NHRA POWERade Championship: Torco Racing Fuels Nationals, Virginia Motorsports Park, Oct 5-7, 2007

NHRA, VA Motorsports Park, Inet ^ | Oct 2, 2007 | FlAttorney & Co.

[flattorney]

2nd Annual NHRA Torco Racing Fuels Nationals
Virginia Motorsports Park – Richmond, Virginia
October 5 - 7, 2007

NHRA.com's Torco Racing Fuels Nationals homepage

     The NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series returned to Virginia last year with a race that shattered Pro performance barriers, especially in Pro Stock with Jason Line setting the National record that helped him capture the World Championship. This is the last 2007 “Countdown to 4 Championship” race. After this Sunday’s final elimination rounds the field of eight drivers eligible for the championship in each category - Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock - is reduced to four for the final two “Countdown to 1 Championship” races of the season. Pro Stock Motorcycles do not race this weekend and their eligible drivers for the championship was reduced to 4 at the O’Reilly NHRA Fall Nationals in Dallas, Sept 23rd.
     Peggy Llewellyn was the superstar in pro stock motorcycles at Dallas winning her first NHRA national event, she became the first black woman to win a NHRA national event, and her earned points bumped her into the final 4 drivers eligible for the championship. In her first year back to NHRA, after a five year absence due to a lack of sponsorship, the San Antonio native pulled off a hole-shot win in the semi-finals to beat Chip Ellis (#3 in points) and another incredible hole-shot win in the finals to beat Andrew Hines (#1 in points). See complete NHRA “Countdown to the Championship” information below. - FlA

Complete Event Schedule
Fri, Oct 5: Pro Qualifying Sessions at 3:30 & 6 pm
Sat, Oct 6: Pro Qualifying Sessions at Noon & 2:30 pm
Sun, Oct 7: Pre-Race Ceremonies, 10 am
Sun, Oct 7: Final Eliminations begin at 11 am

MotorSport-NHRA: Pre & Post Race Driver Interviews & News
NHRA Drivers Blogs
Virginia Motorsports Park Weather Forecast
Richmond Times Dispatch - Sports
ESPN2 TV Coverage (All Times ET)
10/06: Qualifying 7:00 - 8:00 pm
10/07: NHRA Race Day 11:00 - 11:30 am
10/07: Eliminations 7:00 - 10:00 pm
# 10/07: Repeat - Qualifying 1:00 - 2:00 am
# 10/12: Repeat - Eliminations 4:00 - 6:00 am

Paul “The Voice of NHRA” Page will anchor ESPN2’s coverage from Virginia, with outstanding color commentary and analysis by 22-time NHRA Top Fuel and Funny Car winner Mike Dunn. Gary Gerould, Dave Rieff and John Kernan will report the action from the pits. Rieff also will host Sunday’s NHRA Race Day The half-hour program will set the stage for Sunday’s eliminations with driver interviews, features and up-to-the-minute information.

ESPN NHRA homepage

[flattorney]

COUPLE OF ARTICLES ON DEL’s BLUE MAX FRIDAY & SATURDAY PASSES AT 2005 O’REILLY FALL NATIONALS - DALLAS

The Blue Max Lives
National Dragster
Friday, Oct 21, 2005

Del Worsham had the Texas Motorplex crowd on its feet, and all of the NHRA's professional drivers on the grounds, acting like giddy schoolkids when he staged his reproduction Blue Max Mustang II Funny Car Friday night at the O'Reilly NHRA Fall Nationals. According to Worsham, the attention began earlier in the day. "When we pulled it out of the trailer and displayed it in our pit area, the Blue Max was a magnet," he wrote in his NHRA.com blog. "Someone said we could have had Pamela Anderson in our pit and she wouldn't have drawn any bigger crowd of men than this car did. They just stood around it and stared at it, and I saw a couple of tears in some men's eyes. I knew they'd like this car, but I wasn't prepared for how emotionally connected so many people are to the Blue Max."

About midday, a parade of '70s Funny Car heroes began showing up, including Richard Tharp, Paul Candies, Ezra Boggs, and the man himself, Raymond Beadle. When Worsham brought the car to the track, the turnout was amazing. "I couldn't see behind me, but the [crew] guys said it was wall-to-wall back there with all of the Top Fuel teams watching and a lot of the Funny Car guys coming back from their pits to see it," wrote Worsham. "Probably a good thing I couldn't see that because it would have just made me even more nervous. I did the longest burnout I could, backed up, did a couple of cool dry hops, and staged the car.

