NHRA NORWALK NATIONALS - SAME DAY COVERAGE
Sun, 2008-06-29 19:00
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EVENT FINAL - HERBERT RACES TO EMOTIONAL TOP FUEL VICTORY AT SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT NHRA NATIONALS
Roger Richards Photos
T. Pedregon, Anderson and Arana also win at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park
Doug Herbert and daughter Jessie celebrate his first Top Fuel victory of 2008.
Tony Pedregon, Greg Anderson and Hector Arana also were winners of the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series event at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park.
Herbert, who has titled his season campaign “For My Boys,” powered his SnaponFranchise.com dragster to a 4.636 second run at 311.70 mph to beat final-round opponent Brandon Bernstein, who posted a 4.611 at 313.58 in his Budweiser/Lucas Oil dragster. It was Herbert’s 10th career victory and first since the 2007 season.
"It’s such an emotional day and I’m just happy to get the job done,” said Herbert, who beat Troy Buff, David Grubnic and Rod Fuller in earlier rounds, and moved to eighth overall in the point standings. “Going up there (for the final round) I knew I was going to dig down and give it everything I had. I just wanted to do everything I could to win because I didn’t want to have a mistake that I made cost us the race. Luckily I have my little lucky charm (daughter Jessie) with me, and we did a lot of thinking about her brothers (Jon and James) today, and I’m sure they were riding with me on that final-round win.
Tony Pedregon has won two Funny car titles since switching over to his new chassis in Chicago.
Pedregon drove his Q-Horsepower Chevy Impala to his third win of the season and moved to second in the POWERade Series points standings, by outrunning top qualifier Robert Hight in the final. Pedregon earned his 39th career victory with a performance of 4.882 at 306.26, while Hight trailed in his Auto Club Ford Mustang with a 4.903 at 304.74.
“We knew we had a tough opponent in the final round, it always is any time you race a Force car, and my crew chief (Dickie Venables) really nailed it for the conditions,” Pedregon said. “We expected a tough race, and they were right there. Just to reach the winner’s circle at any race is good, but this one puts us right back in the game, and I think every race from this point on is going to be very important.”
Pedregon, who outran Jim Head, points leader Tim Wilkerson and Ron Capps in early rounds and moved to second overall in the points. He said his victory was in memory of Scott Kalitta, who died tragically in a crash in Englishtown, N.J. last weekend.
Greg Anderson is four-for-four in Pro Stock final rounds in 2008.
Anderson earned his fourth win of the season and 55th of his career in his Summit Racing Pontiac GXP when local favorite Larry Morgan had a red-light start in the final in his Lucas Oil Dodge Stratus.
“We got ’er done and made amends for last night (runner-up in K&N Horsepower Challenge) and racked up some precious POWERade points and got a little bit of money to go with and probably made our sponsor fairly happy, too,” said Anderson, who beat Mike Edwards, Jason Line and Greg Stanfield in the first three rounds. “I would love to have the No. 1 spot (heading into the Countdown to 1); it’s worth 20 points. That’s really the goal. We haven’t done too well up until the last couple of weekends. We’ve got a great race team, and we’ve kind of been getting shown the way home this year, but it looks like we’re making a recovery. It sure feels good to come to a race with a chance to win, and for the last couple of months, we didn’t have too good of a chance to win and needed a miracle. I think we’re back in the fight, and we’re going to keep swinging out there, trying to make it better by the time we get to the Countdown.”
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Arana won his first career race in his 18-year career with a performance of 7.027 at 187.60 on his Lucas Oil Buell, to hold off Team Tigue Suzuki rider Craig Treble, who finished in 7.061 at 187.83.
Hector Arana scored his first win since entering the Pro Stock Bike ranks in 1990.
“I have to thank Forrest and Charlotte Lucas for believing in me and believing I could do this job,” Arana said. “I never gave up, and my crew guys never gave up, and I’ve met a lot of wonderful people who have given me a hand over the year and never stopped trusting in me, and I’m glad I was able to do it. It’s an awesome, awesome feeling, and it hasn’t sunk in yet, but it feels great to accomplish what I’ve been working for all these years.”
The NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series continues with the 29th annual Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals, July 11-13, at scenic Bandimere Speedway near Denver.
SPORTSMAN WINNERS - Tom Conway (TAD), Bobby Martin (TAFC), David Rampy (CE), Tim Worner (SS), Doug Doll Jr. (SC), Alan Kenny (SG).
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Sunday's final results from the Second annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park. The race is the 12th of 24 in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series:
Top Fuel -- Doug Herbert, 4.636 seconds, 311.70 mph def. Brandon Bernstein, 4.611 seconds, 313.58 mph.
Funny Car -- Tony Pedregon, Chevy Impala, 4.882, 306.26 def. Robert Hight, Ford Mustang, 4.903, 304.74.
Pro Stock -- Greg Anderson, Pontiac GXP, 6.704, 206.04 def. Larry Morgan, Dodge Stratus, foul
Pro Stock Motorcycle -- Hector Arana, Buell, 7.027, 187.60 def. Craig Treble, Suzuki, 7.061, 187.83.
Top Alcohol Dragster -- Tom Conway, 5.368, 260.26 def. Mike Kosky, 5.536, 247.52.
Top Alcohol Funny Car -- Bobby Martin, Dodge Charger, 5.624, 256.84 def. Steve Harker, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.629, 256.60.
Competition Eliminator -- David Rampy, Bantam Roadster, 7.340, 176.12 def. Craig Bourgeois, Dragster, 7.067, 167.80.
Super Stock -- Tim Worner, Olds Cutlass, 10.800, 120.00 def. Billy Leber, Chevy S-10, 9.422, 136.03.
Super Comp -- Doug Doll Jr., Dragster, 8.935, 162.57 def. Nicole Markwart, Dragster, 8.949, 164.75.
Super Gas -- Alan Kenny, Chevy Corvette, 9.900, 161.61 def. Rock Haas, Corvette, foul.
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SATURDAY QUALIFYING - JOHNSON DRIVES MOPAR TO K&N CHALLENGE VICTORY
Fuller, Hight, Line and Krawiec claim No. 1 qualifying honors at Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals
Allen Johnson drove his Dodge Stratus to the $50,000 K&N Horsepower Challenge victory Saturday at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park.
In other racing, Rod Fuller, Robert Hight, Jason Line and Eddie Krawiec claimed No. 1 qualifying positions and will lead their respective categories into tomorrow's 11 a.m. eliminations for the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals. It is the 12th of 24 events in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series event.
It was the first win for Johnson in the special bonus event for the eight quickest Pro Stock teams from the last year. If Johnson can win in tomorrow he could earn an additional $25,000 from NHRA for sweeping both races, bringing his potential weekend earnings to more than $100,000.
Johnson, from Greeneville, Tenn., covered the quarter-mile distance in 6.725 seconds at 204.91 mph in his J&J Racing/Team Mopar Stratus and used a rare perfect reaction time (.000) to beat Greg Anderson, who posted a quicker, but losing, performance of 6.717 at 204.91 in his Summit Racing Pontiac GXP.
“The perfect light in the final, I don't know where that came from,” said Johnson, who is the second Mopar driver to win the Challenge in the 23-year history of the event, and first since Darrell Alderman's victory in 1991 in a Dodge Daytona.
“I haven't been driving too good lately,” continued Johnson, who defeated Warren Johnson and Kurt Johnson in the first two rounds of the Challenge. “ In the second round, I was able to cut a little better light; and then in the final, of course, you're just sucking up everything you've got to really get it close, and fortunately, it was green and perfect. To win this means a lot, especially being the first Mopar driver to win in the last 17 years. I don't think this will be our last time. Dad (Roy, crew chief) and the crew are just doing such an awesome job.”
In Top Fuel, Fuller earned his first top qualifying effort of the season, second-straight at this event and seventh of his career with a performance of 4.629 at 311.13 in his Caterpillar dragster.
“This a great place to race and where we started our charge last year,” said Fuller, who finished second in the ’07 final point standings. “(Our run today) actually was a better run than it ended up because it dropped some cylinders and slowed at the other end. Rob (Flynn, crew chief) asked me what I wanted him to do with the tune-up and I told him to go for it. There are only 16 cars and I’d rather go down swinging than just make a mediocre run and qualify in the middle of the pack.”
