2018 PDRA FALLNATIONALS - DARLINGTON NOTEBOOK
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FINAL NOTEBOOK - FIRST TIME WINNER HIGHLIGHTS WINNER'S CIRCLE
NO TIME LIKE THE FIRST TIME - The odds were stacked against Danny Sauro and his Tischer Acura Nissan-backed ’69 Camaro going into the Pro Nitrous final round against defending world champion Tommy Franklin. Sauro was strong in prior rounds, but Franklin had fired off low elapsed time of every round, including a near-record 3.659 in the semifinals. Sauro and tuner Justin Elkes stepped up in a big way, though, loading up a 3.652 at 204.17 to reset the ET national record and defeat Franklin’s 4.001 at 192.80 in the all-Musi final.
“It’s just been a great weekend,” Sauro said. “This is my second year in Pro Nitrous, and Justin Elkes and Modern Racing are the reason why I’m here. Justin said we were gonna go after it in the final, and I believed him. Whatever he says, we usually accomplish. As soon as I let go of the button, I said, ‘there’s something here, there’s something here.’ When it picked up the front wheels mid-track, I knew it would be fast. The faster the car goes, the smoother it is – the car just felt wonderful.”
Sauro became the fifth different Pro Nitrous winner in six contested races this season, and the second first-time winner on the year. He first moved past Edward Wilson and John Camp before running 3.682 next to a red-lighting Jay Cox in the semifinals. Franklin in his “Jungle Rat” ’69 Camaro advanced to his second consecutive final round after defeating John Hall, No. 1 qualifier Lizzy Musi and Todd Fontana.
“The final was decided by four thousandths,” D’Aprile pointed out. “Melanie was out on me a little, we caught her and luckily stayed ahead, but man, four thousandths is close. We have a lot of respect for Melanie and her team. Any of these cars at any given time can run a good number, so you just have to be ready. We didn’t expect them to run a .70, but they did phenomenal. Fortunately we put the car back in the .60s. We’ve got to be on our toes and not be complacent, treating every run equally and being as diligent as possible.”
D’Aprile improved from a 3.773 over Jr. Ward in the first round to a 3.716 over Chip King in the semifinals, while Salemi appeared in her first final round of the season after round wins over Summer Drags winner Chuck Ulsch and Drag Wars runner-up Marc Caruso.
“This one was tough, but we’ve had a good weekend,” Boone said. “The PDRA kept a great track, especially for the conditions out here. We had a lot of mechanical issues that we worked through. A lot of friends helped us. It’s been a tough win, so it sure feels good to pull it off.”
Boone, who also won the North-South Shootout in May, qualified No. 2 and raced past season opener winner Elijah Morton, Matt Giangrande and Drag Wars champion Jeff Dobbins en route to the final round. Voss, an Extreme Pro Stock rookie, qualified No. 12 and beat class veterans John Montecalvo, Lester Cooper and John Bartunek.
FINALLY! - Winless in Pro Extreme Motorcycle since late 2016, Brunson Grothus was eager to fight through an ultra-competitive field of motorcycles to earn the Fall Nationals victory. His 4.016 at 175.99 on his Indocil Art ’15 Suzuki defeated first-time finalist Spencer Allen’s 4.082 at 174.55.
“I feel very fortunate,” Grothus said. “Everything fell our way. I had three really tight races – a .024 stripe, .028 stripe, and a .046 stripe. We absolutely could’ve ended up on the other side of those races. With the way everyone was running this weekend – world records and career-bests – I’m very fortunate to be the last one standing.”
No. 1 qualifier Terry Schweigert backed up his record-setting 3.914 at 184.58 from Friday night with his second-round pass of 3.942 at 181.09 aboard a new turbocharged entry, though the Canadian dairy farmer left the starting line too soon.
Grothus qualified No. 2 with a career-best 3.998 and raced past points leader Ronnie “Pro Mod” Smith and defending world champion Travis Davis before taking advantage of a semifinal bye run. Allen rode his Lamination Station Racing Suzuki to round wins over Ricardo Knights, Chris Garner-Jones and Ehren Litten.
THIRD -GEN ENSSLIN WINS - Third-generation drag racer Jordan Ensslin has been improving his performance in Pro Outlaw 632 at every stop on the PDRA tour. The Lakeland, Florida-based driver was incredibly consistent throughout Saturday eliminations at the Fall Nationals, posting a 4.26 and three consecutive 4.25s, including a 4.257 at 167.60 over Daryl Hameetman’s 4.291 at 165.50 in the final round.
