Drag Racing News

TOP FUEL COMPETITION AS TIGHT AS EVER AS THE NHRA HEADS TO ATLANTA

COMMERCE, Ga. – As the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series heads south to Atlanta Dragway, May 4-6, for the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals, the competition in Top Fuel is so tight predicting the race winner is nearly impossible.

Morgan Lucas has finished in 10th place in the championship points battle the last two years, but this season the outcome could be a lot different. The GEICO/Lucas Oil driver is coming off his second win and fourth No. 1 qualifying position of the season in Houston, which puts him in third place in the championship standings as the NHRA heads to Atlanta, site of his first career victory in 2009.

“Houston might have been the best race we’ve ever had,” Lucas said. “Not only did we qualify No. 1, but we had low elapsed time of every round on race day. That’s never happened for us before and the reason we're encouraged as we look forward to Atlanta.”

NOS Energy Mayhem @ the MAX Round One in the Books at zMAX Dragway

LUCAS, PEDREGON, JOHNSON AND ARANA EARN NO. 1 QUALIFYING POSITIONS AT HOUSTON'S O'REILLY AUTO PARTS NHRA SPRING NATIONALS

BAYTOWN, Texas – Top Fuel driver Morgan Lucas raced to his fourth No. 1 qualifying position of the season Saturday at the 25th annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Spring Nationals presented by Super Start Batteries at Royal Purple Raceway.

Cruz Pedregon (Funny Car), Allen Johnson (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also were No. 1 qualifiers and will lead their categories into Sunday's 11 a.m. elimiantions at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event near Houston.

The GEICO/Lucas Oil Top Fuel team ran low E.T. of the event during Friday evening’s qualifying session and the 3.772 second pass at 327.74 mph held up as the No. 1 qualifying position throughout Saturday’s warm weather conditions.

“We were real fortunate that the Friday night session ran a little late for us, and we got the conditions to run that big number [3.772],” Lucas said. “We also had the opportunity to test a little bit [with the hotter temperatures] today, but for tomorrow we’ll put the car back to where we know it can run well. We obviously have a good handle on the car and can make it run consistent 3.80s.”

Lucas will start from the No. 1 position for the eighth time of his career and will face No. 16 qualifier Troy Buff in the opening round.

NHRA FULL THROTTLE SERIES MOVES ON TO HOUSTON AFTER EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL FOUR-WIDE EVENT AT ALL LEVELS

GLENDORA, Calif. (April 18, 2012) — The analogy “home run” refers to an activity or event that touches all four bases.  That analogy is certainly appropriate when it comes to last weekend’s NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway in Charlotte, where the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series enjoyed strong attendance, top ratings on ESPN2, unbelievable performances on the track, and great weather.

Attendance for the recently completed NHRA Four-Wide Nationals was strong all three days, with the final attendance figures up 20 percent from 2011.  The Speedway Motorsports Inc. facility in Charlotte, self-dubbed “The Bellagio of Drag Strips,” enjoyed chamber of commerce weather allowing NHRA fans the opportunity to enjoy the racing on the track and the plethora of activities in NHRA’s world famous open pits.  

CONCORD, N.C. – The dominant start of the 2012 season continued for Funny Car racer Robert Hight as he scored his fourth win in five races as he won the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMax Dragway. Spencer Massey in Top Fuel and Greg Anderson in Pro Stock also secured wins at the fifth race of 2012 in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.

Robert Hight continued his hot start of the season as he recorded his third No. 1 qualifying position in the first five events of 2012. Friday leaders, Jason Line in Pro Stock and Steve Torrence in Top Fuel, retained their No. 1 qualifying positions through Saturday’s qualifying efforts.

HIGHT CONTINUES STRONG START OF THE SEASON WITH NO.1 QUALIFIER; LINE AND TORRENCE RETAIN NO. 1 QUALIFYING POSITIONS AT NHRA FOUR-WIDE NATIONALS

CONCORD, N.C. –  Robert Hight continued his hot start of the season as he recorded his third No. 1 qualifying position in the first five events of 2012. Friday leaders, Jason Line in Pro Stock and Steve Torrence in Top Fuel, retained their No. 1 qualifying positions through Saturday’s qualifying efforts.

