Del Worsham continued his early-season command of Funny Car qualifying in the International Hot Rod Association, securing his third consecutive No. 1 position at the IHRA Spring Nationals at Darana Raceway in Hebron, outside of Columbus, Ohio. The performance keeps him within striking distance of Dale Creasy Jr., whose back-to-back wins built a three-round cushion before failing to qualify.
“I mean, it’s a position we’ve been in before at IHRA multiple times,” Worsham said. “But really, the main goal, and I guess the first part of winning a race, is qualify the best you can. So we kind of handled that part of it.”
Worsham’s consistency atop the qualifying sheet has become one of the defining trends of the IHRA season. It has kept him within reach of the points lead despite Creasy’s early dominance.
The storyline shifted when Creasy, dominant through the opening two events, failed to make the field. That slip provided Worsham a clear path to chip away at the deficit without needing outside help.
“But yeah, it’s unfortunate for him, it just shows you how quickly things can turn,” Worsham said. “But if we don’t capitalize on it, it’s all for nothing.”
Creasy’s early two wins forced the rest of the field into recovery mode. Worsham acknowledged how quickly that advantage can disappear in IHRA competition.
“When you go two for two, starting out season, that puts everybody else in a pretty good hole, and you start digging your way out,” Worsham said.
The IHRA format, with only two qualifying runs, leaves little margin for error. One misstep can undo even the strongest start.
“What happened to him this week could easily happen to any of us at the next race,” Worsham said. “So you just have to be really careful and minimize mistakes and hopefully get yourself in a good spot in the field.”
Worsham’s 3.291-second run at 272.23 mph paced the Funny Car field, with Jon Capps close behind and Jack Wyatt third. The gap between contenders remained narrow heading into eliminations.
In Top Fuel, Lee Callaway led qualifying with a 3.055-second pass at 282.31 mph, followed by Gary Pritchett at 3.106 seconds and Kyle Satenstein at 3.145 seconds.
Jason Harris secured the No. 1 position in Pro Modified with a 3.601-second run at 210.08 mph, with Kye Kelley second. Dwayne Rice led Mountain Motor Pro Stock at 4.046 seconds and 177.44 mph, while Jerry Tucker posted the fastest speed at 179.07 mph.
Top Alcohol Dragster saw Joey Severance take the top spot with a 3.465-second run at 222.44 mph, with Rich McPhillips second and Jamie Noonan third while posting the fastest speed at 229.36 mph. Chip Beverett led Top Alcohol Funny Car at 3.647 seconds and 211.76 mph, followed by Phil Esz and Mick Steele, who recorded the top speed at 214.59 mph.
Tony Scott continued his strong start in IHRA Factory Pro Stock with a 4.993-second pass at 144.46 mph, followed by Taylor Dietsch and Jason Dietsch. Ryan Hill led Fuel Altered at 3.732 seconds and 214.69 mph, with Dan Pettinato second.
Chris Smith topped Nitro Harley with a 4.109-second run at 185.72 mph, while Jason Leeper reached 200.27 mph. David Marshall led Snowmobile with a 4.733-second pass at 151.67 mph, and Anthony Mini posted the fastest speed at 158.51 mph, while Steve Comella claimed the No. 1 spot in the John Holt Hemi Showdown.
