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SUNDAY NOTEBOOK -

COURTNEY FORCE WINS FUNNY CAR AT SONOMA - This wasn’t a dominating performance by Courtney Force Sunday at the Sonoma (Calif.) Nationals, but it was good enough to win.

Force defeated her legendary father John in the finals to claim her fifth career nitro Funny Car victory.

Courtney made a 4.253-second pass at 296.24 mph to beat her dad, who came across the line in 4.405 seconds.

“The pressure was actually off because I was already celebrating after I won the semis,” said Courtney, who also passed her sister Ashley Force Hood to become the winningest female driver in NHRA nitro Funny Car history. “I watched my dad win and I knew if I won the semis I was going to have him in the final and no matter what one of us was going to be in the winners circle. I had my eyes set on Ashley for awhile. There was a big cluster of people who had four wins and I kind of became obsessed with going for No. 5.”

Courtney, who qualified No. 1, nearly was upset in the first round when she smoked the tires, but her opponent Peter Russo broke so she received the win. Courtney proceeded to upend Bob Tasca III and Matt Hagan before ousting her father.

“Pulling up for round one you’re just thinking we ran 4.17 in Q1 and it was kind of good as it got our Traxxas team (in the heat). It was unfortunate Russo wasn’t able to make the run, but pure luck we were able to get the run by smoking the tires. It doesn’t come easy.”

After her event win, Courtney admitted she was in survival mode during the victory celebration with Khalid alBalooshi (Top Fuel), Jason Line (Pro Stock) and Eddie Krawiec (Pro Stock Motorcycle) and the champagne bottles.

“Apparently there was a conspiracy against me,” Courtney said. “I was so excited that I got to pop the cork and spray the champagne in the winners circle because you feel like you only get to see that in movies and we never really get to do it here. We walked out there and of course my cork breaks and I’m trying to get it and I don’t want to push it too hard or it’s really going to snap off. They already have me soaked in my face and in my eyes. I couldn’t even open my eyes for like a good five minutes after. I couldn’t see anything. (Champagne) was up my nose and my hair was drenched, but it was all in good fun. I was excited just to be up there, especially holding a Wally. I can’t complain.”

THE BEST BIRTHDAY GIFT EVER - Khalid alBalooshi gave himself quite a birthday present on Sunday in Sonoma.

alBalooshi knocked off Al-Anabi Racing teammate Shawn Langdon in the Top Fuel final round to claim his fourth career Wally and his second of the 2014 season at the 27th annual NHRA Sonoma Nationals.

On his 35th birthday alBalooshi won the first race of the first elimination round, then won the last race of the event. The No. 8 qualifier ran a 3.912 at 309.42 miles per hour with a .107 reaction time to top Langdon’s .069-induced 4.009 at 271.35.

“This is a very special birthday,” alBalooshi said. “To leave here with the trophy, this is one of the best gifts of my life.”

After Langdon, the defending world champion, clinched a spot in NHRA’s Countdown to the Championship earlier in the day, alBalooshi wanted to prove there is more than just one Al-Anabi car people should worry about.

“Because he’s my teammate everyone looks at it like this is the number one car and this is the number two car,” he said. “No…I have to beat him. It’s like with Courtney (Force), I think she really likes to beat John.”

alBalooshi defeated Billy Torrence in the first round, Clay Millican in the second and Richard Crampton in the semifinals.

He had a lot of confidence when he lined up for the final round.

“I talked with (crew chief) Jason (McCulloch) before the round,” alBalooshi said. “I’ve been back and forth with him and I knew what he was going to do, exactly. He told me the car was not going to smoke the tires. I knew the car wasn’t going to smoke the tires, but I was waiting for Shawn to see what he was going to do.

“When we both left the starting line I saw him at half-track. I knew he was done.”

The win moved alBalooshi solidly into eighth position in the NHRA points standings, with three races to go before the Countdown. He has 801 points while Bob Vandergriff, with 620 points, will have to make a major move to catch him and knock him out of the Countdown.

“I’ve been trying my best,” alBalooshi said. “We’ve got a good car and the best team to work for it…we have to keep going from where we are now.”

LINE GETS HISTORIC PS WIN - Former world champion Pro Stock driver Jason Line felt he had a good car Sunday morning at the Sonoma (Calif.) Nationals.

His feeling was right.

Line drove his Summit Racing Equipment Chevy Camaro to victory by defeating V. Gaines in the final round.

Line clocked a 6.548-second lap at 211.73 mph. Gaines came in at 6.564 seconds at 211.30 mph.

Line also made history in the process, getting the 200th Pro Stock win for Chevrolet.

"200 is really cool actually," Line said. “I’m not big on looking back and seeing what we have done, but 200 is really cool. I'm very proud to represent GM and be able to do that. They have certainly given us a lot of support over the years and they still do. So, it is great to give a little something back," said Line, who drives for KB Racing.

This was Line's 33rd career win and second of the season as he also won the season-opening Winternationals.

"As far as my car winning, I would have rated it as good or better than anybody's," said Line about his thoughts Sunday morning. "I have a really good race car right now. I struggled driving this thing. Without question this is the luckiest I have ever been, but I will take some of that because there have been a lot of times when I have done a good job and have not been able to win. Sometimes the luck falls your way and (Sunday) it did for me."

Before meeting Gaines, Line defeated Joey Grose, Jonathan Gray and Dave Connolly. Line also clinched a spot in the Countdown to the Championship with his Sonoma victory.

CUSTOMER COMES UP SHORT - Jerry Savoie seemed to have everything going for him prior to the Pro Stock Motorcycle final against engine builder Eddie Krawiec…the same Eddie Krawiec that, along with the team of Vance and Hines, supplies the power for his fuel-injected Suzuki.

Savoie qualified at the top of the list and had the most consistent motorcycle throughout the elimination rounds at Sonoma. He looked like the odds-on favorite to claim his first career Wally…but he left too early.

Savoie went -.014 red to hand the round win and event title to Krawiec.

“Jerry was knocking off .81s, .81s, .81s by going out there and making some killer laps,” Krawiec said. “We build his horsepower and those guys are doing an awesome job…they are phenomenal with the tuning and everything.”

Heading into the final round, Krawiec and his team knew it had to do something if it hoped to beat the Suzuki.

“That’s why we drag race. That’s why we go out there,” Krawiec said. “We made a change with my motorcycle and it went the opposite way because we were trying to race the guy in the other lane. We usually know how to make it go slower when we start tuning on it so we try to stay away from that.

