Sat, 12 Oct 2019, 17:55 PM Funny Car Qualifying Notes, Final Session

By Dave Rowe

CONCORD, N.C. - Notes from final, round 4 qualifying in Funny Car at the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, 12th annual NTK NHRA Carolina Nationals listing lane, driver name, elapsed time/top speed this round, position in order following run, best prior elapsed time/speed, and position in order prior to run:

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Left Lane: Dale Creasy Jr. Runs 4.606/182.28, Now #16; Best prior run: 4.385/209.36, Was #16
Right Lane: Bob Gilbertson Runs 8.320/75.77, Now #18; Best prior run: 7.810/88.09, Was #18

5:20 p.m. Weather conditions: air temperature 87 degrees, relative humidity 37 percent, barometer 29.26 inches, adjusted altitude 3,271 feet, track temperature 105 degrees.

Gilbertson gets about 200 feet out, hazes the tires and clicks it off. Creasy got out of the groove, started drifting to the right, then clicked it off about 700 feet out.

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Right Lane: Tommy Johnson Jr. Runs 3.950/321.65, Now #8; Best prior run: 4.233/219.08, Was #15

Johnson goes right down the groove with a clean pass and moves up to the eighth spot.

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Left Lane: J.R. Todd Runs 5.273/139.73, Now #11; Best prior run: 3.972/308.43, Was #11
Right Lane: Dave Richards Runs 4.910/155.60, Now #14; Best prior run: 4.071/297.16, Was #14

Todd hits the throttle, gets about 300 feet out and goes up in smoke. Richards looked like he may have had a cylinder out early. he gets about 400 feet out, loses traction and backs off the throttle.

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Left Lane: Shawn Langdon Runs 4.496/190.78, Now #10; Best prior run: 3.970/326.00, Was #10
Right Lane: Jonnie Lindberg Runs 3.972/323.12, Now #11; Best prior run: 4.000/322.50, Was #13

Langdon was on a good pass but strikes the tires about 300 feet out and he has to click it off. Lindberg goes down the groove with his first run in the "threes" this weekend and he moves up to the 11th spot for now.

Shawn Langdon's incremental times: 60ft-0.880 sec., 330ft-2.267, 660ft-3.327/210.73 mph.
Jonnie Lindberg's incremental times: 60ft-0.885 sec., 330ft-2.275, 660ft-3.218/276.29 mph.

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Left Lane: Cruz Pedregon No Time, Now #9; Best prior run: 3.955/321.04, Was #9
Right Lane: Tim Wilkerson No Time, Now #7; Best prior run: 3.945/318.99, Was #7

Pedregon had a cylinder out early and he aborts the runabout 400 feet out. Wilkerson drifted to the left late in the run, then he crosses the centerline and takes out the timing blocks at the end of the track disqualifying the times in both lanes.

Crossing the centerline will cost Wilkerson ten points.

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Left Lane: Matt Hagan Runs 3.880/331.69, Now #3; Best prior run: 3.906/328.22, Was #5
Right Lane: Bob Tasca III Runs 3.891/328.46, Now #6; Best prior run: 3.936/327.03, Was #6

A good side-by-side, both right down the groove. Hagan makes his quickest pass of the weekend and moves up to the third spot in the order. Tasca makes his quickest pass of the weekend but stays in the sixth spot.

Matt Hagan's incremental times: 60ft-0.864 sec., 330ft-2.226, 660ft-3.145/283.73 mph.
Bob Tasca III's incremental times: 60ft-0.867 sec., 330ft-2.232, 660ft-3.150/282.01 mph.

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Left Lane: Robert Hight Runs 3.913/330.96, Now #2; Best prior run: 3.878/334.07, Was #2
Right Lane: John Force Runs 3.896/328.06, Now #5; Best prior run: 3.890/331.45, Was #5

Hight makes a clean pass but doesn't improve. Force goes down the groove with a clean, straight pass but he doesn't improve.

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Left Lane: Jack Beckman Runs 3.888/324.59, Now #1; Best prior run: 3.873/334.07, Was #1
Right Lane: Ron Capps Runs 3.894/332.18, Now #4; Best prior run: 3.882/330.55, Was #4

A good side-by-side, both right down the groove with clean passes but neither driver improves.

Jack Beckman's incremental times: 60ft-0.866 sec., 330ft-2.234, 660ft-3.146/284.33 mph.
Ron Capps' incremental times: 60ft-0.869 sec., 330ft-2.237, 660ft-3.159/282.24 mph.

Timing data courtesy of CompuLink