I really, REALLY wanted to make a full pass, but this short little thing is a handful, wanting to skate around out there something crazy, and I didn't want to hit any timing blocks (or anything harder than that), so I lifted around 900 feet or so when it started getting too close to the centerline. The guys said the crowd still went crazy, so I hope they enjoyed it. I know I did!" - - National Hot Rod Association Oct 21, 2005

# # #

NHRA.com Team Report
O'Reilly NHRA Fall Nationals
Dallas, Texas
Sun, Sept 25, 2005

Del Worsham, Checker Schuck's Kragen Chevy Impala Funny Car
- - Worsham improves in the heat, hopes 13th is lucky
- - Blue Max II Breaks Record

Sat, 09.24.05, Dallas: Del Worsham was one of a rare few Funny Car drivers to actually improve his overall best E.T. on Saturday, and he did it in the final session by posting a strong 4.820. The time was 2-thousandths better than his Friday afternoon run, but it failed to move him up off the 13th spot. He will face Tony Pedregon in round one.

Prior to making the final run, Worsham again thrilled the Dallas crowd by running the Blue Max nostalgia car for the second day in a row. This time, he gave them legitimate reason to cheer, as he posted an amazing 5.970 at 244.69 mph, the quickest and fastest run ever recorded by a modern nostalgia Funny Car under current nostalgia rules. "Okay, first of all let's talk about the Blue Max," Worsham said. "We did it in a better way today, with us running it before both Top Fuel and Funny Car so that we had time to work on the Max and my Checker, Schuck's, Kragen car, and not have to dash from one car to the other. That made this a lot easier to do, because yesterday was pretty nuts. On the track, that's the first time I've kept it going to the finish line and it was a hoot. I really thought if we kept it in the middle it might run 6.05 or even 6.02, which would be awesome laps by today's nostalgia standards. To go out there in front of Raymond Beadle and this great crowd, and run a 5.97 at 244 was just incredible. That was a huge amount of fun.

"Right after that, the fun had to cease and we had to get focused on being in the show here tomorrow. There were some good cars behind us and it wasn't a sure thing that we'd be in the top 16 by the time we ran. As it ended up, we were but we still wanted to make a very good solid lap to be ready for Sunday. We were one of, I think, just two cars to actually improve in that last session, so we feel pretty good. That's the good news. The bad news is we couldn't overcome that deal during the big session on Friday night, so we have to start from the bottom half and run a guy like Tony Pedregon in round one. Hey, they're all tough, so you might as well start with a big one."

- - 09.24.05: Del Worsham launches on recorded run at Texas Motorplex - FlA

FlAttorney says >> I remember this run like it was yesterday. When Del rolled out to do his burnout I noticed two things. One, he wasn’t wearing his old style ‘70’s respirator like on Friday, i.e. he had his full current FC gear on. Two, from the sound of the motor he was running a full load of nitro in “lil’ Blue”. I told this to my friend there with me and he said “hell he’s going for a full hot pass and ET!” ……. And sure enough Del did. Frankly it surprised me, but Worsham is not afraid of nitro Funny Cars and has had several huge motor explosions, fires, and wrecks. After Del’s record pass, the crowd screaming and cheering was so loud I physically couldn’t take it, because of my tinnitus, and had to scramble and put my high dB reduction earplugs in.

[SouthTexas]

Was showing wife pics of the cars and had to keep going around this one.

[flattorney]

Both Forces out at Richmond; Hight carries the load for team

---

10/4/2007

 
Ashley Force

Injured drag racing star John Force confirmed Thursday that daughter Ashley, the leading contender for the Auto Club's 2007 Road to the Future Award, won't compete this week in the second annual Torco Racing Fuels Nationals at Richmond, Va. 

Modifications to the 24-year-old's 320 mile-an-hour Ford Mustang that were mandated by her father after his Sept. 23 crash at the Texas Motorplex simply could not be completed in time to send the Castrol GTX team to Virginia Motorsports Park. 

Since Ashley is not part of the NHRA's new Countdown to the Championship, priority for those upgrades was given to teammate Robert Hight's Auto Club Ford, which will be the only John Force Racing entry in the Final 4 and the only one in competition this weekend.

“A lot of different decisions had to be made within a short amount of time,” Ashley said.  “The top priority is safety and the second priority was getting Robert and his team into the Richmond race because they're still in the Countdown.

