2012 NHRA SOUTHERN NATIONALS - EVENT RESULTS
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SUNDAY - CAPPS, TORRENCE, ANDERSON AND KRAWIEC EARN SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT NHRA SOUTHERN NATIONALS VICTORIES AT ATLANTA DRAGWAY
Ron Capps raced to his first victory of the season Sunday at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway and ended John Force Racing’s season-long stronghold on the winner’s circle in Funny Car.
Steve Torrence (Top Fuel), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Eddie Kraweic (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also were winners at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event.
Capps, who used a consistent string of 4.16-second runs to take his 34th career victory, outran Robert Hight in the final round, who was trying to give JFR its seventh consecutive win of the season. Capps’ Napa Auto Parts Dodge Charger posted a 4.166 second run at 303.91 mph to take the win, while Hight’s Auto Club Ford Mustang trailed with a 4.399 at 273.44.
"We love those guys," Capps said of Hight and his team. "[Crew chief Rahn] Tobler and Prock went to dinner here not too long ago. They’re good friends, and Robert and I are good friends. We had dinner last night and watch the UFC fight. I told them at the other end, ‘You guys bring everything I got out when I have to race you.’ I got so tired of hearing about Force [Racing] winning every race. I got tired hearing about Robert. I love him but I got tired of hearing about him on this race streak. I tweeted when they gave Will Power the first quarter Driver of the Year thing. That’s a pretty stout group of guys voting for that thing — I mean it’s Mario Andretti, ‘Snake’ [Don Prudhomme] — and it irritated me that they didn’t give him that, but I told him, ‘I’m tired of hearing about you winning.’ I know Tobler’s the same way. We go up there, and it brings everything we’ve got to race those guys, so to beat them was huge."
Capps also beat Daniel Wilkerson, Matt Hagan and Jeff Arend to advance to the final, the 73rd of his career. It is the third-straight final round appearance for Capps since Tobler joined his team.
“This is such a great team, and right from the get-go in Charlotte, the first run reminded me how fun it can be to race again,” “I was starting to just get a little frustrated and wondered if maybe I wasn’t as good as I used to be when I was younger. It just got very difficult. When Don [Schumacher, team owner] made the move and put me with Rahn [Tobler] and John Collins, I’m telling you it was just unbelievable. I’m having so much fun right now. I’m the luckiest guy in the world to be driving this car.”
Torrence earned his first career Top Fuel victory and in the process denied Tony Schumacher from finally getting a victory at Atlanta Dragway, the only track on the circuit where the seven-time world champ has yet to win. Torrence covered the distance in 3.893 at 320.66 in his Capco Contractors dragster while Schumacher’s U.S. Army dragster lost traction early in the race and finished in 4.913 at 169.44.
Torrence, who qualified second, used a bunch of 3.8-second runs to cruise through eliminations, knocking off J.R. Todd, Bob Vandergriff and Brandon Bernstein along the way to his first career final.
“It hasn’t really even set in,” said Torrence, the 2005 Top Alcohol Dragster national champ in the NHRA Lucas Oil Series. “We’ve been working our tails off since last year at this race. This was the last race that I raced with Dexter [Tuttle] and we set out to start our own team. To kind of start the new team and get the first win here, that’s a big deal for us. We’re 10 races into this new team. Richard Hogan [crew chief], I’ve got all the confidence in the world in that guy. I told him from day one that he’s my guy, and I’ve stuck with it. This car has run really, really well. My driving, I’ve been practicing, and the seat time of just making passes in a good car has really helped me a lot. Getting this first win, it’s unbelievable. To do it here at Atlanta is awesome. This is a great racetrack. It just hasn’t caught up to me yet. Hopefully, this is the start of a lot of really good things.”
Anderson raced to his third Pro Stock win of the season with a reaction time advantage, holding off hard-charging teammate Jason Line at the finish line. Anderson took his 73rd career victory with a performance of 6.649 at 208.26 in his Summit Racing Pontiac to hold off the quicker, but losing Summit Racing Pontiac of Line, which finished in 6.618 at 209.62.
“We’re very happy as a team [about the Summit cars reaching five Pro Stock finals this year],” said Anderson, who beat Greg Stanfield, Steve Kent and Allen Johnson in earlier rounds. “It’s great to have three Summit cars in the semis. That doesn’t happen too often with multi-car teams. It just tells you that everybody is rowing the boat in the same direction and pulling their load. That’s what I’m the most proud of – assembling this team and instilling in them that it doesn’t matter which driver wins.
“It all goes back to what Ken Black does for this team. We just want to dig harder and harder every day because that’s what he is doing, going to rehab and trying to get back to walking, and he’s darn close. When you see that, you don’t want to let the man down. You want to make him proud. And when he gets back to the race track full-time, we want our cars to be running at their best.”
