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NHRA ACDelco Gatornationals - Pro Mod
SUNDAY FINAL - Jay Payne Repeats Pro Modified Win at Gatornationals
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SATURDAY – AMS Pro Modified Challenge racers excel in the heat during second day of NHRA ACDelco Gatornationals(3-18-2006) – The second day of the NHRA ACDelco Gatornationals produced a dream scenario for the AMS Pro Modified Challenge presented by RPM Depot contestants. Not only did the 16-car field establish the quickest bump spot in the six year history of the series, the first round set up an incredible quarter-final round for Sunday. Rick Distefano, of Calgary, Alberta, drove his 1953 Corvette to the low elapsed time of the event to secure the top qualifying spot with a 6.050 elapsed time. He only needed a 6.111, 235.41; however, to win his first round match opposite of Thomas Patterson. Jay Payne, Friday’s provisional low qualifier, was the quickest winner in the first round as he used a 6.079, 233.94 to knock off Brandon Pesz. Pesz fell behind early with a 6.242, 229.29. In a show of true team spirit, the Tommy Lipar team loaned their engine to new teammate Troy Critchley and the move enabled the AMS Staff Leasing to vault into the third spot. Critchley won his first round over Mike Janis and Lipar driver Josh Hernandez defeated Steve Engel. Other first round winners included Glen Kerunsky (Mike Castellana), Shelly Payne (Eddie Ware), Matt Hagan (Danny Rowe) and Rick Stivers (Cody Barklage). Second round match ups include DiStefano versus Kerunsky; Shelly Payne versus Hernandez; Jay Payne versus Hagan and Critchley versus Stivers. a
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SATURDAY NOTES - Saucy Pro Modified team, Canadians running strong and the true team spirit(3-18-2006) - The Secret’s in the Sauce - Struggling at the end of 2005, Barklage Racing is starting the season off right. Local BBQ favorite David’s Real Pit BBQ is on board with Cody Barklage for the weekend. Despite the team’s initial struggle early in qualifying, Barklage ended up sixth with a 6.12, 232.25. When Torco’s Competition Plus asked Barklage what the secret is to their new found success Barklage replied, “We’ve got David’s BBQ sponsoring us. They doing some great food for us. I think the crew is doing better with all the food. Maybe the secret is the sauce… or their sweet tea.” Canadian Bakin’ - Rick DiStefano of Calgary surprised a lot of folks in qualifying on the pole. DiStefano qualified with a 6.05, 233.88 which was just .004 seconds short of Jay Payne. In an interesting tidbit, fellow Canadian Al Billes is assisting. Power from Down Under or Next Door? - Troy Critchley's first competitive The yet announced partnership between the AMS Staff Leasing team and Tommy Lipar’s Dr. Moon’s rage greatly contributed to the success. Under the tutelage of Lipar crewchief “Doctor” Howard Moon used one of the Lipar engines to propel Critchley to his personal best. Not to be forgotten is the fact that Critchley is doing battle in a 1971 Barracuda that is only ten days old. The 6.05 represented the first full pass on the car. Still on Top of the World - After the first round of eliminations in AMS Pro Mod, Jay Payne is still the man to beat. Posting the quickest time for the round, Payne is hoping for a win on Sunday. With no plans to change the combination, Payne is planning on continuing his success in Gainesville. Beside Jay his is wife Shelly. Shelly, who is just returning to NHRA Pro Mod competition after a serious injury sustained in St. Louis last year is also still in the show for Sunday. The couple is on opposite sides of the ladder, so there is a chance to see the first husband and wife final ever in NHRA Pro Mod competition. Despite being absent from the drivers seat for the last half of 2005, Shelly has been able to keep herself in competition. a
d v e r t i s e m e n t FRIDAY - Payne is tops in first day Pro Modified qualifying
(3-17-2006) – Jay Payne doesn’t like to live in the past, but his actions during the first day of qualifying for the ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals greatly resembled his actions from 2005. The Ontario, Ca.-based driver drove his Valvoline-sponsored Dodge Stratus to the quickest lap of Friday qualifying with a pair of 6.13 elapsed times. His best run was a 6.134, 230.53 recorded during the first session of qualifications for the NHRA AMS Pro Modified Challenge presented by RPM Depot. Payne admits that nothing has changed since 2005. “It’s still the same Brad Anderson horsepower and the crew making all of this happen,” Payne said. “I’m just the lucky one that gets to drive. We didn’t try to lay down a record run. We just wanted to repeat and we did that. “Upper deck shots in qualifying don’t win races.”
Canadian Rick Distefano was the second-quickest. Benefiting from assistance of Al Billes, the Calgary, Alberta-based driver locked down a 6.140, 233.03 best. Mike Castellana, the defending IHRA Pro Modified champion, saved his best run of the day for the second session. Castellana provided the only representation for the nitrous combination and did it admirably with a 6.144. Eddie Ware rounded out the show with a 6.491, 206.99. Provisional NHRA AMS Pro Modified Challenge presented by RPM Depot qualifying order after two sessions at the ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville. 1. Jay Payne 6.134, 230.53; 2. Rick Distefano 6.140, 233.03; 3. Mike Castellana 6.144, 230.71; 4. Matt Hagan 6.175, 230.00; 5. Josh Hernandez 6.179, 232.91; 6. Danny Rowe 6.182, 230.35; 7. Cody Barklage 6.188, 229.06; 8. Mike Janis 6.215, 226.58; 9. Steve Engel 6.224, 230.88; 10. Glen Kerunsky 6.241, 229.94; 11. Brandon Pesz 6.247, 228.94; 12. Thomas Patterson 6.266, 227.67; 13. Doug Palmer 6.343, 223.65; 14. Chip King 6.416, 197.84; 15. 15. Rick Stivers 6.481; 228.94; 16. Eddie Ware 6.491, 206.99 DNQ list after two sessions – Shelly Payne, Troy Critchley, Scott Ray, Andy McCoy, Joey Martin, Harold Laird. a
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FRIDAY NOTES - A repaired Voodoo, Ashley wants to play again? Wild ride gets Shelly's attention...
