Sat, Oct 31, 11:31 PM BAYTOWN - Funny Car Qualifying Notes, Final Session

By Michael L. Jex Skuza Fails To Make The Show

BAYTOWN, Texas - Notes from final, round 4 qualifying in Funny Car at the 2nd Annual Matco Tools Supernationals, listing lane, driver name, elapsed time/top speed this round, position in order following run, (best prior elapsed time/speed, and position in order prior to run):

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Left Lane: Frank Pedregon Runs 7.403/104.50 Now #20, (Best prior run: 6.205/144.02 Was #20)
Right Lane: Tom Hoover Runs 12.670/ 79.63 Now # 8, (Best prior run: 5.048/293.44 Was # 8)

4:32 PM Tim Ferrel, the crew chief on Frank Pedregon's Funny Car is suffering from Kidney Stones this weekend. We wish him the best this weekend...

Dale Creasy Jr. is on the bubble with a 5.417 ET, the number Frank needs to best to race on Sunday.

Instead he shakes the tires and out pops the parachute, ending any hope of qualifying. Hoover lost traction almost immediately.

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Left Lane: John Force Runs 5.498/187.03 Now # 5, (Best prior run: 4.876/313.15 Was # 5)
Right Lane: Dean Skuza Runs 11.630/ 82.13 Now #22, (Best prior run: 9.301/ 89.40 Was #22)

4:41 PM After a short cleanup, the order comes to "Rock and Roll". Skuza won here last year, but is in danger of failing to qualify at his sponsors race. The magic number to better is 5.417 to race tomorrow.

Skuza blazes the tires right at the start, and will be a spectator on Sunday. Force had troubles of his own, the tire smoke started just past half track.

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Left Lane: Jack Wyatt No Time Now #13, (Best prior run: 5.251/284.99 Was #13)
Right Lane: Al Hofmann No Time Now #10, (Best prior run: 5.108/296.73 Was #10)

Wyatt is shut off at the starting line after the burnout was completed. Hofmann started mixing up the cylinders then lost the blower belt. With all that going on Hofmann took out the finish line cones and will have some body repair to do before racing resumes tomorrow.

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Left Lane: Jim Epler Runs 5.193/289.38 Now #12, (Best prior run: 5.423/202.61 Was #17)
Right Lane: Tony Pedregon Runs 5.247/206.89 Now # 4, (Best prior run: 4.875/311.31 Was # 4)

Epler pedaled nicely, and recovered enough to bump out Dale Creasy Jr. That puts Del Worsham on the bubble.

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Right Lane: Vicky Fanning Runs 5.836/260.79 Now #19, (Best prior run: 8.396/ 93.46 Was #21)

No sign of Whit Bazemore or the Winston Funny Car this time around, Vicky will get a single.

Vicky gets out of the groove and drifts towards the wall. She pedaled, got the car straight again then proceeded to the finishline, but still misses the magic number by four tenths of a second.

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Left Lane: Whit Bazemore Runs 4.889/310.88 Now # 3, (Best prior run: 4.850/311.63 Was # 3)
Right Lane: Don Sosenka Runs 5.622/254.66 Now #18, (Best prior run: 5.571/273.39 Was #18)

Bazemore makes a four eighty look easy, this time he goes straight as a string all the way to the finish line. No improvement for Sosenka.

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Left Lane: Del Worsham Runs 8.485/ 96.99 Now #16, (Best prior run: 5.287/273.55 Was #16)
Right Lane: Tim Wilkerson Runs 5.161/217.75 Now #12, (Best prior run: 5.259/222.00 Was #15)

Wilkerson was on a great pass till he got out towards the wall and had to lift at the 800-foot mark. Worsham boils the hides off his Goodyear tires, but there just ain't no traction there.

Del will have to sit and sweat, there are still a couple of drivers waiting in the lanes that can take him out of tomorrows program.

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Left Lane: Cruz Pedregon Runs 8.715/ 95.61 Now # 1, (Best prior run: 4.807/319.60 Was # 1)
Right Lane: Chuck Etchells Runs 4.930/309.06 Now # 6, (Best prior run: 4.957/309.27 Was # 7)

Pedregon lurched towards the wall, to the left this time, and had to lift. The flame from Etchells headers was clean and crisp all the way to the finish line.

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Left Lane: Ron Capps Runs 5.015/280.98 Now # 7, (Best prior run: 4.944/299.90 Was # 7)
Right Lane: Gary Densham Runs 5.135/295.37 Now # 9, (Best prior run: 5.104/301.40 Was # 9)

Capps does another 800-foot monster, then the motor starts going away. He lifted well before the finish line.

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Left Lane: Randy Anderson Runs 5.104/275.31 Now # 2, (Best prior run: 4.848/318.92 Was # 2)

The flames out the header pipes changed colors at the top end, and Randy wisely lifted before something bad happened.

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Left Lane: Dale Creasy, Jr. Runs 5.965/165.99 Now #17, (Best prior run: 5.417/239.23 Was #17)

It's crunch time for Del Worsham, Dale is one of two drivers that can bump him out of tomorrows program.

Something in the drivetrain broke, raw fuel started pouring out the header pipes at half track, ending Dale's chances for tomorrow.

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Left Lane: Ronny Young Runs 5.741/195.31 Now #19, (Best prior run: 6.058/166.38 Was #20)

Ronny Young's green machine didn't have the fuel system quite right, the result is Del Worsham will face Cruz Pedregon in Round One tomorrow.

This is the Cruzers 11th pole of 1998.




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