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, defending world champ Krawiec took his second victory of the season, outrunning first-time finalist Michael Ray. Krawiec powered his Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson to a winning run of 6.905 at 195.53 to hold off Ray’s GottSpeed Racing Buell, which finished in 7.036 at 187.94.
Krawiec advanced to the final with early round wins over Michael Phillips, Karen Stoffer and Shawn Gann. It was Krawiec’s 13th career victory and second at Atlanta Dragway.
“We are just trying to get a handle on the motorcycle and working on getting it to leave well, and I think we did that this weekend,” Krawiec said. “It ran awesome and I’ve got a killer motorcycle right now.”
The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series continues May 18-20 with the Dollar General NHRA Summernationals at Heartland Park Topeka, Topeka, Kan.
SATURDAY - HIGHT LEADS FORCE RACING EFFORT FOR SEVEN WINS IN A ROW
Schumacher, Line and Arana Sr. Schumacher, Line and Arana Sr. also claim No. 1 qualifying positions at Atlanta Dragway
Robert Hight will lead John Force Racing’s quest to earn its seventh consecutive victory to open the season in Sunday’s final eliminations at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway.
Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel), Jason Line (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana Sr. (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also will lead their categories into tomorrow’s eliminations as No. 1 qualifiers at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event.
Hight, who has won four of the first six races in 2012, claimed his fourth No. 1 qualifying position of the season Saturday with a leading performance of 4.104 seconds at 308.35 mph in his Auto Club Ford Mustang. Hight teammates John Force and Mike Neff won the other two races to give the JFR team a stronghold on the winner’s circle this season.
“There’s a lot of cars that are bunched up there,” said Hight of the 43rd top qualifying effort of his career. “It’s going to be a tough, tough race tomorrow. I’m excited for it. You’re going to see a lot of close, side-by-side racing. When you win a race like this, it’s a little more special. You probably are going to need a few breaks along the way because anything can happen in this heat.”
Hight, a two-time Atlanta Dragway winner, will race Bob Bode in the opening round of eliminations. Hight teammate Neff, winner at last week’s event in Houston, fell victim to the tricky race conditions produced by track temperatures nearing 140 degrees and failed to qualify. It was Neff’s first DNQ since Dallas 2008.
Hight said he and crew chief Jimmy Prock went back to a baseline tuneup on the final qualifying attempt to prepare for what may be similar conditions on race day. The move was even more necessary once the team saw Neff’s Castrol GTX Mustang drop a cylinder and miss the 16-car starting lineup.
“[Prock] said, ‘We have to make a run down the track in 130-degree-plus track temperature,’ because we didn’t have that yesterday,” Hight said. “It was middle 120s. He said, 'We’ve gotta go.' I’ll be honest with you, I think the right lane is probably the preferred lane, so to run a .15 in the left lane there, that was a statement.”
In other first round pairings in Funny Car, No. 2 qualifier Ron Capps will race Daniel Wilkerson, Bob Tasca III will meet Johnny Gray and one of NHRA’s best rivalries will resume when two-time world champ Cruz Pedregon will meet 15-time world champ and seven time Atlanta Dragway winner John Force.
Schumacher took his first No. 1 effort of the season and 68th of his career in Top Fuel with his Friday track record time of 3.815 at a speed of 322.58 in his U.S. Army dragster. Schumacher, winless since Oct. 2010, has yet to win at Atlanta Dragway, the only track on the circuit where he has not visited winner’s circle. Schumacher will face journeyman Pat Dakin in the first round.
“We’ve got a great race car,” Schumacher said. “That last one, we just freed it up a ton to get down the racetrack, probably way over center. Being the No. 1 qualifier, we’re going to go out there and at least have a chance to run where we want to run, what lane we want, and all those good things that come with it. I’ve been saying all along we’re not going to go out and have any easy rounds, but at least it’s our choice when and what lane. We’re going to win one of these things. We’ve got a great car, a great team. We’ve just had terrible luck. If we go out and get a little luck, it will turn. It always does. I look forward to starting a winning streak tomorrow.”
In other Top Fuel first-round action, second qualifier Steve Torrence will meet J.R. Todd, third qualifier Shawn Langdon will face Clay Millican, and series leader Antron Brown will meet Doug Kalitta.
Defending Pro Stock world champ Line was the only top qualifier to improve his performance from Friday, powering his Summit Racing Pontiac GXP to a 6.607 at 209.04 to take his fourth No. 1 of the season and 28th of his career. Line will meet six-time world champ Warren Johnson in the opening round.
