Three shots. Three opportunities. Three chances.

After leaving Sonoma after the NHRA Sonoma Nationals, the remaining races leading up to the NHRA Countdown to the Championship are quite limited.

Three shots. Three opportunities. Three chances.

After leaving Sonoma after the NHRA Sonoma Nationals, the remaining races leading up to the NHRA Countdown to the Championship are quite limited.

In the Funny Car class, where just 86 points stood between seventh-place Matt Hagan and 12th place Robert Tasca III heading into Sonoma, every pass is of critical importance. In fact, prior to this weekend’s event the difference between qualifying for the Countdown and ending up on the outside, looking in, was less than a round win.

Tim Wilkerson sat in 10th place with 711 points. Jack Beckman was 11th with 708. Every single point counts, and the teams threw caution to the wind and swung for the fences during the two Friday qualifying sessions.

Though no track records were set, 10 of the 17 drivers posted speeds over 300 miles per hour Friday. Courtney Force claimed the provisional pole with a blistering 4.045-second pass at 319.22 mph. How quick was Friday’s sessions? Jeff Diehl, who clocked a respectable 4.254-second elapsed time, did not make the provisional field.

Heading into Sonoma, only Robert Hight had secured a spot in the countdown. Of those battling for the last spots, Cruz Pedregon and Jack Beckman served notice that they are going to be tough to keep out of the top 10.

Pedregon did not make a pass in the afternoon session. In his lone shot at the track Friday, Pedregon jumped to the second position with a 4.051 at 311.92. Pedregon was eighth in the Mello Yello points standings heading into Sonoma with 781 points…just 73 in front of Beckman.

Beckman helped himself, provisionally qualifying fourth when he piloted his 2013 Dodge Charger to a 4.075/314.83 pass.

Matt Hagan, who started the weekend seventh, didn’t hurt his chances with a 4.075/307.30 pass that put him fifth on the sheet.

Tim Wilkerson, on the other hand, has to get things turned around. He was on the Countdown bump when the weekend began and failed to secure one of the 12 qualifying positions handed out Friday. His best pass, a 4.444 at 209.07, left him in 15th position.

Force knew she was going to have to make a strong pass in the second qualifying round if she hoped to move to the top of the qualifying sheet.

“You could tell it was hot out here when these Funny Cars slow down by that much (in the first round),” she said. “Then it cooled off, the sun went down and I saw people running 4.05s and 4.07s and it was getting real consistent. It was cooling down and I thought we could run in the low .00s.”

In the second qualifying round, Force was paired up with her father, John Force.

“I knew it was a good pass when I could barely see Dad out my window,” she said. “I turned on the win light and he flew by me. I knew it had to be a good one.”

Good enough to get her three bonus points for the quickest pass of the session and, as a bonus, claim some bragging rights.

“It’s always a good day for me if I’m paired up with my dad and I can turn on a win light,” she said. “I don’t care if it’s Q1 or the final round, it just makes my day right there.”

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