Hight was outside the 16 car field looking in when he powered his Auto Club Ford Mustang to the top of the field with a run of 4.074 seconds at 317.19 mph during the third round of qualifying. This is his 42nd No.1 qualifying position of his 166 race career. Hight has won the last three events and if he continues his winning streak at the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, he will become the fourth Funny Car driver to win four in a row joining legends Don Pruhdomme, Kenny Bernstein and John Force.

“It was a long night last night. It’s not a position that we’ve been in this year. My car has been running so well, but it was kind of comforting knowing we were on the slow side of it. Jimmy Prock, he has no problems making more power and making it go faster. That’s easy for him. If we were on the other side of it where we were fast and having to slow it down, I’d have been really nervous,” said Hight. “I would have a little more confidence if we had more than one run going into eliminations, but we hit it out there again tonight and shook. It was slow, so Jimmy will fix it tomorrow. We definitely have to get on the other side of it and make the thing faster, and if you do that, I have a good feeling this Auto Club car could be low e.t. every round, just like it was the first run today. I’m looking forward to tomorrow. Four wide is exciting.”

GREEN LIGHT!  DRAG STRIP AT IRWINDALE
BACK IN BUSINESS: THURSDAY APRIL 19

Irwindale, Calif. - -  NHRA street-legal drag racing has just been given the green light and is back on schedule in Irwindale … after (way too many) weeks away, the hot eighth-mile drag strip at Irwindale is all set to starting to “lighting up the night” again on Thursday, April 26.

“We’re very pleased to be able to bring street-legal drag racing back to the Irwindale facility,” said Jim Cohan, CEO of Race Training, USA Inc. the operators of LA Racing Experience, the event center’s stock car driving school.  “We understand how much this place to race means to so many people.”

Cohan’s group (which has been in operation at the Irwindale facility for some seven years now) will stage regular Thursday night street-legal events, a number Sunday Summit Series races, and, perhaps even a few special Saturday nights under the lights on the Irwindale eighth-mile.

SMITH AIMING FOR SECOND WIN OF SEASON IN NHRA PRO MOD DRAG RACING SERIES PRESENTED BY PROCARE RX

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — When the first 2012 event in the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by ProCare Rx concluded in Gainesville, Fla., veteran  driver Rickie Smith had outlasted a tough field to take home his first NHRA Pro Mod victory. It was the second time that Smith had advanced to a final round in the series, and the breakthrough performance jump-started his season and helped put memories of a rough 2011 behind him.

“After the year I had last year, from surgery on my back to hitting the wall at Bristol (Tenn.) and having knee surgery, I guess you could say it was a disaster of a year,” Smith said. “This win is definitely a big boost in my confidence. It is a good way to start the year for sure.”

Smith’s King, N.C. residence is located a little more than an hour’s drive from zMAX Dragway, site of the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, April 13-15. The race is the second stop in the 10-event NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by ProCare Rx.

The veteran driver considers this world-class facility his home track, but admits there isn’t any extra pressure to perform there. He enjoys the level of passion that local fans have for the Pro Mod series.

TOP FUEL DRIVER MASSEY READY TO RACE FOUR-WIDE AT zMAX DRAGWAY

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Winning two out of the first four races to open the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season is a good thing by any measure, and FRAM Top Fuel driver Spencer Massey agrees. The 2011 world championship runner-up has come out this season with a firm purpose and is ready to continue his early season success as the circuit heads to zMAX Dragway for the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, April 13-15.

“We’re on a high note right now,” Massey said. “We just won the last event and even though we won, we stayed and tested for Charlotte and the coming hotter months. I’m feeling very excited after winning and testing and especially heading into four-wide because it’s double the amount of race cars, which means it’s double the fun.”

In the unique format of the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, drivers have to take a different strategic approach when they head to the starting line for each round of racing. There are four 7,000-horsepower nitro-burning engines staging at the same time, launching at the same time and running down the Bellagio of drag strips simultaneously, giving fans and competitors a little more to think about.

