First-round pairings for professional eliminations Sunday for the 23rd annual FRAM-Autolite NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway, the 15th of 23 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.  Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday. DNQs listed below pairings.

On Friday, the Top Fuel drivers only made one qualifying pass at the Fram-Autolite NHRA Nationals.

That’s because the second round of Top Fuel qualifying was cancelled by NHRA officials because they didn’t believe the round could be completed before the 10 pm strict curfew at Infineon Raceway.

Well, Larry Dixon’s lone run Friday of 3.839 seconds at 317.79 mph in his Al-Anabi dragster was the best in the class for the weekend and won him his fifth pole of the season.

“It was nice to get this pole,” said Dixon, whose 317.79 mph on that pass also was a track record. “I think all of the Top Fuel drivers certainly would have liked to have had a shot at the Friday night session to improve their numbers. But, having two more sessions during the day and getting more of a realistic feel of what race day will be like is better for your Sunday racing.”

Not only did Jack Beckman capture the pole position at the Fram Autolite NHRA Nationals, he did it in track record-setting fashion at 4.063 seconds at 311.56 mph at Infineon Raceway.

Beckman’s blistering record run came on Friday night right before the track’s strict 10 pm curfew.

“It’s always cool the next year to see your name with the track records,” Beckman said. “I didn’t even know we had set those track records until about an hour later when I came up in the press room, and that was just icing on the cake. I had no idea those were the quickest and fastest times, but I have no complaints.”

This was Beckman’s first pole of the season and third of his career. Beckman, who pilots the Valvoline/Mail Terminal Services Dodge for Don Schumacher Racing, meets No. 16 qualifier Jeff Diehl in the first round of eliminations Sunday.

Allen Johnson bit into the apple -- ate the whole thing, actually.
 
Then he puckered up his face and shook his head. "Whew -- that was sour!" he declared.
 
What a shame that a sour moment followed such a sweet one Saturday for the Greeneville, Tenn., NHRA racer who held onto his No. 1 qualifying position for Sundays' elimination in the FRAM-Autolite Nationals at Infineon Raceway.
 
And how distasteful for Johnson that in the opening round he'll have to put his Team Mopar / J & J Racing Dodge Avenger against No. 16 qualifier Vinnie Deceglie, his engine customer.
 
He'll slough off both annoyances, surely, armed with security from his track-record elapsed time (6.545 seconds) and speed (210.77 mph) and a decent idea of what the track can hold.
 
"I think the conditions this afternoon are going to be what they start off with tomorrow," Johnson said. "I think it's going to get even a little warmer tomorrow."

It was a night of first’s Saturday at the Grand Bend Motorplex as Bruce Litton picked up his first career Top Fuel victory at the “The Bend” and a first time winner was crowned in Pro Fuel as well during the MOPAR Nitro Jam Nationals presented by E3 Spark Plugs Saturday in Grand Bend, Ontario.

Litton snapped Bobby Lagana’s three-race win streak during Saturday’s “Night of Fire,” edging the New York native by mere inches at the line to pick up his fifth win of the season. Rich McPhillips also picked up his first career Nitro Jam win over Jeff Hamelink in Pro Fuel and Steve Nichols claimed his second win of the season over Peter Gallen in Prostalgia Nitro Funny Car.

And all three drivers had to endure a day of unique conditions of interesting weather to walk away winners.

Funny Car driver Jack Beckman set both ends of the Infineon Raceway track record en route to his first No. 1 qualifier of 2010 at the 23rd annual FRAM-Autolite NHRA Nationals Saturday.

The other No. 1 qualifiers at the 15th of 23 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Series season were Larry Dixon (Top Fuel), Allen Johnson (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana (Pro Stock Motorcycle).

Beckman paced the Funny Car field with a 4.063-second pass at 311.56 mph on Friday night in his Valvoline/MTS Dodge Charger and the time held up on a warmer afternoon on Saturday. The No. 1 was the third of Beckman’s career.