“It was obviously hotter out here today, but the NHRA crew did a great job,” Line said. “For a race track that was this hot, I’d say that their preparation work was phenomenal. We just tried to make good, safe runs today, and we feel very good about going into tomorrow’s eliminations. Our crew has done a great job all year long. I told [NHRA announcer Alan] Reinhart at the end of the track after the last run that I feel bad because I don’t think that I’ve held up my end of the deal. I’ve struggled to maintain the intensity it takes to be the best in this class. But I feel good about things now, and maybe this weekend will end up being a big turn-around for us.”
Several strong first round meetings are set in Pro Stock as No. 2 qualifier Allen Johnson will face four-time world champ Jeg Coughlin, series points leader Greg Anderson will meet Greg Stanfield and veterans Mike Edwards and Larry Morgan will race in a Pontiac vs. Ford showdown.
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Arana Sr. earned his second-straight No. 1 of the season and 19th of his career with his Friday run of 6.894 at a track record speed of 193.82 on his Lucas Oil Buell. Arana will race Joey Gladstone in the first round.
“I really have to give credit to NHRA and the Safety Safari for doing an excellent job this weekend,” Arana said. “We still have to learn how to tune our bike for the warmer weather. We’re going to use this data for the upcoming races because this is the beginning of the summer with the heat. I think that my bike is tapped out right now. I’m getting as much out of her as I can get.”
In other bike pairings, No. 2 qualifier Eddie Krawiec will face Michael Phillips, Hector Arana Jr. will meet Chip Ellis and series points leader Andrew Hines, who qualified fifth, will go for his second straight victory against Jerry Savoie.
SATURDAY:
TOP FUEL
1 5 Tony Schumacher, Chicago IL, DSR-TFX 3.815@ 322.58 322.58
2 475 Steve Torrence, Kilgore TX, Hadman-TFX 3.827 320.74 320.74
3 9 Shawn Langdon, Indianapolis IN, Hadman-TFX 3.830 313.88 313.88
4 2 Spencer Massey, Ft. Worth TX, DSR-TFX 3.839 320.13 320.13
5 3 Antron Brown, Indianapolis IN, DSR-TFX 3.842 323.12 323.12
6 6 Brandon Bernstein, Brownsburg IN, McKinney-TFX 3.851 316.60 317.05
7 44 David Grubnic, Ypsilanti MI, Attac-TFX 3.872 318.09 318.09
8 99 Khalid alBalooshi, Los Angeles CA, Hadman-TFX 3.873 315.12 315.12
9 21 Terry McMillen, Elkhart IN, McKinney-TFX 3.876 317.27 317.27
10 12 Bob Vandergriff, Alpharetta GA, Hadman-TFX 3.877 316.97 316.97
FUNNY CAR
1 4 Robert Hight, Yorba Linda CA, '12 Mustang 4.104 308.35 308.35
2 28 Ron Capps, Carlsbad CA, '10 Charger 4.114 309.27 309.27
3 7 Bob Tasca III, Cranston RI, '12 Mustang 4.121 302.35 302.35
4 3 Cruz Pedregon, Brownsburg IN, '10 Solara 4.135 304.19 304.19
5 10 Tim Wilkerson, Springfield IL, '12 Mustang 4.138 303.23 303.23
6 72 Tony Pedregon, Brownsburg IN, '10 Impala 4.139 306.05 306.05
7 1 Matt Hagan, Christiansburg VA, '10 Charger 4.144 304.39 304.39
8 2 Jack Beckman, Norco CA, '10 Charger 4.152 305.77 305.77
9 746 Courtney Force, Yorba Linda CA, '12 Mustang 4.156 305.98 305.98
10 771 Alexis DeJoria, Ypsilanti MI, '12 Camary 4.166 302.28 302.28
PRO STOCK
1 1 Jason Line, Troutman NC, '09 GXP 6.607 209.04 209.04
2 4 Allen Johnson, Greeneville TN, '12 Avenger 6.613 209.23 209.23
3 3 Greg Anderson, Mooresville NC, '09 GXP 6.625 208.62 208.84
4 2062 Ronnie Humphrey, Jacksonville NC, '09 GXP 6.631 208.88 208.88
5 2 Mike Edwards, Coweta OK, '09 GXP 6.635 208.59 208.71
6 10 Ron Krisher, Warren OH, '09 GXP 6.637 208.91 208.91
7 6 Erica Enders, New Orleans LA, '10 Cobalt 6.637 208.20 208.20
