2009 NHRA CAROLINAS NATIONALS - GET SCREENED AMERICA PRO MOD NOTEBOOK
 |
||||||
 |
||||||
 |
||||||
SUNDAY - STIVERS WINS CONCORD GSP PRO MOD TITLE
Rick Stivers, driver of the Trane '06 Pro Mod Stratus, used blistering
times and bracket-car consistency to win the Get Screened America 
Pro Mod Challenge presented by ProCare Rx at the NHRA Carolinas Nationals at zMax Dragway.
Stivers qualified No. 3 with a 5.940 at 240.85 mph and then ran like a
bracket car at 5.927, 5.913, 5.919 and 5.908-seconds to earn his
second-ever trip to the Pro Mod Challenge winners circle. In round one,
Stivers dispatched Dennis Radford, and then moved on to take out No. 2
in the points Roger Burgess followed by points-leader Burton Auxier.
In the final, Stivers rode his Trane past Melanie Troxel in a thrilling
side-by-side drag race by running a 5.908 at 241.89 to Troxel's 5.946
at 242.36.
Troxel used similar consistency and prowess to advance to her first Pro
Mod Challenge final. She ran a 5.986 at 240.81 to defeat Mike
Castellana's 6.004 at 233.84 mph. next, she ran a 5.971 at 242.54 to
take out the No. 1 qualifier Brad Personett, and then ran a 5.983 at
241.89 to dismiss Joe Baker and advance to the final.
Stivers said, "That was a great final round, Melanie is an awesome
competitor, and I think the fans got a great show all day long. We were
on a tear, all weekend long. Brad Anderson had this car hopped up, and
we had the car to beat.
"This weekend has been some of the best racing anytime, anywhere, and I
have to thank my entire team, Brad, my wife Jill, and my son Rick Jr.,
who couldn't be here this weekend but who I know was listening on the
Internet and was screaming with us as I took the stripe."
Troxel said, "Al (Billes, crew chief) kept after it all weekend, and we
were able to get the R2B2 Motors/ProCare Rx Corvette into the finals by
being consistent. In that last round, we knew we had to give it all we
had, and we just didn't have quite enough. It was a great weekend, a
great race, and we're all really proud of what we were able to do.
"I love racing here in Charlotte, the track is amazing - you don't have
to worry about bumps or problems, and both lanes are pretty much equal,
so you can take the lane choice pretty much out of the equation. It's a
great facility, one of the very best," she said.
Number one qualifier Brad Personett was also on a tear all weekend,
running the second-quickest time ever in Pro Mod Challenge competition
at 5.872 to take the top spot. He ran a 5.955 at 236.34 to defeat Kirk
Wilmes in the first round, but hurt his motor in the process.
Overnight, his team changed the motor, but when he faced off against
Melanie Troxel in the quarterfinals, an air gap hadn't been set
properly and caused the car to lose power at the hit of the throttle.
Personett said, "We've worked so hard to get to this point, and even
though we didn't go any farther this weekend, we know what it takes now
to get down the track, and I think that next time we'll have things
lined up to go more rounds."
The points battles tightened up for both the championship as well as
qualifying for the $35,000 MATCO Tools Pro Mod Clash. While there are
two races left to determine the World Champion, drivers only have one
race - Richmond, Virginia - left to earn points to break into the top
eight spots that qualify for the race-within-a-race that will be
contested during qualifying at the Challenge finals in Las Vegas.
With more than 230 points still available until the finals, Burton
Auxier still holds onto the lead despite his early exit from today's
event. Right on his heels are Roger Burgess and Danny Rowe, both less
than 60 points or three round-wins out of first place. Also within
striking distance are Mike Castellana and Joe Baker, along with Raymond
Commisso, Jay Payne and Tim Tindle who mathematically could win with
although with very slim odds.
Competing for the Matco Tools Clash, Tim Tindle currently holds the No.
8 spot with 342 points, followed within 60 points by Brad Personett,
Mike Knowles and today's winner Rick Stivers who each have a chance to
bump into the Clash and earn a chance to compete for their piece of the
$35,000 purse up for grabs.
Burton Auxier took home the $500 B&J Racing Transmissions Bonus by
winning his first-round match against Jay Payne by a holeshot, 5.972 at
236.63 to Payne's 5.943 at 240.51.
Next up on the calendar for the Get Screened America Pro Mod Challenge
is the Virginia NHRA Nationals in Richmond, Va. scheduled for October
9-11.