Warren Johnson spoke out last Sunday at Seattle about the NHRA's track-prep performance in an effort to defend not only the honor of the Pro Stock class but to force the sanctioning body to make drag racing safer.
 
In the process, he offended Funny Car drivers Jim Head and Bob Tasca, who returned fire and challenged Johnson to drive a flopper -- blindfolded, even. While Johnson conceded that he “probably got a little overzealous last weekend,” he held fast to his convictions that prompted the war of words.
 
As for whether he'll take up Head and Tasca on their dare, Johnson said, “You never know. I've driven just about everything, but at this point I've got other fish to fry.
 
“This is just big-time auto wrestling,” Johnson said Friday while preparing to qualify his K&N Pontiac GXP at the National Hot Rod Association's FRAM-Autolite Nationals at Infineon Raceway.
 
He referred to Tasca and Head as “laptop cowboys” who “didn't really listen to what I said -- they didn't hear what I said. I said it didn't take much talent to drive those cars down the racetrack, because everything is pretty much taken care of. I didn't say they didn't have any talent.”
 
He said of Tasca's reaction, “That's the case of a spoiled brat.”

When NHRA officials were forced to cancel the second round of Top Fuel qualifying Friday night at the Fram-Autolite Nationals, it didn’t sit well with some competitors.

The NHRA called off the second round of qualifying because the sanctioning body didn’t believe it could complete the session by the 10 pm. curfew at Infineon Raceway.

“I think they (NHRA) had to cancel a Top Fuel qualifying session back in 2007 or 2008 at Sonoma,” said Jim Oberhofer, crew chief for Doug Kalitta. “You think they would have learned from that. They have a strict 10 pm. curfew and our (Kalitta Motorsports) Funny Car didn’t make its first lap until 5:31 pm., (which) is what is says on our time slip.

“I do not know how the heck they got so behind. I think it is a bull**** deal. I think whoever the hell makes the schedule here for this race, needs to either be fired or learn how to make a schedule. We constantly have this problem here every time we run here. The problem with this place is that the air changes so much that you end up having problems running your car. The chances of blowing stuff up are much greater here because of these huge air swings.”

Funny Car driver Tim Wilkerson predicted that with the program dragging on Friday night with clean-up delays -- meaning cooler and better conditions -- that Infineon Raceway fans just might see the fastest run of the year so far in qualifying for the FRAM-Autolite Nationals.
 
His guess was amazingly close when it came to elapsed time, although he was a bit off on the speed. And he probably was less disappointed in missing the forecast as he was that the track E.T. and speed records belong not to him but to Jack Beckman.
 
Beckman made a bid for his first No. 1 qualifying position since last fall's Richmond race, posting a 4.063-second pass at 311.56 mph in his Don Schumacher-owned Valvoline/Mail Terminals Dodge Charger.
 
Racing a curfew that cost the Top Fuel class a second qualifying session as much as his competitors, he erased teammate Matt Hagan's records (4.068/307.51) from last July.
 
Although he carries the nickname "Fast Jack," Beckman would own just the third top-qualifying spot of his career.

Allen Johnson took advantage of mineshaft conditions Friday night and under the Infineon Raceway lights, he did more than make a bid for Pro Stock's No. 1 qualifying position for the FRAM-Autolite Nationals.
 
He rewrote both the track elapsed-time and speed records with a 6.545-second blast at 210.77 mph in his Team Mopar / J&J Dodge Avenger. They wiped out Jason Line's year-old marks.
 
The Greeneville, Tenn., native, on target in his native Southeast, was No. 1 qualifier at Atlanta and Bristol. So this would be the third top spot of the year and 10th of his career.
 
"Conditions at 300 feet -- best conditions we've had in awhile. Humidity rolls in and it slows us down on miles per hour.  But track's awesome. Air's awesome," Johnson said. "We had a decent run."
 
He corrected himself.
 
"It's pretty much an above-average run," he said.