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Sun, 6 Nov 2005, 03:09 PM

Funny Car Round 1 Eliminations
By Dave Rowe





POMONA, Calif. - Results of round 1 eliminations in Funny Car at the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series, 41st annual Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals:

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
   28 Ron Capps                               2 Del Worsham                  
E1   ****WINNER****  0.048  4.765 326.56                     0.076  4.866 325.45
 Qualified:            #10  4.768 326.63                        #7  4.730 331.36
11:22 a.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 70 degrees, relative humidity 35 percent, barometer 29.33 inches, adjusted altitude 1,599 feet, track temperature 83 degrees.

Worsham won here in '01 and '02, and was the runner-up here last year. Capps holds a 16-8 edge in head to head match-ups. Capps leaves first and starts pulling away. He extends his lead at every mark and takes the win to keep his championship hopes alive.


 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  206 Bob Gilbertson                       7000 Robert Hight                 
E1                   0.076  4.776 320.97     ****WINNER****  0.059  4.734 329.42
 Qualified:            #12  4.803 320.13                        #5  4.716 330.80
Hight is 2-1 facing Gilbertson in his short career. He has qualified for every race he has entered. This was a good one. Hight leaves first but Gilbertson is right with him. Gilbertson goes right down the groove on a career best pass, but Hight holds him off and pulls away for the win.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  427 Tony Bartone                            5 Eric Medlen                  
E1                   0.084  4.811 322.65     ****WINNER****  0.086  4.748 328.14
 Qualified:            #13  4.815 312.21                        #4  4.715 328.06
Medlen has qualified for every race he has entered, this is 46 straight. He is 1-0 facing Bartone. Bartone won here in '96 in the Top Alcohol Funny Car class.

Another good drag race, both go right down the groove. Bartone makes his best pass of the weekend but it's still not enough to overtake Medlen. The win by Medlen guarantees a Force team car will be in the semi-finals.


 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  388 Jim Head                                9 Cruz Pedregon                
E1                   0.095  4.827 323.04     ****WINNER****  0.079  4.775 325.37
 Qualified:            #15  4.822 323.89                        #2  4.708 328.86
Pedregon has started from the number two spot 30 times in his career. He has a 2-1 edge over Head. This is Heads 289th start, 32nd start from the number 15 spot.

Another good one here, both cars going right down Broadway. Pedregon gets the hole-shot and never gives up the lead. He advance to the next round and will give up lane choice to Capps in the next round.


 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
    7 Tim Wilkerson                           3 Gary Scelzi                  
E1                   0.080  4.856 299.80     ****WINNER****  0.117  4.735 329.91
 Qualified:            #16  4.828 311.99                        #1  4.696 329.18
This is the 42nd time Scelzi has started from the number one spot, sixth this year. He has won here in both Top Fuel and Top Alcohol Dragster. This is Wilkerson's 6th start from the 16th position and he has never won from that position.

Wilkerson gets the jump off the line and starts pulling away. Scelzi quickly starts making up ground, then drives around at half-track. Wilkerson starts mixing up cylinders about 1100 feet out, Scelzi moves on to the next round. Gary Scelzi's incremental margins (negative if behind): 60ft(-0.027), 330 ft(-0.018), 660ft(0.022), 1,000ft(0.051). MOV: 0.0841 seconds (approximately 37 feet).


 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
   73 Frank Pedregon                          8 Tony Pedregon                
E1                   0.098  4.917 288.52     ****WINNER****  0.076  4.750 320.43
 Qualified:            #14  4.816 278.23                        #3  4.710 329.99
Tony is 9-5 in career match-ups against Frank. He also won here in '97.

Tony leaves first and starts pulling away. He increases his lead all the way through the run and will move on to the next round.


 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
    6 Whit Bazemore                           1 John Force                   
E1                   0.068 No Time           ****WINNER****  0.057  4.790 315.34
 Qualified:            #11  4.800 323.27                        #6  4.716 323.04
Force is 12-2 in first round match-ups with Bazemore and is 40-9 overall.

This was an interesting one here. Force leaves first and starts pulling away. Bazemore strikes the tires about 250 feet out, makes a hard move to the right, and crosses the center-line. Force loses a cylinder after half-track, the car starts drifting to the left, then touches, but does not cross the center-line just before he goes through the lights. Force will give up lane choice to Tony Pedregon in round two.


 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  503 Tommy Johnson Jr.                       4 Gary Densham                 
E1   ****WINNER****  0.174  4.761 325.37                           No Time      
 Qualified:             #9  4.751 329.26                        #8  4.735 317.87
This is Densham's 224th career start. He is 8-7 facing Johnson. Johnson was the runner-up here in '02.

Densham broke yesterday and could not make the call to the line. Johnson goes right down the groove and makes a solid run.

In round two it will be Scelzi with lane choice over Johnson, Hight vs. Medlen, Capps vs. Cruz Pedregon, and Tony Pedregon vs. Force.

Timing data courtesy of CompuLink




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