Sat, 14 Oct 2017, 19:07 PM Funny Car Qualifying Notes, Final Session

By Dave Rowe

ENNIS, Texas - Notes from final, round 4 qualifying in Funny Car at the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, 32nd annual AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals 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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Right Lane: Todd Simpson No Time, Now #19; Best prior run: 8.829/56.42, Was #19

5:29 p.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 90 degrees, relative humidity 46 percent, barometer 29.36 inches, adjusted altitude 3,523 feet, track temperature 116 degrees.

Simpson completes his burnout, can't get the car in reverse and drives it off the end of the track.

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Left Lane: Del Worsham Runs 4.400/221.78, Now #15; Best prior run: 4.118/252.05, Was #15
Right Lane: Robert Schwab No Time, Now #18; Best prior run: 6.203/114.12, Was #18

Schwab leaves the line and gets out of the groove. The car makes a hard move to the right and he tags the wall about 600 feet out. He backs off the throttle and rolls through the lights.

Worsham was on a decent pass but the car nosed over about 800 feet out.

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Left Lane: J.R. Todd Runs 3.992/318.84, Now #14; Best prior run: 4.006/322.42, Was #14
Right Lane: Jeff Diehl Runs 4.349/282.24, Now #17; Best prior run: 5.811/203.28, Was #17

Diehl isnb't in and this is his last shot. He makes a clean, straight pass but was a little soft of the line and never really made a good move.

Todd goes right down the groove with his quickest pass of the weekend but he stays in the 14th spot.

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Left Lane: Matt Hagan Runs 7.615/81.09, Now #13; Best prior run: 3.991/324.51, Was #13
Right Lane: Jim Campbell Runs 4.553/191.54, Now #16; Best prior run: 4.138/304.67, Was #16

Hagan comes off the line, gets about 200 feet out and overpowers the track. He loses traction and has to abort the run. Campbell gets about 500 feet out, hazes the tires and has to back off the throttle.

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Left Lane: Cruz Pedregon Runs 4.754/169.13, Now #12; Best prior run: 3.988/328.30, Was #12
Right Lane: Alexis DeJoria Runs 4.004/324.05, Now #8; Best prior run: 3.947/319.67, Was #8

Pedregon gets about 400 feet out, strikes the tires, makes a quick move to the left and he has to abort the run.

DeJoria makes a clean pass but doesn't improve.

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Right Lane: Tommy Johnson Jr. Runs 3.969/323.81, Now #6; Best prior run: 3.930/327.59, Was #6

Johnson makes a clean, straight run, right down the middle of the groove. He doesn't improve but makes the quickest pass of the round so far.

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Left Lane: Robert Hight Runs 3.871/332.84, Now #1; Best prior run: 3.975/327.66, Was #10
Right Lane: Courtney Force Runs 3.957/308.64, Now #6; Best prior run: 3.928/331.94, Was #5

Hight goes right down the groove with an impressive run for the conditions, right down the groove with the quickest pass of the weekend to take the top spot.

Force makes a clean straight pass but was falling behind all the way through the run. She doesn't improve and drops a spot as Hight goes around her in the order.

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Left Lane: John Force Runs 3.962/316.15, Now #10; Best prior run: 3.957/327.90, Was #10
Right Lane: Tim Wilkerson Runs 3.938/326.95, Now #5; Best prior run: 3.909/326.00, Was #5

Force was on a good pass, out in front of Wilkerson at the 330 foot mark, then he loses a cylinder on the left side and started mixing up cylinders and slowed.

Wilkerson goes right down the groove with a clean pass but he doesn't improve and stays in the fifth spot.

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Left Lane: Bob Tasca III Runs 4.001/291.45, Now #8; Best prior run: 3.941/320.43, Was #8
Right Lane: Jack Beckman Runs 3.971/317.19, Now #3; Best prior run: 3.873/332.34, Was #3

Beckman goes right down the groove with a good run but he doesn't improve. Tasca had a cylinder out and was off the throttle early.

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Left Lane: Jonnie Lindberg No Time, Now #4; Best prior run: 3.873/328.14, Was #4
Right Lane: Ron Capps Runs 4.870/161.69, Now #2; Best prior run: 3.872/329.58, Was #2

Lindberg does his burnout, backs up, then they shut down the engine, not sure why.

Capps gets about 300 feet out, strikes the tires and backs off the throttle.

hight takes the number one spot for the eighth time this year and the 57th time in his career.

Timing data courtesy of CompuLink



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