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FORCE HOOD SCORES ANOTHER FINAL ROUND APPEARANCE

Ashley Force Hood raced to her sixth final in ten races this season with a solid effort at the 30th annual Mopar Mile High NHRA force_hood.JPGNationals.
She held onto the points lead as the NHRA Western Swing leaves Denver
headed to Seattle next weekend for the 22nd annual Northwest NHRA
Nationals. The youngest driver in the John Force Racing stable was
defeated in the final by veteran Ron Capps for the second time this
season. Her 4.231 second run was no match for No. 1 qualifier Capps’
4.187 second pass. In Norwalk, Ohio, two weeks ago Force Hood bested
Capps in a wild second round match-up that saw her take the points lead
with the round win.

She is the only female to ever lead the Funny Car points and is the
only Funny Car driver who has led the points both this season and last
season. Even with her success behind the wheel Bandimere Speedway got
the best of Force Hood the first two times she raced here. She turned
over a new leaf at Thunder Mountain today picking up her first career
round win and racing all the way to the final round.

HARLEYS STRONG IN THE THIN AIR

Eddie Krawiec and Andrew Hines, Screamin' Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson teammates met in the finals psm_final.JPGSunday at the 30th annual Mopar Mile-High Nationals.

Krawiec, who has now been in six finals in a row, collected his third
win of the season when Hines collected a redlight off the starting
line.

Krawiec avenged a loss he suffered to Hines in the last event at Norwalk.

CAPPS REGAINS THE MOMENTUM

Ron Capps capped a dominating weekend Sunday by upending Ashley Force Hood in the Top Fuel Funny Car fc_winner.JPGfinals of the NHRA Mopar Mile High Nationals at Bandimere Speedway located outside of Denver, Co.

Capps clocked a 4.18-second time in his Don Schumacher Racing NAPA
Dodge machine, while Force Hood came in at 4.231 seconds in her Castrol
GTX/Auto Club Ford Mustang.

"We were testing both lanes today and during one of the rain delays, he
(Ace McCulloch his crew chief) came back and peeked his head in with me
and the crew guys and asked me what lane I wanted (in the final),"
Capps said. He has never asked me that ever in my career. I told him we
ran a track record (4.12) in the left and then I get strapped in the
car and heard on the radio that we're taking the right lane. At least
he asked. The car rattled the tires pretty good on that last run and I
got ready to pedal it and then it cleared up and took off. I could hear
her car over there somewhere. I just hoping we could get down there and
we did."

JOHNSON REGAINS KING STATUS

For the last three years, Allen Johnson has been stellar in the Pro ps_winner.JPGStock Class at the NHRA Mopar Mile-High Nationals.

Sunday was no different.

Johnson won his second title in three years at Bandimere, beating Jason Line in the finals with a holeshot.

Johnson ran a 7.004-second time, compared to Line's 7.001-second
effort. Johnson won by virtue of his 0.29 reaction time, while Line had
a 0.50 reaction time.

FLETCH, LAMB DOMINATE CLASS

Dan Fletcher and Justin Lamb took the class to school during the NHRA Mopar Mile High Nationals at Bandimere stk_final.JPGSpeedway in Morrison, Co.

Fletcher, from Churchville, N.Y., took home his 61st NHRA Wally when he
defeated Doug Young in the Stock final round. ‘Fletch’ nailed the tree
at the start, posting a stellar 0.008 reaction time to Young‘s 0.080
reaction. Both cars broke out and Fletchers -0.033-second infraction
was the lesser of the two evils.

Fletcher, a professional sportsman drag racer, sponsored this season by
K & N Filters, revels in the opportunity to put his AA/SA 1969
Chevrolet Camaro in the winner’s circle for his new backers.

DENVER LOCALS ARE SUPER

Home field advantage is often crucial in sports. sc_final.JPGThe
advantage Super Comp racer Ray Groves and Super Gas competitor Dennis
Hay held this weekend at the NHRA Mopar Mile-High Nationals at
Bandimere Speedway in Morrison, Co., was good enough to propel both
drivers to their first NHRA National Event wins.

Groves, from Evans, Colo., drove his old school 1993 Jerry Fritz
hard-tail chassis dragster past former Super Comp world champion Gary
Stinnett in the final round. Stinnett held a slight starting-line
advantage but Groves’ compensated by running closer to the Super Comp
index. His 9.507-second elapsed time was good enough to hold off the
hard charging Stinnett.

DENVER FINAL RESULTS

Ron Capps raced to his fifth Funny Car victory of the season Sunday at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals at Bandimere Speedway.
fc_winner.JPG
Capps beat Ashley Force Hood in the final round for his 30th career
victory and first at the Denver dragstrip. With the win, Capps moved
into a first place tie with Force Hood in the Funny Car point standings.

 “I could hear her car over there,” said Capps, who powered his NAPA
Dodge Charger to a 4.187 second run at 297.22 mph to hold off Force
Hood’s Castrol GTX Ford Mustang, which finished in 4.231 at 296.96.
“Fortunately, out car got through the early part of the track and
pulled away. I talked to ‘Ace’ (crew chief Ed McCulloch) during the
off-week and he said, ‘We’re going to get the points lead back.’ I’ve
never heard him talk like that before.”

POINT STANDINGS FOLLOWING DENVER

Point standings (top 10) for NHRA professional categories following the
30th annual Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals at Bandimere Speedway, the
13th of 24 events in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.

ROUND-BY-ROUND PRO RESULTS FROM DENVER

Final round-by-round results from the 30th annual Mopar Mile-High NHRA
Nationals at Bandimere Speedway, the 13th of 24 events in the NHRA Full
Throttle Drag Racing Series:

FINAL ROUND PHOTOS FROM DENVER

Sunday's final results from the 30th annual Mopar Mile-High NHRA
Nationals at Bandimere Speedway. The race is the 13th of 24 in the NHRA
Full Throttle Drag Racing Series:

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