“So, we focused on Robert's Auto Club Mustang.  They're still working right now to get it ready and there just wasn't time to do the other cars like dad wanted them.  So, I'm staying (in Dallas) with dad and Mike Neff (who'll drive a fourth Force Racing entry next season) is going to be in Richmond with Robert. 

“It's a little disappointing, but we'll just stick with our teammates and get ready for Vegas (and the Oct. 26-28 ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway).”

Ashley has remained at Baylor University Medical Center since her father's crash.  The elder Force presently is undergoing an accelerated program of physical therapy to address a laundry list of injuries that include a compound fracture of the left ankle, broken toes and fingers, a badly dislocated left wrist and a severely lacerated right knee.

Hight, who was the points leader until he failed to qualify for the race in which his father-in-law was injured, doesn't believe the changes to his car, which included extra bracing throughout the chassis, will adversely effect performance even though they added 30 pounds of weight.

“It's untried,” Hight said of the car in which, earlier this year, he posted the two quickest quarter miles in Funny Car history, “but, trust me, the crew chiefs wouldn't send our car out there if they didn't think it could compete.  I'm actually looking for it to be a better car along with being safer.  Until we go down the track, we won't really know, but I have a feeling that it might be better.”

As for Force, he'll follow the race by phone and, with the help of staff members and family, on the internet. 

“Robert's our lead guy now,” Force said.  “He's racin' this week not just for me and Ashley and Eric Medlen but for all the sponsors – Castrol GTX, Auto Club, Ford, Mac Tools, BrandSource, Mach 1 Air Services.  I'm in the Countdown (fourth in points) but if any of those other guys show up (three other drivers are within 15 points of him), they knock me out – and they're probably gonna show up.”

Medlen, the lead driver in Force's Next Generation initiative, succumbed last March to injuries suffered in a testing accident at Gainesville, Fla.   Modifications made to the cars after that accident probably kept Force from suffering more serious injuries in his crash.

Those changes included widening the top of the roll cage and, with the assistance of Kris VanGilder at ISP (Innovative Safety Products), adding extra padding around the driver's head.  Furthermore, the team shucked the five-point seat belts mandated by rule for a more restrictive seven-point system and worked with Trevor Ashline of Safety Solutions, Inc., to create the new “Hybrid X” restraint system that restricts the driver's head movement from side-to-side as well as from front-to-back.

“Eric saved my life,” Force said, “because my crew chief (Austin Coil) told me my accident was worse than his.  If we hadn't made the changes, I wouldn't be here.

So I'm just gonna do my therapy this week and pull for Robert and Jimmy Prock and the whole Auto Club team.

“Next week, I'll get with the docs and we'll figure out when I can get back in the car.  That's my motivation.  I miss racing.”

[flattorney]

Was showing wife pics of the cars and had to keep going around this one.

LOL, you're a good man ST!

[flattorney]

Countdown to Craziness: Near the end, NHRA is a Free-For-All
USAToday by Gary Graves
Oct 4, 2007

Abstract: That a driver in seventh place can generate buzz about winning it all confirms that the NHRA has created more excitement with its inaugural Countdown to the Championship. While drivers praise the concept for that, they curse the unintentional drama it has spawned because of the resulting stress.

Full Article

TAB

[tubebender]

doesn't believe the changes to his car, which included extra bracing throughout the chassis, will adversely effect performance even though they added 30 pounds of weight.

30 pounds... Wow, they must be using steam pipe for tubing and RPG proof steel for gussets...

[flattorney]

Raymond Beadle – Part 3

Beadle's Blue Max Funny Car Crashes During Lakeland Run
Feb 14, 1977

Raymond Beadle's 1977 version of his famed Blue Max AA funny car is said to be faster and more powerful than its predecessor. But Beadle's crew retained the 1976 car as a backup. It's time to pull out the spare car. Beadle one of the nation's best known funny car drivers, was at the wheel of his new Blue Max yesterday at Lakeland International Raceway when the $35,000 car flipped end-over-end twice and rolled on its side three other times before coming to a rest in a rain-soaked field.