Back in the Saddle Again? - Former Pro Mod World Champ, Mike Ashley isn’t far from the world of NHRA Pro Mod. “I have a lot of mixed emotions right now” said Ashley. “I love Pro Mod; that is where my heart is.” For all appearances sake, Ashley is on the outside looking in on the world of Pro Mod; however, he is still active as a team owner. Ashley added, “Don’t be surprised if you see me back in Pro Mod by mid-season.” On the mend -- Shannon Jenkins, a former IHRA and NHRA champion and Gatornationals winner, will miss the debut of the AMS Staff Leasing Pro Modified Series presented by RPM Depot. He is resting at home in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, following a medical procedure earlier in the week to clear a blocked artery to the heart. Doctors implanted a stint to open the artery. "I feel better now than I have in a long time," Jenkins said. "The doctors told us what we need to do to recover. And after this weekend I plan on being back to work in San Antonio," he said, referring to the Amalie Oil Texas Nationals that open the IHRA'S eMax Drag Racing Series season. The IHRA Pro Mod class is a professional class; in the NHRA, it has exhibition status. Teammate Mike Castellana, the reigning IHRA Pro Mod champion, will carry the SpeedTech nitrous team's banner this weekend. Jenkins expressed faith in him and team technician Brandon Switzer but said his top priority is his own health and family. The Pedal Fest is on! - Round one of Pro Mod qualifying proved to be tougher then usual for the best in NHRA Pro Mod racing. After the first qualifier of the 2006 season, top teams of TARE Racing, Dr. Moon’s Rage, Shelly Payne, and Glenn Kerunsky couldn’t make the field for round one. The bottom-end of the field wasn’t pretty either. Plagued with tire shake – Cody Barklage, Danny Rowe and Chip King ran less then stellar numbers. Will round two and three of qualifying prove better?
“We will hopefully be No. 1 on Sunday,” Payne said. As for Shelly? According to Jay she is well after last year’s St. Louis crash and out for an equal or better number than ja over the course of the weekend. “She’s all right. She’s a racer.” Shelly had a scary moment during the second session when her car drifted out of the groove and nearly smacked the wall. She was asked if it was as scary on the inside as it appeared for those on the outside. “It got my attention,” Shelly said. On the outside looking in after one - After being plagued with a case of the tire shakes during the first qualifier, loose and crazy is the way Friday ended in Pro Mod. Missing the field with only one more chance to get in was Shelly Payne, Troy Critchley, Scott Ray, Joey Martin and Harold Laird. The Day Improves for many in NHRA AMS Pro Mod - Many of the AMS favorites were not qualified after the opening session. However, the track grew quicker as the sun set in Gainesville.
“Our team seems to be working well together. The first thing you must do is surround yourself with good people and that is what we are trying to do. Hopefully, we’ll keep on going down the track as fast as we are.”
Got a comment? Drop us a line at comppluseditor@aol.com.
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What almost came down to a family contest between Jay and Shelly Payne, turned into the "Canadian versus the Californian." Glen Kerunsky of Priddis, Alberta took out Shelly in the semi-finals 6.145 to 6.160. Paired against the 2005 event winner and Ontario Calif. resident Jay Payne in the finals, Kerunsky gave it everything he had, but couldn't get by that Brad Anderson power. Jay repeated as the Gatornationals winner, running 6.155 to Kerunsky's 6.161.
This marked the first time at 20-percent supercharger overdrive for Payne. Last year, the NHRA Pro Modified division ran at 29%.
(3-17-2006) - Conjuring up a repair - It’s only been a few weeks since Doug Palmer put his car in the wall, but he is back with a vengeance. Despite initial reports of primarily cosmetic damage, the VooDoo car was injured to the extreme. According to Palmer, everything was basically broken on the driver’s side of the car. Everything from the wheels to the struts needed to be replaced. The team thrashed until 3:00 AM yesterday just to be ready for the first AMS Pro Mod Challenge in Gainesville. Although the once beautiful car is now in primer, the car will have a whole new VooDoo paint scheme in Bristol.
Not Singing the Blues - Josh Hernandez was more confident than the average driver headed into the first event of the season with a new car. Hernandez needed only one test session to not only find the right baseline for his brand new 1968 Camaro, but to snag a championship trophy. The Conroe, Texas-based driver for Tommy Lipar laid down competitive elapsed times in four days of testing and captured the Pro Modified title during Chicago Style eliminations at the Eastern Spring Test Nationals in Valdosta, Ga. He’s ready to improve on last year’s early departure from eliminations at the NHRA Gatornationals.
A “Payne-full” Day? - Jay Payne started 2006 strong. Coming out of round one of qualifying, Jay hit the magic No. 1 spot with 6.13. Although Payne started off strong his hopes lie with what the team can do on Sunday. 
Rowe, Rowe, Row Yer Boat - Popular Pro Mod driver Danny Rowe is back after taking a season off. Despite a disappointing first qualifier, Rowe was back by the end of the day with the help of new crewchief Jimmy Rector. 
Matt Who? - After a very successful outing in Valdosta just one week ago, Matt Hagen is proving he can compete with the best in the business. Going to the final round against Josh Hernandez during the Eastern Spring Nationals presented by Torco’s CompetitionPlus.com, Hagen felt he had plenty more to prove. 
© Competitionplus 2005
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