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NHRA Communications
06/28/2008 - 06:34 PM
Norwalk, Ohio
"Hot Rod" Fuller bested the rest of the Top Fuel field to claim pole for Sunday eliminations. (NHRA photo) ยป More Photos
A day that began at Summit Motorsports Park under the threat of rain and was twice interrupted by rainshowers concluded with a thunderous final hour of qualifying and racing in which the top spot changed hands in all four Pro classes to set the final qualified fields for the 2nd annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals. Jason Line was the star of the show as the Summit-backed driver stole the No. 1 spot in the Pro Stock field with a last-ditch blast to secure his second pole position of the season.
Vance & Hines Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson rider Eddie Krawiec collected his first No. 1 qualifier honors in Pro Stock Motorcycle and was joined atop the sheets by Rod Fuller in Top Fuel and Robert Hight in Funny Car.
Fuller was the last of three drivers who improved on Tony Schumacher’s first-session-leading 4.703, as his 4.622 from his Rob Flynn-tuned Cat dragster took the top spot from Cory McClenathan, who had taken it from Brandon Bernstein, the first driver to relieve Schumacher of the top spot. The pole is Fuller’s first of the season and the seventh of his career.
“This a great place to race and where we started our charge last year,” said Fuller, who set the still-standing 4.53 track record here last year in qualifying and was runner-up. “That actually was a better run than it ended up because it dropped some cylinders and slowed at the other end. Rob asked me what I wanted him to do with the tune-up, and I told him to go for it. There are only 16 cars, and I’d rather go down swinging than just make a mediocre run and qualify in the middle of the pack.
"We knew what the track was capable of, and our only hindrance was the weather, which takes away a little horsepower, but we felt we could run a 4.50, and I think it’s going to take 4.50s to win it tomorrow.”
McClenathan, whose Mike Green-tuned Fram dragster sat on the pole earlier this season in Atlanta, is second with a 4.63, while Bernstein’s Bud machine is third with a 4.644, just ahead of longtime rival Larry Dixon’s 4.647 in the U.S. Smokeless entry. World champ Schumacher ended up eighth as his final effort in the U.S. Army digger ended in tire smoke 300 feet into the run.
Doug Kalitta sits on the bump spot after two troubled runs that netted a best pass of just 7.36 from his Mac Tools rail. He’ll square off with Fuller in the first round.
Hight’s Jimmy Prock-tuned Automobile Club of Southern California Mustang charged to the head of the pack with a 4.882 in the middle of the final session, improving from an earlier 5.06
“We’ve come here for a lot of years match racing, and I actually got to make a lot of runs here before I ever compete at a national event, so this place has a lot of meaning for us,” said Hight, who previously sat on the pole in Las Vegas and, like Fuller, was No. 1 here last year, “but it’s also kind of hard to get fired up and excited after what happened last week [the death of fellow competitor Scott Kalitta] because you kind of feel like, ‘How should I even be able to celebrate because there are other teams out here who don’t have anything to celebrate.
“That’s the first run in a long time that my car has made where it ran really good all the way to the finish line. It didn’t drop cylinders and was nice and clean, but it’s only one run, and we need to make four Sunday to put ourselves in the position to win. Jimmy Prock and my whole team have worked so hard because we’ve torn up a lot of motors and parts this year, but it threw us a bone tonight. Wilkerson has been running away with the points this year, but if we have a good-running racecar when they reset the points, we can run right with him.”
Ron Capps also improved in the final session, racing his Ed McCulloch-wrenched NAPA Auto Parts Charger to the No.2 spot with a 4.909 after a earlier 5.00. He’s followed in the order by points leader Tim Wilkerson, whose Levi, Ray & Shoup Chevy led after the first session but slid to third with his earlier 4.910, while rookie Bob Tasca III’s Quick Lane Mustang galloped up one spot to a 4.93.
Rookie of the year frontrunner Mike Neff, a No. 1 qualifier earlier this year in Bristol, just missed his second DNQ of the season after finishing 16th after a two-run best of 5.20. He’ll face off with teammate Hight in the opening stanza Sunday with the winner facing a possible second-round bash with their other teammate, Ashley Force.
Funny Car drivers Gary Scelzi and Melanie Troxel were disqualified from the event after NHRA Tech officials discovered loose ballast in their cars following their qualifying runs in the first session. According to page 74 of the NHRA Rulebook, “any material used for the purpose of racing must be permanently attached to the car’s body or above the rear tires. No liquid or loose ballast permitted. Discovery of loose or disguised ballast will result in the disqualification from the event, regardless of whether infraction occurs during qualifying or eliminations.”
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