EVENT RESULTS EVENT NOTEBOOK ROUND-BY-ROUND RESULTS			SATURDAY GALLERY SUNDAY GALLERY

 SUNDAY NOTEBOOK - 

EMAN HEADLINES ADRL WINNERS IN CORDOVA

Americans usually travel to Aruba for a good time of vacationing and partying. But when you're an Aruban, you get creative in your escape.

A group of Arubans and their favorite son, Trevor Eman found Cordova, Ill., the perfect escape from the beautiful beaches of Aruba.

“I don’t think it could get any better for us.,” said Eman, who drives a Jon Kaase-powered Mustang sponsored by the Aruban Department of Tourism. “Qualified number 1, we back to back qualified number 1 because we qualified in the one in Valdosta but didn’t get to race. Finished the race here in front of family and friends from Aruba, it was spectacular. “

A native Aruban, Eman delivered his first career Extreme Pro Stock national event victory when he beat Pete Berner off of the line and to the finish line en route to the ADRL Spring Drags title. A .014 starting line advantage and a 4.136, 174.23

Eman defeated Brian Gahm and John Pluchino to reach the final round.
Jason Scruggs thundered to the Pro Extreme victory by running a 3.680, 205.63, and when coupled with a .006 reaction was well more than Brandon Snider could overcome with his 3.769.  This came after qualifying at 2 PM on Saturday, and flying back to Dupa, Miss., by 6 PM to attend his daughter’s   graduation.

“I’m great, it’s been a good day,” said Scruggs. “Everyone at the track was a little marginal this weekend and we just kind of set up to go down it and with the drivers racing, we just kind of lucked up. We had a few lucky breaks along the way. That’s what it takes in this level of competition now-a-days though, you have to have a lucky run or two.“

John Camp was the big winner in Pro Nitrous as he overcame a quicker reaction time by Mike Castellana to win with a 4.021, 185.21.

“We had trouble making the car go any faster. We’d get the tune up in it and try a little more and it just kept slowing down and slowing down. But we kept going down the track.,” said Camp.

In a classic case of winning the battle but losing the war, Jamie Hancock knocked off No. 1 qualifier Dan Stevenson in the final round but ended up crashing his car in the shutdown area.  Hancock ran a 3.978, 185.89 to seal the victory but ended up into the wall when his parachute deployed. He was uninjured.

Other Cordova winners included Eric McKinney [PXM], Dan Oldham [TD] and Curt Frederich [TS].  Scott Lindle won a special TS/TD combo race on Sunday.

SATURDAY NOTEBOOK - HOSSLER, JACKSON NAIL TOP HONORS

A pair of Al-Anabi Racing drivers headlined the top qualifiers in the premiere categories at the ADRL Spring Drags in Cordova, Ill. Alex Hossler [Pro Extreme] and Steve Jackson [Pro Nitrous] carry the No. 1 seeds into Sunday's final eliminations.

Hossler, driving a supercharged 1969 Camaro, thundered to a 3.677, 204.48 in the final session to snatch the top spot away from Brandon Snider, who led the first three sessions.

“We struggled a lot in testing,” said Hossler. “We struggled here in qualifying and got down the track on the first run. It ran a 3.71, which was nothing like what we wanted. The track threw us a lot of curveballs. I wouldn’t say we hit it on the final run, but we got a lot closer than what we had been running.

“We made some adjustments to help the car maneuver through the bumps,” Hossler admitted. “It seemed to work well, and we appear to have more left in the car. The back-half was slow at 204 miles per hour. We have room for improvement."

Unlike Hossler's last minute heroics, Jackson scored the top spot from the opening session. His 3.905,  192.28 held through four sessions on a track he described as tricky.

“I have had my butt-whipped today,” Jackson admitted. “It feels like I have been in a fist-fight for the last eight hours.

“This is the first time we’ve raced this car in warm weather. We are kind of getting a handle on it. We went out first round and ran 3.900 for No. 1. We are happy about that. The second session we had an engine snafu and had to change engines. We have had mechanical stuff here and there, and as a result, my guys have been working their butts off for No. 1 qualifier and I am happy for them."

Native Aruban Trevor Eman proved his No. 1 qualifying effort at the rain-cancelled ADRL Geargia Drags was no fluke. In a similar fashion, Eman nailed the quickest run in the first session. This time a 4.099,  175.98 was enough to beat out Richard Penland.

Eman, a native Aruban, has a score of family and friends in attendance this weekend in Cordova, Ill.