Current Standings (After 8 of 10 events)
1 Auxier 578
2 Burgess 524
3 Rowe 521
4 Castellana 475
5 Baker 461
6 Commisso 407
7 Payne 393
8 Tindle 385
9 Personett 347
10 Knowles 342
11 Stivers 326
12 Smith 233
13 Lastor 200
14 Troxel 122
15 Laird 155
16 Lang 140
17 Wilmes 104
18 Gray 85
19 Radford 83
20 Maier 72
21 King 67
22 McCoy 63
23 Gibson 42
24 D'Aprile 43
25 Stock 32
26 Budano 31
27 Hance 31
28 Patille 31
29 Russo 31
30 DiStefano 41
31 Ray 41
32 Christoffel 10
33 Flamholc 10
34 Landis 10
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
SATURDAY - PERSONETT LEADS PRO MODS INTO SUNDAY
Brad Personett remained on top of the Get Screened America Pro Mod
Challenge ladder at the NHRA Carolinas Nationals and advanced to the
second round of eliminations by defeating Kirk Wilmes in round one
action Saturday evening.
Personett's stellar 5.872-second pass at 246.89 mph remained the best
of the weekend so far and earned him No. 1 qualifier bragging rights.
In round one, he faced Kirk Wilmes. The rookie from Altus, Oklahoma had
a difficult thrash to make the call for the session due to a damaged
transmission he suffered in the final round of qualifying, but was able
to put his jet-black '68 Firebird together and take the lights.
Personett's Big3 Turbo-powered '68 Camaro had more than enough to
dismiss Wilmes, delivering a consistent 5.955 at 236.34 mph to Wilmes'
6.202 at 230.76.
Jay Payne outran points leader Burton Auxier 5.943 to a 5.972, but
Auxier's .021 reaction-time earned the holeshot win against the former
World Champion. Payne's teammate, Rick Stivers remained wickedly
consistent as well, basting out the quickest run of the session at
5.927 to handily overtake veteran Dennis Radford's 6.036.
U.S. Nationals winner Roger Burgess faced off against his R2B2 Racing
teammate, Raymond Commisso, and continued his streak of round wins,
running the second-quickest for the session at 5.938 at 241.97 to
Commisso's injured and limping 11.137. Burgess will face Rick Stivers
in the second round of eliminations.
The other R2B2 Racing team member, Melanie Troxel, advanced to round
two by taking out No. 4 in the points Mike Castellana in his
Al-Anabi/Western Beef '70 Camaro. Her victory will have championship
ramifications by the end of the weekend when all the points are
tabulated.
Danny Rowe also continued his powerful advance toward the winner's
circle by flashing a Jimmy Rector-powered 5.977 at 242.93 to Tommy
D'Aprile's 6.179. D'Aprile said, "These are really some of the first
runs we've made with a quarter-mile setup in quite a while, so we're
actually really pleased with the way the car is performing. Mel (Bush,
team owner) is happy with where we're at right now, and we'll just get
ready for our next race."
Joe Baker ousted Rickie Smith using a quicker reaction time of .048 to
Smith's .085, with each running nearly identical times of 6.000 to a
6.020. Baker said, "We got after it, and I know there's more in it, so
we'll be ready when we have to face Danny Rowe tomorrow."
In a battle of friends, Mike Knowles defeated Tim Tindle with an
impressive 5.962 to a tire-shaking 7.725. Tindle's '67 Shelby Mustang
shook hard at the launch and tried to shoot sideways, but Tindle hung
on and tried to get back in it after it had straightened out.
In qualifying, Scott Ray tagged the wall in his shiny-red '53 Corvette,
sending his door flying into the air in an impressive show for the
fans. Ray failed to qualify, as did Calgary's Rick DiStefano.
Eliminations are scheduled to conclude Sunday afternoon.
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
FRIDAY QUALIFYING - PERSONETT POWERS PAST FIELD
Brad Personett jumped to the provisional top of the Get Screened
America Pro Mod Challenge field in the first day of qualifying at the 
NHRA Carolinas Nationals at zMAX Dragway outside of Charlotte, N.C.
Personett's stellar 5.872-second pass at 246.89 mph was the
quickest-ever for a turbo-charged car in Pro Mod Challenge history and
the second-quickest run ever.
"Finally things are coming together for us," Personett said with a huge
grin on his face. "We've got our tune-up really happy, and just really
went to work on the car, testing in the other leagues to get things
working out.
"We can definitely do it again. We've been working hard in the clutch
department and also on the racecar itself, the chassis. It's a totally
different car that what we started with at the beginning of the year.
Everything is just starting to click and mesh together. We're not
getting kicked in the face anymore - it's coming around."
When asked about the zMAX Dragway facility, he was effusive with his
praise. "This track is phenomenal. You come to places like this, with
the car running so well, and - hang on. It's unimaginable how a nice
facility really has an affect on our performance. Everything lines up,
and we can make a run like we did tonight," Personett said.
Danny Rowe was the closest to Personett with a 5.941. Mike Knowles,
Rick Stivers, Roger Burgess and Jay Payne were also in the five-second
zone; followed by Melanie Troxel and Burton Auxier to round out the
provisional top eight.