“Ken Kershaw and I went up to the PRI Show a couple years ago to get this Outlaw 632 class involved with the PDRA, and my dad (Jeff) and I have been chasing one of these 660 Men since then,” Ensslin said. “We finally got one. It’s satisfying for me to not only win the event, but to know that I’m bringing smiles to the faces of everyone who’s supported me along the way. It’s so surreal to be in this position.”
Ensslin and the Ensslin Racing/Team Edmunds ’02 Trans Am raced out of the No. 4 slot and took down Robert Sellers, Mike Murphy and points leader Johnny Pluchino. Hameetman in his 5 Day Plantation Shutters ’67 Mustang raced past Matt Buck, Jr. Ward and defending world champion Dillon Voss before the final round.
Chris Nyerges won the Top Sportsman 32 bracket in his 2000 Pontiac Firebird with a 4.443 on his 4.43 dial-in over Firecracker Nationals winner Wayne Rogers’ 4.305 on a 4.30 dial-in.
SILANCE WINS TOP DRAGSTER - Chaz Silance added a second 660 Man to his 2018 collection with his Elite Top Dragster final-round victory over Tom Martino, who won the PDRA Drag Wars last month. Both drivers encountered trouble after leaving the starting line, but it was Silance’s 4.012 on a 3.83 dial-in getting the win over Martino’s 4.262 on a 4.06 dial. Silance’s Buck-powered, supercharged dragster previously defeated Josh Duggins, Lindsey Barker and Nick Hamilton.
JUNIOR WINNER - Appearing in her second final in just three races, Kannapolis, North Carolina’s Angela Gantkowski notched her second Top Dragster 32 win using a 4.424 on a 4.42 dial-in over William Brown III and his 4.634 on 4.64 dial-in.
FIRST-TIMER - In Coolshirt Pro Jr. Dragster, Cameryn Hawkins earned her first PDRA victory when she won on a double breakout over Nicole Zuccarelli, with Hawkins’ 7.89 beating Zuccarelli’s 7.86. Zach Shirkey picked up the win in Gilbert Motorsports Top Jr. Dragster, running 8.969 on an 8.96 dial-in over Brooke Miller’s 7.995 on a 7.94 dial-in.
THE BACKET BASH - The Edelbrock Bracket Bash win went to Noah Johnson, whose .003 reaction time and 4.76 on a 4.73 dial-in defeated Mike Reavis and his 4.953 on a 4.95 dial-in.
UP NEXT - The 2018 PDRA Tour will conclude in two weeks at the PDRA World Finals, Oct. 18-21, at Virginia Motorsports Park in Dinwiddie, Va.
QUALIFYING NOTEBOOK - MUSI LAYS ONE DOWN ON THE BOYS TO LEAD PRO NITROUS
THAT GIRL IS ON FIRE - Lizzy Musi earned her first No. 1 spot of the year in a big way, shooting to the top of an ultra-quick top-half of the Pro Nitrous field with a 3.677 at 207.28. It wasn’t only her best pass in the new Frank Brandao-owned “King Kong 7” Dodge Dart, it was also the fastest pass in Pro Nitrous history, beating out Musi’s own record of 206.54 set at GALOT Motorsports Park last fall. The new car, debuted at the Firecracker Nationals in July, is now showing signs of brilliance like its predecessor that carried Musi to back-to-back victories to close the 2017 season.
“We made a decision to stick with the new car and not flip-flop back and forth,” said Pat Musi, Lizzy’s father, crew chief and engine builder. “I’ve learned a lot – I’ve been racing a lot – and you learn a lot. Lizzy’s driving has come around the last couple years, and she’s really proving herself. I think we have everything coming together, we just have to stay on this path. I know it sounds crazy, but we have to pick up a little.”
Musi earned a first-round bye run, then will face the winner of the No. 8 vs. No. 9 matchup featuring defending world champion Tommy Franklin and John Hall. Danny Sauro recorded a career-best 3.686 at 203.71 in his Musi-powered Tischer Acura Nissan ’69 Camaro to qualify a career-best No. 2 behind Jay Cox and his 3.693 at 202.98 in the Buck-powered “Pumpkin” ’69 Camaro.
