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NHRA
NHRA: Massey Wins All-DSR Top Fuel Finals In Vegas
Massey won in a face-off against Don Schumacher Racing teammate Antron Brown in the finals of theNHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas.
Spencer Massey was happy to come out on top of the internecine Top Fuel battle at DSR. (Photo: NHRA)
Spencer Massey knew it was time to be selfish.
Massey faced off against Don Schumacher Racing teammate Antron Brown in the finals of the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, but the usual sharing of information between DSR teams ended the moment they won their semifinal races.
"We do share stuff, but whenever we're going to run each other, trust me, nobody shares anything from team to team," Massey said. "We want to beat them just as bad as we want to beat anybody else out there in the category."
Massey did just that, outrunning Brown in the Top Fuel final to score his second victory of the season. Massey's Fram dragster went 3.830 seconds at 323.89 mph to get the better of Brown, who went 3.849 seconds at 315.96 mph.
Brown had roared into the finals after making the quickest pass of the weekend in the second round in taking out another DSR driver, Tony Schumacher. But Massey said crew chiefs Todd Okuhara and Phil Shuler weren't gunning for that number – or any kind of record number.
"There's one thing that's most important, for me, (and that) is getting the car into the winner's circle," Massey said. "We go up there not thinking about who we're going to run, beating a teammate or beating an Al-Anabi car. We go up there to win our round, not trying to beat ourselves.
"That was our gameplan all day long. We're not going to go try and set low ET, we're not going to try to beat ourselves."
Massey's dragster was solid all race, though the driver stepped up with a holeshot victory over Steve Torrence in the semifinals. He then faced Brown for the Wally, and though Brown seemed to have the quicker car, Massey's team stuck to its gameplan.
"Truthfully, we were trying to ruin an .80 or an .81," Massey said. "But it doesn't really matter as long as that win light comes on."
The win light has been coming on a lot for Robert Hight this season, as his Las Vegas victory was his third in a row. This one came from the No. 1 qualifying position, as Hight became the first driver to win Vegas' Spring race from the pole.
The last time Hight qualified No. 1, at Pomona in the season-opener, he lost in the first round. Clearly, Vegas brought him more luck.
"Being No. 1 qualifier there was definitely a curse," Hight said. "But I don't look at it as a curse. I believe you make your own luck. Most of the team you lose out here you beat yourself. There are no underdogs. Anybody can win in this class. It just shows you, that no No. 1 qualifier had ever won here. Not that many people have even repeated here.
"This class has never been this close. It's exciting. It even makes winning three in a row all that much more special."
Like Massey, Hight made four solid passes, eventually taking out No. 2 qualifier Bob Tasca III in the finals. Hight's pass was 4.154 seconds at 312.93 mph to Tasca's 4.213 at 292.14 mph.
Allen Johnson scored his first victory of the season in Pro Stock, beating Vincent Nobile in an all-Dodge final. Johnson's last victory came in Denver last year.
"We had a very consistent race car," Johnson said. "It was fast all weekend. I'd said the driver needs to do his job every round, and we'll have a chance to be in the final, for sure."
Johnson, who had been ousted by Larry Morgan in the first round of the last two races, was good on the Christmas Tree in his four runs. Nobile was, too, and then pulled off a .008-second reaction time in the finals, to Johnson's .033.
But Johnson's Mopar Dodge ran Nobile down, winning with a lap of 6.648 seconds at 207.30 mph. beating Nobile's 6.738 at 207.53 mph.
Massey faced off against Don Schumacher Racing teammate Antron Brown in the finals of the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, but the usual sharing of information between DSR teams ended the moment they won their semifinal races.
"We do share stuff, but whenever we're going to run each other, trust me, nobody shares anything from team to team," Massey said. "We want to beat them just as bad as we want to beat anybody else out there in the category."
Massey did just that, outrunning Brown in the Top Fuel final to score his second victory of the season. Massey's Fram dragster went 3.830 seconds at 323.89 mph to get the better of Brown, who went 3.849 seconds at 315.96 mph.
Brown had roared into the finals after making the quickest pass of the weekend in the second round in taking out another DSR driver, Tony Schumacher. But Massey said crew chiefs Todd Okuhara and Phil Shuler weren't gunning for that number – or any kind of record number.
"There's one thing that's most important, for me, (and that) is getting the car into the winner's circle," Massey said. "We go up there not thinking about who we're going to run, beating a teammate or beating an Al-Anabi car. We go up there to win our round, not trying to beat ourselves.
"That was our gameplan all day long. We're not going to go try and set low ET, we're not going to try to beat ourselves."
Massey's dragster was solid all race, though the driver stepped up with a holeshot victory over Steve Torrence in the semifinals. He then faced Brown for the Wally, and though Brown seemed to have the quicker car, Massey's team stuck to its gameplan.
"Truthfully, we were trying to ruin an .80 or an .81," Massey said. "But it doesn't really matter as long as that win light comes on."
The win light has been coming on a lot for Robert Hight this season, as his Las Vegas victory was his third in a row. This one came from the No. 1 qualifying position, as Hight became the first driver to win Vegas' Spring race from the pole.
The last time Hight qualified No. 1, at Pomona in the season-opener, he lost in the first round. Clearly, Vegas brought him more luck.
"Being No. 1 qualifier there was definitely a curse," Hight said. "But I don't look at it as a curse. I believe you make your own luck. Most of the team you lose out here you beat yourself. There are no underdogs. Anybody can win in this class. It just shows you, that no No. 1 qualifier had ever won here. Not that many people have even repeated here.
"This class has never been this close. It's exciting. It even makes winning three in a row all that much more special."
Like Massey, Hight made four solid passes, eventually taking out No. 2 qualifier Bob Tasca III in the finals. Hight's pass was 4.154 seconds at 312.93 mph to Tasca's 4.213 at 292.14 mph.
Allen Johnson scored his first victory of the season in Pro Stock, beating Vincent Nobile in an all-Dodge final. Johnson's last victory came in Denver last year.
"We had a very consistent race car," Johnson said. "It was fast all weekend. I'd said the driver needs to do his job every round, and we'll have a chance to be in the final, for sure."
Johnson, who had been ousted by Larry Morgan in the first round of the last two races, was good on the Christmas Tree in his four runs. Nobile was, too, and then pulled off a .008-second reaction time in the finals, to Johnson's .033.
But Johnson's Mopar Dodge ran Nobile down, winning with a lap of 6.648 seconds at 207.30 mph. beating Nobile's 6.738 at 207.53 mph.
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