Funny Car’s Hight joined Fuller in posting his second-straight No. 1 at this event. He drove his Auto Club Ford Mustang to a performance of 4.882 at 309.77 to claim his 25th career No. 1 qualifying position and second of the season.
“That’s the first run in a long time that my car has made where it ran really good all the way to the finish line,” Hight said. “It didn’t drop cylinders and was nice and clean, but it’s only one run, and we need to make four Sunday to put ourselves in the position to win. Jimmy Prock (crew chief) and my whole team have worked so hard because we’ve torn up a lot of motors and parts this year, but it threw us a bone tonight. (Tim) Wilkerson has been running away with the points this year, but if we have a good-running race car when they reset the points (for the Countdown to the Championship), we can run right with him."
In other news during the day in Funny Car, Melanie Troxel and Gary Scelzi were both disqualified for the event after NHRA Tech Officials found loose ballast in their cars during inspection following the day’s first qualifying session. According to NHRA rules, any car determined to have loose ballast during or following a run results in immediate event disqualification.
In Pro Stock, Line raced to his 15th career No. 1 and second of the season, driving his Summit Racing Pontiac GXP to a category-best time of 6.716 at 205.51.
“We’re happy to put the Summit car on the pole, and any time we can knock the yellow car off the top, it’s kind of a big deal for us,” said Line, referencing rival Jeg Coughlin, who was second in the 16-car lineup in his Jegs.com Chevy Cobalt. “Now it transfers to the pressure of trying to win the race. I haven’t had much racing luck this year. If there’s been a break to be had, it hasn’t fallen in my direction. Hopefully we can turn that around tomorrow. I’m driving decent, and the car’s running good enough to turn it into victory, so maybe tomorrow is the day."
Krawiec earned the first No. 1 qualifying position of his career in Pro Stock Motorcycle, racing to the position with a performance of 7.017 at 191.02 on his Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson.
“We’ve been struggling a bit, so we threw a lot at it that run,” Krawiec said. “Andrew (Hines, teammate, qualified second) and Matt (Hines, crew chief) and I sat in the trailer for about three-and-a-half hours Thursday staring at computer sheets and data for comparable conditions and tried a lot of changes, so to come out and go 1-2 shows that hard work really pays off.”
Top Fuel -- 1. Rod Fuller, 4.629 seconds, 311.13 mph vs. 16. Doug Kalitta, 7.369, 120.20; 2. Cory McClenathan, 4.631, 301.81 vs. 15. Morgan Lucas, 6.111, 216.86; 3. Brandon Bernstein, 4.640, 315.86 vs. 14. Luigi Novelli, 5.931, 160.25; 4. Larry Dixon, 4.644, 282.30 vs. 13. David Grubnic, 4.841, 288.09; 5. Doug Herbert, 4.647, 307.30 vs. 12. Troy Buff, 4.831, 289.57; 6. Antron Brown, 4.652, 291.51 vs. 11. Steve Torrence, 4.772, 282.72; 7. Hillary Will, 4.691, 303.78 vs. 10. J.R. Todd, 4.771, 297.94; 8. Tony Schumacher, 4.703, 300.46 vs. 9. Bob Vandergriff, 4.730, 280.54.
Funny Car -- 1. Robert Hight, Ford Mustang, 4.882, 309.77 vs. 16. Mike Neff, Mustang, 5.200, 224.43; 2. Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 4.909, 297.42 vs. 15. Jerry Toliver, Charger, 5.085, 278.12; 3. Tim Wilkerson, Chevy Impala, 4.910, 304.32 vs. 14. Tommy Johnson Jr., Charger, 5.064, 288.95; 4. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.932, 303.64 vs. 13. Tony Bartone, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.007, 260.11; 5. Jack Beckman, Charger, 4.965, 300.26 vs. 12. Cruz Pedregon, Toyota Solara, 4.995, 296.83; 6. Tony Pedregon, Impala, 4.975, 276.35 vs. 11. Jim Head, Solara, 4.994, 295.34; 7. Del Worsham, Impala, 4.977, 302.14 vs. 10. John Force, Mustang, 4.988, 274.11; 8. Ashley Force, Mustang, 4.980, 290.07 vs. 9. Gary Densham, Impala, 4.983, 297.29.
