When you dominate from start to finish, the odds usually stack in one's favor. They were stacked pretty high from Mark Micke as he drove his way to the $32,000-to-win winner's purse at the U.S. Street Nationals presented by M&M Transmission Sunday night at Bradenton Motorsports Park. 

Micke fought his way through five rounds of eliminations and recorded a 3.609-second pass at 222.84 MPH in the final round to beat Ken Quartuccio and seal a second consecutive U.S. Street Nationals win. Quartuccio ran a 3.629-second, 208.14 MPH runner-up effort. 
 
The U.S. Street Nationals marked the season opener for the FuelTech Radial Outlaws Racing Series, which crowned winners in five drag radial classes. Joining Micke in the headlining winner's circle were Jason Collins (Pro 275) and Mark Meiering (X275).

Micke called his shot early behind the wheel of his twin-turbocharged M&M Transmission '69 Camaro with low 3.60-second passes in testing, and early qualifying sessions paved the way for a 3.57-second No. 1 qualifying effort in the final session. 

In the final round, Micke cut a .006 reaction time, but Quartuccio was also ready with a .026 light. Micke charged to a 3.609 at 222.84 to beat Quartuccio's 3.629 at 208.14. He collected $32,000 and a custom trophy for his efforts. 
 
"This is one of our biggest wins, period," Micke said. "I'm just so proud of my team because we never missed a run. We have been here since Tuesday. We never missed a run for anything falling off the car. The car was flawless. The team was just phenomenal. I don't even know how to put it. My guys are just young, and that makes it a lot more fun. We're a bunch of crusty old guys, and these young guys just kicked ass."

 
Micke worked his way through stout competition, including Scott Palmer, past PDRA Pro Boost world champion Tommy D'Aprile, Pro Modified heavy hitter Todd Tutterow, and Stan Shelton to advance to the finals. 
 
"I look back at the eliminations rounds, and it was a dream race for me," Micke said. "I got to race my buddy Scott Palmer in the first round. Unbelievable. I took out Tommy D'Aprile – badass champ. Third round against Todd Tutterow, that was my most nervous in the race car ever. I'm like, 'God, this dude, he's a badass.' Then we just kept it going. Stan Shelton he's just a machine too. Then, to run Ken, one of my best friends, in the final. We went into that final thinking if either car wins, it's a win for me. But man, I'm so happy for my guys. I'm more happy for them than anything.
 
"I just gotta thank all my people," Micke continued. "Of course, M&M Transmission, all the guys at the shop, my wife, Maria, and my kids Brooke and Lauren for putting up with all this craziness for the past 30-some years. I couldn't do it without them. I got my buddy Jason Carter here, so I have to thank him and all my guys: Bryce, Troy, Damon, Alec. I had had our family here, had some friends from Sweden. We brought on Harts Turbos. Pro Line Racing, TurboSmart, Rick Jones, Blake Housley – I could go on forever. We've just got the dream team, man."
 
For his part, Quartuccio had a first round single as Adam Flamholc couldn't make the call. He then beat Craig Sullivan, Snowbird Outlaw Nationals winner Lyle Barnett, and Mike Decker Jr. to advance to the finals. 
 
Collins, the defending Defending Radial Outlaws Pro 275 champion, wasted little time in his title defense. He didn't have the quickest car of every round, but his screw-blown Power System Services/Scott Tidwell Racing '69 Camaro had enough when it mattered. 

Collins stepped up in a big way in the final round. Collins and Brian McGee left the line with similar reaction times, but Collins' screw-blown machine soon pulled away from McGee's nitrous-assisted '67 Mustang. Collins set low E.T. of the event with his 3.669 at 206.48, while McGee made his best pass of the weekend, a 3.711 at 199.32. 

 
"Well, this is the race I didn't win [in 2023], so it was good to get this one in the trophy case," said Collins, who was runner-up at the 2023 U.S. Street Nationals. "These guys are all swinging at us. Every round, it's just, 'What do we got to do, what we gotta do?' We gotta keep stepping up, keep doing what we're doing, and trying to make good runs. These radial cars are kind of hit-and-miss, especially when we're running in the heat. Chris Terry is doing an awesome job, and Steve Petty and Brandon [Stroud], they're all involved in it at some point. Our whole group, we're all friends, and we do what it takes. It's fun to win with your friends. As anybody in drag racing will tell you, winning doesn't get old."
 
Meiering, the fourth quickest car in the field, didn't sneak up on anyone. But, admittedly, he was surprised to find himself in the winner's circle at the end of the weekend. His consistency earned him a ride to the final round, where he beat class icon Ron Rhodes in the final round. Meiering grabbed a sizable advantage on the starting line and ran a 4.224 at 175.50 while managing a 4.326 at 167.18 in his nitrous-fed '68 Camaro. 
 
"I wasn't expecting to be here, but it was a crazy path we took to get here," Meiering said from the winner's circle. "In the quarterfinals, I rode a big old wheelie and recovered and won by about a foot, then in the semis, I rode another wheelie, about hit the wall, recovered that, won that one, and then off to the finals. Simple enough, Ron's car didn't perform like he thought it would. Mine was a little bit down. We thought we were going to run about a 4.18. But you just never know in drag racing how it's going to turn out. It's just the way it goes."
 
Also taking home wins were Rob Goss (Limited Drag Radial), Shawn Pevlor (Ultra Street),  Louie Filippides (Limited 235), and Chris Holdorf (Outlaw 632). Brandon McGee won the Radial Remix over Steven Wardlow. The winners in the index classes were Jerry Norton in 5.50 Index, Pat Nanney in 6.50 Index, and Mickey Pearce in 7.50 Index. 

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