NHRA FULL THROTTLE DRAG RACING SERIES FOUR-WIDE GUIDE

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Fans attending the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway this weekend (April 13-15) will experience double the horsepower in all qualifying sessions and eliminations rounds for Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock, which will run four-wide at this unique event in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series. Below is a quick reference guide that will help answer any questions regarding the special rules, race procedures and configuration for four-wide drag racing, NHRA style.

LANE IDENTIFICATION

Lanes are referred to in numerical order from left facing down track (outermost left lane is No. 1, then No. 2 and No. 3, and the outermost right lane is No. 4).

QUALIFYING ORDER

In the first session, drivers with the least number of points will run first, and the points leaders will run last. The top four in the points standings will be the final group (points leader will be in lane 4, second in points in lane 3, third in lane 2, fourth in lane 1). The order for subsequent sessions will be determined per normal qualifying procedures.

The Ultimate Field Trip: Astronauts, Funny Cars and Pizza - Students from Northwest Cabarrus Middle School’s Science, Technology, Engineering and Math program gathered on the racing surface of zMAX Dragway to meet NASA astronaut Joan Higginbotham and NHRA Funny Car star driver Bob Tasca III

HIGHT, LUCAS, LINE CLAIM NO. 1 QUALIFYING POSITIONS AT SUMMITRACING.COM NHRA NATIONALS IN LAS VEGAS

LAS VEGAS – Robert Hight will attempt to earn his third consecutive Funny Car victory of the season Sunday from the No. 1 qualifying position at the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Morgan Lucas (Top Fuel) and Jason Line (Pro Stock) also will lead their categories into tomorrow’s 11 a.m. eliminations as the No. 1 qualifiers in their respective categories at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event.

Hight, the defending winner of this event, raced to his second No. 1 of the season and  41st of his career with a performance of 4.132 seconds at 310.41 mph in his Auto Club Ford Mustang. Hight, who earned victories at Phoenix and Gainesville, Fla. in the last two events, will face veteran independent racer Terry Haddock in the first round.

NHRA ICON BILL “GRUMPY” JENKINS DIES

NHRA Pro Stock icon Bill "Grumpy" Jenkins, a master of the internal combustion engine and a legend among the Chevrolet faithful, died March 29. He was 81.

Jenkins, voted No. 8 among NHRA Drag Racing's greatest racers in a 2001 experts poll, scored just 13 NHRA national event wins but earned his well-deserved spot in drag racing's top 10 because no other individual has contributed more to the advancement of normally aspirated engines for drag racing competition than the legendary "Grump."

NHRA FUNNY CAR DRIVER RON CAPPS LOOKING FORWARD TO RETURNING TO LAS VEGAS

LAS VEGAS  The heart-pounding action of the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series heads to The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the first of two scheduled stops in 2012 for the 13th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals, March 30-April 1, and Funny Car driver Ron Capps couldn’t be more excited about heading to Sin City.

“Vegas is one of my five favorite race tracks and they’re all the tracks built by Bruton Smith,” Capps said. “Vegas is always fun, but nothing is more fun than winning on Sunday.”

Capps knows what it’s like to have success at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, he won the event in 2009 and has earned two other victories at the track. The charismatic Funny Car driver is looking to continue the success his NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger had the last time the NHRA was in Las Vegas.

LUCAS, HIGHT, EDWARDS AND KRAWIEC EARN VICTORIES AT RAIN-DELAYED TIRE KINGDOM NHRA GATORNATIONALS

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Morgan Lucas raced to the Top Fuel victory Monday at the rain-delayed Tire Kingdom NHRA Gatornationals presented by NAPAFilters.com.

Robert Hight (Funny Car), Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) and Eddie Krawiec (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also were winners at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event at Auto-Plus Raceway at Gainesville.

Lucas powered his GEICO/Lucas Oil dragster to the second-quickest run in NHRA history with a 3.743 second time at 326.87 mph to hold off seven-time world champ Tony Schumacher, whose U.S. Army dragster lost traction early and finished in 5.289 at 139.63. Schumacher hasn’t won a race in his past nine final round appearances, dating back to Oct. 2010 in Las Vegas.