Beadle, who was involved in a one-on-one duel with 'TV' Tommy Ivo in a feature race in the International Hot Rod Association's National title series at Lakeland, was taken to St. Joseph's East where he declined treatment. "He was discharged without really being seen," said a hospital spokesman. "He told us he felt all right." The Texas-born Beadle had just crossed the finish line at a speed of 230 mph. He had the victory in what was supposed to be the first of three duels. According to Ivo, Beadle's chute failed to open. "He was still going fast at the split," said Ivo, who said he had cut his speed down to "50 or 60" mph as he watched Beadle cross the finish line. "Then it looked like he (Beadle) veered to miss the (track) divider. "The car flipped pretty bad. I set off the (protective) fire bottles to get out the escape hatch (of my car) and get to him first. One thing that worked good is the field was soft from the rain."

Ivo's car is equipped with two safety chutes, while Beadle has one. The car landed upside down in the field well out of the view of the spectators who gathered for LIR's first race of the 1977 season. Beadle, who makes his home in Dallas, had said his new car is capable of 240 mph with an elapsed time over the quarter-mile at :05.90. The soft-spoken Beadle, appearing in only the third points race of the 1977 Winston national titles series, is one of the nation's most durable drivers. He was booked in 80 match races last year, 84 in 1974 and 85 in 1973. His 1977 entry has been fitted with a new body and paint design. The light-weight fiberglass body remains a replica of a Ford Mustang II, while the engine features an aluminum block with replaceable cylinder sleeves. It burns potent nitro methane fuel, which is run in amounts as high as 98 percent.

The mammoth 17- by 34-inch tires on Beadle's car left the ground twice during the spectacular crash. "It shook him up," said Bill Taylor, one of the track owners. "Most people didn't see it since it happened after he'd already crossed the finish line." For Beadle and the Blue Max' owner, Harry Schmidt, yesterday's race will be their only Mid-South appearance this year. Beadle, whose fee is said to be $2,500 a day, will remember his first and only Lakeland stop. Taylor said Beadle's speed eclipsed the track record, as did his :06.40 elapsed time. Yesterday's rain finally hit with 26 cars still in the running for national points. The drivers were forced to split the points and prize money since the race can not be made up. The two days of racing attracted 3,400 fans.

The Commercial Appeal.com; lakelandraceway.com

# # #

Beadle – Firebird Raceway 1978

Posted for FlA by TAB

[WestCoastGal]

I’m looking forward to reading the “war stories with Prudhomme” ....I used to live down the street from them as a little girl. Don and his brother Monette and I can’t remember if there was a sister or not.

Tonight is the ARCA race where Dario Franchitti will make his debut. Kerry Earnhardt did not qualify for the race with a DEI engine, and it couldn’t make an ARCA race darn it. Franchitti qualified 6th!!

I think pre-race is on at 4 ET.

[flattorney]

Raymond Beadle: NASCAR Team Owner Cup Champion – Part 4

Raymond Beadle is the only team owner to win championships in both the NHRA and NASCAR

Raymond Beadle Motorsports Career Accomplishments
1979, 1980, 1981 NHRA Funny Car Champion (1)
1980 American Auto Racing Writers & Broadcasters Association's All-American team (2)
Inducted into the International Drag Racing Hall of Fame
1989 NASCAR Winston Cup Series Champion car owner (3)
-----
(1) #20

(2) Raymond Beadle was selected along with Shirley Muldowney, Bobby Unser, Johnny Rutherford, Dale Earnhardt, and Cale Yarborough. (Impressive list of motorsports legends!)

(3) 1989 NASCAR Season Champion
Driver: Rusty Wallace
Car Owner: Raymond Beadle
Earnings: $860,990 ($1,468,600 in 2007 $)

-------

Abstract: Raymond Beadle formed the Old Milwaukee team that included his Funny Car, the late Tim Richmond in a NASCAR stock car, and Sammy Swindell in the World of Outlaws sprint-car series. Richmond would later win in Beadle's #27 Pontiac, and Rusty Wallace would drive Beadle's cars from 1986 to 1990 and win the only Winston Cup championship of his career in 1989.

# # #

Beadle opened another chapter in his racing career in 1983. He formed a NASCAR Winston Cup Series team with sponsorship from Old Milwaukee and driver Tim Richmond. He also formed a World of Outlaws Sprint Car team with driver Sammy Swindell. Richmond quickly began to shine for Beadle setting 4 poles and recording a win at Darlington in only their 5th race together. Richmond went on to record 10 top-5s and 15 top-10s that year in the #27 Old Milwaukee Pontiac. In 1984, Richmond posted another win at North Wilkesboro, but the pairing went winless in 1985. Beadle also fielded a Winston Cup Series entry for Sammie Swindell at Atlanta. Swindell was sidelined after a crash on lap 242. At the end of the year, Richmond accepted an offer to drive for Charlotte car dealership owner Rick Hendrick, and Beadle hired Rusty Wallace to assume to driving duties of the #27.