One round of qualifying remains, scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday,
followed by the first round of eliminations at 4:30 p.m., with the
balance of eliminations scheduled to be run on Sunday.
QUALIFYING ORDER AFTER TWO ROUNDS
1 Brad Personett 5.872 246.89
2 Danny Rowe 5.941 241.15
3 Mike Knowles 5.945 241.93
4 Rick Stivers 5.957 240.59
5 Roger Burgess 5.959 241.89
6 Jay Payne 5.964 233.88
7 Melanie Troxel 6.006 239.19
8 Burton Auxier 6.012 234.04
9 Rickie Smith 6.016 237.92
10 Mike Castellana 6.022 233.96
11 Joe Baker 6.058 238.17
12 Dennis Radford 6.071 231.04
13 Tommy D'Aprile 6.119 226.54
14 Kirk Wilmes 6.17 230.21
15 Rick DiStefano 6.173 229.04
16 Scott Ray 6.233 221.6
--- Not Qualified ---
17 Tim Tindle 6.255 230.17
18 Raymond Commisso 9.147 99.5
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
EVENT PREVIEW - BATTLES INTENSIFY AS PRO MODS ROLL INTO CHARLOTTE
The battles for championship points in the Get Screened America Pro Mod
Challenge presented by ProCare Rx intensifies this weekend 
as
the series makes its eighth of ten stops, this time at the NHRA
Carolinas Nationals in metro Charlotte, N.C. The fight for first is as
fierce as the battle to make the top eight heading into the final race
at Las Vegas where the Matco Tools Pro Mod Clash will be contested.
Twenty drivers will face off this weekend at zMAX Dragway, a track
that's been called the "Bellagio of Drag Strips." It is the first time
the Pro Mod Challenge has visited the venue.
Front-runner Burton Auxier saw his once commanding lead drastically cut
by Roger Burgess and Danny Rowe; both are within two round-wins of
first. Mike Castellana, who had been in second place dropped to fourth,
but is still within just a few rounds of the lead.
Joe Baker, Raymond Commisso, Jay Payne and Tim Tindle round out the top
eight and will all be competing this weekend. Payne and Tindle at No.’s
7 and 8 are a little more than three round-wins ahead of the next
closest drivers, but Brad Personett, Mike Knowles and Rick Stivers are
all hot on their tails, hoping for a part of the $35,000 purse in the
Matco Tools Clash.
Also joining the battle as spoilers and blockers are Melanie Troxel,
Dennis Radford, "Tombstone" Tommy Gray, Scott Ray, Rickie Smith, Rick
DiStefano, Tommy D'Aprile and rookie Kirk Wilmes. North Carolinan Chip
King rounds out the field, promising one of the best shows in Pro Mod
drag racing.
Drivers will also be competing for the B&J Transmissions Bonus, a
$500 bounty paid to the winner of a first-round pairing selected at
random before the race. Qualifying rounds are scheduled Friday at 2:00
and 5:30 p.m. and Saturday at 1:00 p.m. Eliminations begin at 4:30 p.m.
and conclude Sunday. Regular updates are available on NHRA.com and
DragRaceCentral.com, and daily recaps are available on
CompetitionPlus.com and ProModChallenge.com. Brief round-by-round
recaps are also broadcast via Twitter by following GSAProMods.
ENTRY LIST
1. Burton Auxier
2. Joe Baker
3. Roger Burgess
4. Mike Castellana
5. Raymond Commisso
6. Tommy D'Aprile
7. Rick DiStefano
8. Tommy Gray
9. Chip King
10. Mike Knowles
11. Jay Payne
12. Brad Personett
13. Dennis Radford
14. Scott Ray
15. Danny Rowe
16. Rickey Smith
17. Rick Stivers
18. Tim Tindle
19. Melanie Troxel
20. Kirk Wilmes
CURRENT POINTS STANDINGS (After 7 of 10 events)
1 Burton Auxier 506
2 Roger Burgess 470
3 Danny Rowe 466
4 Mike Castellana 443
5 Joe Baker 389
6 Raymond Commisso 375
7 Jay Payne 360
8 Tim Tindle 354
9 Brad Personett 289
10 Mike Knowles 285
11 Rick Stivers 210
12 Taylor Lastor 200
13 Rickie Smith 178
14 Harold Laird 155
15 Kenny Lang 140
16 Kirk Wilmes 94
17 Tommy Gray 85
18 Ike Maier 72
19 Chip King 67
20 Melanie Troxel 65
21 Andy McCoy 63
22 Dennis Radford 51
23 Billy Gibson 42
24 Jason Stock 32
25 Vinny Budano 31
26 David Hance 31
27 Frank Patille 31
28 John Russo 31
29 Scott Christoffel 10
30 Tommy D'Aprile 10
31 Rick DiStefano 10
32 Adam Flamholc 10
33 George Landis 10
34 Scott Ray 10
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
 |
Click to visit our sponsor's website