It was the fifth career victory for Lucas, who was the event’s No. 1 qualifier and also defeated Brady Kalivoda, Spencer Massey and Doug Kalitta in earlier rounds. After making some changes to his team during the offseason, Lucas seems poised to improve on disappointing back-to-back 10th place points finishes the last two seasons.

LUCAS LEADS TOP FUEL FIELD AT AUTO-PLUS RACEWAY AT GAINESVILLE; PEDREGON, KRAWIEC AND JOHNSON ALSO QUALIFYING LEADERS 

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Morgan Lucas raced his GEICO/Lucas Oil Top Fueler to the No. 1 qualifying spot at the 43rd annual Tire Kingdom NHRA Gatornationals presented by NAPAFilters.com at Auto-Plus Raceway at Gainesville.

Cruz Pedregon leads Funny Car in his Snap-On Tools Toyota Camry heading into eliminations Sunday, while Allen Johnson topped Pro Stock in his Mopar Dodge Avenger and two-time Gatornationals champ Eddie Krawiec ran the quickest pass in Pro Stock Motorcycle history en route to the No. 1 spot on his Harley-Davidson.

The GEICO/Lucas Oil driver earned the second No. 1 of the season and sixth of his career Saturday with a 3.766 second pass at 321.88 mph. In just the third race of 2012, Lucas equaled his career-high for No. 1 qualifying positions in a single season.

“I can honestly say this is the best racecar I’ve ever had,” Lucas said. “I can’t wait to hop in the thing. The problems we have this year have had to do with freak parts failures, not performance. This team is so strong right now.”

BROWN, HIGHT, LINE RACE TO FIRST WINS OF THE SEASON AT NHRA ARIZONA NATIONALS 

CHANDLER, Ariz. – Antron Brown raced to his first win of the season in Top Fuel Sunday as racing came to an end at the NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird International Raceway.

Robert Hight and Jason Line were also winners in their respective categories at the second of 23 races in the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing season.

Brown held off fellow Don Schumacher Racing teammate Tony Schumacher in the final round when he powered his Matco Tools dragster to a 3.793-second pass at 319.82 mph. It was Brown’s first win of the season in his second consecutive final round appearance. It was also his 32nd career win, with 16 wins in Top Fuel and 16 wins in Pro Stock Motorcycle.

“It was an incredible day,” said Brown. “The competition in Top Fuel now, pound for pound, is like a 324 mph Pro Stock class. Even though the odds were against us, we dug down deep and believed in our Matco Tools boys. We took it one round at a time and really had to battle with these guys. Making it to the final round for the second race in a row is a real huge statement. But it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish especially when the Countdown gets tight.”

GRAY, LANGDON, EDWARDS SECURE NO. 1 QUALIFYING POSITIONS AT NHRA ARIZONA NATIONALS 

CHANDLER, Ariz. – Johnny Gray held on to the No. 1 spot in Funny Car Saturday as qualifying came to an end at the NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird International Raceway.

Shawn Langdon and Mike Edwards also were qualifying leaders in their respective categories at the second of 23 races in the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing season.

Gray powered his Service Central Dodge Charger to a 4.074-second pass, the quickest lap of the weekend, at 298.93 mph Friday night and kept the top spot through Saturday qualifying to secure his second career No. 1 qualifying position.

“Rob (Wendland, crew chief) backed the thing down and got it ready for tomorrow,” said Gray. “He said we ought to run about a 4.12, and that’s what we ran, so we’re real confident going into tomorrow that we’ve got the Service Central/Big O car ready to compete. The car really ran good at the end of last year, and we runner-upped here last year. We just missed it by a hair in the final, so hopefully we can end up back there and learn from the mistake we made here last year and go ahead and win this thing.”

Gray will face Funny Car driver Grant Downing in the first round of eliminations on Sunday.