Pro Stock -- 1. Jason Line, Pontiac GXP, 6.716, 205.51 vs. 16. Rickie Jones, Dodge Stratus, 6.773, 203.19; 2. Jeg Coughlin, Chevy Cobalt, 6.726, 205.04 vs. 15. Justin Humphreys, Stratus, 6.771, 203.95; 3. Allen Johnson, Stratus, 6.729, 204.69 vs. 14. V. Gaines, Stratus, 6.764, 203.58; 4. Ron Krisher, Cobalt, 6.732, 204.70 vs. 13. Johnny Gray, Stratus, 6.762, 203.92; 5. Kurt Johnson, Cobalt, 6.738, 206.04 vs. 12. Greg Stanfield, GXP, 6.760, 203.89; 6. Larry Morgan, Stratus, 6.739, 204.63 vs. 11. Vinnie Deceglie, Stratus, 6.754, 204.23; 7. Warren Johnson, GXP, 6.740, 206.10 vs. 10. Dave Connolly, Cobalt, 6.753, 204.08; 8. Mike Edwards, GXP, 6.743, 204.29 vs. 9. Greg Anderson, GXP, 6.748, 204.88.
Did Not Qualify: 17. Jim Yates, 6.780, 203.16; 18. John Nobile, 6.785, 203.65; 19. Larry Nance, 6.790, 203.43; 20. Max Naylor, 6.793, 202.36; 21. Todd Hoerner, 6.794, 203.16; 22. Richie Stevens, 6.794, 202.79; 23. Dave Northrop, 6.815, 203.46; 24. Kevin Lawrence, 6.827, 201.19; 25. Steve Spiess, 6.831, 202.73; 26. Jim Cunningham, 6.910, 198.99; 27. Lee Zane, 6.975, 196.22.
Pro Stock Motorcycle -- 1. Eddie Krawiec, Harley-Davidson, 7.017, 191.02 vs. 16. Joe DeSantis, Suzuki, 7.167, 186.82; 2. Andrew Hines, Harley-Davidson, 7.045, 191.21 vs. 15. Paul Gast, Suzuki, 7.150, 184.07; 3. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 7.058, 186.28 vs. 14. Junior Pippin, Buell, 7.137, 186.74; 4. Matt Guidera, Buell, 7.058, 185.23 vs. 13. Hector Arana, Buell, 7.118, 184.72; 5. Matt Smith, Buell, 7.059, 187.23 vs. 12. Wes Wells, Suzuki, 7.111, 188.20; 6. Chip Ellis, Suzuki, 7.063, 188.10 vs. 11. Angelle Sampey, Buell, 7.103, 186.61; 7. Mike Berry, Buell, 7.068, 187.13 vs. 10. Craig Treble, Suzuki, 7.098, 189.04; 8. Karen Stoffer, Suzuki, 7.076, 191.19 vs. 9. Chris Rivas, Buell, 7.088, 186.61.
Did Not Qualify: 17. Brian DeLong, 7.475, 172.04.
Allen Johnson drove his Dodge Stratus to the $50,000 K&N Horsepower Challenge victory Saturday at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park.In other racing, Rod Fuller, Robert Hight, Jason Line and Eddie Krawiec claimed No. 1 qualifying positions and will lead their respective categories into tomorrow's 11 a.m. eliminations for the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals. It is the 12th of 24 events in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series event.
It was the first win for Johnson in the special bonus event for the eight quickest Pro Stock teams from the last year. If Johnson can win in tomorrow he could earn an additional $25,000 from NHRA for sweeping both races, bringing his potential weekend earnings to more than $100,000.
Johnson, from Greeneville, Tenn., covered the quarter-mile distance in 6.725 seconds at 204.91 mph in his J&J Racing/Team Mopar Stratus and used a rare perfect reaction time (.000) to beat Greg Anderson, who posted a quicker, but losing, performance of 6.717 at 204.91 in his Summit Racing Pontiac GXP.
