Nationals presented by NAPA Auto Parts to claim the early points lead and prove he is ready to go after the championship…a statement he made with the off-season hiring of tuner Nicky Boninfante. Boninfante was with Litton for most of his competitive Top Fuel seasons before leaving to pursue other opportunities while Litton slipped to fifth in the final 2006 championship points standings. Now, with Boninfante back, Litton is looking for big things this season.
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#2 IHRA Spring Nationals - Rockingham, NC
Rockingham Dragway has two events on the IHRA Nitro Jam™ season schedule. Jack
Wyatt probably wishes it was more.
Wyatt, from Corydon, Iowa, won his
third national event in as many attempts at the fabled quarter-mile strip in
southern North Carolina, defeating Jon Capps in the final round to capture the
Knoll-Gas Torco Racing Fuels Pro Nitro Funny Car Ironman. Wyatt swept both
events in Rockingham last season as well, winning in the spring and the
fall.
It was even more special for Wyatt as he painted a tribute to the
Virginia Tech shooting victims on his car for the weekend.
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#3 - IHRA Sooner Nationals, Tulsa, OK
Kevin Jones, a barber from Berea, Ky., will probably be sending Doug Foley a
gift card good for a lifetime of free haircuts. When Foley decided to pull out
of the Skull Shine Sooner Nationals presented by Wolverine and Academy Sports +
Outdoors to compete in the NHRA race in Englishtown, Jones and Sipple Family
Racing were contacted by IHRA to see if they were interested in filling out the
Knoll-Gas Torco Racing Fuels Pro NitroTop Fuel field by competing at the Nitro
Jam event in Tulsa.
They had three days to get ready and head to Oklahoma, but the trip was more than worthwhile.
Jones drove past Bruce Litton, Indianapolis, to claim the first career Ironman for Sipple Family Racing. He carded a 5.138 at 260.71 mph to defeat Litton, who lost traction at half-track and lifted out of the run. Jones and crew chief Mike Sipple were thrilled with the victory, but they wish John “Doc” Sipple, the patriarch of Sipple Family Racing, could have been there to enjoy it with them.
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#4 IHRA Rocky Mountain Nationals, Edmonton, Alb.
Veteran racer Terry McMillen,
Elkhart, Ind., defeated first-time Top Fuel competitor Jeff O’Neill during the
CARS RV & Marine & Motorsport Rocky Mountain Nationals presented by
Torco Racing Fuels. Both competitors came to Castrol Raceway seeking their first
career Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam event wins.
Other professional winners included Terry Haddock (Nitro Funny Car), Ed Hoover (Pro Modified), Mark Thomas (Alcohol Funny Car) and Robert Patrick (Pro Stock). Sportsman eliminations are still underway after a short rain-delay.
McMillen, who entered Knoll Gas Torco Racing Fuels Pro Nitro Top Fuel eliminations qualified No. 7, ran a 4.953 in round one to take out Mike Strasburg. His semifinal opponent was teammate Doug Foley, who had just dispatched Bruce Litton. Foley was No. 1 qualifier and had event low ET of 4.581. However, in round two, Foley shook the tires at half-track and McMillen took the stripe to advance to the finals.
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#5 IHRA Mopar Canadian Nationals - Grand Bend, Ont.
It wasn’t a good weekend for former winners, class champions, or No. 1
qualifiers at this weekend’s MOPAR Canadian Nationals at Grand Bend Motorplex,
which is located on the shores of Lake Huron.
In Top Fuel, last year’s
winner Bobby Lagana went down to Jim Cavalieri in the first round, while in
Nitro Funny Car, Mitch King sent Terry Haddock, winner of the last race at
Edmonton, to the sidelines in the opening stanza. Top-runner Jack Wyatt was also
eliminated, falling to Dale Creasy Jr.
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#6 - IHRA TORCO Northern Nationals - Martin, MI.
Clay Millican is a busy man. Between running the NHRA tour fulltime and starring
in his own TV show, SPEED’s Blow it Up, he was able to make a return to his IHRA
roots at this weekend’s Northern Nationals.
“It’s nice to be back,” said
the six-time IHRA Top Fuel champ. “It’s great to see everybody and hang out with
all my old friends and IHRA family.”
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#7 - IHRA North American Nationals -- Epping, NH.
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).
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#8 - IHRA Canadian Nationals -- Cayuga, Ontario
Terry McMillen is getting the hang of this whole Nitro thing. After driving in
the Alcohol Funny Car ranks for years without finding the Winner’s Circle,
McMillen, Elkhart, Ind. won his second IHRA Knoll Gas Nitro Jam national event
of the season in the Top Fuel class with a final round win over national points
leader T.J. Zizzo during the Canadian Nationals presented by
PartSource.
McMillen posted a 3.106 elapsed time at 270.16 mph to knock
off Zizzo, who carded a 3.313, 246.03. The race was contested on an eighth-mile
format due to weather conditions and track concerns. After heavy rain moisture
was seeping through the track near the guard walls, forcing IHRA officials to
shorten the race. This tactic was also used at the season-opening race in San
Antonio, Texas. The shorter race worked just fine for McMillen.
“I told
Dale (Creasy Jr.) that we were both going to end up in the winner’s circle at
this one and get a big picture for Evan Knoll to put up on the wall,” said
McMillen. “This is just great for us to both win here in Toronto.”
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#9 - IHRA Motor City Nationals -- Milan, MI.
The Suzuki Motor City Nationals
presented by GM Performance Division and Heritage Newspapers at Milan Dragway
has tentatively been moved to Sept. 21-23 due to weather concerns.
Heavy rain in Southeast Michigan Friday night dropped over an inch of rain on the Milan area. In addition, the region has experienced nearly 12 inches of rain in the past six days. IHRA was able to get the track dried Saturday morning and racing began at 9:30 a.m., but the rains came again at noon and continued until 3:00 p.m. when IHRA officials finally decided to pull the plug on the event.
The steady rain completely saturated the track surface, leading to the determination by IHRA track guru Jim Weinert that it would not be possible to offer a safe race track to the racers until late Sunday or early Monday at the earliest.
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#10 - IHRA TORCO President's Cup Nationals -- Budds Creek, Md.
There was a familiar face back in the Winner’s Circle at Maryland International
Raceway. Six-time IHRA Top Fuel world champion Clay Millican, who raced a full
schedule on the NHRA tour this season, came to Maryland International Raceway to
defend last season’s event championship. He succeeded, knocking off current
points leader T.J. Zizzo in the final round to claim his 51st career national
event Ironman.
It was Millican’s first career national event victory with new Crew Chief Johnny West, and he had to earn it. Zizzo, in a close race for the IHRA world championship, threw everything he had at Millican, posting a 4.685 at 321.73 mph. Millican was able to edge him with a 4.576 at 325.85…a pass that backed up his provisional record run of 328.14 set during Friday qualifying.
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# 11. IHRA World Finals -- Rockingham, NC.
Veteran Bruce Litton overcame years of championship
frustration Sunday, claiming his first IHRA series championship in impressive fashion by
winning the Top Fuel championship at the 12th annual Knoll-Gas Nitro Jam World
Finals at Rockingham Dragway.
Although he clinched the $150,000 championship with a first round win over veteran Luigi Novelli of Crete, Ill., the 51-year-old Indianapolis businessman closed the deal by stopping six-time former IHRA Pro Modified Champion Scotty Cannon in a classic final round.
Litton won one of three championships that remained undecided entering Sunday’s eliminations, but was the only new champ to also win the race.
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