8 5 Vincent Nobile, Dix Hills NY, '12 Avenger 6.638 208.49 208.52
9 8 Rodger Brogdon, Tomball TX, '09 GXP 6.643 207.56 207.98
10 9 Shane Gray, Denver NC, '09 GXP 6.643 206.99 207.27
PRO STOCK BIKE
1 5 Hector Arana, Milltown IN, Buell XB9R 6.894 193.82 193.82
2 1 Eddie Krawiec, Avon In, Harley V-Rod 6.895 195.42& 195.42
3 2 Hector Arana Jr, Milltown IN, Buell XB9R 6.950 192.85 192.85
4 413 Michael Ray, New Braunfels TX, Buell 6.981 191.21 191.21
5 3 Andrew Hines, Avon IN, Harley V-Rod 6.987 191.48 192.06
6 205 Shawn Gann, Stoneville NC, Buell XB9R 6.991 190.46 190.46
7 6 Karen Stoffer, Minden NV, Suzuki TL1000R 6.996 191.02 191.02
8 7 LE Tonglet, Metairie LA, Suzuki GSXR 6.998 190.38 190.38
9 635 Scotty Pollacheck, Medford OR, Buell 7.008 192.08 192.08
10 1528 John Hall, Hamden CT, Buell 7.012 192.44 192.44
THIRD SESSION
TOP FUEL
1 5 Tony Schumacher, Chicago IL, DSR-TFX 3.815@ 322.58 322.58
2 475 Steve Torrence, Kilgore TX, Hadman-TFX 3.827 320.74 320.74
3 9 Shawn Langdon, Indianapolis IN, Hadman-TFX 3.830 313.88 313.88
4 2 Spencer Massey, Ft. Worth TX, DSR-TFX 3.839 320.13 320.13
5 3 Antron Brown, Indianapolis IN, DSR-TFX 3.842 323.12 323.12
6 6 Brandon Bernstein, Brownsburg IN, McKinney-TFX 3.851 316.60 317.05
7 44 David Grubnic, Ypsilanti MI, Attac-TFX 3.872 318.09 318.09
8 99 Khalid alBalooshi, Los Angeles CA, Hadman-TFX 3.873 315.12 315.12
9 21 Terry McMillen, Elkhart IN, McKinney-TFX 3.876 317.27 317.27
10 12 Bob Vandergriff, Alpharetta GA, Hadman-TFX 3.877 316.97 316.97
FUNNY CAR
1 4 Robert Hight, Yorba Linda CA, '12 Mustang 4.104 308.35 308.35
2 28 Ron Capps, Carlsbad CA, '10 Charger 4.114 309.27 309.27
3 7 Bob Tasca III, Cranston RI, '12 Mustang 4.121 302.35 302.35
4 3 Cruz Pedregon, Brownsburg IN, '10 Solara 4.135 304.19 304.19
5 10 Tim Wilkerson, Springfield IL, '12 Mustang 4.138 303.23 303.23
6 72 Tony Pedregon, Brownsburg IN, '10 Impala 4.139 306.05 306.05
7 1 Matt Hagan, Christiansburg VA, '10 Charger 4.144 304.39 304.39
8 2 Jack Beckman, Norco CA, '10 Charger 4.152 305.77 305.77
9 746 Courtney Force, Yorba Linda CA, '12 Mustang 4.156 305.98 305.98
10 771 Alexis DeJoria, Ypsilanti MI, '12 Camary 4.166 302.28 302.28
PRO STOCK
1 1 Jason Line, Troutman NC, '09 GXP 6.607 209.04 209.04
2 4 Allen Johnson, Greeneville TN, '12 Avenger 6.613 209.23 209.23
3 3 Greg Anderson, Mooresville NC, '09 GXP 6.625 208.62 208.84
4 2062 Ronnie Humphrey, Jacksonville NC, '09 GXP 6.631 208.88 208.88
5 2 Mike Edwards, Coweta OK, '09 GXP 6.635 208.59 208.71
6 10 Ron Krisher, Warren OH, '09 GXP 6.637 208.91 208.91
7 6 Erica Enders, New Orleans LA, '10 Cobalt 6.637 208.20 208.20
8 5 Vincent Nobile, Dix Hills NY, '12 Avenger 6.638 208.49 208.52
9 8 Rodger Brogdon, Tomball TX, '09 GXP 6.643 207.56 207.98
10 9 Shane Gray, Denver NC, '09 GXP 6.643 206.99 207.27
PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE
1 5 Hector Arana, Milltown IN, Buell XB9R 6.894 193.82 193.82
2 1 Eddie Krawiec, Avon In, Harley V-Rod 6.895 195.42& 195.42
3 2 Hector Arana Jr, Milltown IN, Buell XB9R 6.950 192.85 192.85
4 413 Michael Ray, New Braunfels TX, Buell 6.981 191.21 191.21
5 3 Andrew Hines, Avon IN, Harley V-Rod 6.987 191.48 191.84
6 205 Shawn Gann, Stoneville NC, Buell XB9R 6.991 190.46 190.46
7 6 Karen Stoffer, Minden NV, Suzuki TL1000R 6.996 191.02 191.02
8 7 LE Tonglet, Metairie LA, Suzuki GSXR 6.998 190.38 190.38
9 635 Scotty Pollacheck, Medford OR, Buell 7.008 192.08 192.08
10 1528 John Hall, Hamden CT, Buell 7.012 192.44 192.44
SPORTSMAN
SUPER STOCK - FINAL
1 340 GT/EA Rich South, Pataskala OH, '08 G5 9.693 10.65 -0.957
2 2207 GT/IA Jeff Taylor, Sellersburg IN, '88 Camaro 10.266 11.20 -0.934