“The perfect light in the final, I don't know where that came from,” said Johnson, who is the second Mopar driver to win the Challenge in the 23-year history of the event, and first since Darrell Alderman's victory in 1991 in a Dodge Daytona. “I haven't been driving too good lately,” continued Johnson, who defeated Warren Johnson and Kurt Johnson in the first two rounds of the Challenge. “ In the second round, I was able to cut a little better light; and then in the final, of course, you're just sucking up everything you've got to really get it close, and fortunately, it was green and perfect. To win this means a lot, especially being the first Mopar driver to win in the last 17 years. I don't think this will be our last time. Dad (Roy, crew chief) and the crew are just doing such an awesome job.”
In Top Fuel, Fuller earned his first top qualifying effort of the season, second-straight at this event and seventh of his career with a performance of 4.629 at 311.13 in his Caterpillar dragster.
“This a great place to race and where we started our charge last year,” said Fuller, who finished second in the ’07 final point standings. “(Our run today) actually was a better run than it ended up because it dropped some cylinders and slowed at the other end. Rob (Flynn, crew chief) asked me what I wanted him to do with the tune-up and I told him to go for it. There are only 16 cars and I’d rather go down swinging than just make a mediocre run and qualify in the middle of the pack.”Funny Car’s Hight joined Fuller in posting his second-straight No. 1 at this event. He drove his Auto Club Ford Mustang to a performance of 4.882 at 309.77 to claim his 25th career No. 1 qualifying position and second of the season.
“That’s the first run in a long time that my car has made where it ran really good all the way to the finish line,” Hight said. “It didn’t drop cylinders and was nice and clean, but it’s only one run, and we need to make four Sunday to put ourselves in the position to win. Jimmy Prock (crew chief) and my whole team have worked so hard because we’ve torn up a lot of motors and parts this year, but it threw us a bone tonight. (Tim) Wilkerson has been running away with the points this year, but if we have a good-running race car when they reset the points (for the Countdown to the Championship), we can run right with him."
In other news during the day in Funny Car, Melanie Troxel and Gary Scelzi were both disqualified for the event after NHRA Tech Officials found loose ballast in their cars during inspection following the day’s first qualifying session. According to NHRA rules, any car determined to have loose ballast during or following a run results in immediate event disqualification. In Pro Stock, Line raced to his 15th career No. 1 and second of the season, driving his Summit Racing Pontiac GXP to a category-best time of 6.716 at 205.51.
“We’re happy to put the Summit car on the pole, and any time we can knock the yellow car off the top, it’s kind of a big deal for us,” said Line, referencing rival Jeg Coughlin, who was second in the 16-car lineup in his Jegs.com Chevy Cobalt. “Now it transfers to the pressure of trying to win the race. I haven’t had much racing luck this year. If there’s been a break to be had, it hasn’t fallen in my direction. Hopefully we can turn that around tomorrow. I’m driving decent, and the car’s running good enough to turn it into victory, so maybe tomorrow is the day."
Krawiec earned the first No. 1 qualifying position of his career in Pro Stock Motorcycle, racing to the position with a performance of 7.017 at 191.02 on his Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson.
“We’ve been struggling a bit, so we threw a lot at it that run,” Krawiec said. “Andrew (Hines, teammate, qualified second) and Matt (Hines, crew chief) and I sat in the trailer for about three-and-a-half hours Thursday staring at computer sheets and data for comparable conditions and tried a lot of changes, so to come out and go 1-2 shows that hard work really pays off.”
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Top Fuel -- 1. Rod Fuller, 4.629 seconds, 311.13 mph vs. 16. Doug Kalitta, 7.369, 120.20; 2. Cory McClenathan, 4.631, 301.81 vs. 15. Morgan Lucas, 6.111, 216.86; 3. Brandon Bernstein, 4.640, 315.86 vs. 14. Luigi Novelli, 5.931, 160.25; 4. Larry Dixon, 4.644, 282.30 vs. 13. David Grubnic, 4.841, 288.09; 5. Doug Herbert, 4.647, 307.30 vs. 12. Troy Buff, 4.831, 289.57; 6. Antron Brown, 4.652, 291.51 vs. 11. Steve Torrence, 4.772, 282.72; 7. Hillary Will, 4.691, 303.78 vs. 10. J.R. Todd, 4.771, 297.94; 8. Tony Schumacher, 4.703, 300.46 vs. 9. Bob Vandergriff, 4.730, 280.54.
