2009 NHRA SUMMERNATIONALS - SAME DAY COVERAGE
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SUNDAY FINAL -
CAPPS CONTINUES FUNNY CAR SUCCESS WITH WIN IN TOPEKA; DIXON, AJ ALSO WINNERS AT HEARTLAND PARK
Ron
Capps continued his dominance over the Funny Car field with his win at
the 21st annual O’Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals at Heartland Park Topeka.
Larry Dixon and Allen Johnson also visited winner’s circle after
dominating their respective classes at the race that marks the halfway
point of the regular season for the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing
series.
Capps showed why he’s the car to beat this season in Funny Car, driving
his NAPA Dodge Charger R/T to a 4.265-second run at 286.07 mph; enough
to push the driver past runner-up and No. 1 qualifier Ashley Force Hood
and give Capps his third win of the season.
“When they said we won, it was such a great feeling. Ed McCulloch
fought the conditions today and all weekend long. We dropped cylinders
all weekend, and we got put in that lane that was considered not as
good as the left lane, and we won two rounds in that right lane. To
have conditions with a 125-degree track temperature and have a two-lane
dragstrip with both lanes getting wins was a phenomenal job by
Heartland Park Topeka and the NHRA Safety Safari.”
The win helped strengthen Capps’ lead over second-place Del Worsham in the point standings.
Larry
Dixon was dominate over the Top Fuel class the entire day and picked up
his second win of the season with a 3.971 run at 301.74 in the final
round. The run in his Alan Johnson Al-Anabi Racing dragster was just
enough to push Dixon past Clay Millican, who was making his first final
round appearance in over five years.
“I’ve had worse weekends [than Bristol], but it wouldn’t be a surprise
to anyone to say that I’m not where I want to be driving the car, and I
think it peaked out last week,” said Dixon. “Alan [Johnson, team owner]
took his crew chief hat off and put his coach hat on and worked on me
and getting me right. We went and ran the car at Atlanta on Monday and
Tuesday after Bristol and just made a whole bunch of runs. That was
just nice, hitting the throttle and getting runs. They learned a lot
from that test, and I learned a lot from that test. I was very excited
and there wasn’t anything apprehensive about coming to this event. I
just wanted to come here and get the gloves on and get in the game.”
The win pushed Dixon from sixth into the fourth spot, just 141 points
behind first-place driver and defending world champion Tony Schumacher.
In Pro Stock, Allen Johnson grabbed his first win in almost three
years, driving his Team Mopar / J&J Racing Dodge Stratus to a
holeshot win at 6.726 at 204.94 over Mike Edwards.
“I told the media at the end of the track that I felt like we should
have won 10 races the last year and a half, and this is the first one,”
said Johnson. “We’ve had the car, and I just haven’t done my job very
good the last year or so. I knew a win would come, but I’ve been very,
very frustrated with myself, to be honest. I hadn’t done my job really
well for the last year, but I’ve really been working on it. I feel like
I’ve got my mojo back, and we’re going to do well the rest of the year.”
The runner-up finish for Edwards closed the gap between he and current
points leader and defending world champion Jeg Coughlin to just 75
points.
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SATURDAY QUALIFYING - NO. 1 QUALIFIERS STAY THE SAME AS QUALIFYING ENDS AT HEARTLAND PARK TOPEKA
Antron Brown kept the top spot in Top Fuel as qualifying came to an end at the 21st annual O’Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals at Heartland Park Topeka.
Ashley Force Hood and Mike Edwards also held on to their No. 1 qualifying positions at the ninth of 24 events on the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.
Browns run in his Matco Tools dragster of 3.841-seconds at 315.71 mph on Friday was enough to give him the No. 1 spot in Top Fuel. For Brown, it’s his third No. 1 qualifier of the season and 17th of his career.
“It feels great to be No. 1 qualifier,” said Brown. “Here, we came in with a little bit of a short field with 15 people, and we’re going to get a bye run tomorrow. We’ve got a bye run first round, so that will be another test session for us to get down the racetrack and get a baseline to get this Matco car down the racetrack. That’s going to be important because conditions are going to be just like they are right now.”