FORCE, MASSEY AND ANDERSON WIN O’REILLY AUTO PARTS NHRA WINTERNATIONALS

POMONA, Calif. – John Force raced to his 134th career Funny Car victory Sunday at the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Super Start Batteries at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

Spencer Massey (Top Fuel) and Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) also were winners of the season-opening NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event.

“It’s a great start,” Force said. “You really want to perform. I know all those other kids on our teams and others, like Cruz Pedregon, the Schumacher teams, [Tim] Wilkerson, and [Bob] Tasca, those guys are going to win races, and it was just nice to get a win under my belt. Those boys are bad out there. To make that top 10 is going to be tough. Somebody’s going to be left out, so I’m just going to keep fighting and keep my nose clean.”

Force, 62, used a holeshot start to claim his sixth win at this event and 15th at this track with a performance of 4.080 seconds at 315.64 mph in his Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford Mustang. Runner-up Mike Neff finished in 4.036 at 316.82 in his Castrol GTX Mustang.

“Before the final, I said, ‘What are we going to do ‘Guido?’ (crew chief Dean Antonelli),” Force said. “He said, ‘We can’t race him the way we are, running .12 or .14. We’re going to have to go after it, and if it smokes the tires, we’ll go home.’ They were all over there, looking at the numbers, and it just went. It wasn’t quick enough to beat him. He was late, so I got the win. He told me something distracted him.”

 John Force beats teammate Mike Neff with a 0.067RT, 4.080ET, 315.64mph to a ‘sleepy’ or requested 0.175RT, 4.036ET, 316.82mph. 5:10 p.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 63 degrees, relative humidity 54 percent, barometer 28.84 inches, adjusted altitude 2,057 feet, track temperature 69 degrees.

In TF, Spencer Massey took down Schumacher teammate, Tony, with a blistering 328.62mph, 0.030 sec RT and a 3.745 ET.  Massey is 7 - 2 against Schumacher in prior events. Massey launched hard and was out of the gate first and then runs the quickest pass of the event and the second quickest pass in the history of Top Fuel. This is also the fastest pass in the 1000-foot era. This will be the national speed record for Massey.

First Round Top Fuel Eliminations: There were no big upsets but fastest speed was #2 Spencer Massey recording a 325.53mph pass to beat out #15 Steve Faria. Also, #7 Khalid alBalooshi was taken out in his first Top Fuel pass by #10 Clay Millican. Weather conditions: air temperature 60 degrees, relative humidity 61 percent, barometer 28.90 inches, adjusted altitude 1,822 feet, track temperature 69 degrees.

LUCAS HIGHT, LINE EARN NO. 1 QUALIFYING POSITIONS AT O’REILLY AUTO PARTS NHRA WINTERNATIONALS AT POMONA 

POMONA, Calif. – Morgan Lucas raced to the No. 1 qualifying position in Top Fuel Saturday as rain shortened qualifying at the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Super Start Batteries at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.   

Robert Hight and Jason Line also were No. 1 qualifiers in their respective categories at the first of 23 races in the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing season. NHRA officials were forced to cancel the final qualifying session when persistent rain showers moved into the Pomona area in the afternoon.

Lucas powered his GEICO / Lucas Oil dragster to a 3.783-second run at 325.06 mph to take the top spot in the field as teams took advantage of cooler track and air temperatures. It was Lucas’ fifth No. 1 qualifier of his career and first at the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals, where he raced to the Top Fuel victory one year ago.

“We’ve made some good runs in the past, but I’ve never driven a car like this one,” Lucas said. “The way it drives and the way it steers is so nice it’s crazy. To start the year like this is tremendous. We found two really good guys with our crew chiefs Aaron (Brooks) and Rod (Centorbi) that have shown what our core group is capable of.”

TASCA, LUCAS AND EDWARDS RACE TO TOP QUALIFYING SPOTS AFTER DAY TWO OF THE O’REILLY AUOT PARTS NHRA WINTERNATIONALS

POMONA, Calif. – Bob Tasca raced to the provisional No. 1 qualifying position in  Funny Car action Friday at the 52nd annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Super Start Batteries at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona.

Morgan Lucas (Top Fuel) and Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) also raced to the provisional top qualifying spot in their respective categories at the season opening race of the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.

