Sun, 02 Nov 2014, 15:17 PM Funny Car Round 1 Eliminations

By Dave Rowe

LAS VEGAS - Results of round 1 eliminations in Funny Car at the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, 14th annual NHRA Toyota Nationals:

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  170 Jeff Arend                            750 Del Worsham                  
E1                   0.075 12.355  71.81     ****WINNER****  0.075  4.110 309.63
 Qualified:             #5  4.042 310.91                       #12  4.090 311.13

11:50 a.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 68 degrees, relative humidity 35 percent, barometer 27.82 inches, adjusted altitude 3,493 feet, track temperature 94 degrees.

Worsham is 9 - 3 against Arend in prior events.

Arend hits the throttle and goes up in smoke instantly. Worsham goes right down the groove and moves on to the next round.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
   28 Ron Capps                              72 Tony Pedregon                
E1   ****WINNER****  0.081  4.145 313.00                     0.061 10.046  82.35
 Qualified:             #4  4.037 322.34                       #13  4.131 305.42

Pedregon boils the hides right at the hit and had to give up on the run quickly. Capps goes right down the middle of the lane and takes the win.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  116 Paul Lee                                7 Courtney Force               
E1   ****WINNER****  0.091  4.118 306.88                     0.115  4.148 305.77
 Qualified:            #14  4.151 301.40                        #3  4.024 320.66

Force is 1 - 0 against Lee in prior events.

Courtney Force is the only member of the Force family (including John and Ashley) that Paul Lee has never beaten. This will be the 6th consecutive time that Paul has qualified and faced a member of the Force family in the first round.

Lee gets out of the gate first, then Force pulls even at the sixty foot mark. Lee starts pulling away, Force falls behind and Lee goes on for the win with his quickest pass of the weekend.

Paul Lee's incremental margins: 60ft(0.002), 330 ft(0.014), 660ft(0.043). MOV: 0.0548 seconds (approximately 25 feet).

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  702 Jon Capps                               1 John Force                   
E1                   0.062  4.299 266.27     ****WINNER****  0.073  4.085 318.54
 Qualified:            #15  4.163 279.21                        #2  4.022 320.66

John Force has never faced Jon Capps who will be the 137th different driver that John has raced in eliminations.

Force is 41 points behind points leader Matt hagan and needs this win to keep his championship hopes alive.

Capps gets out of the gate first but Force reels him in quickly. Force pulls ahead at the sixty foot mark and makes the quickest pass of the round so far to take the win.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  121 Terry Haddock                           2 Matt Hagan                   
E1                   0.150 12.197  80.07     ****WINNER****  0.080  4.073 314.24
 Qualified:            #16  4.290 294.69                        #1  3.983 322.42

Hagan is 1 - 0 against Haddock in prior events.

Hagan is 13-3 in round one when starting from the #1 spot.

This is Terry Haddock's 50th start including Top Fuel and Funny Car.

Haddock is last off the line, then goes up in smoke quickly. hagan goes right down the groove with the quickest pass of the round so far to take the win.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
    5 Robert Hight                            3 Jack Beckman                 
E1   ****WINNER****  0.070  4.091 315.64                     0.083  4.210 268.22
 Qualified:            #11  4.089 316.52                        #6  4.045 318.84

Hight is 17 - 11 against Beckman in prior events.

Hight gets the advantage off the line and starts to pull away. Beckman stays close for the first sixty feet, then starts falling behind. Hight pulls away and takes the win.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
   10 Tim Wilkerson                          77 Bob Tasca III                
E1   ****WINNER****  0.086  4.690 209.26                     0.100  8.387  72.32
 Qualified:            #10  4.079 314.17                        #7  4.061 313.58

Wilkerson is 17 - 9 against Tasca III in prior events.

Tasca gets about 100 feet out and goes up in smoke. He pedals once or twice then gives up on the run. Wilkerson was pulling away quickly, then loses traction about 600 feet out and clicks it off. Wilkerson coasted through the lights for the win.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  771 Alexis DeJoria                         33 Tommy Johnson Jr.            
E1                   0.125  4.088 303.98     ****WINNER****  0.095  4.104 310.70
 Qualified:             #9  4.076 308.35                        #8  4.065 311.41

DeJoria and Johnson Jr. have each won 1 times against the other in prior events.

Johnson gets out of the gate first. DeJoria pulls even at the 660 foot mark, then Johnson starts pulling away again and hangs on for the holeshot win.

In the next round it will be Hagan with lane choice over Johnson, Worsham vs. Capps, John Force vs. Wilkerson, and Hight vs. Lee.

Timing data courtesy of CompuLink



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