Beadle stepped out of his NHRA funny car in 1985 and hired Lil' John" Lombardo to drive. Lombardo gave Beadle a NHRA win that year. In 1986, Rusty Wallace scored two wins for Beadle in the #27 Aludard Pontiac. In 1987, Kodiak smokeless tobacco replaced Alugard as the teams sponsor and Wallace set a pole and scored 2 wins. Also in 1987, Beadle stepped back into the driving duties in his NHRA Funny Car.

Beadle hired Richard Tharp to drive his funny car in 1988 and later replaced him with Ronny Young. For 1988, Rusty Wallace scored 2 poles, 6 wins, and finished runner-up in the NASCAR Winston Cup Series Championship. In 1989, Wallace and Beadle returned to the frey recording 4 poles, 6 wins and capturing the NASCAR Winston Cup Series Championship. In 1990, Miller Genuine Draft signed on as the sponsor for the #27. Wallace scored 2 wins and 2 poles. At the end of the year, Beadle shut down Blue Max Racing. Wallace signed with Roger Penske and persuaded Miller to follow with him.

Posted for FlA by TAB/JJ

[flattorney]

Hillary Will grew up racing at the Samoa Drag Strip before moving to Alcohol Dragster and then Top Fuel 2 years ago. She was in town a few weeks ago but I missed her.

I like Hillary and she shows very good Top Fuel potential. However I think her Kalitta Racing crew is letting her down. Gee, the Kalitta organization has struggled this year. Connie and his crew chiefs needed to shut up and let Dick LaHaie (#30 on NHRA Greatest List) do his job when they brought him in May of this year. From Dick's comments he has really been frustrated. And if you know LaHaie he has never been long for words. But Connie is Connie, lol.

Kalitta Racing: Hillary Will homepage
Hillary Will Bio

NHRA Torco Racing Fuels Nationals: Hillary Will Preview

- - Qualifying high in field on Will's agenda at Richmond

PETERSBURG, Va. (October 3, 2007) -- Hillary Will, driver of the KB Racing LLC-owned, Kalitta Motorsports-managed Top Fuel dragster, has a dual goal for the second annual NHRA Torco Racing Fuels Nationals this weekend. Her first goal is to qualify high in the field. This is important because the event this weekend at Richmond is the final event that the Top Fuel drivers can earn points for the Top Fuel Technicoat Shootout. The top eight point earner will advance to the Technicoat Shootout (Oct. 27), a special race-within-a- race, at the ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals (Oct. 25-28) at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Currently, Will is tied for the eighth and final position in the Shootout with 2,440 points. Points are earned as follows: the No. 1 qualifier earns 175 points, No. 2 165 points, No. 3 155 points, and No. 4 145 points. The No. 5 qualifier earns 140 points and each subsequent position decreases by five points per position, with the No. 16 qualifier earning 85 points.

To make the eight-car field for the Top Fuel Technicoat Shootout would be especially gratifying to Will and her KB Racing team as Technicoat Companies, with locations in Las Vegas and Southern California, specializing in high tech performance coatings, wearing surfaces for pedestrian traffic and vehicular traffic, new and existing roofs, as well as application of below grade wall waterproofing designed to prohibit water intrusion in lower levels, is an associate sponsor of Will's KB Racing LLC-owned, Kalitta Motorsports-managed Top Fuel dragster. Her other goal is to win here. Will begins her quest for the NHRA Torco Racing Fuels Nationals Top Fuel event title when Top Fuel qualifying gets underway at Virginia Motorsports Park in Petersburg, Va., a short drive from Richmond, on Friday.

[flattorney]

"Gatornationals Burnt Weeny Sandwich" anyone?

[flattorney]

WestCoastGal says >> I also remember some of the smaller strips had grudge matches where you could take any car out there and race someone. I was fortunate enough to get to do that once, it was a blast.

......... and if you get that "blast" in your blood stream it becomes very expensive "sex" and is usually good for at least 1 trip to "divorce court", lol.

Checked out your FR profile page last night. Big thumbs up on the Jr!

[WestCoastGal]

Thanks, my page will have to be completely redone at the end of the season. I have my Infield Parking page half done already. All Amped up so to speak. :)

Here’s a fun website, check the youtube link and the photos.