Tasca drove his MotorCraft/Quick Lane Ford Shelby Mustang to the provisional No. 1 position with a 4.109 second pass at 309.34 mph during Friday’s qualifying efforts. If it holds, it would be Tasca’s third career No. 1 qualifying position.

“That 4.10, based on what everyone else ran, was pretty impressive,” Tasca said. “I tell ya, it wasn’t much of an off-season for us. We tested a week in December and another week-plus in January, so we probably have 50 runs on that Motorcraft/Quick Lane car. We were disappointed with how we finished the season last year, so we dug deep this off-season and made some great runs in testing, and it’s always nice to translate into a race-day tune-up.”

WORSHAM, HAGAN, LINE AND KRAWIEC CROWNED 2011 NHRA FULL THROTTLE DRAG RACING SERIES WORLD CHAMPIONS

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. (Nov. 14, 2011) – A pair of first-time world-championship winners, Del Worsham and Matt Hagan, headlined those drivers crowned Monday evening during the 2011 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series awards ceremony at the Grand Ballroom at the Hollywood and Highland Center.

Two other NHRA Full Throttle Series world champions – Jason Line and Eddie Krawiec, both repeat champs in their categories – also were presented checks and trophies for their accomplishments during the 2011 NHRA Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship.

Southern California native Worsham, 41, earned his first championship title in Top Fuel after spending the 20 previous seasons behind the wheel of a Funny Car. He raced to eight victories in his Al-Anabi Racing dragster, including at the finale at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, in a season that saw four drivers in close contention for the championship on the final day of racing. Worsham earned $500,000 from NHRA and Full Throttle for the series crown.

Virginia cattle rancher Hagan, 28, avenged a disappointing end to the 2010 season, when he lost a 38-point lead on the final day of racing and the Funny Car title to John Force, by winning the $500,000 world championship this year in his DieHard Dodge Charger. Hagan claimed two victories and set the national record with a milestone performance of 3.995 seconds in Charlotte at the opening Countdown playoff event en route to his first championship title.

TF 3rd round:  W/L  Driver   R-Time    E-Time  Speed  

TF 3rd round:  W/L  Driver   R-Time    E-Time  Speed  

(W) Tony Schumacher (U.S. Army Dragster)        0.042      3.823 322.19 

(L) Larry Dixon (Al-Anabi Racing Dragster)      0.063      3.828 313.22     3:21 p.m.

Weather conditions: air temperature 71 degrees, relative humidity 44 percent, barometer 28.76 inches, adjusted altitude 2,685 feet, track temperature 84 degrees.Schumacher is 40 - 36 against Dixon in prior events.

JOHN FORCE’S IMPROBABLE COMEBACK

TO WIN HIS RECORD 15TH NHRA FUNNY CAR TITLE

IS FANS’ CHOICE FOR NHRA’S GREATEST MOMENT

Don Garlits’ debut of the rear-engine dragster – and winning – in Pomona in 1971 is fans’ choice for the No. 2 Greatest Moment in NHRA history

GLENDORA, Calif. (Nov. 13, 2011) – NHRA’s 60th anniversary season began 11 months ago with a quest to determine the greatest moment in its 60-year history and Sunday, on the final day of the 2011 season, that quest was achieved.

A season-long fan vote conducted on NHRA’s Facebook page had whittled the list of moments down to two final great moments and on Sunday, during pre-race at the Auto Club NHRA Finals, John Force’s comeback from the devastating accident in Dallas to win his record 15th NHRA Funny Car Championship was announced as the fans’ choice for The Greatest Moment in NHRA history.

Force’s dramatic and improbable comeback was presented along with Don Garlits’ debut of the rear-engine dragster – and winning – at the 1971 NHRA Winternationals during a pre-race ceremony as the two finalists.

WORSHAM, HAGAN AND KRAWIEC CLAIM NHRA FULL THROTTLE DRAG RACING SERIES  WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP TITLES AT POMONA

POMONA, Calif. – Del Worsham and Matt Hagan raced to their first NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series world championship titles and also earned race victories Sunday at the Auto Club NHRA Finals.