Funny Car -- 1. Robert Hight, Ford Mustang, 4.882, 309.77 vs. 16. Mike Neff, Mustang, 5.200, 224.43; 2. Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 4.909, 297.42 vs. 15. Jerry Toliver, Charger, 5.085, 278.12; 3. Tim Wilkerson, Chevy Impala, 4.910, 304.32 vs. 14. Tommy Johnson Jr., Charger, 5.064, 288.95; 4. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.932, 303.64 vs. 13. Tony Bartone, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.007, 260.11; 5. Jack Beckman, Charger, 4.965, 300.26 vs. 12. Cruz Pedregon, Toyota Solara, 4.995, 296.83; 6. Tony Pedregon, Impala, 4.975, 276.35 vs. 11. Jim Head, Solara, 4.994, 295.34; 7. Del Worsham, Impala, 4.977, 302.14 vs. 10. John Force, Mustang, 4.988, 274.11; 8. Ashley Force, Mustang, 4.980, 290.07 vs. 9. Gary Densham, Impala, 4.983, 297.29.
Pro Stock -- 1. Jason Line, Pontiac GXP, 6.716, 205.51 vs. 16. Rickie Jones, Dodge Stratus, 6.773, 203.19; 2. Jeg Coughlin, Chevy Cobalt, 6.726, 205.04 vs. 15. Justin Humphreys, Stratus, 6.771, 203.95; 3. Allen Johnson, Stratus, 6.729, 204.69 vs. 14. V. Gaines, Stratus, 6.764, 203.58; 4. Ron Krisher, Cobalt, 6.732, 204.70 vs. 13. Johnny Gray, Stratus, 6.762, 203.92; 5. Kurt Johnson, Cobalt, 6.738, 206.04 vs. 12. Greg Stanfield, GXP, 6.760, 203.89; 6. Larry Morgan, Stratus, 6.739, 204.63 vs. 11. Vinnie Deceglie, Stratus, 6.754, 204.23; 7. Warren Johnson, GXP, 6.740, 206.10 vs. 10. Dave Connolly, Cobalt, 6.753, 204.08; 8. Mike Edwards, GXP, 6.743, 204.29 vs. 9. Greg Anderson, GXP, 6.748, 204.88.
Did Not Qualify: 17. Jim Yates, 6.780, 203.16; 18. John Nobile, 6.785, 203.65; 19. Larry Nance, 6.790, 203.43; 20. Max Naylor, 6.793, 202.36; 21. Todd Hoerner, 6.794, 203.16; 22. Richie Stevens, 6.794, 202.79; 23. Dave Northrop, 6.815, 203.46; 24. Kevin Lawrence, 6.827, 201.19; 25. Steve Spiess, 6.831, 202.73; 26. Jim Cunningham, 6.910, 198.99; 27. Lee Zane, 6.975, 196.22.
Pro Stock Motorcycle -- 1. Eddie Krawiec, Harley-Davidson, 7.017, 191.02 vs. 16. Joe DeSantis, Suzuki, 7.167, 186.82; 2. Andrew Hines, Harley-Davidson, 7.045, 191.21 vs. 15. Paul Gast, Suzuki, 7.150, 184.07; 3. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 7.058, 186.28 vs. 14. Junior Pippin, Buell, 7.137, 186.74; 4. Matt Guidera, Buell, 7.058, 185.23 vs. 13. Hector Arana, Buell, 7.118, 184.72; 5. Matt Smith, Buell, 7.059, 187.23 vs. 12. Wes Wells, Suzuki, 7.111, 188.20; 6. Chip Ellis, Suzuki, 7.063, 188.10 vs. 11. Angelle Sampey, Buell, 7.103, 186.61; 7. Mike Berry, Buell, 7.068, 187.13 vs. 10. Craig Treble, Suzuki, 7.098, 189.04; 8. Karen Stoffer, Suzuki, 7.076, 191.19 vs. 9. Chris Rivas, Buell, 7.088, 186.61.