“So far, so good – the game plan is working,” D’Aprile said. “We’ve been going up and down the racetrack pretty consistently. We skipped the second session since it was so hot, then we just went for it in the night session. Man, it was just a monster run. A 3.68 in these conditions is really promising for what we want to do with this car in the future.”
D’Aprile will take on Jr. Ward in the opening round of eliminations Saturday afternoon. Melanie Salemi and the “Purple Reign” ’68 Firebird took the No. 2 spot with a 3.73 at 200.09. Marc Caruso is No. 3 with a 3.744 at 196.85 in his Lee White-tuned Caruso Family Racing ’69 Camaro.
DEFLORIAN DOMINATES AGAIN - Now a three-time No. 1 qualifier this season, John DeFlorian wheeled his Amsoil ’14 Camaro to a 4.074 at 178.29 to lead the 15-car Extreme Pro Stock field into Saturday eliminations. He set the mark during the opening qualifying session. DeFlorian, the shop foreman for Jerry Haas Race Cars, was seen assisting points leader John Pluchino with his damaged car after impacting the right-side retaining wall in the third session.
Pluchino, who is chasing another world championship to go along with his 2016 title, was uninjured when his ’16 Mustang hit the wall in the right lane. Pluchino’s son and crew chief, Johnny, said the damage was enough to take them out of competition this weekend and possibly the World Finals in two weeks.
DeFlorian will start eliminations with a bye run. Maryland winner Steven Boone is the No. 2 qualifier in his Boone Motorsports Chevrolet with a 4.0852 at 176.19. Jeff Dobbins, the most recent winner on tour, qualified third in his Bears Performance/Curacao Dodge Avenger with a 4.0853 at 178.01.
THIRD TIME THE CHARM - Canadian dairy farmer Terry Schweigert topped the final qualifying order in Pro Extreme Motorcycle for the third time this season, though for the first time, he did it aboard a turbocharged entry. Riding a new motorcycle owned by Kevin Clark and tuned by Andy Sawyer, Dan Wagner and Steve Nichols, Schweigert rocketed to a 3.914 at 184.58 to set up two potential new records.
“That’s exactly what we were looking for on that run,” said Schweigert, whose Q1 pass of 3.968 at 181.60 was also quicker and faster than the existing record. “I was expecting it to run fast because the bike does what (the tuners) say it will do every time, and they said it should run a 3.91 or .92. I knew it was going to take off. It just pulled the whole way through, and I was really planted in the seat.”
Schweigert will take on fellow PXM veteran T.T. Jones in the first round Saturday afternoon. Brunson Grothus on his indocil Art-backed Suzuki qualified No. 2 with a 3.998 at 177.51, followed by Spencer Allen with a career-best 4.047 at 175.23 to earn his best final qualifying position.
“This car is running really well,” Pluchino said. “We kinda duplicated our success in qualifying from the GALOT race. We came out of the trailer today and ran a .23, which was an amazing run in the heat. We skipped Q2, came back for Q3 and put another .23 on the board. It wasn’t the best run. There were a couple things I should’ve done differently, but it was still low for the round. I think we have a really good car going into race day and we’re excited for this championship chase. We’re where we need to be.”
Pluchino will start race day matched up with No. 14 qualifier Mike Oldham. Defending world champion Dillon Voss is the No. 2 qualifier in his Voss Racing Engines ’17 Corvette with a 4.254 at 168.41. Jeremy Huffman qualified third with a 4.262 at 164.90.
ALBERT IS THE TOP SPORTSMAN - Engine builder Billy Albert went quicker than his own PDRA Top Sportsman record, posting a 3.764 at 199.56 in Stan Nance’s Structural Mechanical ’17 Camaro. John Benoit’s run of 3.81 at 200.62 challenges the speed record currently held by NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle star Matt Smith. Jordan Wood sits No. 3 in his Virginia-based Mustang with a 3.92 at 190.76.
CREASMAN LEADS THE DRAGSTERS - Jeremy Creasman charged to the provisional No. 1 spot in Elite Top Dragster with his 3.724 at 193.05 in his ProCharger-boosted dragster giving him a sizable lead over Kyle Harris in his supercharged altered with a 3.809 at 192.23. Lindsey Barker rounds out the top 3 with her 3.841 at 187.81.
ON TAP - The PDRA Fall Nationals at Darlington Dragway will continue Saturday morning with sportsman final qualifying at 9:30 a.m. Professional eliminations begin at 2 p.m.
LADDERS
FRIDAY QUALIFYING - q2
Q-1