“My crew chief, Matt Hines, sat back, looked at data, did what he thought was best and that time it slowed up a little bit. We were lucky to get the win there. Jerry went red. I struggled a little bit with my driving on the tree. It’s just one of those things.”

Krawiec qualified his Harley-Davidson second and defeated Freddie Camarena in the first round and Angie Smith in the second before defeating current points leader and teammate, Andrew Hines, on a holeshot in the semifinal.

His .042-induced 6.837 was a few thousandths better than Hines’ .066/6.835 package.

“Drag racing is pretty mental,” Krawiec said. “It’s a mental game out there so you have to keep all that in check in your head. I started sticking the bike in there a little deep…deeper than I usually do. I’m a shallow stager, as is pretty much every Pro Stock car and bike guy out there. This weekend I was rolling the bike in a little deeper because I had to.”

The win was Krawiec’s 24 career title and his second of the 2014 season. He looks forward to carrying this momentum over to the next race in Indianapolis.

“You want to win every race, that’s the racer inside of all of us,” Krawiec said. “I don’t care if it’s getting to the pits first, you want to win that race. That’s just the competitiveness in us. I’m happy for Andrew and he’s doing a phenomenal job of riding this year. The most important thing is that we have two fast Harley-Davidsons. We’re showing everybody we’re going to be tough in these last six or seven races.”

RANDOM RACE DAY NOTES FROM SONOMA

LINE MAKES HISTORY – By winning Pro Stock, Jason Line captured the 200th win for Chevrolet in Pro Stock.

CLINCHERS - Pro Stock racer Allen Johnson clinched a spot in the Countdown to the Championship by qualifying. Shawn Langdon, John Force, Jeggie Coughlin, Jason Line, and Dave Connolly have also clinched.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, TO ME - Birthday boy Khalid al-Balooshi, who was wished happy birthday in Arabic during pre-race introductions, snagged his second final round appearance of the season by beating Billy Torrence, Clay Millican and Richie Crampton.

Langdon was the first winner of the day, and was the last in beating teammate Shawn Langdon in the final round.

alBalooshi, in a reverse of birthday traditions, presented a gift to Ed “The Ace” McCulloch, giving him the winning trophy.

THANK YOU MAN - A little over a round of competition separated Top Fuel point leaders Doug Kalitta and Antron Brown. Spencer Massey, an underdog in his series against Brown, made his best run of the weekend to take out Brown.

Kalitta extended his lead by a round when he beat Steve Chrisman in the first round.

THE NO. 1 QUALIFIER CURSE? - Clay Millican, to borrow a phrase from his neck of the woods, "couldn't hit his butt with both hands" throughout qualifying and even lost a session with a broken a-arm. However, in the first round, he snagged a holeshot and beat the No. 1 qualifier Brittany Force, 3.921 to 3.909.

"It wasn't low elapsed time but it was a win," said Millican.

Is the No. 1 qualifying position a cursed seeding? Consider this, the last time a dragster won from the pole was Charlotte 2 last season.

“I am starting to think that the No. 1 qualifier is a curse in Top Fuel," Brittany said. "Schumacher went out in the first round last weekend and we did it this weekend. I was actually talking with him on Friday about it. In Topeka I was No. 1 and was able to go to the semifinals but we just can’t get the win from the top spot. I am going to let it go and move on. We lost a cylinder on that run and that hurt us. I am not going to focus on this loss too much. I am going to start looking forward to Seattle. We will have a brand new race to try and get this Castrol EDGE dragster its first win.”

WILK GETS BACK IN – By virtue of his better qualifying effort, Jack Beckman unofficially secured the tenth spot in the Funny Car standings. Tim Wilkerson, the driver he bumped out, regained the spot and an additional 19 points in a head-to-head first round match.

FOUL PLAY – Robert Hight, whose team made a last minute change before his first round match against Tommy Johnson Jr., experienced a case of the yips, and left the red-light aglow. 


After the loss, Hight was at a loss for an excuse.

“I don’t know what happened. I wasn’t nervous,” Hight said. “I have one of the best cars out here. I got a good night’s sleep and was ready to go some rounds. I just rolled up there, got staged and the next thing you know my foot just went. Mike Neff and these guys gave me a great race car. We ran strong in the heat yesterday and I think we would have had a great day. I just have to focus better. I will be ready for Seattle and I am going to put this race behind me.”

REGROUP TIME - For the first time since 2006, Don Schumacher Racing has not won an NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series event title on one the first two legs of the annual "Western Swing."

The deepest advancements for DSR on Sunday in the Sonoma NHRA Nationals near San Francisco were semifinal finishes by Tony Schumacher in Top Fuel and Matt Hagan in Funny Car. Schumacher, who owns two Sonoma trophies, qualified No. 3 with the U.S. Army team but lost traction against event runner-up Shawn Langdon. In Funny Car, Hagan, who qualified fifth, lost to event winner Courtney Force in the semis.

FIRST ONE IN A WHILE – By .005 of a second, Bob Tasca III scored his first round win since Topeka by beating Del Worsham.

“It was close but we must have reeled him in at the finish,” said Tasca.

JUST LIKE DADDY - Chad Langdon, father of Top Fuel driver Shawn Langdon, won the Super Comp division by beating Matt Constant in the final. The Langdons and the Forces made it the first time in modern NHRA national event history that two pairs of fathers and their children have reached the finals at the same event.

NEW PIPE, NO BLUES – Shawn Langdon unveiled a new dragster this weekend, and after only eight runs reached the final round. In addition to reaching the finals, Langdon clinched a place in the Countdown.

A MILESTONE WEEKEND - John Force is competing in his 650th NHRA national event. As a reminder of the momentous occasion Force also clinched a place in the Countdown, his 30th consecutive top ten finish.

NO TRADITIONAL SWEEPERS - With the early losses of J.R. Todd, Robert Hight, and Allen Johnson, there will be no sweep for the Western Swing this season.

NO GAINS THIS TIME - In their 79th meeting, Jeggie Coughlin showed Greg Anderson no love by knocking him off in the quarterfinals. Anderson is locked in a battle for tenth place in the point standings with Jonathan Gray, who also lost in the second round to Anderson’s teammate Jason Line.

ONE FAST GATOR – Jerry Savoie has showcased his Suzuki this weekend by recording the quickest and fastest Pro Stock Motorcycle run in the manufacturer’s history with a 6.81 in qualifying. During the semis, Savoie ran 198.29 miles per hour.