Veteran driver Worsham captured the Top Fuel season crown while Hagan avenged last season’s runner-up performance by taking the Funny Car title. Eddie Krawiec claimed his second Pro Stock Motorcycle championship. Pro Stock champ Jason Line secured his title two weeks ago in Las Vegas.

Greg Stanfield (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also were winners of the season-ending race in the NHRA Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship at historic Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

Longtime Funny Car racer Worsham, 41, claimed the Top Fuel championship in dramatic fashion by edging series challenger Spencer Massey at the finish line in the winner-take-all semifinal round. He went on to claim his eighth victory of the season and 33rd of his career by outrunning Tony Schumacher in the final round. Worsham powered his Al-Anabi Racing dragster to a 3.796 second run at 318.02 mph to finish just in front of Schumacher’s U.S. Army machine, which posted a 3.799 at 321.50 and went winless for the season for the first time since the 2001 season.

10:57 a.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 70 degrees, relative humidity 45 percent, barometer 28.81 inches, adjusted altitude 2,559 feet, track temperature 86 degrees.  See some associated pictures.

Top Fuel 1st round:

David Grubnic of RockyBoots/Candlewood Suites beat Doug Kalitta (Air) dragster by 0.001 at the 1000 mark with a speed of 313.22mph.

Antron Brown, MATCO Tools and Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) beat Bob Vandergriff with a time of 3.3833secs.  

Morgan Lucas racing for GEICO took out Troy Buff of BME Racing as Troy smoked the tires at the onset. Morgan showed a hint of fire at the 1000’ mark.

Tony Schumacher racing for the ARMY and DSR took out Clay Milliken’s Parts Plus/ MPE dragster with a top speed of the meet - 325.53mph.

WORSHAM RACES TO POINTS LEAD AND NO. 1 QUALIFIER; HAGAN, EDWARDS, HINES ALSO TOP QUALIFIERS AT AUTO CLUB RACEWAY

POMONA, Calif. – Del Worsham raced to the No. 1 qualifying position in Top Fuel Saturday as rain shortened qualifying at the Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals.   

Matt Hagan, Mike Edwards and Andrew Hines also were qualifying leaders at the season-ending race of the 2011 Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship.

Worsham powered his Al-Anabi Racing dragster to the No. 1 spot early Saturday with a 3.773-second run at 320.05 mph. In total Worsham picked up eight bonus points in qualifying and took the points lead in the category by eight points over Spencer Massey heading into Sunday’s eliminations.

“We came into this race with a plan to try to make up a couple of points on Spencer and put a round on Antron (Brown), and we couldn’t have done any better to this point,” said Worsham. “Being a two-car team and watching Larry (Dixon) go 3.79 ahead of us, I’m sure that (team manager) Alan Johnson, (crew chief) Brian Husen, and Jason (McCulloch, Dixon’s crew chief) had a pretty good idea of what it was going to do.”

WORSHAM TAKES OVER TOP FUEL POINTS LEAD, HAGAN EXTENDS FUNNY CAR LEAD AT SECOND DAY OF AUTO CLUB NHRA FINALS QUALIFYING

Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals.

Tony Schumacher, Robert Hight, Mike Edwards and Andrew Hines are the qualifying leaders in their respective categories at the final NHRA Full Throttle Countdown to the Championship event of the season at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

As a result of bonus points earned during the first two qualifying sessions, Worsham moved two points ahead of Spencer Massey in the standings. Worsham is qualified second with a run of 3.830 seconds at 316.67 mph in his Al-Anabi Racing dragster, while Massey is third overall with a 3.837 at 319.14 in his FRAM dragster.

“It was a great run,” said Worsham, the longtime Funny Car racer who is seeking his first world championship title. “The Al-Anabi car went out and performed as we expected. We’re making good runs and getting ready for Sunday. The weather forecast seems like it keeps improving and it looks like it is getting better and better each time I see it. It should be good and cool tomorrow and we should get at least one run in and get the field set for Sunday.” 

