Fri, 14 Mar 2003, 05:43 PM Top Fuel Qualifying Notes, Session #2

By Larry Sullivan

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Notes from round 2 qualifying in Top Fuel at the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series, 34th annual MAC Tools NHRA Gatornationals 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: Mike Smith Runs 4.757/303.54, Now #11; No Prior Run

3:45 PM Mike didn't make an attempt during the first qualifying session. This run might be good enough that we won't see him again until Sunday. No wasted motion, nothing spectacular, just a clean run from A to B.

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Left Lane: Andrew Cowin Runs 4.688/307.48, Now #9; Best prior run: 13.069/72.54, Was #22

Cowin struck the tires before moving two feet in the first qualifying session. The team recovered nicely here, the car leaving hard, posting a 0.846 60-foot time and then marching cleanly down the groove and into the sixties.

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Left Lane: David Baca Runs 6.156/148.07, Now #17; Best prior run: 10.479/86.38, Was #19
Right Lane: Shirley Muldowney Runs 4.792/303.54, Now #15; Best prior run: 12.893/75.33, Was #22

Baca lost traction early in the run. Muldowney made a full pass, but the engine dropped a cylinder on the top end and then hurt itself in the lights, with a flash of flame in the lights and some "stuff" on the track in the shutdown area. The "super-slo-mo" replay shows that the flash of flame was a pretty good sized fireball - it will probably make the highlights in tomorrow's qualifying show. But Shirley got in, though dangerously close to the bump spot.

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Left Lane: Chris Karamesines Runs 6.151/143.70, Now #18; Best prior run: 8.325/87.26, Was #19
Right Lane: Darrell Russell Runs 4.651/316.67, Now #7; Best prior run: 10.622/91.04, Was #22

Karamesines had problems before half track and lifted. Russell made a nice recovery from his first-round tire smoke and moved into the top half of the field, bumping Josh Starcher, putting Shirley Muldowney on the bump spot at 4.792.

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Left Lane: Rhonda Hartman-Smith Runs 4.693/319.37, Now #11; Best prior run: 8.273/94.85, Was #20
Right Lane: Scott Weis Runs 12.081/58.19, Now #22; Best prior run: 10.555/79.30, Was #22

Weis's car backfired about 100 feet out, with a flash of flame, the blower belt sailing away from the car. Hartman-Smith got a full pass this time around, bumping Muldowney and running a big speed.

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Left Lane: Joshua Starcher Runs 4.793/269.78, Now #18; Best prior run: 5.839/156.19, Was #18
Right Lane: Paul Romine Runs 4.947/216.03, Now #19; Best prior run: 8.474/86.55, Was #21

Starcher stepped way up, but came up short of the bump time (Rit Pustari's 4.779). Romine grenaded an engine on the top end and slowed.

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Left Lane: Rit Pustari Runs 7.593/104.28, Now #16; Best prior run: 4.779/300.40, Was #16
Right Lane: Don Garlits Runs 4.761/323.04, Now #15; Best prior run: 4.778/291.45, Was #15

The cleanup was a quick one. Pustari was on the bump spot and Garlits was just one spot ahead of him, so both teams wanted to move up the ladder and let someone else sweat it out tomorrow. Pustari lost traction and lifted. "Big Daddy" made a nice run, the car straight and smooth, improving his elapsed time slightly (but still fifteenth) and running a career-best speed by almost five mph. The huge crowd loved it.

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Left Lane: Doug Herbert Runs 4.556/323.50, Now #1; Best prior run: 4.701/300.10, Was #12
Right Lane: Jim Head Runs 13.124/47.97, Now #13; Best prior run: 4.721/300.70, Was #13

Ooh, Doggie!! Head lost traction after 100 feet or so, but Herbert sure didn't. His car streaked down the middle of the lane and into the top spot on a pretty run.

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Left Lane: John Smith Runs 4.648/312.71, Now #8; Best prior run: 4.669/307.27, Was #9
Right Lane: Bruce Litton Runs 12.875/69.18, Now #10; Best prior run: 4.684/303.95, Was #10

Smith made another solid run to move into the top half of the field. Okay, he only moved up one spot on the ladder. Litton lost traction after 100 feet or so, disappearing behind a wall of tire smoke.

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Left Lane: Clay Millican Runs 4.559/316.34, Now #3; Best prior run: 4.600/318.35, Was #6
Right Lane: Brandon Bernstein Runs 4.547/324.67, Now #1; Best prior run: 4.584/322.46, Was #3

Nice side-by-side show for the crowd, bracketing Herbert in the order.

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Left Lane: Larry Dixon Runs 4.569/322.46, Now #4; Best prior run: 4.593/320.17, Was #6
Right Lane: Tony Schumacher Runs 5.247/183.00, Now #5; Best prior run: 4.581/315.01, Was #4

Final pair. Schumacher lost traction about 300 feet out. Dixon made a full pass with no obvious problems. That closes out the first day of qualifying, with an "iffy" weather forecast for tomorrow.

Timing data courtesy of CompuLink



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