Sun, 15 May 2016, 12:14 PM Funny Car Round 1 Eliminations |
By Dave Rowe |
COMMERCE, Ga. - Results of round 1 eliminations in Funny Car at the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, 36th annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals:
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed 71 Cruz Pedregon 6 Robert Hight E1 0.079 4.833 167.49 ****WINNER**** 0.077 3.953 327.43 Qualified: #11 4.042 306.95 #6 3.980 323.5811:26 a.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 70 degrees, relative humidity 38 percent, barometer 29.34 inches, adjusted altitude 1,881 feet, track temperature 99 degrees.
Robert Hight has 3 wins at this race (2007, 2010 & 2014).
Cruz Pedregon won here in 1998.
Hight is 21 - 13 against Pedregon in prior events.
Pedregon hits the throttle, gets about 300 feet out and strikes
the tires. Hight went right down the groove with his quickest pass of the weekend and sets the
track speed record.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed 703 Jim Campbell 2 Jack Beckman E1 0.194 8.382 80.36 ****WINNER**** 0.081 3.911 328.86 Qualified: #16 No Time #1 3.939 326.32Jack Beckman won this race in 2009 & 2011
.Jim Campbell is the 16th qualifier and the Funny Car driver starting from that position at this race has only won 5 times in round one in 32 years.
This is the first time Campbell and Beckman have faced each other in eliminations.
Campbell leaves a little late, gets about 100 feet out and goes up in smoke.
Beckman goes right down the groove with the quickest and fastest pass ever at this track.
He goes through the lights, the chutes come out, but they get tangled up and never blossom. He
tries to get the car stopped, then goes into the sand and comes to a stop. Beckman climbs out of
the car and raises his hands in victory.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed 3111 Chad Head 5 Matt Hagan E1 0.091 4.349 271.30 ****WINNER**** 0.071 3.906 329.02 Qualified: #15 5.985 113.16 #2 3.943 326.08Hagan is 6 - 2 against Head in prior events.
Head gets about 300 feet out, strikes the tires
and has to give up on the run. Hagan made an impressive pass, right down the groove, setting the
track ET and speed record.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed 717 Jeff Diehl 746 Courtney Force E1 0.104 5.617 106.68 ****WINNER**** 0.124 3.915 327.74 Qualified: #14 5.509 134.38 #3 3.946 324.67This is the first time Diehl and Force have faced each other in eliminations.
Diehl gets out of the gate first and starts rattling the tires. The left front wheel comes off the ground, he sets it back down and the tires unload. Force went right down the groove with another three second pass to take the win.
Force will have lane choice over Hight in the next round.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed 139 Dave Richards 771 Alexis DeJoria E1 0.183 4.355 213.57 ****WINNER**** 0.084 3.950 324.05 Qualified: #13 4.192 288.27 #4 3.949 318.69Richards is 1 - 0 against DeJoria in prior events.
Richards is a little late off the line,
makes it through the tricky part of the lane, but has problems about 600 feet out and the car noses
over. DeJoria makes a clean pass and pulls away for the win.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed 496 John Hale 3 Tommy Johnson Jr. E1 0.129 4.736 150.61 ****WINNER**** 0.086 3.960 319.45 Qualified: #12 4.093 290.26 #5 3.973 317.94Johnson Jr. is 2 - 0 against Hale in prior events.
Johnson gets out of the gate first and starts to pull away. Hale left the line, puts out a cylinder about 400 feet out, then backfires about 500 feet out and the body is blown off of the car. He continues down track and brings the car to a stop in the shutdown area. Johnson goes on through the lights with his quickest pass of the weekend to take the win.
DeJoria will have lane choice over Johnson in the next round.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
1 Del Worsham 10 Tim Wilkerson
E1 ****WINNER**** 0.061 3.975 287.11 0.085 4.064 310.48
Qualified: #10 4.019 316.82 #7 4.001 320.66
Tim Wilkerson was tied for the points lead in Funny Car coming into this race. It's the first
time since near the end of the 2008 season that he has been in the lead. He is the defending event
champion.Worsham gets out of the gate first and starts pulling away. Wilkerson gained a little ground early, then started falling back. Worsham continued to extend his lead, then looks like it lost power just before the finish line. He hangs on for the win, the first for the lower qualified car today.
Del Worsham's incremental margins: 60ft(0.018), 330 ft(0.060), 660ft(0.113). MOV: 0.1135 seconds (approximately 52 feet).
Hagan will have lane choice over Worsham in round
two.
Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
7 John Force 28 Ron Capps
E1 0.067 5.564 130.22 ****WINNER**** 0.085 3.938 324.83
Qualified: #9 4.010 321.96 #8 4.003 317.64
John Force has won here seven times, the last time was in 2005. He is 25-7 in the first round
at this event...Ron Capps is 14-6 in the first round at this event. This is the 81st meeting
between these two and that is the 5th most head-to-head meetings between any two drivers in NHRA
history.Force gets out of the gate first but makes a move toward the centerline. he steers it back toward the groove, then breaks the tires loose about 300 feet out. Capps had pulled even at the sixty foot mark, then pulled away and went through the lights for the win.
Beckman will have
lane choice over Capps in round two.
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