ERRATIC LIGHTS - Defending Sonoma Raceway winner Hector Arana Jr. was left scratching his head. The Lucas Oil Buell rider fouled out in the first round this time around, going .059-second too soon in a race against his dad Hector Sr., but what puzzles Arana is an inconsistent Christmas tree in Sonoma.

"Man, I had some roller-coaster lights this weekend," Arana said. "We came here Friday, and I was .022 red and then I was .016. I was thinking, 'OK, I'm back on track.' "

Arana wasn't back on track when he lined up for the third qualifying session Saturday, which also served as the first round of the MiraMonte Records NHRA Pro Bike Battle. Racing his father, neither had a good reaction time with Hector Sr. taking the win.

"Then on Saturday when I was racing Dad in the Pro Bike Battle I had a .122 light," Arana said. "Where that came from, I have no idea because I've been doing the same thing every time. Then I was red in the other session, so I said, 'OK, I'll fix that.' "

Arana made some minor modifications to his clutch lever for Sunday's eliminations, but it didn't pay off.

"I put a stack of rubber bands on my clutch lever," Arana said. "I don't know if I reacted quicker or what. The bike left really good. Finally, we got a good 60-foot -- 1.042, best of the year -- but we had the red-light."

"I'll go back and sit on that bike every day, practicing and practicing," Arana said. "I need to get back to my normal routine and get set for the Countdown."

 

SATURDAY NOTEBOOK -

TOP FUEL

THREE IN A ROW - Brittany Force’s stellar 3.762 second run from last night held and the 2013 NHRA Auto Club Rookie of the Year will race from the No. 1 qualifying spot on Sunday.

“I’m definitely excited. To be number one, that’s exactly what the Castrol EDGE team wanted. I’m so proud of my entire team, they’ve all worked so hard and I’m glad we’re in the number one spot and hung on to it today. I know it’s definitely going to be a challenge tomorrow as our one great run was in the best conditions, when it was cool, and we won’t have that tomorrow. I’m still confident we’ll go some rounds,” said Brittany Force

Compared to her rookie season last year, Brittany and her Castrol EDGE team have done a complete 180-degree turnaround. For example, at this point last year (through 15 races) Brittany's average qualifying position was 12th with two DNQs (Houston and Norwalk). With Brittany’s claiming of the number one spot this weekend, her average qualifying position is now 6th with three number ones and no DNQs.

This is quite an accomplishment for the 28 year-old driver who broke from family tradition of racing Funny Cars and ventured into Top Fuel dragsters. For Brittany, she never had any regrets when she climbed into the cockpit and slid behind the wheel of her machine for the first time in 2013. The fact there’s a 10,000-horsepower BOSS 500 engine cradled right behind her helmet and she’s driving one of the fastest accelerating vehicles on the planet is a challenge Brittany’s up for.

During Saturday’s first session, Brittany Force once again made a solid run of 3.914 seconds at 285.35 mph. She was on a good pass until she started to haze the tires towards the top end. Brittany still had the fourth quickest pass of Saturday’s first round of qualifying. What really mattered for the Castrol EDGE team was to make a good run in the heat of the day and that was their objective. They know the conditions on race day will be very similar as today and that’s what they were shooting for.


“Obviously our run last night was awesome, going to number one and running that 3.76. But we won’t be running in the evening come race day so it’s these runs from earlier today that are really going to matter. We were fourth in that session and had a pretty good run and I even lifted early. It felt like it was hazing the tires, starting to shake a little and starting to smoke the tires. So, I got out of it to make sure we didn’t blow-up the engine and hurt the car,” said Brittany.

Heading into the final session, Brittany was on another good run but at half-track the massive Goodyear slicks began to lose traction. Regardless, no other Top Fuel competitor was unable to unseat her number one berth in both sessions so for the third time this season, she’ll head into race day from the pole position.

“Even though we didn’t quite get the car down there today, the two runs we made gave us enough information to work from going into race day. On both runs I had to get out of it early so as not to break parts. Throughout qualifying, my dad was cheering Courtney and me on and he’s proud of us. We’re also are very proud of him and everything he’s accomplished so we cheer for him, too,” said Brittany.

With three final round appearances this season, Brittany Force has the momentum and is ready to close the deal and claim that first Top Fuel win for Castrol EDGE and John Force Racing at the NHRA Sonoma Nationals.

“I love this race track and I remember coming here with my dad when I was younger. To take home my first win at Sonoma Raceway would be awesome and unreal,” said Brittany.

STATS DON'T LIE - Todd Smith smiles when he hears the stats. He doesn't need the numbers for validation, but they do confirm his team, the Castrol Edge Top Fuel dragster driven by Brittany Force, is headed in the right direction.

Last year Force qualified an average of No. 12 with two DNQs. This season they are an average of No. 6 with three No.1 qualifying efforts.

"A lot of hard work," Smith attributed the progress to. "We are just now starting to see the rewards of all the work we put it. It’s been eight months of a lot of hard work. A lot of personnel changes, just a complete revamping of the whole team. Going through every part and every system on the car and changing everything to make it work. Getting everybody in sync and everybody on the right page, any crew chief will tell you that he’s nothing without his crew.

"We’ve spent six months going through personnel trying to find the right people. It takes a certain type of person to do this now. With the amount of races that we have; the travel, and the hard work and the commitment it takes, not everybody’s willing to do that. Until you can get a group of guys on board and willing to do that I can’t really do my job. It’s been a lot of hard work, that’s basically what it’s all been."

Smith said this team has the right chemistry. For the second time in 2014, the sisters Force, Brittany and Courtney, led their respective divisions.

With all the talk of the Force tuning braintrust exchanging information, Smith admitted he didn't glean any information from the Traxxas team's success in Funny Car. On the other hand, they didn't learn from the Castrol Edge team either.

"I’m embarrassed to say I was too busy working on my own car to see her run," Smith said.  "I heard it on the radio but from run to run we don’t communicate with each other. Everybody’s too busy doing their own thing. The end of the day or the end of the weekend is more of a communication process for the crew chiefs. Funny Car guys tend to communicate more than us but during the weekend everybody just kind of does their own thing."

Enter Lanny Miglizzi, the master of track interpretation who enables Smith and the other tuners to stay somewhat on the same page.

"Lanny’s very accurate; that’s really a huge factor here for us," Smith explained.  "To have someone that's watching the track all day, every day. He knows everything that’s going on, so that allows us the time to do our job back here."

The data also enables teams to move up from 12 to 6, and this is data Smith can use.

RUN FORREST RUN – The only thing Michael Morris loves to see run more than the Kalitta Motorsports DHL Funny Car is his own body.

