Chris Holbrook finally defeated the undefeated Bo Butner in the ADRL SuperCar Showdown division on Saturday night at the Northeast Drags II at Maple Grove Raceway in Pennsylvania, earning his first win in the category and the third in a row for the Ford Mustang Cobra Jet.
The ADRL’s second visit to Maple Grove Raceway and the NHRA trail in Atlanta highlighted a busy weekend of racing that included the NMRA in Maryland, the IHRA Nitro Jam series in Louisiana, and action in the NHRA and IHRA divisional series.
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, Greg Anderson, and Eddie Krawiec were also winners in Atlanta.
Fresh off an exciting event in Bristol just two weeks ago, the stars of the American Drag Racing League head to the Northeast and the scenic Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, Pa. for the third event of the season – the Northeast Drags II.
NHRA racers no longer are in early-season mode. One-third of the campaign has passed, and as this weekend’s Summit Racing Equipment Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway approaches, they’re talking about mid-season conditions (usually meaning hot, sticky, greasy racing surfaces).
Mike Neff continued John Force Racing’s dominance in Funny Car Sunday at the 25th annual O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Spring Nationals at Royal Purple Raceway. Morgan Lucas (Top Fuel), Vincent Nobile (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also earned victories in Houston.
The ADRL’s first visit to the Bristol Dragway in Tennessee highlighted a weekend of racing that included the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series in Texas and Virginia, Fun Ford in Las Vegas, and the rescheduled Spring Sportsman Challenge in St. Louis.
At the Eastern Region opener at Virginia Motorsports Park, reigning Top Alcohol Dragster world champ Duane Shields put a disastrous start to his title defense behind him, outlasting a giant field for his first victory of the season, while Todd Veney drove to a close victory in Top Alcohol Funny Car.
The NMRA and NMCA combined for the first time this season for the NMRA/NMCA All Star Nationals at the Atlanta Dragway over the weekend, while the NHRA contested the Four-Wide Nationals in Charlotte. The IHRA Pro-Am series, the two-wheeled Manufacturers Cup, and the Super Chevy Show were also in action.
Funny Car racer Robert Hight continued his domination on Sunday as he scored his fourth win in five races at the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMax Dragway. Spencer Massey in Top Fuel, Greg Anderson in Pro Stock, and Mike Castellana in Pro Modified also secured wins at the fifth race of the 2012 season.
The cars and stars of the Flowmaster NMCA Muscle Car Nationals Series have converged on the Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, Ga. this weekend for their second event of the season, where they’ll be joined by the NMRA and the LSX Shootout special event series for the NMRA/NMCA All Star Nationals.
Dean Marinis used an .078 starting line advantage to offset Barry Mitchell’s slight edge in on-track performance last Sunday to win the Baer Brakes X275 Shootout to lead a long list of worthy winners at the 17th annual Holcomb Spring Civil Wars at Rockingham Dragway last weekend.
Shift-S3ctor’s Airstrip Attack – Half Mile Rolling Start Drag Racing
by Paul Huizenga
on April 6, 2012
The actual racing was 50′s-simple; from a rolling start, the cars accelerated at part throttle to a start cone a few hundred feet down the asphalt, pacing each other at whatever speed they’d agreed upon, then hit the throttle for a wide-open blast to the cone marking the finish line a half-mile distant.
Preview: The Spectacle That Is The NHRA 4-Wide Nationals, Apr. 13-15
by Andrew Wolf
on April 3, 2012
The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series returns to the xMax Dragway April 13-15 for the third annual NHRA 4-Wide Nationals, where the cars and stars of the world’s fastest motorsport will compete four abreast in the most unique and exciting racing event in the world.
The ADRL opened its 2012 season at the Royal Purple Raceway near Houston over the weekend, while the NHRA Full Throttle tour rolled through Las Vegas, the San Antonio Raceway hosted the IHRA Nitro Jam and Pro-Am Tour, and the Spring Outlaw Civil Wars went down at the Rockingham Dragway.
Robert Hight raced to his third consecutive Funny Car victory of the season Sunday at the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Spencer Massey (Top Fuel) and Allen Johnson (Pro Stock) also were winners at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event.
It’s the first race of the season for the ADRL in 2012 at their usual spot in Baytown, Texas. Keep it tuned to DragZine all day Friday and Saturday for all the new cars and racing highlights from Baytown.
In just her fourth start in a Top Alcohol Funny Car, rookie Annie Whitely got her first win, upsetting heavily favored Tony Bartone in the Las Vegas regional final. Whitetely’s fellow Regional winner – potentially her husband Jim – went undecided after a timing error nullified the final round contest
With the arrival of spring, drag racing has gotten into full swing around the country, as the IHRA Nitro Jam season opener in Tucson headlined a weekend that includes the NHRA Division 7 event in Las Vegas, IHRA Pro-Am’s in Florida and North Carolina, Super Chevy in Florida, and more.
Monday Race Report: NMCA And LSX Openers, NHRA SportsNats, And More!
by Andrew Wolf
on March 19, 2012
The NMCA and its accompanying LSX Shootout series kicked off their 2012 campaigns over the weekend in sunny Bradenton, Fla., as did the exciting MIRock motorcycle drag racing series in Rockingham, NC. The first of the NHRA’s sportsman national events, the Cajun SPORTSNationals, also commenced in Belle Rose, La.