The Mongoose and the Snake.

http://www.tommongoosemcewen.com/

Off to other job, BBL hopefully in time to see the ARCA race.

[nancytx]

Thank you everyone for this wonderful and fun thread. My prayers are with the drivers and their families. I am hopeful it will be a grand show for the fans this weekend without incident. I can not wait for my husband to come home tonight from his business travels and tell him about this thread. He will love it!

Drag Racing Association of Women

[flattorney]

October 5, 2007 Qualifying

Commentary by JJ - Track
Fri, Oct 10, 2007:
- 3:30 pm: NHRA got the morning rounds of stock qualifying in before rain closed the track. Top Fuel/Funny Car/Top Fuel Harley/Pro Stock/ Round 1 qualifying is delayed. Air humidity has been rising all afternoon and is presently at 71%.
- 5:30 pm: Rain has let up and the NHRA Safety Safari is preparing the track to begin a delayed Round 1 of qualifying. Humidity has continued to climb and is currently at 83%.
- 7:30 pm: Friday's qualifying action has been cut to one pro qualifying session which has started. The missed rained-out session will not be made up.
# Virginia Motorsports Park Weather Conditions:
Time: 7:30 pm ET
Temp: 74 F
Pressure: 30.25 - Rising
Wind: 5 MPH - Stable
Humidity: 91%
Dew Point: 70 F
- 9:30 pm: Rain has held off and qualifying times and speeds in Top Fuel and Pro Stock, but not Funny Car, were very good for weak track and air humidity quality. But the cool air has been a major redeeming factor. ## END

SEE FULL RESULTS AND NEWS BELOW

Posted for FlA by TAB

[flattorney]

QUALIFYING ORDER AFTER FRIDAY ROUND ONE

Top Fuel

---

 Psn  Driver               Vehicle                            ET   Speed
   1. Brandon Bernstein    Budweiser/Lucas Oil Dragster    4.549  321.58 
   2. Whit Bazemore        Matco Tools Dragster            4.574  321.42 
   3. J.R. Todd            Skull Shine/Torco Race Fuels D  4.592  317.64 
   4. Larry Dixon          Sky Tel Dragster                4.600  313.80 
   5. Doug Herbert         Snap-On Tools Dragster          4.606  316.01 
   6. Doug Kalitta         MAC Tools Dragster              4.629  318.24 
   7. Doug Foley           Torco Racing Fuels Dragster     4.697  264.49 
   8. Cory McClenathan     Fram Dragster                   4.802  321.96 
   9. Rod Fuller           CAT Dealers Dragster            4.858  317.05 
  10. Terry Mcmillen       Dragster                        6.775  123.05 
  11. Clay Millican        Knoll Gas/RATT Dragster         7.587   97.13 
  12. Morgan Lucas         Lucas Oil/Torco Racing Fuels D  9.019  102.22 
  13. Tony Schumacher      U.S. Army Dragster              9.639   79.31 
  14. Bobby Lagana Jr.     Lagana & Lewis Dragster         9.702   76.77 
  15. David Grubnic        Zantrex-3 Dragster             10.173   87.27 
  16. Melanie Troxel       Vietnam Veterans/POW-MIA Drags 10.721   80.02 
          --------- Not Qualified ---------
  17. Bob Vandergriff      UPS Dragster                   17.507   30.81 

Funny Car

---

 Psn  Driver               Vehicle                            ET   Speed
   1. Tommy Johnson Jr.    Skoal Racing Impala             4.790  312.06 
   2. Robert Hight         AAA of So. Cal Mustang          4.790  307.58 
   3. Del Worsham          Checker Schuck's Kragen Impala  4.858  311.20 
   4. Tony Bartone         Jim Dunn Racing/Lucas Oil Mont  4.877  303.78 
   5. Mike Ashley          Torco Race Fuels Charger        4.905  258.42 
   6. Bob Gilbertson       Autolite XP Spark Plugs Stratu  4.980  298.27 
   7. Tony Pedregon        Q Power Impala                  5.008  245.45 
   8. Cruz Pedregon        Advance Auto Parts Impala       5.011  264.70 
   9. Jerry Toliver        Rockstar Energy Drinks Solara   5.018  253.66 
  10. Scott Kalitta        DHL Solara                      5.174  212.59 
  11. Gary Densham         Torco/Racebricks Impala         8.521  108.77 
  12. Ron Capps            Brut Charger                    8.727   92.93 
  13. Tim Wilkerson        Levi, Ray & Shoup Impala        8.742   90.69 
  14. Jeff Arend           Checker Schucks Kragen Impala  10.133   84.54 
  15. Jim Head             Head Racing Solara             10.955   66.36 
  16. Jack Beckman         MTS Charger                    10.973   75.74 
          --------- Not Qualified ---------
  17. Gary Scelzi          Hemi Oakley Charger            11.762   75.39 
  18. Kenny Bernstein      Monster Energy/Lucas Oil Charg 11.972   72.50 