3 2093 GT/LA Bobby Dennis, Shorter AL, '90 Calais 10.678 11.55 -0.872
4 2096 GT/KA Stan Perry, Nashville TN, '95 Achieva 10.584 11.45 -0.866
5 243 SS/AAA Roy Hill, Sophia NC, '10 Mustang 8.599 9.40 -0.801
6 1273 SSA/A Bo Kenney, Manassas VA, '12 Mustang 8.908 9.70 -0.792
7 2038 GT/TC James Hoover, Adamsville TN, '01 S-10 10.312 11.10 -0.788
8 2471 GT/MA Ronnie Dutton, Southside AL, '79 Monza 10.985 11.75 -0.765
9 300 SS/AM Chuck Gallagher, Lexington NC, '94 Sunbird 8.245 9.00 -0.755
10 3909 SS/AA Drew Skillman, Greenwood IN, '12 Mustang 8.646 9.40 -0.754
STOCK - FINAL
1 2446 A/SA Robbie Shaw, Bowdon GA, '01 Firebird 10.075 11.00 -0.925
2 5715 F/SA Randy Eakins, Sikeston MO, '10 Challenger 10.931 11.85 -0.919
3 2730 BB/SA Bo Kenney, Manassas VA, '08 Mustang 9.389 10.30 -0.911
4 400B C/SA Britt Cummings, Hammond LA, '00 Corvette 10.494 11.40 -0.906
5 3909 AA/SA Drew Skillman, Greenwood IN, '12 Mustang 9.106 10.00 -0.894
6 3492 J/S Donnie Beeler, Elizabethtown KY, '91 Corv 11.502 12.35 -0.848
7 24 F/SA Jim Marshall, Indian Land SC, '81 Corvette11.013 11.85 -0.837
8 3222 I/SA Chris Stephenson, Tipton IN, '74 Apollo 11.474 12.30 -0.826
9 4 B/SA Slate Cummings, Hammond LA, '99 Firebird 10.425 11.25 -0.825
10 1 C/SA Joe Santangelo, Marlborough CT, '69 Camaro10.599 11.40 -0.801
SUPER GAS - FINAL
1 2342 S/G Kenny Threatt, Springfield TN, '63 Corvet 9.901 9.90 0.001
2 L268 S/G Steve Whitlow, Hendersonville TN, '01 Mus 9.911 9.90 0.011
3 201G S/G George Caheely, La Fayette GA, '34 Roadst 9.913 9.90 0.013
4 3639 S/G Nick Folk, Durand IL, '67 Camaro 9.920 9.90 0.020
5 2833 S/G Billy Upton, Taylors SC, '63 Corvette 9.925 9.90 0.025
6 15 S/G Jason Kenny, Kutztown PA, '03 Corvette 9.926 9.90 0.026
7 F285 S/G Mike Alligood, Perry GA, '11 Mustang 9.937 9.90 0.037
8 2761 S/G Robert Adams, Eatonton GA, '63 Corvette 9.938 9.90 0.038
9 1891 S/G Dave Morris, York SC, '57 Corvette 9.940 9.90 0.040
10 25 S/G Matt Cooke, Hendersonville NC, '67 Corvet 9.950 9.90 0.050
TOP DRAGSTER - FINAL
1 2463 Burwell Kendrick, Indian Trail NC, Horton-AJ 6.061 230.80 230.80
2 2246 Melissa Hutson, Lady Lake FL, Spitzer-BAE 6.218 222.80 222.80
3 3166 Tom Elliott, Brooks KY, Spitzer-Chevy 6.449 214.01 214.01
4 2090 Eddie Careccia, Mars Hill NC, Horton-AJ 6.467 223.65 223.65
5 34 James Monroe, Bloomington IN, Spitzer-Chevy 6.676 202.12 202.12
6 330 Lynn Ellison, Central City KY, M&M-Chevy 6.695 203.09 203.43
7 27 Lauren Freer, Lewisville NC, Undercover-Chevy 6.696 197.62 197.62
8 36 Craig Sullivan, Avon IN, American-ford 6.716 195.96 196.33
9 2151 Lindsey Barker, Kathleen GA, Miller-Chevy 6.731 199.23 199.23
10 1136 Peter Biondo, Maspeth NY, RaceTech-Chevy 6.747 191.27 191.27
TOP SPORTSMAN - FINAL
1 21 Jeffrey Barker, Warner Robins GA, '02 Camaro 6.639 209.23 209.23
2 1929 Jeff Brooks, Fredericksburg VA, '51 Henry J 6.658 206.04 206.04
3 2459 Tommy Turner, Naples FL, '12 GXP 6.750 202.21 209.43
4 2968 Jeff Pittman, Conover NC, '68 Chevelle 6.840 202.03 202.03
5 2692 Dylan Stott, Columbus NC, '67 Mustang 6.882 200.11 200.11
6 2767 Jerry Barker, Ft. Valley GA, '06 Cobalt 6.914 198.90 198.90
7 200C Chad Morrison, Statesville NC, '57 Chevy 6.994 196.10 196.10
8 288 Billy Vaughn, Knoxville TN, '95 Monte Carlo 7.009 193.99 193.99
9 3233 Bob Mandell, Culleoka TN, '57 Bel Air 7.013 195.17 195.17
10 2912 Sandy Wilkins, Mt. Ulla NC, '02 Cavalier 7.072 194.13 194.13
FRIDAY - SCHUMACHER, HIGHT, LINE AND ARANA LEAD QUALIFYING AT SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT NHRA SOUTHERN NATIONALS
Tony Schumacher raced to the Top Fuel qualifying lead Friday at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway.
