GOSS GOES TO TOP OF SWEET 16 X275 QUALIFYING

By Ian Tocher    Sat, 2019-03-23 10:39

 

After completely rebuilding his ProCharger-equipped 2009 Dodge Challenger throughout the off season, Rob Goss proved the effort worthwhile with an outstanding 4.237-seconds pass at 169.40 mph in the eighth and final round of X275 qualifying Friday night for Sweet 16 at South Georgia Motorsports Park.

The record-shattering run ousted a prior record 4.268 from the top spot that Rich Bruder posted in round three on Thursday, while Manny Buginga, X275 winner last month in Lights Out 10 at SGMP, will start third with a 4.270 effort. In fact, each of the top six starters--including Ryan Milliken and his diesel-powered '66 Chevy II in sixth--ran quicker than Bruder's 4.29 record that stood from last spring's Outlaw Street Car Reunion event at Bowling Green, KY.

"Yeah, it's incredible how fast we're all going here," Goss recognized. "There are so many guys here running personal bests this weekend, even a lot who didn't qualify. Those are the guys I feel for. It's got to be hard to make your best pass and still not get in, but I hope they're still proud of that accomplishment."

Goss' car is carrying a brand-new, 478 c.i. billet-block Gen III Hemi outfitted with a ProCharger blower and 16 individual FuelTech coils connected to two spark plugs per cylinder, as the Drag Pak Challenger Gen III heads come from the factory.

"This is our first race with the new combination and we really didn't know what to expect," the Wyoming-based trucking company owner said. "We were able to test some at Holly Springs in Mississippi, where it showed good promise, but when we got here it just didn't react the same. Our numbers were a little off in the 60-foot and 330 numbers and we just kept trying to tune around it and tweak here and there. 

"And we're honestly still not quite there," Goss insisted while watching X275 officials going over his engine, making sure everything was legal and legit at his pit shortly after the record run (it was). "We could actually improve that pass, I think, just based on what we're seeing now. But we ran a .31 in the middle of the day and that's what we'll probably take into eliminations and see what happens. We'll just work with what we have, same as everybody."

In round one of racing Goss will take on Kenny Hubbard, who ran 4.340 at 165.88 mph to secure the 16th and final Sweet 16 starting position.    

 

 
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