A special thanks to the presenting sponsor of our same day coverage, Mickey Thompson Performance Tires & Wheels. Whether it’s your daily driver, your tow vehicle, or your race car, Mickey Thompson’s rolling hardware has the looks and the competitive edge you’re looking for!
The last Sunday of NHRA’s Full Throttle Drag Racing 2012 season is here, and after yesterday’s final qualifying, there are some good championship races about to go down. In both Top Fuel and Funny Car, three racers each have a shot at the championship, while Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle were wrapped at the end of the day yesterday. Check out the action as it’s gone down so far, and stay tuned for more updates.
Image/s missing.
The morning started off with the presentation of championship trophies to Sportsman divisional winners from around the country (left). Then veteran announcer Bob Frey, who is retiring from NHRA today, was honored by NHRA President Tom Compton.
Image/s missing.
Two professional championships were wrapped up after qualifying, with Eddie Krawiec (left) winning Pro Stock Motorcycle and Allen Johnson (right) getting his first national championship in 17 years of trying.
The top three contenders that are still chasing the championship in Top Fuel, from left to right: Tony Schumacher, Antron Brown, and Spencer Massey.Ron Capps, Fast Jack Beckman, and Mike Neff (left to right) all still have a shot at the Funny Car title.
Image/s missing.
One of the biggest upsets in the first round was points leader and championship contender Antron Brown near lane facing fellow contender Spencer Massey. Massey got a very tiny advantage off the line, and then Brown's fueler popped a blower, deployed the chutes, and gave Antron some minor burns to his legs and hands. He has to sit and watch to see how Massey and The Sarge do in eliminations to see where the championship ends up. Jeff Arend beat the legend, John Force, in the first round when Force lost the hook. Arend then went to the second round where he lost to Jack Beckman, who is perhaps on his way to a championship, depending on how eliminations go.
Image/s missing.
Vince Nobile shocked the crowd, and his crew, when he beat Jason Line in the second round to move to the semis to face Erica Enders in Pro Stock. Tony "The Sarge" Schumacher took out JR Todd in the first round then Khalid alBalooshi's Al-Anabi car in the second round, where he's going to face Bob Vandergriff.
Mike Neff, part of John Force Racing's multi-car team, beat Paul Lee, then met Cruz Pedregon in the second round where he lost on a hole shot. Neff ran a quicker 4.058 to Cruz's 4.082, but the light did him in.Pedregon now has to face Beckman in the semis. If Courtney Force beats Ron Capps in the other pairing, regardless of whether or not he wins his round, Beckman will nab the championship.
Image/s missing.
Brandon Bernstein (left) and Schumacher both made it to the final round. Bernstein took out Clay Millican with an .076 light to an .081, but it never was a race as Millican went had to pedal it while the MavTV car in the opposite lane motored off to a wicked 3.793 at 322 mph.
Image/s missing.
Ron Capps' hopes for a title ended at the hands of Courtney Force. They were almost dead-even on the light, with Capps getting a mere .003 advantage, but the girl beat him to the stripe with a 4.069 at 318 to the Napa car's 4.091 at 313. That made Jack Beckman, who was strapped in his car behind them, the champion, his first ever. Erica Enders (shown here with her dad) made it to the semis after besting Shane Gray and V Gaines, but Pro Stock racer-on-a-tear Vince Nobile dispatched her to head to the finals. Erica finished fourth in points, showing that women are just as fast as men in a Pro Stock car.
Image/s missing.
The Top Alcohol class ran eliminations before the Pro cars, with Chris Demke's Uyehara-chassised car winning Top Alcohol Dragster over Jim Whiteley's YNot digger. In T/A Funny Car, it was John Lombardo's Monte carlo (far lane) over Tony Bartone's bright orange Mustang. Both races were decided by less than a hundredth at the finish line.
Pro Stock Motorcycle champion Eddie Krawiec waits for his final round against teammate Andrew Hines. Hines got the smaller Wally at this race, beating Kramiec with a 6.766 at 198 mph to the losing 6.805 at 197.As good as he was this weekend, Vince Nobile couldn't off the Allen Johnson juggernaut in the final of Pro Stock. The champ got a very small advantage on the tree, and ran a stellar 6.528 to Nobile's 6.533. That's two Wallys for Johnson (the event and overall championship) at the World Finals.
Image/s missing.