Robert Hight (Funny Car), Jason Line (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also were qualifying leaders at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event.
Schumacher, who earned his last victory 29 races ago in Oct. 2010, powered his U.S. Army dragster to a track record time of 3.815 seconds at 322.58 mph, putting him in position to earn his first No. 1 qualifying position of the season and 68th of his career if the run holds through Saturday's final two qualifying sessions (11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.).
"We were fortunate to run in the back of the pack," Schumacher said. "We were one of the few cars, if not the only car, that got it moving really hard early. Our car is pretty old. It’s got 200 runs on it. We’re going to be bringing out a new one, testing it on Monday. This thing’s still got a lot left over in it. That was perfect. It left the starting line, had the wheels nice and high in the air, and then set it down. This groove here — Atlanta has always been this way — you’ve got to keep it in the center of the groove, and the groove actually moves a little toward the center out here. I think it was just the right call at the right time. Mike [Green, crew chief] probably could have got after it down there because we were so aggressive early and it stuck."
None of Schumacher's 67 career victories have come at Atlanta Dragway, the only track on the circuit where the seven-time Top Fuel world champ has yet to win.
"I’ve always had confidence here," Schumacher said. "We’ve been in the final several times. Antron [Brown, teammate] has beat me a few of them, the last couple of years. We have a great car. It’s been dynamite racing, thousandths of a second, what the fans pay for. I’ve just been on the losing end of those things, and it’s about time we turn that around. I would like to get this done. I think it would be really cool to have gone so many races and then go to the one track where we haven’t won and close the deal, finish it off. We’ve won every track, several of them many times, and this one has just eluded us."
Steve Torrence was second with a 3.827 at 320.74 in his Capco Contractors dragster, while Shawn Langdon was third in his Al-Anabi Racing dragster with a 3.830 at 313.88. Series leader Brown was fifth in his Matco Tools dragster with a 3.842 at 323.12.
Series points leader Hight set the pace in Funny Car with a 4.104 at 308.35 in his Auto Club Ford Mustang.
"Jimmy Prock [crew chief] really was trying to run a 4.0, but the left lane is a little on the tricky side," Hight said. "This probably is the best racetrack in the country. Surface area, everything, it is by far the best racetrack. It is awesome, but it does have a few bumps there that can upset the car, so he wanted to make sure that we got over those. We picked up really early, and it was just a little on the weak side on the other end, for whatever reason, and that’s why it ran a .10, a little slower than what he thought. Luckily for us, it held for No. 1, but we believed that other guys would run better than that."
Houston runner-up Ron Capps was second with a 4.114 at 309.27 in his NAPA Dodge Charger and Bob Tasca III was third in his Motorcraft/Quick Lane Shelby Mustang with a 4.121 at 302.35.
Defending world champ Line led the Pro Stock field with a performance of 6.612 at 208.68 in his Summit Racing Equipment Pontiac GXP.
“We had problems, breaking an engine, in the first qualifying session, and we didn’t have time to start the new engine after making the change, so we were pleased with how things worked out," Line said. "Hats off to the engine guys for being to plug in a new engine and capture the pole. That’s very reassuring, for sure. Our car has run very good 60-foot times in the heat. We might have been off just a little bit, but that’s in the tune-up. The car is working fine. I thought that A.J. [Allen Johnson],[Mike] Edwards, or Greg [Anderson] could have run better than we did, but none of us make so-called ’perfect runs’, so maybe mine was maybe the ‘least worst’ I guess.”
Johnson was second in his Team Mopar Dodge Avenger with a 6.613 at 209.23 and series leader Anderson was third with a 6.625 at 208.62 in his Summit Racing Equipment GXP.