Current points leader Tony Schumacher is starts in the third spot while third-place points driver and 2007 Topeka winner, Brandon Bernstein, is just behind him in fourth.
In Funny Car, Force Hood’s Friday night run in her Castrol GTX Ford Mustang was strong enough to keep the No. 1 spot. Force Hood drove to a 4.107 at 295.59 to collect her third No. 1 qualifier of the season, sixth of her career and second consecutive No. 1 qualifier after taking the No. 1 qualifier two weeks ago in Bristol.
“I think everyone’s kind of surprised that people are struggling as much as they are, so the track must not be that bad,” said Force Hood. “There’s been tracks we’ve been to where when it’s a certain temp they talk about it being greasy and real problem spots that they’re trying to get the car around. Sometimes they’ll stage you outside and tell you to move back in, and I haven’t really heard any of that. They want me to be staged in the center of the lane, and they want me to go right down, so I don’t think it’s the track. I think it’s really just the heat, and these cars just aren’t really happy with it. Maybe all the teams haven’t quite got under their belt tuning under the hot conditions. Defending event winner John Force starts in the second spot while current points leader and two-time Topeka winner Ron Capps is in the seventh spot.
In Pro Stock, Mike Edwards kept the top spot in Topeka. Edwards drove his ART Pontiac GXP to a 6.674 at 206.29 for his fifth No. 1 qualifier of the season, 11th of his career and first at Topeka.
“Hat’s off to all my guys; they just did an awesome job,” said Edwards. “This is our fifth No. 1 this year, and I can’t express how good that feels. We’re just having a great year. I’ve been doing this a long time, and I haven’t had this much success. It’s just fun to come out here and race.
Current points leader and defending world champion Jeg Coughlin qualified fourth in the field while four-time Topeka winner Greg Anderson is just ahead of him in the third spot.
Sunday’s eliminations begin at 11 a.m.
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First-round pairings for professional eliminations Sunday for the 21st annual O'Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals presented by Castrol GTX at Heartland Park Topeka, the ninth of 24 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series. Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday. DNQs listed below pairings.
Top Fuel -- 1. Antron Brown, 3.841 seconds, 315.71 mph vs. Bye; 2. Larry Dixon, 3.859, 308.99 vs. 15. Steven Chrisman, 7.566, 88.17; 3. Tony Schumacher, 3.866, 304.74 vs. 14. Chris Karamesines, 6.447, 191.67; 4. Brandon Bernstein, 3.887, 307.02 vs. 13. Doug Kalitta, 5.109, 290.82; 5. Clay Millican, 3.890, 308.00 vs. 12. Joe Hartley, 4.069, 283.73; 6. Spencer Massey, 3.908, 306.74 vs. 11. Scott Palmer, 4.041, 285.35; 7. Morgan Lucas, 3.909, 301.40 vs. 10. Cory McClenathan, 4.008, 290.26; 8. Shawn Langdon, 3.952, 302.62 vs. 9. Terry Haddock, 3.961, 296.18.
Funny Car -- 1. Ashley Force Hood, Ford Mustang, 4.107, 295.59 vs. 16. Jack Wyatt, Dodge Stratus, broke; 2. John Force, Mustang, 4.189, 285.83 vs. 15. Jerry Toliver, Chevy Monte Carlo, 4.889, 214.83; 3. Tony Pedregon, Chevy Impala, 4.191, 294.75 vs. 14. Robert Hight, Mustang, 4.498, 233.36; 4. Mike Neff, Mustang, 4.194, 292.14 vs. 13. Del Worsham, Toyota Solara, 4.320, 277.37; 5. Cruz Pedregon, Solara, 4.194, 288.21 vs. 12. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 4.257, 280.54; 6. Jack Beckman, Dodge Charger, 4.197, 291.26 vs. 11. Jeff Arend, Solara, 4.249, 291.82; 7. Ron Capps, Charger, 4.203, 283.55 vs. 10. Matt Hagan, Charger, 4.237, 277.20; 8. Daniel Wilkerson, Impala, 4.215, 286.80 vs. 9. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.231, 285.17.
