Sun, 1 Nov 2009, 12:42 PM Top Alcohol Funny Car Round 1 Eliminations

By Dave Rowe

LAS VEGAS - Results of round 1 eliminations in Top Alcohol Funny Car at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, Ninth annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  457 Tony Bartone                         4657 Thomas Carter                
E1   ****WINNER****  0.087  6.873 248.16                    -0.028  9.985  87.14
 Qualified:             #8  5.656 253.71                        #9  5.656 253.42

9:13 a.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 64 degrees, relative humidity 28 percent, barometer 28.02 inches, adjusted altitude 2,841 feet, track temperature 77 degrees.

Carter leaves a little too soon then strikes the tires about 100 feet out. Bartone gets a break. He gets about 200 feet out, strikes the tires, then backs off the throttle. He rolls a few feet, gets back on the throttle, then goes on through the rest of the run.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  779 Daniel Oliver                        6843 Ken Webster                  
E1   ****WINNER****  0.066  5.622 255.10                     0.053  5.662 253.95
 Qualified:             #7  5.649 253.04                       #10  5.661 254.47

Oliver gets a small advantage off the line and starts pulling away. Webster makes up a little ground early in the run, then Oliver starts pulling away and extends his lead through the rest of the run. Oliver runs a career best ET in the win.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
    7 Brian Hough                          7735 Steve Gasparrelli            
E1   ****WINNER****  0.034  5.636 256.65                     0.023  6.587 158.39
 Qualified:             #6  5.643 253.85                       #11  5.665 255.19

Gasparrelli gets off the line first, then makes a move to the right, then a hard turn back to the left, almost going over the center lin. He tries to correct, goes toward the wall, then finally backs off the throttle about 800 feet out. Hough went right down the groove with his quickest pass of the weekend to take the win.

Brian Hough's incremental margins (negative if behind): 60ft(-0.020), 330 ft(0.050), 660ft(0.146), 1,000ft(0.468). MOV: 0.9407 seconds (more than 100 feet).

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
 7976 Keeter Ray                           1350 Paul Gill                    
E1   ****WINNER****  0.083  5.609 254.90                     0.092  6.218 164.13
 Qualified:             #5  5.638 254.23                       #12  5.699 252.90

Ray was moving around early in the run but gets it under control and pulls away for the win. Gill had problems late in the run and clicked it off early.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
   10 Sean O'Bannon                        710D Alexis De Joria              
E1                   0.054  5.624 256.65     ****WINNER****  0.062  5.609 256.21
 Qualified:             #4  5.630 256.65                       #13  5.702 253.85

A good side by side, they were glued together all the way through the run. O'Bannon gets off the line first, De Joria pulls even at the sixty foot mark, then slowly pulls ahead. O'Bannon makes a move near the end of the run but runs out of room.

Alexis De Joria's incremental margins: 60ft(0.001), 330 ft(0.009), 660ft(0.010), 1,000ft(0.008). MOV: 0.0077 seconds (approximately 3 feet).

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
    9 Mickey Ferro                           64 John Evanchuk                
E1   ****WINNER****  0.052  5.603 257.43                     0.072 15.408  64.81
 Qualified:             #3  5.629 256.84                       #14  5.705 251.30

Evanchuk makes a hard move to the left at the hit and has to back off the throttle. Ferro goes right down the groove with the quickest run of the weekend so far.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
    2 Steve Harker                           43 Steve Burck                  
E1                   0.119  5.751 211.46     ****WINNER****  0.029  5.720 249.44
 Qualified:             #2  5.621 257.09                       #15  5.711 250.13

Burck gets out of the groove early, veers toward the wall, then quickly gets it back in the groove. Harker was late off the line, starts making up ground early, then starts falling behind again. He has problems late in the run and the car noses over.

Steve Burck's incremental margins: 60ft(0.056), 330 ft(0.032), 660ft(0.014), 1,000ft(0.017). MOV: 0.1213 seconds (approximately 38 feet).

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  735 John Lombardo Jr.                     717 Brian Thiel                  
E1   ****WINNER****  0.115  5.596 251.53                     0.187  5.826 249.39
 Qualified:             #1  5.619 253.95                       #16  5.741 245.90

Lombardo is a little late but Thiel is even later. Lombardo goes right down Broadway with a career best and the quickest run of the weekend to take the win.

In the next round it will be Lombardo with lane choice over Bartone, De Joria vs. Ray, oliver vs. Burck, and Ferro vs. Hough.

Timing data courtesy of CompuLink