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Sat, Oct 31, 08:19 PM

BAYTOWN - Funny Car Qualifying Notes, Session # 3

By Michael L. Jex

More Career Best This Afternoon

BAYTOWN, Texas - Notes from round 3 qualifying in Funny Car at the 2nd Annual Matco Tools Supernationals, 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):

Left Lane: Chuck Etchells Runs 4.957/309.27 Now # 7, (Best prior run: 5.690/173.04 Was #15)
Right Lane: Randy Anderson Runs 9.745/ 85.92 Now # 2, (Best prior run: 4.848/318.92 Was # 2)

11:51 AM The current queens of the sport have just finished their runs, now it's time for the Kings of Speed to show what they can do on this smooth, but sunny track.

Anderson's run last night resulted in career best numbers for the young Parts America driver, while Chuck has been overpowering the track in his Kendall Camaro.

Anderson lost traction coming off the pad, and got a front side seat to watch Etchells wiggle a little in the middle of the track then leap into the top half of the field.

Left Lane: Gary Densham Runs 9.077/ 92.89 Now # 8, (Best prior run: 5.104/301.40 Was # 8)
Right Lane: Dale Creasy, Jr. Runs 5.523/240.12 Now #14, (Best prior run: 5.417/239.23 Was #14)

Both drivers drifted towards the right, Densham got close to the centerline and lifted first, then Creasy pedaled briefly to stab his firebird back away from the wall.

Left Lane: Tom Hoover Runs 5.048/293.44 Now # 8, (Best prior run: 5.411/202.24 Was #13)
Right Lane: Ronny Young No Time Now #16, (Best prior run: 6.058/166.38 Was #16)

Ronny "The Wizard" Young runs out of magic, he broke at the line, he didn't move more than a couple of inches.

Left Lane: Dean Skuza Runs 9.301/ 89.40 Now #20, (Best prior run: 9.410/ 89.95 Was #20)
Right Lane: Frank Pedregon Runs 5.694/148.51 Now #16, (Best prior run: 6.205/144.02 Was #18)

Dean Skuza smoked the tires in almost the same spot as before, leaving him just one more chance to get into the program today. The fuse on Pedregon's engine was too short, the engine let go with a huge explosion at the top end of the track. The body was pitched high into the air, and came down on the far side of the wall. Frank did a great job of driving, brought the car to a stop, and calmly stepped out from between the framerails.

I'm sure Frank's ears will be ringing for awhile after this run.

Left Lane: Al Hofmann Runs 5.108/296.73 Now #10, (Best prior run: 6.128/167.50 Was #18)
Right Lane: John Force Runs 6.785/127.11 Now # 4, (Best prior run: 4.876/313.15 Was # 4)

12:21 PM The NHRA safety safari has done their usual great job of cleaning and preparing the right lane after Frank Pedregon's big engine explosion.

Hofmann dropped a cylinder early in the run which may have been the reason he didn't smoke the tires like his nemesis in the other lane. John lost traction before the 200-foot mark, so the grudge match qualifying series between these two is now 1-1.

Left Lane: Tony Pedregon Runs 4.907/294.98 Now # 3, (Best prior run: 4.875/311.31 Was # 3)
Right Lane: Jim Epler Runs 8.376/106.97 Now #16, (Best prior run: 5.423/202.61 Was #16)

Tony hazed the tires in the middle of the track, but that is a good run considering the sunny conditions currently.

Epler lost traction at almost the same spot John Force did in the previous pairing.

Left Lane: Vicky Fanning No Time Now # 3, (Best prior run: 8.396/ 93.46 Was #19)
Right Lane: Whit Bazemore No Time Now #16, (Best prior run: 4.908/313.04 Was # 5)

There was quite a conference between these two drivers after last nights fail to stage episode. Fanning staged then left before Bazemore had even staged or the timing system had been activated. There are red Winston shirts jumping up and down all over the place, and starter Rick Stewart finally gives the cut the engine signal. Whit jumps out through the escape hatch, and walks back towards the pit area.

The car is on it's way back to the pit area, I'm sure we will see him again later.

Left Lane: Chuck Beal Runs 5.217/273.39 Now #12, (Best prior run: 5.352/275.98 Was #14)
Right Lane: Del Worsham Runs 5.287/273.55 Now #15, (Best prior run: 10.055/ 86.28 Was #21)

Del Worsham had the same result in the same place, smoking the tires, then pedaling and recovering in the right lane.

Left Lane: Glenn Mikres Runs 5.121/298.30 Now #11, (Best prior run: 5.171/292.30 Was #11)
Right Lane: Cruz Pedregon Runs 8.022/104.17 Now # 1, (Best prior run: 4.807/319.60 Was # 1)

Whit Bazemore is here in the press center to watch the other Funny Cars, his only comment about the Fanning "incidents" so far was "John Force told me what to say, and it was really funny." He didn't mention specifically what was said......

Cruz gets over towards the centerline dropping a cylinder and shaking the tires hard on the launch.

Left Lane: Don Sosenka Runs 5.571/273.39 Now #18, (No prior time)
Right Lane: Ron Capps Runs 5.528/190.35 Now # 6, (Best prior run: 4.944/299.90 Was # 6)

Capps and the Cope team are using the "beaten and battered" body this weekend, the same one that spent a great deal of time in the wind tunnel.

Ron hazes the tires in the middle of the track, the car started moving back and forth from that point on.

Left Lane: Tim Wilkerson Runs 9.167/ 93.33 Now #14, (Best prior run: 5.259/222.00 Was #14)

Wilkerson comes to a stop at the 800-foot mark after a long smoky burnout. Crew chief Terry Manzer has been working hard to find a combination that will work with a new batch of clutch disks, however this run proves more work is going to be required.

Whit Bazemore will get a rerun after his team has a chance to service the clutch.

Right Lane: Whit Bazemore Runs 4.850/311.63 Now # 3, (Best prior run: 4.908/313.04 Was # 5)

2:00 PM Whit has had time to service the clutch in his funny car and cool things down. His "Mulligan" is courtesy of Vicky Fanning leaving the starting line before the timers were activated earlier this afternoon.

Whit made a visit to the pressroom and announced the rumors regarding his major sponsorship deal were in error. Bazemore does NOT have a major sponsor signed for 1999 after all. Whit's comment was "We were as close to a deal as you can be without a signed contract, but the deal fell through at the last minute."

That is career best ET for Whit, a great run in the heat of the day.