Pro Stock -- 1. Mike Edwards, Pontiac GXP, 6.674, 207.40 vs. 16. Dave Northrop, Dodge Stratus, 6.781, 203.86; 2. Allen Johnson, Stratus, 6.683, 206.54 vs. 15. Ronnie Humphrey, Stratus, 6.766, 204.63; 3. Greg Anderson, GXP, 6.687, 206.95 vs. 14. Rodger Brogdon, GXP, 6.764, 204.76; 4. Jeg Coughlin, Chevy Cobalt, 6.698, 206.26 vs. 13. Steve Spiess, Cobalt, 6.741, 204.17; 5. Jason Line, GXP, 6.698, 206.42 vs. 12. Larry Morgan, Stratus, 6.741, 204.26; 6. Ron Krisher, Cobalt, 6.712, 206.10 vs. 11. Rickie Jones, Stratus, 6.740, 205.10; 7. Kurt Johnson, Cobalt, 6.712, 206.20 vs. 10. Warren Johnson, GXP, 6.730, 206.35; 8. Greg Stanfield, GXP, 6.714, 206.07 vs. 9. Johnny Gray, Stratus, 6.720, 205.26.
Did Not Qualify: 17. V. Gaines, 6.796, 203.03; 18. Mark Buehring, 6.930, 200.44; 19. Dave River, 7.126, 195.45; 20. Mark Hogan, 7.442, 169.10.
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FRIDAY QUALIFYING - FORCE HOOD SITS NO. 1 IN TOPEKA; BROWN, EDWARDS ALSO IN PROVISIONAL SPOTS AT HEARTLAND PARK
Ashley Force Hood held off her father and NHRA legend John Force to claim the provisional No. 1 spot in Funny Car at the 21st annual 
O’Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals at Heartland Park Topeka.
Antron Brown and Mike Edwards also took the provisional top spots in their respective categories at the ninth of 24 events on the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.
Force Hood drove her Castrol GTX Ford Mustang to a 4.107-second pass at 295.59 mph to become the provisional top qualifier in Funny Car. If it stands it would be Force Hood’s third No. 1 qualifier of the season, sixth of her career and second consecutive No. 1 qualifier after taking the No. 1 qualifier two weeks ago in Bristol.
“I don’t know what Ron (Douglas) and ‘Guido’ (Dean Antonelli, crew chiefs) were pushing to run,” said Force Hood. “I know that they made the decision that they wanted to push it, so it was just like, ‘If it can go A-to-B, I think it will be a really great run, and it will have to be in one of the top spots.’ I was surprised that it was as quick as it was because it was a very smooth run and usually the good runs are like scary runs, like you think the car is blowing up or something. It ran right through there, and I thought, ‘Well, that was a good run,’ but I was surprised when they told me on the radio it ran a .10.”
Defending event winner John Force is currently second while current points leader and two-time Topeka winner Ron Capps is in the sixth spot.
In Top Fuel, Antron Brown drove his Matco Tools dragster to a 3.841 at 315.71 to take the provisional No. 1 spot. If it stands, it would be Brown’s third No. 1 qualifier of the season and 17th of his career.
“The run went perfect,” said Brown. “The conditions were changed dramatically with the sun going down. The track temp went down about 20 to 25 degrees from the earlier session, so we knew it was pretty stout. We went for a top three spot. The car was a little on the edge here and there, but it stuck right down there.”
Current points leader Tony Schumacher is currently sitting in the third spot while third-place points driver and 2007 Topeka winner, Brandon Bernstein, is just behind him in fourth.
Picking up where he left off in Bristol, Pro Stock driver Mike Edwards followed up his win at Thunder Valley with the provisional No. 1 qualifier in Topeka. Edwards drove his ART Pontiac GXP to a 6.674 at 206.29. If it stands, it would be Edwards fifth No. 1 qualifier of the season, 11th of his career and first at Topeka.
