Sat, 08 Feb 2020, 20:57 PM Top Alcohol Funny Car Round 2 Eliminations

By Rick Green

POMONA, Calif. - Results of round 2 eliminations in Top Alcohol Funny Car at the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, 60th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com:

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
  800 Ulf Leanders                           76 Terry Ruckman                
E2                   0.022  5.652 249.30     ****WINNER****  0.033  5.640 266.11
 Prior rounds:
E1    (R Martin    ) 0.252  5.660 263.82      (B Hough     ) 0.035  5.536 265.38
 Qualified:             #3  5.452 265.85                        #7  5.543 232.75

Weather conditions: air temperature 67 degrees, relative humidity 54 percent, barometer 28.78 inches, adjusted altitude 2,407 feet, track temperature 77 degrees.

Ruckman is 3 - 0 against Leanders in prior events.

Leanders with the starting line advantage with a great light and the lead until right in the lights when Ruckman chased him down for the win in a close one. Terry Ruckman's MOV: 0.0012 seconds (approximately 5 inches).

Leanders was skating around on the top end and apparently he used up an engine as the there is oil on the track.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
    6 Doug Gordon                                Bye
E2   ****WINNER****  0.054  5.459 268.60     
 Prior rounds:
E1    (H Wernhart  ) 0.064  5.450 270.16   
 Qualified:             #1  5.432 268.33                     Bye

Gordon on the bye and he launched hard and kept it hooked up to run in the 5.40's again. Doug Gordon's incremental times: 60ft-0.933 sec., 330ft-2.452, 660ft-3.625/212.09 mph, 1,000ft-4.620.

He will have lane choice in the semifinal over Ruckman.

 Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT-----ET---Speed-----Car#-Driver(Opp'nt)-RT----ET---Speed
 2183 Aryan Rochon                            3 Shane Westerfield            
E2   ****WINNER****  0.024  5.568 260.97                     0.040  6.396 166.56
 Prior rounds:
E1    (J Payne     ) 0.074  5.552 254.04      (M Doushgouni) 0.054  5.591 268.97
 Qualified:             #6  5.542 259.36                        #2  5.436 270.32

Rochon is 1 - 0 against Westerfield in prior events.

Rochon with the starting line advantage and never trailed for the win. He got real loose after the finish line.

Rochon will get the bye into the final.

Westerfield was drifting out of the groove and got close to the centerline before he clicked it off.

Timing data courtesy of CompuLink