Pro Stock

---

 Psn  Driver               Vehicle                            ET   Speed
   1. Dave Connolly        Torco Cobalt                    6.649  207.24 
   2. Jeg Coughlin         Jegs.com Cobalt                 6.661  207.27 
   3. Richie Stevens       Mopar/Valspar Stratus           6.673  206.54 
   4. Greg Anderson        Summit Racing Equipment GTO     6.674  207.11 
   5. Larry Morgan         Lucas Oil Stratus               6.674  206.57 
   6. Allen Johnson        J & J Racing Stratus            6.677  206.29 
   7. Justin Humphreys     RaceRedi Motorsports GTO        6.681  206.54 
   8. Kurt Johnson         AC Delco Cobalt                 6.689  206.45 
   9. Jason Line           Summit Racing Equipment GTO     6.704  207.15 
  10. Kenny Koretsky       Indicom Cobalt                  6.705  205.01 
  11. Greg Stanfield       Piranaz Racing GTO              6.707  204.26 
  12. Warren Johnson       GM Performance Parts GTO        6.708  206.13 
  13. Mike Edwards         Young Life/A.R.T. GTO           6.725  205.57 
  14. Jim Yates            Wiley X Eye Wear GTO            6.725  204.94 
  15. Ron Krisher          Valvoline Cobalt                6.729  205.19 
  16. Bob Benza            BNB Racing Cobalt               6.748  204.54 
          --------- Not Qualified ---------
  17. Craig Hankinson      Boscoe HVAC GTO                 6.750  203.49 
  18. Max Naylor           Jagermeister Stratus            6.771  203.98 
  19. Tom Hammonds         Cobalt                          6.775  199.29 
  20. Adam Flamholc        GTO                             6.790  203.61 
  21. Jim Cunningham       Cunningham Motorsports Mustang  6.857  199.85 
  22. V. Gaines            Kendall Oil Stratus             7.134  194.24 
  23. Tommy Brown          Cobalt                          7.493  127.78 
  24. Dave Northrop        GTO                            24.587   29.48 

Posted for FlA by TAB

[flattorney]

Bernstein revs up Countdown bid with No. 1 spot; TJ, Connolly also top fields

by Rob Geiger, NHRA.com

Brandon Bernstein's fight to hold onto his spot in the inaugural Countdown to 1 field got off to a great start Friday night as the second-generation Top Fuel pro earned the provisional low qualifier position at the second annual Torco Racing Fuels NHRA Nationals. The son of legend Kenny Bernstein blistered Virginia Motorsports Park with a 4.549 at 321.58 mph to outrun the four drivers looking to replace him in the final leg of the playoffs.

Tommy Johnson Jr. leads Funny Car with a solid 4.790 at 312, while scorching-hot Pro Stock points leader Dave Connolly showed the way in the factory hot rod class with a steady 6.649 at 207 mph. Johnson and most of the other Funny Car racers are driving reconfigured chassis this weekend. Drivers and teams have strengthened the chrome moly tubing around the driver's compartment after the incident that sidelined John Force.

 
Brandon Bernstein

Bernstein entered this decisive weekend as the man with the biggest target on his back since his Budweiser Top Fuel team is currently fourth in the standings. Only the top four racers in each professional category will have a chance at the 2007 championship after this weekend's race.

"That was big," Bernstein said. "To qualify in the top half and get those extra points gives us a little bit of a cushion. But it's still going to come down to a round-by-round deal on Sunday. We just have to go rounds on Sunday and hope we go more than [Bob Vandergriff] goes and even Whit [Bazemore] and the others. They're all right back there.

"When it's pouring down rain out there and you start thinking you might not even get one run so you're going into Saturday maybe with just two runs to make it into this championship deal it becomes very unsettling. But Tim Richards [tuner] made an awesome call and got the car to go down there so now we feel great."