Morris, the head cylinder mechanic on the team, is preparing for a run in the Boston Marathon in April.

The World Marathon Majors organization has six international marathons including Boston, Chicago, New York, Tokyo, London, and Berlin. Only 174 individuals have raced all 6 marathons, and Morris wants to be one of them. The Boston marathon will be his third and final marathon in the United States, and then he hopes to run the courses in Europe.

Morris started running marathons in 2011 when some of his friends urged him to compete.

“It becomes addictive, like drag racing,” Morris admitted. “Running has become enjoyable and I have set a life goal of competing in all 6 marathons.”
 
Last November Morris competed in the ING New York Marathon and dedicated the finisher’s medal to Tammy Oberhofer, which was presented to Ashley and Jim Oberhofer at the World Finals in Pomona.

IT DOESN’T MATTER HOW YOU START … - Antron Brown, who qualified No. 4, faces teammate Spencer Massey in the opening round. Massey ended the four sessions as thirteenth.

"We qualified 13th last weekend and if you look at our stats from this year, we usually do OK when we start at the bottom half of the field,” said Massey. “But that wasn't the case last weekend so we're looking to get back to normal tomorrow."

Massey has 17 round wins this season and 12 of them have come after qualifying in the bottom-half of the 16-car field.

"That's pretty interesting," he said. "I guess that just goes to show that it doesn't matter where you qualify, as long as you do."

Spencer is the underdog in the battle sporting a 1-3 record against Brown this season. Brown enters Sunday's first round 26 points out of first.

"It's always a tough first round and you hate to race your teammate first round, but you've got to race someone," said Brown. "It just means both teams will come out with their best. I know the fans are going to see an incredible drag race in the first round. We've had tough first-round matchups all year, so it's no surprise that's the case again this weekend."

A-ARM, A-OKAY - Clay Millican has experienced about as much mayhem as a Top Fuel driver can, from exploding engines to a blowover. Friday night he added a new way to hurt a dragster. His Parts Pro Top Fuel dragster broke an a-arm while backing up from the burnout.

“The wheel laid over, which is something you don’t really normally see except on a wheelstand,” Millican said.

Millican was conscious of Billy Torrence in the opposite lane.

“I knew weren’t going to make the run” Millican said. “So I just kept on backing up so I could get out of Billy’s way. Really don’t have an explanation on it, but I didn’t really cause any major problems for us except the repairs, and it didn’t cause any problems for Billy who was alongside us.”

The a-arm worked just fine during Saturday's qualifying.  

“It really didn’t cause any problems for us with the repairs to the a-arm. It’s just one of those things; we look at these parts all the time, but they break from time to time. I don’t know - it’s a weird deal.”

FUNNY CAR

SHE'S STILL NO. 1 - Courtney Force’s No. 1 qualifying time held up from the second qualifying session on Friday through two additional sessions today. She has never qualified No. 1 before at Sonoma, but this is the sixth No. 1 start of her career.

“My Traxxas team had a good run in Q2. It cooled off and it was a good track for anyone to make a good run on. To come out and run a 4.045 right out the back door, that’s pretty awesome. I’m proud to be driving this Traxxas Ford Mustang Funny Car. Ron Douglas and Dan Hood, they’ve done a great job giving me a good car,” said Force.

She qualified No. 1 earlier this season in Las Vegas and again in Topeka, where she also picked up the 100th professional win by a woman in NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series history.

“It’s funny when you look back at the times that my Traxxas team has been No. 1 qualifier. It’s pretty cool that now two of those times have been with my sister. I’m very proud of her and her Castrol Edge team. She’s done an amazing job and you really can see the improvement that they’ve made over there. They are definitely one of the top competitors. Obviously, they’ve really shown that.

“It’s exciting to be No. 1 qualifier with my sister. It’s very special, especially being out here in Sonoma. Like I said yesterday, we got to grow up out here and got to watch Eric Medlen, our teammate, win a race here in Sonoma. So it’s kind of cool. His friends and family are out here. We’re going to do the ice cream thing tonight. No one can be upset when you’re eating ice cream; that’s what he always said so we’re definitely going to be eating ice cream in his honor tonight with Brittany and also we’ll be celebrating our No. 1 qualifiers. Hopefully we’ll have more to celebrate tomorrow,” said Force.  

The 26-year-old has had the quickest and fastest car on the property here at Sonoma Raceway. Her 4.045 at 319.22 mph has held through four rounds of qualifying and is likely to hold through four elimination rounds on race day.

“It’s kind of cool to think that Traxxas being on the side of my Funny Car is The Fastest Name in Radio Control and we got to be the fastest one out here, so I think my sponsor, Mike Jenkins (Traxxas owner and CEO), is going to be pretty excited about that. He’ll be here tomorrow so at least we’ve done a little bit of impressing so far. Hopefully we can continue it tomorrow and go some rounds,” said Force.

Force will line up beside Peter Russo, whom she has yet to compete against in her three years racing in the Funny Car category. She will have lane choice. In 2014, she has had lane choice in the first round on race day in 12 of the first 15 races along the NHRA Mello Yello series tour.

“I’m a little bummed out. I wish we could have done a little bit better in the heat. We did get a 4.17 down there yesterday, but struggled a little bit today figuring out our breaking point, so to speak, of how far we can push this car, but I guess that’s what qualifying is for. We need to learn it. We knew we had nothing to lose when we had the No. 1 spot, but we’re going to have to figure it out in the heat tomorrow because that’s the most important time that we’re going to be racing. We really got to get this car flying down there against these guys who showed that they can get a good car running pretty good in the heat too. It’s going to be a tough battle tomorrow, but I’m just proud of all JFR,” said Force.

SMASH AND GRAB - Cruz Pedregon is a loyal member of the NFL’s Oakland Raider Nation. In supporting his team, Pedregon stopped by a local team store outside of the Oakland airport to stock up on his Raider “stuff.”

Pedregon purchased some neat items but after exiting the store was greeted with a surprise gift.

“I did what any loyal fan would do, I stopped at a store that sold my favorite team’s merchandise,” said Pedregon. “I was only in the store for about ten minutes and came out to notice the rear driver’s side window of my rental car shattered and on the street.”

Pedregon said the thieves stole his backpack which was loaded with a few personal items but contained no money or credit cards.

“It’s a shame,” Pedregon said. “The store’s security guard said the thieves target rental cars. It’s a shame this kind of stuff happens.”

The store has signs which suggest all personal items should be secured.