“I’m living a dream right now with the way my car is running and how my team is performing,” said Edwards. “It seems like once you start jelling you go up there with confidence. I think you always have a little bit of doubt, but if you can go up there with 75 percent feeling good about the setup it’s better than going up there with 25 percent.”
Current points leader and defending world champion Jeg Coughlin is currently in the sixth spot, while defending event winner Ron Krisher is just one spot ahead in the fifth position.
Qualifying continues Saturday with sessions at 11:30 p.m. and 2 p.m. Sunday’s eliminations begin at 11 a.m.
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Results Friday after the first two of four rounds of qualifying for the 21st annual O'Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals presented by Castrol GTX at Heartland Park Topeka, ninth of 24 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series. Qualifying will continue Saturday for Sunday's final eliminations.
Top Fuel -- 1. Antron Brown, 3.841 seconds, 315.71 mph; 2. Larry Dixon, 3.859, 308.99; 3. Tony Schumacher, 3.866, 304.74; 4. Brandon Bernstein, 3.887, 307.02; 5. Clay Millican, 3.890, 308.00; 6. Spencer Massey, 3.908, 306.74; 7. Morgan Lucas, 3.909, 301.40; 8. Shawn Langdon, 3.952, 302.62; 9. Terry Haddock, 3.961, 296.18; 10. Cory McClenathan, 4.008, 290.26; 11. Scott Palmer, 4.041, 285.35; 12. Joe Hartley, 4.069, 283.73. Not Qualified: 13. Doug Kalitta, 4.072, 290.82; 14. Steven Chrisman, 4.170, 284.33; 15. Chris Karamesines, 4.818, 191.67.
Funny Car -- 1. Ashley Force Hood, Ford Mustang, 4.107, 295.59; 2. John Force, Mustang, 4.189, 271.02; 3. Tony Pedregon, Chevy Impala, 4.191, 294.75; 4. Cruz Pedregon, Toyota Solara, 4.194, 288.21; 5. Jack Beckman, Dodge Charger, 4.197, 291.26; 6. Ron Capps, Charger, 4.203, 283.55; 7. Mike Neff, Mustang, 4.208, 286.44; 8. Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 4.231, 282.19; 9. Matt Hagan, Charger, 4.237, 277.20; 10. Jeff Arend, Solara, 4.249, 291.82; 11. Tim Wilkerson, Mustang, 4.257, 280.54; 12. Del Worsham, Solara, 4.320, 277.37. Not Qualified: 13. Daniel Wilkerson, 4.330, 228.73; 14. Jerry Toliver, 4.437, 214.83; 15. Robert Hight, 4.754, 224.92; 16. Jack Wyatt, 4.881, 164.91.
Pro Stock -- 1. Mike Edwards, Pontiac GXP, 6.674, 207.08; 2. Allen Johnson, Dodge Stratus, 6.683, 205.72; 3. Greg Anderson, GXP, 6.687, 206.95; 4. Jason Line, GXP, 6.698, 206.42; 5. Ron Krisher, Chevy Cobalt, 6.712, 206.01; 6. Jeg Coughlin, Cobalt, 6.712, 206.26; 7. Kurt Johnson, Cobalt, 6.724, 205.69; 8. Greg Stanfield, GXP, 6.729, 205.35; 9. Johnny Gray, Stratus, 6.741, 205.10; 10. Larry Morgan, Stratus, 6.741, 204.17; 11. Steve Spiess, Cobalt, 6.741, 204.17; 12. Rickie Jones, Stratus, 6.744, 204.26. Not Qualified: 13. Warren Johnson, 6.747, 206.01; 14. Ronnie Humphrey, 6.758, 204.20; 15. Dave Northrop, 6.771, 203.52; 16. Rodger Brogdon, 6.796, 203.52; 17. V. Gaines, 6.817, 202.27; 18. Mark Buehring, 6.971, 199.26; 19. Dave River, 7.059, 195.45; 20. Mark Hogan, 8.141, 164.07.