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Arana was quickest on his Lucas Oil Buell with a time of 6.894 at a track record speed of 193.82.
“[Qualifying well on Friday] gives us an easier time and less pressure going into tomorrow [Saturday’s] qualifying," Arana said. "So now I can take my time and play it safe. We can pay more attention to the weather so that we can stay consistent and keep repeating the same e.t. I [improved on the second run] by just grabbing a handful of throttle and ran full throttle all the way down the quarter-mile.”
Eddie Krawiec was second with a 6.895 at 195.42 on his Screamin' Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson and Arana's son, Hector Arana Jr., was third on his Lucas Oil Buell with a 6.950 at 192.85. Points leader and Houston winner Andrew Hines was fifth with a 6.987 at 191.84 on his Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson.
FRIDAY
PROFESSIONAL - SESSION 1
TOP FUEL
1 6 Brandon Bernstein, Brownsburg IN, McKinney-TFX 3.881 317.05 317.05
2 5 Tony Schumacher, Chicago IL, DSR-TFX 3.881 316.60 316.60
3 3 Antron Brown, Indianapolis IN, DSR-TFX 3.885 317.34 317.34
4 2 Spencer Massey, Ft. Worth TX, DSR-TFX 3.900 313.37 313.37
5 475 Steve Torrence, Kilgore TX, Hadman-TFX 3.911 315.93 315.93
6 1236 Hillary Will, Eureka CA, McKinney-TFX 3.926 304.60 304.60
7 99 Khalid alBalooshi, Los Angeles CA, Hadman-TFX 3.965 299.40 299.40
8 12 Bob Vandergriff, Alpharetta GA, Hadman-TFX 3.975 313.00 313.00
9 255 Clay Millican, Munford TN, Hadman-BAE 3.983 275.17 275.17
10 44 David Grubnic, Ypsilanti MI, Attac-TFX 3.988 301.27 301.27
FUNNY CAR
1 7 Bob Tasca III, Cranston RI, '12 Mustang 4.121 302.35 302.35
2 3 Cruz Pedregon, Brownsburg IN, '10 Solara 4.135 304.19 304.19
3 4 Robert Hight, Yorba Linda CA, '12 Mustang 4.140 299.86 299.86
4 28 Ron Capps, Carlsbad CA, '10 Charger 4.160 304.53 304.53
5 256 Blake Alexander, Wirtz VA, '06 Monte Carlo 4.190 296.89 296.89
6 72 Tony Pedregon, Brownsburg IN, '10 Impala 4.193 296.31 296.31
7 2 Jack Beckman, Norco CA, '10 Charger 4.216 292.58 292.58
8 771 Alexis DeJoria, Ypsilanti MI, '12 Camary 4.216 279.21 279.21
9 746 Courtney Force, Yorba Linda CA, '12 Mustang 4.227 298.34 298.34
10 388 Jim Head, Columbus OH, '10 Solara 4.243 284.93 284.93
PRO STOCK
1 4 Allen Johnson, Greeneville TN, '12 Avenger 6.620 209.07 209.07
2 2 Mike Edwards, Coweta OK, '09 GXP 6.638 208.71 208.71
3 3 Greg Anderson, Mooresville NC, '09 GXP 6.647 208.17 208.17
4 10 Ron Krisher, Warren OH, '09 GXP 6.649 208.52 208.52
5 2062 Ronnie Humphrey, Jacksonville NC, '09 GXP 6.653 207.88 207.88
6 5 Vincent Nobile, Dix Hills NY, '12 Avenger 6.654 208.26 208.26
7 9 Shane Gray, Denver NC, '09 GXP 6.655 207.18 207.18
8 8 Rodger Brogdon, Tomball TX, '09 GXP 6.656 207.88 207.88
9 6 Erica Enders, New Orleans LA, '10 Cobalt 6.661 207.11 207.11
10 21 Kurt Johnson, Sugar Hill GA, '09 GXP 6.664 207.40 207.40
PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE
1 1 Eddie Krawiec, Avon In, Harley V-Rod 6.895 195.42& 195.42
2 5 Hector Arana, Milltown IN, Buell XB9R 6.926 193.57 193.57
3 2 Hector Arana Jr, Milltown IN, Buell XB9R 6.955 191.81 191.81
4 413 Michael Ray, New Braunfels TX, Buell 6.981 191.21 191.21