“Yeah, the trouble with that is I read it afterwards,” Pedregon said.

Pedregon admits the area where the store is – is a bit rough.

“The In-N-Out Burger has a full-time, armed security guard, so what does that tell you?”  Pedregon asked.

Pedregon doesn’t hold out much hope for his personal belongings being returned, but did make use of one of his purchases. Mounted proudly in his pits during the NHRA Sonoma Nationals is an Oakland Raiders flag.

“We Oakland Raider fans are proud of our colors, regardless,” said Pedregon.

IT ONLY MATTERS IF YOU QUALIFY - Two-time 2014 winner Alexis DeJoria made her best run during the Q-2 session with a 4.129, 307.37 pass to end qualifying as No. 10. She will face Ron Capps in the first round.

“It has been a hot weekend here in Sonoma, and we struggled a bit but no matter, we’re qualified in the middle of the field and tomorrow’s a new day," DeJoria said. "We’ll pick ourselves up and charge forward. I think last year we qualified 16th and made it to the semis, so that just goes to show that it doesn’t really matter where you qualify; all that matters is actually being qualified. I believe in my team. As long as I do my part, and we’re all on the same page, tomorrow will be a good day.”

ONE-TWO PUNCH - Teammates Ron Capps and Tommy Johnson Jr. were the quickest Funny Cars during Saturday's Q-4 session. In the late afternoon session, Capps completed his run in 4.140 seconds at 304.60 mph while Johnson in the other lane went 4.147 (302.01).

HEY BRO, SPARE A TICKET? - Ron Capps had to corral about 25 tickets for each day of this weekend's event for friends and family.

That's the price of racing at the track on the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series tour that is closest to your hometown. Capps, who grew up near San Luis Obispo, Calif., has faced that task every time he's raced in the wine country near San Francisco.

It's a price Capps is eagerly willing to pay. And not only because the race weekend caps the family's two-week summer vacation and provides an annual reunion.

There isn't anything Ron wants to change about his Sonoma routine, especially because he has won the event title at the track four times (1997, 2010-11, 2013) and is its reigning champion. He also has been runner-up twice (2002, 2005).

"Taking care of all the ticket requests is hectic but it's worth it to know at the end of the day when I get up to our motorhome on the hill that we'll have a great cookout and everyone I love will be there," he said.

"We really don't come to Sonoma to party on race weekends; we come here to win."

IMPORTANT BATTLE - By unofficial qualifying points, Jack Beckman, now ranks 10th in the Funny Car season standings, and could extend his slight advantage when he faces Tim Wilkerson, who now trails in the 11th position by one point. "We got what we wanted, a first round match-up with the other car we are battling for the top-10," Beckman said. "I hope after first round we are still thinking that's the match-up we wanted."

HORTON READY TO HEAR THE WHO - Matt Hagan qualified with a 4.075-second lap at 307 mph, a run which came on Friday night. His Saturday best was a 4.169-second effort.

"We weren't the best of that third session but we had a great lap in the heat," Hagan said. "We didn't make it down the track in the final session but we were pushing it to see how far it would go and we ended up getting some really good data for Sunday.

"Dickie (Venables) has done a great job this weekend and I think we have a solid hot rod for Sunday's eliminations. First round should be a little bit cooler and maybe even overcast which we haven't seen yet this weekend.  We know we have some good data from Friday night for that."

Hagan will race Tony Pedregon in the first round.

PRO STOCK

THIRD TIME IS A CHARM - Shane Gray clinched the third Pro Stock No. 1 qualifying position of his career with a 6.539 at 212.13 in his Gray Manufacturing Chevy Camaro. Gray, who also was top qualifier earlier this season at Bristol and Epping, will have a bye in the opening round.

“I didn’t realize we could speed up like that,” said Gray following his improvement from Friday’s runs. “The guys did a great job.  What was so neat about this deal was my guys back at the shop built an engine the day before yesterday.”

Jason Line, the No. 1 qualifier last weekend at Denver, will start No. 2 in his Summit Racing Chevy Camaro following a 6.541 at 211.79. He will open eliminations against Joey Grose. Denver winner Allen Johnson was third quickest in qualifying, driving his Magneti-Marelli Dodge Dart to a 6.547 at 212.16. He will face Tommy Lee.

WINNING ISN’T AN OPTION - Greg Anderson understood his challenge would be monumental. The four-time NHRA series champion, and 74-time national event winner figured he'd have a battle for a berth in the playoffs. What he didn't count on was an aspiring rookie of the year racer with intentions of making a name for himself.

Jonathan Gray holds a 23-point lead headed into Sunday's final eliminations.

"He’s been an extra challenge," admitted Anderson. "I knew right when I looked at the top 10 as I sat on the couch [while recovering from heart surgery], every one of those Top 10 cars are race winning cars, and number 1 qualifying cars. There’s no softies in this class, and there’s nobody soft in the top 10."

Right now, with four races left in the battle for the regular season, mathematically only the tenth place is the best opportunity a driver on the outside looking in has to earn a berth.

"I knew it was going to be tough and then along comes Johnathan Gray after that so now there’s 11 of them that are basically every bit as fast or faster than me, and everybody is more capable of winning a race than me," admitted Anderson.  "It’s just really going to come down to who can race better. Who can find a way to win races and who can race better. So far I’ve been okay but I haven’t been great yet. I haven’t been able to win a race yet. I’ve had a couple of runner-ups, but I haven’t been able to win a race yet."

As much as it pains Anderson to say, unless he can win one of the four remaining races, he doesn't feel worthy of a playoff spot.

"I have to win races," Anderson said. "I’m down to four opportunities left. I’m at what I consider probably my very favorite race tracks, one I know we can run well at so I think I’m out of excuses. I’m out of time. It’s time to win a race.

"I think we’ve shown great gains last week at Denver, and I think it’s going to show even more here in Sonoma. It’s one of our stronger tracks, and I think we can find a way to get it done but I’m sticking to my story. If I can’t find a way to win a race I probably won’t be in the Countdown."

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE

GATOR DATE - Jerry Savoie could hardly contain his enthusiasm. He couldn't deny his inexperience either.

"So this is where the big dogs come to," said Savoie, speaking of his first post-qualifying press conference.

After briefly holding the top spot during Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying on Friday, Savoie, the alligator farmer from Cut Off, La., took a large bite out of the competition with a 6.810 elapsed time at 197.86 miles per hour. The run marked the quickest a Suzuki has ever traveled in Pro Stock Motorcycle competition.

It also marked the first time Savoie had qualified No. 1.

