The first pro qualifying session ended at the season-opening NHRA Winternationals just a few hours ago, but it’s not too early to offer you our first impressions of what the year may have in store for us.  If what we saw this afternoon is any indication of what’s to come in the months ahead, it’s safe to say that it’s gonna be good!

The National Hot Rod Association has pulled out all the stops in trying to make the 50^th Anniversary Winternationals celebration unmatched the organization’s history.  The collection of vintage race cars that’s in the pits is exceptional, and current Funny Car driver Jack Beckman wasn’t the only one who said to us, “Man, have you seen some of the cars they’ve got down there?  Oh, what I would have given to see some of those racing for real back in the day.”  There are Cacklefests and legendary driver introductions coming in the days ahead, and we can’t wait.  Could it be that the NHRA management group, which admittedly has little actual history in the sport, and has sometimes been opposed to Cacklefests in the mistaken belief that they detract from today’s stars, is going to actually embrace and support the sport’s history?  That would be an enormous step towards bringing together today’s fans and some of the older folks who have stopped coming to the races because they feel the sport is no longer theirs.

They might not admit it, but every Top Fuel driver wishes he didn't have to contend with Tony Schumacher.
 
In a couple of years or so, they'll have their wish.
 
"We're all going to quit one of these days," Schumacher said. But he raised eyebrows earlier this week when he hinted at a teleconference that he is getting to the point where he could walk away with seven NHRA Top Fuel championships and be content, eager to try new projects.
 
And Thursday afternoon at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, before posting a provisional No. 7 qualfying spot in the first day of the season-opening Kragen O'Reilly Winternationals, he restated his position.
 
"I'm 40, won seven championships, have other things I need to accomplish in life," Schumacher said. "We have an amazing company back in Chicago. Don't know that I don't want to go do some TV stuff. I like public speaking. I get to do it here, but at some point I want to watch my kids grow up. It'll be a couple of years, but at some point you've got to start looking at it. I've bought it up for the last four years."

Attitude’s CompetitionPlus.com, through the assistance of a key group of Pro Modified historians and enthusiasts, has compiled a list of the Top 20 all-time drivers based on their contribution to the class, historic achievements, statistics and fan appeal.

Starting on Friday, January 8, 2010, the electronic magazine began revealing those names on the list, and will announce two drivers per week, until the No. 1 driver is unveiled on Saturday, Mar. 20, during the ADRL Dragpalooza in Houston, Texas.

Attitude’s CompetitionPlus.com narrowed the list from hundreds of drivers down to 20. Today, we reveal No. 11 on the list.

<p>This season Top Fuel driver Cory McClenathan intends to be as loud in the championship battle as his bright orange firesuit is <img style="float: right;" src="images/stories/february_2010/nhra_pomona/thursday/notebook/mcclenathan.jpg" alt="mcclenathan" width="450" height="305" />to the eye. <br /><br />Last year, McClenathan was the odd-man out in a three way battle with teammate Tony Schumacher and Larry Dixon. In the final race of the 2009 season, new teammate Antron Brown&rsquo;s Pomona victory pushed him down to fourth in points.<br /><br />This year Cory Mac has opened the 2010 season on top, the NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, Ca. He is the provisional low qualifier with a 3.809 elapsed time at 320.05 miles per hour and the owner of three qualifying points.<br /><br />McClenathan is ready to put his actions where his mouth is, and the first point of order waslosing 15 pounds from his person and another 15 from his new-look Fram Top Fuel dragster.<br /><br />&ldquo;We plan on making some noise early,&rdquo; said McClenathan when asked if he planned to lurk in the shadows this season. &ldquo;We are going to make our presence known. I&rsquo;ve always liked to listen to the hype for others heading into the new season. I&rsquo;m tired of lurking. There is no big cat getting ready to pounce. We are going to come out and go toe-to-toe with these guys.&rdquo;<br /><br />McClenathan, said his tuners, Todd Okuhara and Phil Shuler, in their second year removed from Funny Car tuning, are thinking the same thing.<br />

Defending Pro Stock champion Mike Edwards admits he and his team have  a new slogan. They have embraced the slogan of his newest sponsor, Interstate Batteries,  – outrageously dependable.

Edwards ran a 6.580 elapsed time at 210.47 to claim the provisional No. 1 qualifying position in first day qualifying at the NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, Ca. If his opening shot holds, it will mark the 23rd of his career and tenth straight dating back to last season.

Robert Hight has become accustomed to opening the NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, Ca, with a strong performance. What happens after that can turn into a crapshoot.
The defending champion opened the 2010 season in the same fashion as the last two by driving to the provisional No. 1 spot, qualifying with a 4.059 elapsed time at 312.86 miles per hour.

“My No. 1 qualifier here last season was my highlight up to Indy,” Hight said. “We were terrible. We started out good. It’s nice to get off on the right foot.”

Defending champions Robert Hight and Mike Edwards picked up right where they left off with pace-setting runs on the first day of qualifying at the season-opening Kragen O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Winternationals presented by Valvoline on Thursday.

Joining Hight (Funny Car) and Edwards (Pro Stock) was Top Fuel driver Cory McClenathan, who rounded out the provisional qualifying leaders through the first of four rounds of qualifying at the historic 50th running of the Winternationals.

The Kragen O’Reilly NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona is the first of 17 races in NHRA’s regular season, the Countdown to 10.

Whit Bazemore hasn't been behind the wheel of a Funny Car since 2007. It is difficult to believe a 20-time winner, including two U.S. Nationals titles still finds himself on the sidelines.

Fortunately, Whit takes the situation in stride. The time away hasn't dampened his love of the sport or his desire to see the sport grow even further beyond its humble beginnings. The helmet is ready, the heart is ready and so too is the frank manner which made Whit Bazemore a real fan favorite.
 
Attitude's CompetitionPlus.com took the time to listen to Bazemore's take on the current status of the sport of drag racing and the NHRA

Every season, since 2000, Attitude’s CompetitionPlus.com has attempted to predict the champions in each professional division. While we’re not going to quit our day jobs to become psychics or anything, we do try to use logic in predicted those who we feel will be the champions for the upcoming season.

Last year we fell short of our mark in every category but a good break here and a good break there, and we could be bragging right now.