Did Not Qualify: 17. Brian DeLong, 7.475, 172.04.
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K&N Horsepower Challenge -- Saturday's final round-by-round results from the 24th annual K&N Horsepower Challenge at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park:
ROUND ONE -- Jeg Coughlin, Chevy Cobalt, 6.726, 205.04 def. Jason Line, Pontiac GXP, 6.744, 205.10; Kurt Johnson, Cobalt, 6.738, 206.04 def. Dave Connolly, Cobalt, 6.762, 204.08; Allen Johnson, Dodge Stratus, 6.758, 204.29 def. Warren Johnson, GXP, 6.754, 205.98; Greg Anderson, GXP, 6.754, 204.88 def. Ron Krisher, Cobalt, 6.836, 202.88;
SEMIFINALS -- A. Johnson, 6.729, 204.66 def. K. Johnson, 6.794, 205.54; Anderson, 6.748, 204.14 def. Coughlin, 6.745, 204.66;
FINAL -- A. Johnson, 6.725, 204.91 def. Anderson, 6.717, 204.91.
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FRIDAY'S RACING CANCELLED AS WATER SEEPAGE PROBLEM
SURFACES ON TRACK
Stevens and Smith are leaders in shortened Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying
NHRA officials cancelled most of Friday's
professional racing portion of the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at
Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park due to a water seepage problem on the
racing surface.
Track officials
estimate that more than 13 inches of rain has fallen on the track in the last
week, creating a large water table surrounding the quarter-mile dragstrip. As
the sun came out today and heated the track surface, water began to seep up
through cracks in the track surface at various spots, including a large area
just past the finish line.
NHRA and track
officials worked for more than five hours to try and fix the situation, using
multiple methods including backhoes, concrete drills and ditch-digging machines,
but despite their tireless efforts could not get the track surface completely
dry.
Before racing
was delayed and ultimately cancelled,
Matt Smith rode his Buell to the top spot
in Pro Stock Motorcycle, covering the distance in 7.059 seconds at 187.23 mph in
the only pro category that got in a full session
of qualifying.
Qualifying was
halted seven cars into the Pro Stock category's first session, and the current
leader is Richie Stevens, who posted a 6.833 at 202.64 in his Pontiac
GXP.
Saturday's
pro qualifying sessions are scheduled for noon and 2 p.m. The K&N Horsepower
Challenge for Pro Stock cars will highlight the day's racing activities.
Sunday's eliminations are scheduled for 11 a.m.
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Results Friday after the first of four rounds of qualifying for the Second annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park, 12th of 24 events in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series. Qualifying will continue Saturday for Sunday's final eliminations.
Pro Stock -- 1. Richie Stevens, Pontiac GXP, 6.833, 202.64; 2. Dave Northrop, Pontiac GTO, 6.840, 200.80; 3. Larry Nance, Chevy Cavalier, 6.895, 201.13; 4. Kevin Lawrence, Chevy Cobalt, 6.900, 189.73; 5. Jim Cunningham, Ford Mustang, 6.910, 198.99; 6. Lee Zane, GTO, 8.594, 112.50; 7. Steve Spiess, Cobalt, 13.600, 61.61.
Pro Stock Motorcycle -- 1. Matt Smith, Buell, 7.059, 187.23; 2. Eddie Krawiec, Harley-Davidson, 7.083, 186.20; 3. Chris Rivas, Buell, 7.088, 186.61; 4. Andrew Hines, Harley-Davidson, 7.089, 188.60; 5. Matt Guidera, Buell, 7.092, 184.45; 6. Chip Ellis, Suzuki, 7.101, 186.36; 7. Hector Arana, Buell, 7.121, 184.62; 8. Angelle Sampey, Buell, 7.138, 186.61; 9. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 7.145, 185.10; 10. Mike Berry, Buell, 7.154, 183.64; 11. Craig Treble, Suzuki, 7.169, 187.57; 12. Joe DeSantis, Suzuki, 7.192, 186.23. Not Qualified: 13. Junior Pippin, 7.208, 182.11; 14. Karen Stoffer, 7.224, 186.25; 15. Wes Wells, 7.289, 184.98; 16. Paul Gast, 7.294, 161.50.
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