LOWER SEEDS HAVE PRODUCED DRAMATIC FINISHES IN FULL THROTTLE COUNTDOWN TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP ERA

NHRA AND SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT EXTEND SERIES SPONSORSHIP OF POPULAR NHRA SUMMIT RACING SERIES

Agreement provides long-term stability to all-important bracket racing series

GLENDORA, Calif. (Nov. 7, 2011) — NHRA officials announced today that Summit Racing Equipment has signed a multi-year agreement to extend its title sponsorship of the popular NHRA Summit Racing Series.

“We can’t thank Summit Racing Equipment enough for its commitment to and support of the NHRA Summit Racing Series,” said Tom Compton, president, NHRA.  “Summit Racing Equipment’s contribution to helping support the racer community is immeasurable.”

The NHRA Summit Racing Series features a bracket racing format staged at NHRA Member Tracks nationwide that allows drivers in many types of vehicles, including dragsters, roadsters, sedans, and coupes to compete on an equal basis against each other.   In addition to the three categories of competition for cars, a motorcycle category also is featured.  Summit has sponsored the series since the 2000 season.

PRUETT RACES TO WIN AS NHRA GET SCREENED AMERICA PRO MOD DRAG RACING SEASON ENDS IN LAS VEGAS 

LAS VEGAS – Leah Pruett raced to her second consecutive win as the 2011 NHRA Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Season came to an end Sunday at the Big O Tires NHRA Nationals in Las Vegas.

Pruett powered her ProCare Rx ’10 Mustang to a 5.910-second run at 253.04 mph, past Danny Rowe to pick up her second win of the season in her first full season in the category.

“Mission definitely accomplished,” said Pruett. “I think we ran Las Vegas out of its luck. This car is non-stop. This race is where the crew stood out. This R2B2 Mustang does have problems sometimes, but when you have the best crew in the world, that’s how you win. They shined through the thrashes we had to go through between the rounds.”

World champion Khalid Balooshi, who was crowned yesterday following his first round win over Mike Janis, lost in the second round to No. 1 qualifier and defending event winner Brad Personett. Personett was unable to get around championship runner-up Rowe in the semifinal round.

LINE CLINCHES PRO STOCK WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP; WORSHAM, CAPPS, EDWARDS, KRAWIEC WINNERS IN LAS VEGAS 

LAS VEGAS – Jason Line clinched his second NHRA Full Throttle Pro Stock world championship as racing came to an end Sunday at the Big O Tires NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.   

Del Worsham, Ron Capps, Mike Edwards and Eddie Krawiec raced to wins in their respective categories at the penultimate race of the 2011 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing season.

Line entered the 2011 NHRA Countdown to the Championship second in the Pro Stock point standings. He then raced to three consecutive final round appearances, including wins in Dallas and Reading, in the first three races of the Countdown. In total, Line raced to six wins in eight final round appearances for the season and posted seven No. 1 qualifiers.

Top Fuel

Del Worsham - Al-Anabi Racing: 0.061s / 3.823s / 318.77mph - Winner

Spencer Massey - Don Schumacher Racing: 0.051s / 3.834s / 323.74mph

Worsham is 6 - 4 against Massey in prior events and Massey is 2 - 1 against Worsham in prior final rounds. Massey with the starting line advantage, but worsham has the lead by 400 feet and then holds on for the win by 0.0018 seconds (approximately 10 inches). Worsham now trails Massey by two points. This is Worsham's seventh top Fuel win. 

First off, the riff between Mr. Schumacher and the powers that be at NHRA regarding his very aerodynamic Top Fuel (TF) cockpit design - the shroud is interesting to say the least. Why NHRA gave full approval for a ton of races and then relieved Don of it soon after Reading is unnerving to the racing mogul. He feels that it is for safety yet one TF crew chief noted how Antron Brown had fire in the cockpit at Reading thus refuting DSR’s claim that it is for safety. But, anytime you have a ripped fuel line spraying fuel on your back you are asking for fire going everywhere with the rates the TF car engines run. Oh, did I mention that a competing crew chief offered how the shroud design gets the intake positive pressure 30mph sooner than most.