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EVENT PREVIEW - EDWARDS HAS THE CAR TO BEAT IN MEMPHIS
If the Pro Stock performance that was put on display by Mike Edwards and his workaholic ART/Young Life Pontiac GXP teammates at 
Bristol
Dragway two weeks ago is a preview of what’s to come for his fellow
competitors in the 200 mph category, those respective teams better get
to work.
And they better get to work fast.
At Bristol’s Thunder Valley Nationals, Edwards’ driving was near
perfect. His GXP’s setup was flawless. He left his competition in his
dust all weekend. He was the No. 1 qualifier. He won the race. And just
for good measure, he set the low elapsed time for the event in his
final-round victory over three-time series champ Greg Anderson.
It was all in a day’s work for this very humble and highly spiritual
self-confessed total gear head from Oklahoma who now heads to Heartland
Park Topeka in Kansas for the O’Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals, May
29-31. He will try to keep the momentum going so he can improve on his
third place position in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Pro
Stock points order. Hillary Will (Top Fuel); John Force (Funny Car);
and Ron Krisher (Pro Stock) are the defending winners of the event,
which will be televised on ESPN2 and ESPN2 HD.
Edwards had been making waves and turning heads early in the season in
spurts, taking three No. 1 qualifying positions, a runner-up finish at
the season-opener in Pomona, Calif. and a victory in mid-April in
Atlanta.
However,
his flashes of brilliance before his exclamation point victory at
Bristol were tempered with a few moments of futility. After being
recognized by his peers as having the car to beat with No. 1 qualifying
performances at Phoenix, Gainesville and Las Vegas, he lost all three
races in the second round. At St. Louis he qualified second but lost in
the first round to Justin Humphreys on a red-light start.
Heading into Bristol he decided to focus intensely on his driving and
had his team work overtime to find more horsepower. The results were
immediate.
“I had been struggling with my driving and I felt like I gave a couple
of races away,” Edwards said. “I have been qualifying No. 1 and felt
like I let my team down a few times. We have just tested, tested and
tested and worked countless hours at this. I have the best group of
guys in the world. Finally all the hard work is paying off and the
results are showing.”
Edwards knows if he is to sustain his run for the NHRA Full Throttle
Countdown to the Championship that is the effort he’s going to need
during the stretch run of the regular season and for the six-race
playoffs, the Countdown to 1. Series leader Jeg Coughlin has raced out
to a good lead with three victories in his JEGS.com Chevy Cobalt, while
Line has also been impressive in his Summit Racing GXP with two wins.
Anderson is starting to get on the fast track in his Summit Pontiac as
well.
“I don’t know if people realize how hard it is to do well in this
class,” said Edwards, whose best series points finish in his 15-year
career is third (1996). “I respect Greg (Anderson) and Jason (Line) and
those are the guys you want to beat because they’ve been up there so
long, just like Warren and Kurt (Johnson) too. To beat those guys … I
never dreamed I would be as competitive in this class and run like
this. It’s an awesome feeling.”
In Top Fuel, Tony Schumacher is back to his winning ways in the
category despite having a brand new team in the pits. He has raced to
three victories in his U.S. Army dragster with new crew chief Mike
Green calling the shots. However, Schumacher has never won at Heartland
Park. Brandon Bernstein and Cory McClenathan are multiple-time winners
at the Kansas track and will be among the favorites during the weekend.
Del Worsham is riding a two-race winning streak behind the wheel of his
new Al-Anabi Racing Toyota Solara and is making a serious move up the
Funny Car points order. He trails three-time season winner and series
leader Ron Capps by 57 points. Capps, who drives the NAPA Dodge Charger
for Don Schumacher Racing, is a two-time winner at Topeka. The only
other active Funny Car drivers who have won at HPT are nine-time winner
John Force, four-time winner Cruz Pedregon and three-time winner Tony
Pedregon. All three will be among the favorites to win, in addition to
Ashley Force Hood, Jack Beckman and Tim Wilkerson.
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