Mon, 15 Feb 2010, 02:44 PM Demke Finally Does It

By Kelly Wade Photo copyright 2010 Auto Imagery, Inc.

POMONA, Calif. --

kneeling: Brad Burton, Sean O'Bannon and Lou Ficco Jr. standing: Chris Demke, Brad Pierce, Kevin Wright and Jeff Lane

Top Alcohol Dragster pilot Chris Demke saved his first national event victory for a very special occasion, and the eight-time national event runner-up finally picked up the hardware at the 50th Anniversary Kragen O'Reilly NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona last weekend, where he cut a very quick .009 light in the final to gain the advantage at the starting line over Joey Severance. Demke extended the lead over his troubled opponent at each increment for the coveted win, 5.332 to 5.916.

Demke, the 2009 event runner-up to Jim Whiteley, qualified his Peen-Rite-Abrasive Finishing entry fifth with a best time of 5.327 at 267 mph. In the first round, the Sunland, Calif.-based racer took a single when Ashley Bart broke on the burnout, and in round two, Demke sought and found redemption against his final-round opponent from last season's event, Whiteley. The two drove their blown rails off the starting line with identical .026 reactions, but the eventual event winner had the advantage by the 60-foot timer and continued to inch ahead for a 5.325 to 5.370 victory.

Demke vs. Severance

Division 6 standout Shawn Cowie, who stopped No. 1 qualifier Brittany Force in the second round, was .023 slower out of the gate in the semi's but gave a good fight until half-track, when Demke surged ahead.

No. 2 Top Alcohol Funny Car qualifier Sean O'Bannon made his quickest and fastest pass of the weekend in the final to put a stop to Doug Gordon's quest for the title. Gordon was first to launch, .027 to .060, but O'Bannon quickly recovered in his Forest River RV Monte Carlo and put a 5.541 at 259.96 mph on the scoreboard to defeat Gordon's 5.643 at 259.16 mph.

O'Bannon, who won at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in the 2009 season-closer, picked up the fifth national event win of his career in the alcohol classes; his two recent TAFC victories nicely complement the three Top Alcohol Dragster national event Wallys the Ontario, Calif., resident possesses.

O'Bannon vs. Gordon

In respective first- and second-round matches, O'Bannon sent Jason Rupert and John Lombardo Jr. packing, and in the semi's, he got a free pass into the eighth national event final round of his career when Daniel Oliver, after losing a fuel line and damaging a motor the round before, was a no-show.

Gordon qualified fifth and drove his Morro Bay Cabinets entry to victories over Ron August Jr. and Jay Payne before taking out No. 1 qualifier and defending event champion Tony Bartone in the semi's. Gordon runner-upped to Bartone at the 2009 Winternationals and won the season-opener in 2003.

The Competition Eliminator title was decided at the Tree, when Dean Carter wheeled his B/ND entry off the starting line .117-second too soon.. The pair entered the final round, a repeat of the 2006 final, with matching .06 CIC penalties and looking for a great drag race before Carter's red light sent B/AP pilot Lou Ficco Jr. to the winner's circle again.

No. 1 qualifier Brian Fitzpatrick had issues at the starting line and recorded a -.053 red light in the second round. He looked to be done for the weekend, and his opponent, Tyler Hogan, was heading towards victory when his car made a hard move mid-track, rolled eight times, and in doing so took out the timing block at the finish line. Hogan, who did not appear to have any major injuries under initial examination, was disqualified, and Fitzpatrick advanced to a quarterfinals match with defending event champ Dan Fletcher. Unfortunately for the low qualifier, his car broke before he could stage and Fletcher advanced to the semi's, where he red-lighted by a thousandth to Ficco Jr., who was .005 on the Tree.

Jeff Lane wheeled his SS/BS Achieva to his seventh national event victory and second Winternationals win with a final round defeat of reigning Super Stock world champion Jimmy DeFrank. Both drivers were on their game at the starting line; Lane left first, .015 to .023, and was 8.880 on his 8.86 dial to DeFrank's 8.806 (8.79).

Golden, Co.-based Brad Burton scored the third national event win of his career when he ran closer to his dial to put Ryan McClanahan on the trailer in the final round of Stock. Both drivers were exceptional at the starting line; McClanahan left first and posted a .013 to Burton's .017, but it was E/SA Formula racer Burton's day, and he crossed the finish line 10.820 on his 10.81 dial to McClanahan's 9.817 (9.79).

Kevin Wright, of Longmont, Colo., notched his first Super Comp win after final-round challenger Ed Olpin, who had been the benefactor of a string of good fortune all weekend, was stuck in the staging lanes with a stalled engine.

The Super Gas trophy went to 2003 Winternationals champ Brad Pierce. The longtime So Cal racer put together a great package, leaving the starting line with a speedy .020 reaction to beat Jimmy Lewis' .032 and crossing the finish line a thousandth over the 9.90 index to his opponent's five-thousandths-over effort. The victory was Pierce's fourth at a national event; he has also claimed trophies in Phoenix and the fall Vegas event in 2008.

Sportsman action continues at the 26th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals in Phoenix this weekend.