Sun, 6 Nov 2005, 04:47 PM Funny Car Round 2 Eliminations

By Dave Rowe

POMONA, Calif. - Results of round 2 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
    9 Cruz Pedregon                          28 Ron Capps                    
E2   ****WINNER****  0.083  4.756 329.26                     0.069  5.456 245.27
 Prior rounds:
E1    (J Head      ) 0.079  4.775 325.37      (D Worsham   ) 0.048  4.765 326.56
 Qualified:             #2  4.708 328.86                       #10  4.768 326.63

1:25 p.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 76 degrees, relative humidity 26 percent, barometer 29.29 inches, adjusted altitude 2,033 feet, track temperature 92 degrees.

This ends Capps' hopes of a championship. Pedregon leaves first and starts pulling away. Capps gets about 300 feet out, strikes the tires, then has to give up on the run.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
    5 Eric Medlen                          7000 Robert Hight                 
E2   ****WINNER****  0.115  4.745 324.44                     0.101  4.773 329.99
 Prior rounds:
E1    (T Bartone   ) 0.086  4.748 328.14      (B Gilbertson) 0.059  4.734 329.42
 Qualified:             #4  4.715 328.06                        #5  4.716 330.80

A great race here, Hight leaves first, but Medlen reels him in quickly. He goes by at the sixty foot mark, then pulls away for the win.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  503 Tommy Johnson Jr.                       3 Gary Scelzi                  
E2   ****WINNER****  0.065  4.794 327.11                     0.079  4.807 326.16
 Prior rounds:
E1    (G Densham   ) 0.174  4.761 325.37      (T Wilkerson ) 0.117  4.735 329.91
 Qualified:             #9  4.751 329.26                        #1  4.696 329.18

WOW!!!! Talk about excitement. Johnson leaves first and starts to pull away. Scelzi starts to reel him in, almost pulling even at the 330-foot mark. Johnson then starts to pull away again and pulls away for the win. Force will now have to win the next two rounds to take the championship.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
    1 John Force                              8 Tony Pedregon                
E2                   0.096  4.752 323.27     ****WINNER****  0.053  4.778 316.75
 Prior rounds:
E1    (W Bazemore  ) 0.057  4.790 315.34      (F Pedregon  ) 0.076  4.750 320.43
 Qualified:             #6  4.716 323.04                        #3  4.710 329.99

Nothing matters now, Pedregon gets the hole-shot and makes it stick. Force starts to reel him in and drives around him at the 1000-foot mark. Pedregon then pulls back in front just before they cross the finish-line. Gary Scelzi is the new PowerAde champ.

In the next round it will be Cruz Pedregon with lane choice over Tony Pedregon and Medlen with lane choice over Johnson.

Timing data courtesy of CompuLink