Results of round 1 eliminations in Top Fuel at the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series, 16th annual CARQUEST Auto Parts
NHRA Nationals:
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
6 Darrell Russell 10 John Smith
E1 ****WINNER**** 0.078 4.821 303.78 0.068 11.180 94.10
Qualified: #9 4.912 291.57 #8 4.905 281.13
Current weather conditions: 77 degrees, 50 percent relative humidity, the barometer 30.18 inches. Well this
should be an interesting day. Might be a lot of tire smoke.
Yep...Smith up in smoke at the hit, and Russell goes
right down the left lane, which is not the preferred lane.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
9 Rhonda Hartman-Smith 201 Scott Weis
E1 0.117 7.176 107.30 ****WINNER**** 0.098 5.047 223.02
Qualified: #10 4.914 290.19 #7 4.827 289.07
This is the first time Weis has qualified in the top half of the field. This is a rematch of the semi's at St.
Louis. Weis got the win there.And here. Rhonda up in smoke at 300 feet. She pedaled it, but it smoked 'em again.
Weis said he shut it off early because it was spinning the tires and he can't afford to hurt any parts.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
5 Cory McClenathan 797 David Baca
E1 0.128 4.768 307.58 ****WINNER**** 0.134 4.749 308.64
Qualified: #11 4.915 273.22 #6 4.796 302.35
Pair of former Top Alcohol Dragster drivers here. Awesome side-by-side race, as both teams run faster than they
did in qualifying.David Baca's incremental margins (negative if behind): 60ft(-0.003), 330 ft(0.003), 660ft(0.006),
1,000ft(0.010). MOV: 0.0134 seconds (approximately 6 feet).
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
7 Doug Herbert 757 David Grubnic
E1 0.069 5.652 175.09 ****WINNER**** 0.064 4.794 309.42
Qualified: #12 4.991 289.20 #5 4.775 310.27
Grubnic nearly duplicates his qualifying effort. Herbert started hazing the tires, and gave up the
chase.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
640 Ron Smith 2 Kenny Bernstein
E1 0.186 11.914 61.57 ****WINNER**** 0.098 4.685 316.30
Qualified: #15 5.461 184.42 #2 4.693 310.91
Second meeting ever for these two, as they met last year here in round one. Smith loses the blower belt early,
but it didn't matter, as Bernstein makes his best run of the event. Bernstein gets lane choice over Weis in round
two.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
337 Paul Romine 3 Tony Schumacher
E1 0.000 4.866 285.17 ****WINNER**** 0.072 4.762 309.20
Qualified: #13 5.100 255.19 #4 4.762 307.44
Romine has qualified #13 ten times. His last win out of the 13th spot was against Schumacher at Columbus in 1999.
Since, he has lost eight in a row from the 13th position.Make it nine in a row, but it was a lot closer than we
thought it would be. Romine makes like a Super-class racer and cuts a perfect light. If he hadn't been spinning the
tires over the last half of the track, Schumacher would have been in big trouble. Sarge gets lane choice over Grubnic
in round two.
Tony Schumacher's incremental margins (negative if behind): 60ft(-0.035), 330 ft(-0.035),
660ft(-0.036), 1,000ft(-0.010). MOV: 0.0327 seconds (approximately 14 feet).
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
442 Don Sosenka 4 Doug Kalitta
E1 0.138 7.095 111.36 ****WINNER**** 0.084 4.671 309.91
Qualified: #14 5.231 272.83 #3 4.710 304.87
Sosenka is Kalitta's 50th different opponent. Kalitta makes his best run of the weekend, and runs low e.t. of the
event. He will have lane choice over Baca in the next round.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
72 Mike Strasburg 1 Larry Dixon
E1 0.073 4.968 260.36 ****WINNER**** 0.059 4.666 318.39
Qualified: #16 5.483 187.44 #1 4.676 317.27
Strasburg with a nice effort, his best of the event, but it was no match for Dixon's low e.t. of the event. Dixon
will have lane choice over Russell in the second round.
Timing data courtesy of
CompuLink
