The NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, Southeast division event at
Atlanta Dragway is in the books with Top Alcohol Dragster pilot Duane
Shields, Boulder City, Nev., and Top Alcohol Funny Car driver Steve
Harker out of Gainesville, Ga., taking home the goods.  This weekend’s
NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event wraps up the fifth of six in
Southeast division competition.

Shields picked up his second divisional of the season when he knocked
out Robin Samsel of Marion, Ind., for the win.  His pass of 5.372
seconds at 263.72 took the win light and a hold of the lead in the
Southeast points standings.

Harker, who races out of the South Central division, defeated the No.1
qualifier Tony Bartone of Long Island City, N.Y., in the final.  His
lap of 5.635 seconds at 256.99 mph was more than enough to grab the
hardware and earn his second divisional win of the season.

After a soggy start and terrible conditions to begin the weekend, Sunday’s finals at the Amalie Oil North
American Nationals presented by New England Dodge Dealers turned into
one of the most beautiful days of racing seen all year.

And the action on the track was just as impressive.

Unofficial point standings (top 10) for IHRA professional categories
following the Amalie Oil North American Nationals presented by New
England Dodge Dealers at New England Dragway, the eighth of 10 events
in the 2009 Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series -

In the final that no one saw coming Bob Bertsch and Mike Bruno – with a combined one career final round
between them – faced off in the final of the Elite Motorsports Pro
Stock class Sunday at New England Dragway in Epping, N.H.

And this time, Bertsch got the win he has been waiting for.

Bertsch came into this weekend’s race with one career victory, but that
win was slightly tarnished as he was the only car in the field that
afternoon after unforeseen circumstances placed him as the lone Pro
Stock in the field.

In only his first year on the IHRA tour, Del Cox Jr. has quickly become a man of two faces.

With
every pass Cox looks more and more like the man he replaced last
season, but at the same time he continues to separate himself from the
pack.

On Sunday, he showed the world both sides.

Reigning four-time Pro Stock champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. arrives at zMax Dragway as the top drag

Roger Richards

racer
in the world for his class. It's a good position to be in as the six-race Countdown
to 1 playoff begins with this weekend's second annual Carolina
Nationals at Bruton Smith's state-of-the-art facility.

Fresh off a victory at the prestigious U.S. Nationals -- drag racing's
equivalent of the Daytona 500 -- Coughlin's seven victories is tops
across the four professional classes. He's held the point lead for 14
races, longer than anyone else in the sport, and his 47-11 race day
record is unparalleled. Out of 145 pros on tour this year, Coughlin is
the only one without a first-round loss. All this despite the fact his
average starting spot each weekend is just sixth place.

Surprise, surprise – Ed Hoover and Kenny Lang met in the final of an IHRA Pro Modified national event.

In what has become quite the rivalry, the top two drivers in IHRA Pro
Mod points – and perhaps two of the best quarter-mile drag racers in
the world – went head-to-head for the sixth time this season and the
fourth time in an IHRA national event final round.

And this time it was Lang’s turn to lead.

What would inspire a man to spend countless hours logging in numerous elapsed times and speeds and the accompanying
car combinations? Why would someone want to log the data of what a
Z/Stock Automatic Pinto could run in the quarter-mile?

Joe Jackson jokes and says it was boredom that led to his creation of
Nitro Joe Stats. Acquaintances know he merely uses that off the cuff
answer as a front.

The truth is Jackson is anything but bored. The Loudonville, Ohio-based
lifetime drag racing fan is dedicated to preserving the history of
class racing.

Due to persistent rains in Southeastern Pennsylvania, The Geezers at The Grove Reunion has been pushed back a week.
 
The annual event will be run next weekend, Saturday and Sunday, Sept.
19-20.. Gates will open at 8 a.m. each day with racing beginning at 9.

In the final rounds of qualifying at Atlanta Dragway, Top Alcohol
Dragster pilot Duane Shields, Boulder City, Nev., and Top Alcohol Funny
Car driver Tony Bartone, Long Island City, N.Y., claimed the No. 1
qualifying positions in their classes. This weekend’s NHRA Lucas Oil
Drag Racing Series event, which will wrap up tomorrow with
eliminations, is the fifth of six in Southeast division competition

After two qualifying passes, Shields was able to capture the pole with
a 5.377 second, 266.74 mph pass.  He currently has one division win
this season and is making a late push to grab the Southeast title,
sitting just eleven points behind the No.4 qualifier, Artie Allen of
Jacksonville, Fla.

Bartone, who races out of the Pacific division, grabbed the No.1 spot
from a very competitive field.  He wheeled his ’09 Mustang down the
track at 5.660 second, 253.52 mph in search of his first division win
of the year.