Sun, 17 Mar 2013, 12:54 PM Top Alcohol Funny Car Round 2 Eliminations

By Michael L. Jex

GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Results of round 2 eliminations in Top Alcohol Funny Car at the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, 44th annual Amalie Oil NHRA Gatornationals:

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
   19 John Headley                          377 Paul Noakes                  
E2                   0.181  5.883 229.04     ****WINNER****  0.053  5.758 256.31
 Prior rounds:
E1    (C Foster    ) 0.149  5.959 230.33      (M Ferro     ) 0.024  5.688 259.76
 Qualified:            #15  7.150 174.21                        #7  5.588 263.51

12:52 p.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 72 degrees, relative humidity 40 percent, barometer 29.90 inches, adjusted altitude 1,397 feet, track temperature 94 degrees.

Headley got off the loud pedal about halfway, the reason not clear from this vantage point.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
   11 Todd Veney                             37 Andy Bohl                    
E2   ****WINNER****  0.059  5.603 256.84                     0.080  8.077  80.18
 Prior rounds:
E1    (R Drew      ) 0.078  5.649 255.73      (M Rogers    ) 0.120  5.565 261.12
 Qualified:            #11  5.634 254.66                        #3  5.503 263.26

After a bit of a staging duel Bohl went in first. Bohl had his hands full when his Mustang made a very hard move toward the 300-foot cone. He managed to miss the cone and stay in his lane, but that was the end of his weekend. Veney ran his best pass of the weekend in the other lane, and will have lance choice in the semis again Noakes.

Todd Veney's incremental times: 60ft-0.978 sec., 330ft-2.504, 660ft-3.704/206.32 mph, 1,000ft-4.730.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  500 Dale Brand                              1 Frank Manzo                  
E2   ****WINNER****  0.069  5.567 260.26                     0.031  5.668 262.33
 Prior rounds:
E1    (C Simonton  ) 0.067  5.585 260.06      (K Hool      ) 0.078  5.528 264.34
 Qualified:             #4  5.522 259.81                       #12  5.679 263.05

Manzo shook and had to pedal it, by the time he got back on the throttle, Brand was well on is way to the finish line. Brand had never raced Manzo in eliminations before, so he's now 1-0 against the champion. Dale Brand's MOV: 0.0638 seconds (approximately 25 feet).

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
   16 Dan Pomponio                            5 John Lombardo Jr.            
E2   ****WINNER****  0.011  5.601 260.26                     0.092  6.095 259.66
 Prior rounds:
E1    (J Bojec     ) 0.040  5.630 257.87      (D Beers     ) 0.108  5.504 263.62
 Qualified:             #9  5.613 259.21                        #1  5.498 265.17

Manzo gone... Number one qualifier John Lombardo gone!!!! Lombardo lost traction right off the starting line. Pomponio will race Brand in the semis, and Brand will have lane choice. 1:03 p.m.

Timing data courtesy of CompuLink