Whit Bazemore, who needs Bernstein to bow out early Sunday for him to have a chance at making the Countdown to 1 field, is second after Friday's lone qualifying session with a 4.574 at 321.42 mph in his Matco Tools rail. A lengthy rainstorm canceled the second session outright.

J.R. Todd, who is also chasing Bernstein, is third with a 4.592 at 317.64 mph in his Torco dragster, followed by points leader Larry Dixon, who is fourth with a 4.600 in his SkyTel dragster. Another Countdown racer, Doug Herbert, is next in fifth place in his Snap-on Tools car with a 4.606.

The closest racer to Bernstein in the points, UPS pro Bob Vandergriff, broke right off the starting line, leaving him outside the field with two rounds remaining.

 
Tommy Johnson Jr.

Johnson isn't a part of the Countdown but that didn't stop the Skoal racer from putting his Impala R/T on the provisional Funny Car pole with a 4.790 at 312.06 mph. Johnson's speed was the difference as John Force Racing pro Robert Hight also posted a 4.790, but he ended up second in his Auto Club Ford after topping out at 307.58 mph.

In the wake of John Force's accident in Dallas, most of the racers in the field reconfigured their cars to strengthen the cockpit area. 

"We sent our car in when Murf (McKinney, chassis builder) and all the engineers decided what needed to be fixed," Johnson said. "Our car was the first one to leave Murf's with all of the updates. They actually ended up making a lot of the jigs off of our car for everybody else's car. It wasn't a performance secret, so you want to share the safety stuff with everybody. We were more than happy to help everybody out. 

"I was plenty nervous about the first run. You don't know what it's going to do, is it going to make the chassis stiffer, smoke the tires? So it was good to get a good run in and everything looks normal. If we can make the safety better and the performance the same, that's fine with me. The car actually felt stiffer and easier to drive."

The three drivers fighting to replace John Force in the Countdown to 1 field -- Mike Ashley, Ron Capps, and Gary Scelzi -- had mixed results Friday. Ashley was fifth in his Torco Dodge with a 4.905. Beckman was all the way down on the bump with a coasting 10.973, while Scelzi finds himself outside the top 16 with a best of 11.762.

 
Dave Connolly

Considering he's won the last four races in a row, it surprised no one that Connolly has the quickest car in Pro Stock as his 6.649 at 207.24 mph in the Torco/Seelye Wright Chevrolet Cobalt got the job done Friday night. 

"The run we've been on is kind of incredible," Connolly said. "Sometimes you just get those vibes you're going to have a good weekend. I got that feeling last week and we actually made some gains in testing. You can go out there and test for months and months at a time and just never really find anything, but we actually felt like we made some progress with our Chevy Cobalt and it showed on that run. 

"You never know what to expect, especially when it rains that hard, but NHRA did an excellent job. My car never moved around one bit, so hat's off to NHRA. I don't know what it is about these East Coast races with 'R' in it -- Reading, Richmond -- it seems like it rains on us all the time, but we've always had a lot of luck in the rain and we did it again today."

Connolly's teammate at Cagnazzi Racing, fourth-place points earner Jeg Coughlin, is second on the grid with a 6.661 at 207.27 mph, so it appears the testing the team did between races really paid off.

The other players in the Countdown to 1 chase showed well with Larry Morgan earning fifth place with a 6.674, Allen Johnson taking sixth with a 6.677, Kurt Johnson grabbing eighth with a 6.689, Jason Line ninth with a 6.704, and Warren Johnson claiming 12th with a 6.708. 

Bob Benza set the Day 1 bump with a 6.748 in his unsponsored entry. Twenty-four drivers attempted passes Friday.

Posted for FlA by TAB

[tubebender]

Thanks for posting the latest news. I don’t see Hillary Will on the list?

[flattorney]

Hillary didn't make it to the line Friday for qualifying. See what she does in 2nd round qualifying which is currently under way.

# Virginia Motorsports Park Weather Conditions:
Time: 10.06.07-12:45 pm ET
Temp: 75 F
Pressure: 30.21 -Decreasing
Wind: 5 MPH - Stable
Humidity: 78% - Decreasing
Dew Point: 68 F - Decreasing

# # #

Think I will caption this one

Ultimate fan ........... any questions?

[flattorney]

Umgud says >> I still go to nostalgia meets when I have the time. Lot’s of fun watching the old iron.

Yelp, I always enjoy getting out to see the bruts .............

......... over in TF Funny Car drivers Ron Capps pit that is, lol.