This success comes a week after Savoie exited an airplane in Denver for the NHRA Mile High Nationals, and shortly thereafter had to board another flight to return home to prepare his alligator farm for an impending storm.

"We had high hopes going into there, but we knew this is a good track," said Savoie. "I have to credit Vance & Hines for a fast engine and Tim Kallungian [tuner] for being a really smart person. He has been working hard to figure out this electronic fuel injection, and now it seems like we are finally starting to get it."

BIG WINNER - Andrew Hines drove to victory in the inaugural MiraMonte Records Pro Bike Battle, closing out an action packed Saturday at the NHRA Sonoma Nationals at Sonoma Raceway.

Hines, the current points leader in Pro Stock Motorcycle, defeated Scotty Pollacheck in the specialty bonus event final with a 6.835-second run at 196.02 on his Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson. He beat John Hall and Hector Arana en route to the final. With the win, Hines takes home $25,000.

“It’s a big deal for Vance & Hines and Harley Davidson,” Hines said. “It’s been awhile since we’ve had a specialty event in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class. The crew has done a great job giving us motorcycles that can go rounds.”

Pollacheck, driving his Petrolhead Buell, defeated Eddie Krawiec and Matt Smith to reach the final.

 

FRIDAY NOTEBOOK

LIGHT ON THE SIDELINES – Graham Light, NHRA’s senior vice president, racing operations, experienced a pinched nerve on Thursday and will not attend this weekend’s event.

Bob Lang, NHRA’s senior director, safety and emergency services, will assume Light’s duties with assistance from NHRA Div. 7 director Mike Rice.

TOP FUEL

SISTER ACT - Brittany Force snagged both ends of Sonoma Raceway's best performances during Friday qualifying. Her 3.762 elapsed time was almost .03 quicker than Doug Kalitta and her 325.53 speed was a mile per hour quicker than the point leader following two sessions of qualifying.

If her run holds through Saturday, it will mark her third No. 1 of the season.

“I love coming to Sonoma,” Force said. “It’s one of my favorite tracks to race on. I was shocked to hear I went to No. 1. I don’t know if my microphone came out or what, my guys didn’t tell me anything. I didn’t know anything until I got out. Then I was pumped and excited.”

Force admits she’s a bit laid back, and conducted herself accordingly as qualifying continued. Her dad, 16-time champion John Force, was another story.

“He’s pacing, worried about it,” she admitted. “It is what it is, but I was confident the Castrol Edge team’s number would hold. It was a good run.”

Force admits her run didn’t feel like it was a No. 1, however.

“The run felt slow and I was shocked,” Force admitted.

SPEED SECRET - On Brittany's 3.762 elapsed time pass, a body panel fell off early in the run. When pressed about the unconventional "speed secret," her crew chief Todd Smith offered, "You never know what is going to work on one of these cars."

ANYWHERE BUT DENVER - There's no place like home. This is what Shawn Langdon has been reminding himself since last weekend's first round loss during the NHRA Mopar Mile High Nationals outside of Denver, Co.

Langdon grew up racing at Sonoma Raceway and turned in a brilliant performance a year ago when he knocked off Morgan Lucas in the final round. Those good memories have Langdon excited about his return.

“Some tracks you just feel better going to,” Langdon said. “But once you’re in the car it doesn’t matter where you’re at. I’m automatically in race mode, so it’s more about the excitement leading up to the event. There’s a lot of excitement for me and, of course, you’ll have lots of friends and family there.”

But Denver, this was another story.

“It was a forgettable weekend (in Denver) but you can’t dwell on it,” Langdon said. “Once we left the track we left everything there. Antron and Doug have been spectacular this year but I feel like I’m still in a good position. When you get to the Countdown anything can happen. We have to continue to prepare the car properly and get it going fast. I gained a lot of confidence last year and I’ve got a great team around me. I’ve learned to attack and be a little more aggressive and I think that will pay off.”

DADDY DOES JR. DRAGSTERS - With races in Denver, Sonoma and Seattle in consecutive weeks, where does Antron Brown spend a rare few days off between races?  At the race track. Prior to Sonoma, Brown helped tune NHRA Junior Dragsters for his kids, Arianna and Anson, for an event in Bristol, Tenn. His wife, Billie Jo, and youngest son Adler were in attendance as well.  The Brown children are fourth-generation drag racers following a history that began with Antron’s late grandfather, Albert.

 

ARMY RUNS STRONG - The best run by the U.S. Army team, which won the pole a week ago near Denver with crew chief Mike Green and assistant Neal Strausbaugh, was at night with a run of 3.793 (323.43).

 BETTER HERE THAN THERE - Clay Millican had an issue on the starting line during the Q-2 session when the front steering and an A-arm broke on his Parts Plus dragster as he staged. Millican ran a 3.97 in Q-1 and will head into Saturday's qualifying without a second run to his credit. There are 17 dragsters in attendance this weekend.

TORRENCE TIMES TWO - Billy is back. Billy Torrence, father of Top Fuel driver Steve Torrence, will pilot a second CAPCO Contractors Top Fuel dragster.

The Torrences will gain twice the data, but the experience is so much more.

“It’s a special relationship we have, and we just enjoy racing together,” Billy said.  “I always love to go and race with Steve, but mainly I hope I can get out there and do some good for the team.”

Billy knows his role with son Steve, who is ranked fifth in the points headed into Sonoma. He's a hitman of sorts, fighting the opposition for his team. He's hoping to take a starting berth away from one of the multi-car teams. He's been successful in the past.

“I’m just an old drag racer,” Billy said.  “We had three dragstrips within 45 minutes of the house (in Longview, Texas).  We had ole’ street cars.  We’d work on ‘em all week and tear ‘em up again on Saturday night.”

Torrence, 56, has been racing for more than 20 years, most of the time in Super Comp, the entry level category in which his son got his start before moving up to Top Alcohol Dragsters and winning a world championship (2005).

MOVES PAID OFF – Earlier in the week, part-time Top Fuel racer Mike Salinas added veteran tuners Rob Wendland and Danny Degenarro. Friday’s Q-2 session paid off as he ran a 3.905 elapsed time to climb as high as No. 9.

 

FUNNY CAR

SISTER ACT, TOO - Courtney Force remembers sitting in the grandstands of Sonoma Raceway eating her animal crackers, drinking lemonade and watching her dad, 16-time champion John Force, race to his place in drag racing history.

Friday night, she emulated her father's example by driving to the provisional No. 1 qualifying position.  For the second time this season, she is poised to join her sister as No. 1 qualifier.

