A woman, struck by debris earlier today at Firebird Int'l Raceway during the NHRA Arizona Nationals, was pronounced dead at Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix. A wheel and tire became detached from Antron Brown's Top Fuel dragster during a first round eliminations match up against Troy Buff.

A long day came to a welcomed end with racing incomplete at Firebird Int'l Raceway.

 Rain, more rain, a horrible crash, rain and another crash finally brought the day to an end without a single champion crowned in the NHRA Arizona Nationals.

A female attending the NHRA Arizona Nationals received serious injuries today after being struck by debris at Firebird Int'l Raceway. She was transported by helicopter to Good Samaritan Medical Center for treatment. The debris came from Antron Brown's dragster following an incident during the first round of eliminations. Brown was not injured but went to Chandler Regional Hospital at the insistence of his team.

NHRA offcials are investigating the incident.

Top Fuel driver Antron Brown was involved in an accident during the first round of the NHRA Arizona Nationals in Phoenix.

About roughly 400 feet into race against Troy Buff, Brown's dragster lost a left rear wheel. The dragster made an abrupt left turn, crossed the center-line and made contact with the left retaining wall,  where it rode along the top, before coming to a stop.

Brown exited the car under his own power and walked over to the ambulance.

Tony Schumacher, driver of the ARMY Top Fuel dragster, shrugged saying, “I got nothing.”

Nothing but the No. 1 starting position for the NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird Int'l Raceway. Schumacher's 3.818 second, 317.05 mile per hour pass lifted him past Doug Kalitta, who couldn't improve on his 3.825 second pass on Friday.

“We missed by a mile,” Schumacher said when asked about his run. “And, everybody did. I was talking to Mike (Green). We were just dead soft. And, you get out of the car and say, 'man, number one qualifier with a run so far off' it just goes to show you we're all missing it.

John Force didn’t do much celebrating in the days following his NHRA Winternationals victory last weekend in Pomona, Ca. Instead, the 14-time champion took the few remaining crew members still in Yorba Linda, Ca, out to a celebratory dinner. Many of their co-workers had already headed to Firebird Raceway for this weekend’s NHRA Arizona Nationals outside of Phoenix.

As the group dined, offering up a toast or two, a new crewman showed his confidence saying, “We can win Phoenix.”

Vinnie Deceglie admitted before he had the opportunity to react to his errant Pro Stocker, he was already on his roof. In almost a carbon copy of Gordie Rivera’s Friday afternoon crash, Deceglie lost control at about the 1,000 foot mark, the car flipped over on its roof and slid to a halt in the shutdown area in flames.

“It just happened so fast,” said Deceglie, who extracted himself from the car in the midst of the engine fire. “I didn’t even know what was going on.”

For Deceglie, this particular run was no different from the average run until he reached the 1,000 foot mark.

John Force continued to show that he’s back to his old form Saturday at the NHRA Arizona Nationals as the 14-time NHRA Funny Car world champion raced to his first No. 1 qualifying position in more than two years.

Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel) and Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) also earned No. 1 positions in their respective categories at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event. Due to rainy weather conditions throughout the day, NHRA officials were forced to cancel one of the two scheduled qualifying sessions.

The 60-year-old Force sped to a 4.063-second run at 308.78 mph in his Castrol GTX High-Mileage Ford Mustang to claim his 132nd No. 1 of his career, seventh at Firebird International Raceway and his first since Sept. 2006. He will meet arch-rival Cruz Pedregon, a two-time series champ, in the opening round of Sunday’s 11 a.m. (MT) eliminations.

Sunday's first-round pairings for professional eliminations at the 26th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird International Raceway, the second of 23 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.  Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday. DNQs listed below pairings.