Scott Libersher, Jim Grossi Jr., Daniel Williams, Kirk Lanz and Aaron Steinkey led their respective Sportsman categories as qualifying and early eliminations continued Thursday at the 26th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series competitors delivered several performances well under their class indexes, while a $20,000 Competition Eliminator showdown narrowed to two finalists.
Libersher, of Wilmington, Illinois, grabbed the provisional No. 1 qualifying position in Competition Eliminator with a 7.793-second run in his FS/SM 2023 Chevrolet, running .697 under his 8.49 index. Steve Graham of South San Francisco, California, followed with a 7.038 in his B/A 2015 Camaro, .642 under his index.
Phoenix racer Kayla Mozeris and Chino, California’s Ryan Priddy were tied for third at .624 under their respective indexes, with Mozeris running 8.456 in her 2005 Cavalier and Priddy posting a 6.526 in his 2020 Camaro. Jeff Taylor, the defending national champion from Sellersburg, Indiana, completed the top five with a 6.660, .610 under the A/ED index.
David Barton, who has made his reputation in Factory Stock competition, placed sixth with a 7.793 in his FS/SM Camaro, .597 under his index. Mike Dahl, Ryan Warter, Taylor Chomiski and Travis Gusso completed the top 10 after the opening qualifying session.
Grossi, of Brentwood, California, took command of Super Stock qualifying with an 8.775-second pass in his FGT/C 1969 Corvette, a substantial 1.185 seconds under his 9.96 index. His performance gave him a comfortable advantage over Mike Johnston of Parker, Arizona, who ran 9.264 in his 2012 Camaro, 1.106 under the FSS/F index.
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Tim Seymour of San Dimas, California, qualified third with a 9.160, 1.060 under the FSS/E index, while Kevin Motter of Anaheim, California, secured fourth with a 10.399, 1.041 under. Georgia’s Jeff Adkinson rounded out the top five with a 9.337, 1.033 under the FSS/F index.
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Jason DeForrest, Don Keen, Casey Youngstrom, Tom Ferruggia and Lenny Lottig filled positions six through 10. All 10 drivers were more than nine-tenths under their respective indexes, showing how little room there was for a marginal performance near the top of the qualifying order.
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Williams, who traveled from Northampton, England, made his Las Vegas appearance count by qualifying No. 1 in Stock Eliminator. His B/S 1969 Nova recorded a 10.186-second pass, 1.204 seconds under the 11.39 index, giving him the largest margin under the index among the listed Stock qualifiers.
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Keen, pulling double duty in Stock and Super Stock, qualified second with a 10.448 in his C/S 1968 Mustang, 1.092 under the index. Pete Lanciers of Spring Valley, California, was third with an 11.011 in his 1973 Duster, followed by C.W. Hoefer and Tyler Cassil.
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Sante Grossi, Mike Cotten, Scott Burton, Thomas Baker and Chris Knudsen completed the top 10. Williams was the only driver among the listed Stock qualifiers to run more than 1.20 seconds under his class index.
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Canadian racers occupied the first three positions in Top Sportsman, led by Lanz of Mission, British Columbia, who powered his 1969 Camaro to a 6.163-second pass at 238.05 mph. Steinkey of Dunmore, Alberta, followed with a 6.193 at 230.92 mph in his 1968 Camaro, while Will Yakimetz of Vegreville, Alberta, took third with a 6.376 at 218.87 mph.
Kelly Harper of Peoria, Arizona, qualified fourth at 6.415 and 223.02 mph, followed by Mike Doushgounian of San Martin, California, with a 6.429 at 225.15 mph. Don Meziere, Michael Chitty, Chanse Bullock, Caden Menholt and Paul Mitsos rounded out the top 10.
Steinkey wasn’t content with second place in Top Sportsman, taking the No. 1 qualifying position in Top Dragster with a 6.109-second pass at 227.96 mph. Don London of Lake Havasu City, Arizona, was right behind him with a 6.113 at 228.34 mph, leaving just four-thousandths of a second between the top two qualifiers.
Steven Will of Fortuna, California, qualified third with a 6.118 at 234.33 mph, the fastest speed among the listed Top Dragster qualifiers. Alan Kenny and Reed Taylor completed the top five, followed by Thomas Bayer, Brad Plourd, Geneva Nash, Kevin Wright and Dylan Hough.
In first-round Super Comp action, Bailey Naber of Jurupa Valley, California, produced a perfect 9.050-second run against the 9.05 index to lead the listed round winners. Billy Torrence followed with a 9.053, while Gabriel Torres and Val Torres recorded runs of 9.054 and 9.056, respectively.
Super Gas produced two perfect runs against its 10.05 index, with Pete Zak of Torrance, California, and Val Torres of La Puente, California, each recording a 10.050. Greg Hehr and Ray Cordeiro followed at 10.053, with Mike Blodgett Jr. fifth at 10.057.
SUPER COMP RESULTS | SUPER GAS RESULTS
Meanwhile, the Decell Comp Cash Clash, a $20,000 winner-take-all Competition Eliminator event, came down to Taylor and Chomiski following semifinal victories. Taylor defeated Dahl with a 7.011-second run at 152.50 mph after gaining a substantial starting-line advantage, while Chomiski used a .024 reaction time and an 8.600-second pass to eliminate Barton, who ran 7.803.
Taylor and Chomiski will now race for the entire $20,000 purse, with no consolation prize for the runner-up. Their final will settle one of the weekend’s richest Sportsman matchups as the Las Vegas Nationals continue.