“My uncle is the Prime Minister of Aruba and he’s here,” said Eman. “I have uncles, cousins and friends from St. Louis. We have a gang from Aruba cheering us on. If there was a good day for this happen, it was today.”

For the third time this season, Dan Stevenson will lead the Pro Modified division into race day. Stevenson took the top spot, even though his 3.926  191.67 wasn't his quickest run of the weekend. In testing, he made his first trip into the 3.80s with a 3.89.

“Today went pretty well,” Stevenson said. “This is the third race in a row that we’ve been No. 1 qualifier. We had our best run in testing on Friday, a 3.89, our first 3.80 pass. We are happy with that. The car has been running really well. Charles Carpenter put a good tune-up in it and we are ready for Sunday.”

Other No. 1 qualifiers included Eric McKinney (PXM, 4.089,  172.83), Rick Verkler (TD, 4.268,  162.55) and Aaron Glaser (TS, 4.055,  179.18).     

SHAKE UP AT THE TOP -- With his last qualifying pass down the Cordova Dragway Park eighth mile at the ADRL Spring Drags May 18, Alex Hossler jumped up from fifth place to steal away the number-one spot in Pro Extreme from Brandon Snider, who had held the position since the morning session. Snider had one last chance to respond, but couldn't quite match the 3.677 at 204.48 Hossler posted in his Frank-Manzo-tuned, Al-Anabi Racing '68 Camaro. Snider's 3.682 at 203.00 from round one held up for second, while 2012 series champ Mick Snyder placed third with the 3.698 at 206.23 he ran alongside Hossler in the final session.     

CASTELLANA CATCHES UP -- Steve Jackson's 3.905 from the opening round of Pro Nitrous qualifying held up for the top spot at the ADRL Spring Drags in Cordova, IL, but going into the fourth and final round his Al-Anabi teammate Mike Castellana had yet to make a solid pass. That changed in 3.969 seconds, though, as Castellana slotted into the second position, followed by Josh Green, John Camp and Jennifer Green for Sunday's elimination rounds.

EMAN NO. 1 AGAIN -- For the second-straight ADRL event, Trevor Eman finished atop the Extreme Pro Stock qualifying list as his 4.099 at 175.98 mph from the opening session May 18, at Cordova Dragway Park held up through four rounds. John Montecalvo's 4.103 at a class-leading 176.03 mph placed him second, with Richard Penland third in the eight-car field with a 4.105 at 175.23 mph.

SETTING PRIORITIES -- Former back-to-back Pro Extreme champ Jason Scruggs had to take off early today--quite literally--after making two qualifying passes for the ADRL Spring Drags IV presented by Curry's Transportation Services at Cordova Dragway Park. Apparently his young daughter is in a performance back home in Saltillo, MS, so as soon as Scruggs laid down a 3.707 at 204.91 in Saturday's second of three qualifying sessions to place third on the list, he hightailed it to the nearest airport for a quick flight home, but will be back in time for eliminations on Sunday.

NOT THE USUAL LEADER -- After one round of Pro Extreme qualifying for the ADRL Spring Drags IV presented by Curry's Transportation Services, Brandon Snider secured the number-one spot with a career-best 3.682 at exactly 203 mph in his Joey Martin-built '63 Corvette. In second place with a 3.705 at 204.79 was defending class champ Mick Snyder, followed by 2006 PX champ Bubba Stanton at 3.715 and 205.26 mph.

TURBO-NAL VELOCITY -- After making a 3.77 test pass at 211 mph yesterday at Cordova Dragway Park, Eric Dillard set top speed in round one of Pro Extreme qualifying for the ADRL Spring Drags IV presented by Curry's Transportation Services with a seventh-place 3.831 at 209.52 mph in the "El General" twin-turbocharged '69 Camaro owned by Dominican racer Jose Gonzalez.

ROOKIE PN LEADER -- After just five cars made hits in the first two rounds of Pro Nitrous qualifying in Cordova, the Al-Anabi Racing '68 Camaro driven by series newcomer Steve Jackson led the way with a 3.905 at 192.28 mph.

 NO FLUKE HERE -- Proving his number-one qualifying performance early this month at the rained-out ADRL Georgia Drags was well-earned, Aruba's Trevor Eman ran 4.099 at 175.98 to again take the top spot in Extreme Pro Stock's first qualifying round at Cordova Raceway Park. Further cementing his new-found role as a class leader, Eman drove his Aruba.com 2001 Mustang to a 4.109 lap at 174.46 in the second session, which again represented low ET for the round.