Force ran a 4.045 elapsed time at 319.22 to head into Saturday's final two sessions as the top seed.

“I was watching those who were running ahead of me, and just the round before we had run 4.17 to go to No. 1, and as I watched the sun set, the Funny Cars were going faster,” Force said. “They were getting consistently quicker. I went up there thinking we could go 4.0s. I knew we were on a good pass when I was just ahead of my dad on the run. I also got to the sand trap really quick. When you can do that, you know you’ve made a really good run.”

Running to the No. 1 just released the flood of memories of childhood and the late Eric Medlen.

“It’s so surreal to line up against my dad,” said Force. “Sonoma is one of our home tracks and we remember being here when Eric Medlen won. Just the whole vibe of this race track holds a special place in our hearts.”

GOOD CALL – Tony Pedregon, who is racing with limited sponsorship this season, made the business decision to skip the first session. He returned in the American Racing Wheels-sponsored entry to lay down a 4.18 to climb as high as third.

Will LesterBECKMAN'S CHALLENGE - Jack Beckman has four races to gain a playoff berth and the challenge isn't getting easier. He trails Tim Wilkerson by three points and stands 73 points out of eighth place.

"In a word, it's just been frustrating," Jack said of the points battle. "I would've bet we would be battling for fifth not tenth. I'm very optimistic that our car will make the Countdown. I just didn't think we'd be doing it in such dramatic fashion."

Sonoma has been lots of things to Beckman but never a winning facility since he started racing nitro a decade ago.

"Sonoma has been an everything track to me," he said. "I've won a Wally (trophy) in sportsman and have raced there a dozen times in the sportsman category. I've run in the 3-second range there in a Funny Car and have been the No. 1 qualifier.

"I've pretty much done everything there but win in a Funny Car and I'd like to change that this weekend."

PRO STOCK

A MAJOR ADVANCEMENT – Jason Line knew if his Summit-sponsored Camaro traveled further than a foot off of the starting line during Friday’s quick session, he’d be a mile ahead of the curve.

Line traveled much further than a foot, carding a 6.550 elapsed time for his efforts. If the run holds, it will mark his second consecutive No. 1 qualifier of the season and No. 37 of his career.

“It won’t hold, and everyone will be faster tomorrow,” admitted Line.

Track conditions improved greatly from Q-1 to Q-2, cooling 25 degrees to 103.

“Couldn’t tell you how much better they were,” said Line.

Line’s first run was a no go, thanks to a freak issue when an eyelet on the battery cable snapped apparently due to extreme vibration.

“That’s something new for us,” Line said with a smile. “I’m almost glad it happened then instead of in the final round against Allen.”

Line lost in the semifinals during last weekend’s NHRA Mopar Mile High Nationals after qualifying No. 1.

ON HIS OWN - The revered Mike Edwards playbook is no longer in play for Chris McGaha.

McGaha has a much different team than what he began the season with.
 
Following the Epping event, McGaha released tuner Jim Yates and most recently Allan Lindsey left the team. Brian "Lump" Self is now calling the shots. With this said, the respected Edwards playbook is now a nice souvenir but no longer in play.
 
"We've basically thrown the log book out, and that's one of the things I knew would happen when Lump came over," said McGaha. "It hasn't been used since we left Epping. In Denver last week we were in the top half and we were running way more gear ratio than Mike did up there. It was a night and day difference, but that was good for us. Things have taken such a positive turn, and we just feel a lot better.
 
"I know how Lump thinks and how he does things, so I leave him be. I don't even think twice about it – I know what I'm getting, so it's real easy to let him run. You know he's going down the path you want to go down. There was a time when we were running Comp when I wanted to get Lump by the throat, but he's just telling you the truth. He may hurt your feelings, but he'll tell you the truth."
 
Lindsey's departure severed the final link McGaha had to Edwards outside of the car and equipment.
 
"We were disappointed to lose Al, because he was a good fit – but he had some personal things that he needed to take care of, and we told him that if he didn't go he would regret it. We supported it," said McGaha. "Al came on board to help us get lined out, help us move everything from Oklahoma and North Carolina to our shop in Odessa, and to perform engine maintenance at the racetrack. With him gone, my dad and I are back to doing the engine maintenance – and we're comfortable with that.
 
"As a team, we're getting everything in order, and right now, it's feeling more like it did at the end of 2012 – it's starting to feel like it's ours again. We've ordered a new Chevrolet Camaro from Jerry Haas that should be delivered in September, and as soon as we get it we'll start testing it so that we can bring it out for next year. I'm excited."

McGaha purchased the Edwards team in hopes the former owner would come along in either a consultant or crew chief role. Neither aspect materialized.
 
According to McGaha, the two have actually not spoken much at all, aside from very brief text messages that did not include guidance or advice on tune-up or racing.
 
"I really kind of knew that ahead of time," said McGaha. "My dad and I have always known you're on your own out here. It's just us. Where I really need help, though, is at my engine shop in Odessa. That is where we need to expand – we just have one guy, and when I come back there it's him and about half of me. We have the equipment and all of the stuff we need to do it – we just need the personnel to expand the engine shop. It's one of our biggest challenges. That has been very hard, and it's something we'd like to eventually change."

The stress of running a full schedule has McGaha considering a limited schedule in 2015. He's not ruling out a 15 - 18 race schedule but admits it's a bit early to make the call.
 
"I've never run for a championship before, and if I don't stub my toe, I could stay in the top 10 and still have a chance," said McGaha. "That could drive me for next year. We didn't start off very well this year because while all the other guys were on the dyno, I was moving shops. People have said that this is the fastest car, but that's the thing – while we were moving over the winter, other teams were finding power and going faster.

"This is the same car it was last year. I knew when I bought it that it wouldn't be the fastest car forever. But we've got a new car coming, we've got a great team, and I think we're going to be good. I'm looking forward to the future, that's for sure. I like the way things are going."

THE BATTLE FOR TENTH - Greg Anderson may have the experience but right now Jonathan Gray has the points. Points can trump experience.

With four races left in the regular season, Gray holds a 23-point lead over Anderson for what will likely be the only attainable spot in the Countdown.

“The pressure is building, there is no question about it,” said Gray. “You just have to deal with it accordingly and just try to keep things going. For us, we have to start qualifying better. This weekend we'll be working on eliminating the things that have been holding us back with that and hopefully we'll do better.”

Gray is an NHRA Rookie of the Year candidate having earned his license and debuted back in March. He's already reached the finals twice this season and amassed enough of a lead to earn the advantage for a playoff spot.