5 3 Andrew Hines, Avon IN, Harley V-Rod 6.987 191.48 191.48
6 205 Shawn Gann, Stoneville NC, Buell XB9R 6.991 190.46 190.46
7 6 Karen Stoffer, Minden NV, Suzuki TL1000R 6.996 191.02 191.02
8 7 LE Tonglet, Metairie LA, Suzuki GSXR 6.998 190.38 190.38
9 635 Scotty Pollacheck, Medford OR, Buell 7.008 192.08 192.08
10 1528 John Hall, Hamden CT, Buell 7.012 192.44 192.44
SPORTSMAN
SUPER STOCK - SESSION 1
1 2207 GT/IA Jeff Taylor, Sellersburg IN, '88 Camaro 10.266 11.20 -0.934
2 340 GT/EA Rich South, Pataskala OH, '08 G5 9.726 10.65 -0.924
3 2093 GT/LA Bobby Dennis, Shorter AL, '90 Calais 10.689 11.55 -0.861
4 2096 GT/KA Stan Perry, Nashville TN, '95 Achieva 10.589 11.45 -0.861
5 243 SS/AAA Roy Hill, Sophia NC, '10 Mustang 8.599 9.40 -0.801
6 1273 SSA/A Bo Kenney, Manassas VA, '12 Mustang 8.908 9.70 -0.792
7 2038 GT/TC James Hoover, Adamsville TN, '01 S-10 10.328 11.10 -0.772
8 300 SS/AM Chuck Gallagher, Lexington NC, '94 Sunbird 8.245 9.00 -0.755
9 3 GT/HA David Rampy, Piedmont AL, '89 Camaro 10.297 11.05 -0.753
10 2131 GT/L James Hill, Fayetteville GA, '65 Mustang 10.558 11.30 -0.742
STOCK - SESSION 1
1 5715 F/SA Randy Eakins, Sikeston MO, '10 Challenger 10.937 11.85 -0.913
2 400B C/SA Britt Cummings, Hammond LA, '00 Corvette 10.494 11.40 -0.906
3 3909 AA/SA Drew Skillman, Greenwood IN, '12 Mustang 9.124 10.00 -0.876
4 2446 A/SA Robbie Shaw, Bowdon GA, '01 Firebird 10.164 11.00 -0.836
5 3222 I/SA Chris Stephenson, Tipton IN, '74 Apollo 11.474 12.30 -0.826
6 131 D/SA Sterling Simmons, Chesterfield VA, '98 Ca 10.783 11.55 -0.767
7 24 F/SA Jim Marshall, Indian Land SC, '81 Corvette11.097 11.85 -0.753
8 373 AA/SA Bill Skillman, Greenwood IN, '12 Mustang 9.280 10.00 -0.720
9 1 C/SA Joe Santangelo, Marlborough CT, '69 Camaro10.707 11.40 -0.693
10 21 C/SA Jeff Adkinson, Damascus GA, '69 Camaro 10.713 11.40 -0.687
TOP DRAGSTER
1 2246 Melissa Hutson, Lady Lake FL, Spitzer-BAE 6.229 222.58 222.58
2 3166 Tom Elliott, Brooks KY, Spitzer-Chevy 6.449 214.01 214.01
3 2090 Eddie Careccia, Mars Hill NC, Horton-AJ 6.622 220.51 220.51
4 27 Lauren Freer, Lewisville NC, Undercover-Chevy 6.696 197.62 197.62
5 21 Dylan Stott, Columbus NC, Maddox-Ford 6.755 200.98 200.98
6 330 Lynn Ellison, Central City KY, M&M-Chevy 6.769 203.43 203.43
7 1136 Peter Biondo, Maspeth NY, RaceTech-Chevy 6.786 190.57 190.57
8 44 Allen Constantine, La Place LA, TNT-Chevy 6.789 200.29 200.29
9 2151 Lindsey Barker, Warner-Robins GA, Miller-Chevy 6.821 196.67 196.67
10 22 Ray Miller, Spring Hill FL, Miller-Chevy 6.839 197.94 197.94
TOP SPORTSMAN
1 21 Jeffrey Barker, Warner Robins GA, '02 Camaro 6.639 209.23 209.23
2 2459 Tommy Turner, Naples FL, '12 GXP 6.754 209.43 209.43
3 1929 Jeff Brooks, Fredericksburg VA, '51 Henry J 6.800 201.40 201.40
4 2692 Dylan Stott, Columbus NC, '67 Mustang 6.888 199.76 199.76
5 2767 Jerry Barker, Ft. Valley GA, '06 Cobalt 6.914 198.90 198.90
6 2968 Jeff Pittman, Conover NC, '68 Chevelle 6.966 194.24 194.24
7 200C Chad Morrison, Statesville NC, '57 Chevy 7.040 187.68 187.68
8 288 Billy Vaughn, Knoxville TN, '95 Monte Carlo 7.044 193.02 193.02
9 3233 Bob Mandell, Culleoka TN, '57 Bel Air 7.104 190.16 190.16
10 2912 Sandy Wilkins, Mt. Ulla NC, '02 Cavalier 7.111 193.88 193.88