Gray received his Pro Stock license just before Gainesville in March, and advanced to back-to-back finals in Bristol and Epping. A first-round loss last weekend in the high-altitude conditions at Denver, Gray has made the race for tenth place in Pro Stock closer.

“Before Denver we were in a good position and we had a little bit of a cushion heading up there, but we lost some of that now,” Gray said. “I think we're still okay, but we're going to have to go rounds at Sonoma. There is no question. We have to or we'll get knocked out."

KNOWING WHAT THE TRACK WANTS - Shane Gray understands Sonoma Raceway.

Gray, No. 7 in NHRA Pro Stock points, has qualified second, and laid down low elapsed time during eliminations. He didn't win the event but his relationship with the facility provides an excellent potential for the weekend.
          
"I really like racing in Sonoma, and it seems like we just tend to do well there lately," said Gray. "It's a great place to race, and I think our recent history shows that we know what that track wants. Last week in Denver we didn't do as well as we had hoped, but that was a different race for us – it wasn't a very good reflection of what the Gray Motorsports team is capable of. This weekend, things get back to normal and we expect different results.

"We've had a chance to take a couple of days and clear our minds, and now we're ready to get back to sea level and get back to work. Time is running out on the regular season, and we want to set ourselves up real good for the Countdown [to the Championship]."

The knowledge paid off in a big way for Gray as he laid down the top speed with a 211.03 blast. His 6.552 elapsed time was good enough for No. 2.

THE TEACHER AND THE TEETH – v. Gaines has a very special guest all weekend as his favorite teacher from Salt Lake City is making the trip to watch the races. Ms. Forbyn teaches the 4th grade class that not only adopted NHRA Drag Racing as a tool to learn but also named the Kendall Motor Oil Dodge "Mean Teeth." 

"Ms. Forbyn found a way to connect with her class and the results were amazing, to say the least,” said Gaines. "The kids in her class, Ms. Forbyn, they did an amazing job and we are very lucky and excited they picked us to be a part of their class. 

“We hope to be a part again this year or for however long Ms. Forbyn sees us as a fit.”

Gaines was No. 8 with a 6.602.

NOT WHAT HE ENVISIONED – Defending event champion Vincent Nobile made his best run of the day in the first session, a 6.643, initially jumping to No. 7. The failure to improve knocked him down to No. 12.

POTENTIAL SWEEPER - Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson picked up right where he left off last weekend after conquering Thunder Mountain for a sixth time at the Mopar Mile High Nationals, by setting the quickest pass in the first round of qualifying with a 6.606-second run at 209.69 mph. The “Magneti Marelli Offered by Mopar” Dodge Dart was then provisionally No. 3 after posting a 6.558 second / 210.97 mph pass on his second qualifying run



PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE

HALL OF FAME FRIDAY – John Hall takes delight in life’s simple pleasures. Recording what could turn out to be his first low qualifying effort, Hall is finding it tough to curtail his enthusiasm on first day.

“It was slick in the first round but it held in the second,” said Hall. “This is the first 1.0-second 60-foot run since Denver. I’ve been running so bad lately, any kind of a win light in qualifying excites me and going to No. 1 does too. I hope we can hang on to it for tomorrow.”

Hall ran a 6.951, 191.54 to take the provisional lead, surpassing a surprising Jerry Savoie.

Friday qualifying was challenging for Hall’s teammates at Matt Smith Racing. Although Smith was fourth quickest with a 6.964, he failed to make a run to the finish line under power during the quick Q-2 session. Angie Smith failed to improve and Scotty Pollacheck, like Matt Smith, had issues keeping the bike fired.

What did Hall learn to keep his bike on the fast track?

“Keep the bike running,” Hall joked. “Scotty [Pollacheck] had a problem and he shut off, and Matt ran after me, and he shut off. We’ve been having crank sensor problems, and that’s probably what happened to them. We’ve probably had about five of them go out this year.”

The MSR team has battled various parts issues throughout the season. Hall doesn’t believe the issue is with bad parts but just bad situations.

“There’s really no issues with the parts, other than we have had transmission issues. On the way sometimes they [transmissions line up] sometimes they just don’t shift. You can take the transmission out, look at it, put it back in and it will work just fine. It’s frustrating, and all the while you can do nothing about it.”

ZERO TO HERO – Last weekend, a threatening storm forced Jerry Savoie to withdraw from competition prior to the NHRA Mopar Mile High Nationals.

Savoie, an alligator farmer from Louisiana who is in the busy time of his season, had to prepare for an impending storm.

Savoie laid down a 6.953 to jump to the top of qualifying, but was bumped down in the second session when he failed to make a full run in Q-2.

RACE WITHIN A RACE - Saturday's Pro Stock Bike competition will feature a $61,000 race within a race amongst the class' best qualifiers.

The MiraMonte Records NHRA Pro Bike Battle will reward the winner $25,000 with the runner-up set to earn $10,000, the two semifinalists $6,000 each, and the four first-round finishers $3,500 apiece.

Eddie Krawiec, defending NHRA series champion, will start from the No. 1 seed.
   
Krawiec will race Scotty Pollacheck in the first round while Hector Arana Jr. will face his father, Hector Arana Sr. Third seed Andrew Hines will meet John Hall, while Matt Smith will race Michael Ray in the opener.         

MiraMonte Records NHRA Pro Bike Battle elimination rounds are scheduled for 12:45 p.m., 3:15 p.m. and 4:40 p.m. on July 26. The bonus race will be televised on ESPN.

IT’S A CANDY GIRL WORLD - Angie Smith is now in the position she always wanted when she started competing in Pro Stock Motorcycle. She wanted to have a chance to qualify for the playoffs. With seven round wins in the past three races, including her first career victory, Smith, who is currently eighth in points, stands a good chance of seeing her dream come true.

“This is what I’ve dreamed about,” Smith said. “It’s just been a blessing with how it has panned out. Everything has fallen into place and I couldn’t be happier.”

After a first-round loss in Englishtown her Kandy Magazine Buell has come alive. She won the next race in Epping, beating her husband in the first husband-wife final round in NHRA history. It was a long time coming for Smith, who reflected on dramatic improvements she has made on her bike.

“It’s amazing to go to the starting line and know you have a chance at winning,” Smith said. “It’s such a good feeling and it’s been very satisfying. I know if I do my job on the starting line that I am capable of winning. I’ve made huge strides on the starting line and everything we’ve worked on has dramatically helped my lights.”