Left: With the Funny Car championship firmly in the hands of Beckman, who was already out thanks to Cruz Pedregon in the semis, the final round was still a nail-biter as the crowd was wondering if the former champ Pedregon would take the win, or if Courtney Force would win her second race in Funny Car. Courtney tree'd Cruz, but her TFX Hemi threw the wrong kind of fire out of the pipes all the way down, kicking its rods out and Pedregon motored off to a 4.03 at 306. Right: If Tony Schumacher beat Brandon Bernstein in the final round, he would have the championship. As they did their burnouts, Antron Brown stood with his family at the base of the tower, watching. He would be champ if Schumacher lost. It was a dead heat all the way. Antron said, 'I watched them go down and they were both lit the whole way. In weather conditions like this, you're walking such a fine line with that that sometimes you don't make it down. I saw Brandon's win light come on, and wasn't sure what to do so I just raised my arms.' Then it got crazy. The base of the tower around Antron exploded in applause when Bernstein beat Shumacker and Antron was mobbed by family, crew, fans, media, and everyone that could get to him. With this championship, Antron Brown not only gets his first one, but it's the first major championship in any high level of racing for an African American.
Image/s missing.
Left: Antron being presented his trophy. We've never seen a more joyful celebration over a Top Fuel Championship. Team owner Don Schumacher said, 'Tony's my son so I always want him to win. But I really wanted Antron and his crew to get this one. They worked so hard for it.' Teammate and Funny Car champ Beckman was there to hug Antron before he went on stage. Right: Your class champions at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing World Finals. From left to right are Allen Johnson, Cruz Pedregon, Brandon Bernstein, and Andrew Hines. And finally, your 2012 World Champions. From left to right: Allen Johnson, Fast Jack Beckman, Downtown Antron Brown, and Eddie Krawiec. Congratulations to the drivers and their entire teams for a season well done.
Image/s missing.
The finals points in the 2012 season.
Today’s action will feature the final two professional qualifying sessions that will set the fields for the season-ending Auto Club NHRA Finals here in Pomona. As we have on the previous two days, Dragzine will have all the news, notes, and photos from warm and sunny southern California.
A special thanks to the presenting sponsor of our same day coverage, Mickey Thompson Performance Tires & Wheels. Whether it’s your daily driver, your tow vehicle, or your race car, Mickey Thompson’s rolling hardware has the looks and the competitive edge you’re looking for!
If you watched Friday's qualifying session, you saw Fast Jack Beckman's engine let go (it apparently was a piston failure). The crew immediately put on a new body and serviced the car, and Beckman went out and bumped Courtney Force out of the number one qualifying spot with a 4.025 at 319 mph. Saturday morning, they're getting the car ready to defend that top spot.
Vince Nobile's saluted to NHRA's long-time announcer, Bob Frey.Mike Salinas sits on the bump spot in Top Fuel, but we were most impressed custom truck that pulls the team's hospitality trailer. The custom Pete has a detailed and chromed Cat engine, and more custom tricks and paint than most show cars.The best part about attending an NHRA National Event is the ability to get up close and personal with cool race parts. These are all cylinder head/header sets getting ready for Johnny Gray's fuel digger. We want one to just hang on the wall of our living room.
Chris "The Greek" Karamesines is in his mid-80s and is still doing it Top Fuel style. He missed making the field though.Antron Brown has a 65 point lead over Tony Schumacher, but had issues and qualified 10th to The Sarge's fourth. This could make for an interesting eliminations.Ron Capps waited until the last qualifying round Saturday afternoon to pull out 4.007 at 319, one-thousandth of a second quicker than Cruz Pedregon.Jason Line qualified on top of Pro Stock, with his teammate Greg Anderson (far lane) taking the number 3 spot, sandwiching Allen Johnson's Mopar in final qualifying.Last year's number 3 points finisher Andrew Hines ran a 6.809 at 196 mph to take the top qualifier spot over last year's Pro Stock Motorcycle champ and current points leader Eddie Krawiec. Both are on Harley-Davidson V-Rods.
Image/s missing.
Image/s missing.
After 22 races and tens of thousands of miles criss-crossing the nation, the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season comes down to this: the traditional season finale Auto Club NHRA Finals at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona. The first five races in the Countdown to the Championship have set up an epic battle amongst the Don Schumacher Racing camps, and it will all be decided this weekend as the curtain closes on the 2012 season and the Full Throttle era. Join us all weekend long as we bring you the sights of drag racing’s final hurrah of what’s been an incredible season.
A special thanks to the presenting sponsor of our same day coverage, Mickey Thompson Performance Tires & Wheels. Whether it’s your daily driver, your tow vehicle, or your race car, Mickey Thompson’s rolling hardware has the looks and the competitive edge you’re looking for!
After 15 years of being out of the cockpit of a Pro Stock car, Jerry Eckman is back behind the wheel. His first race back in 2012 was Indy, "I've got 5 runs on the car in fifteen years, Eckman exclaimed. "And it feels FAST. We were running low 6.90s at 198 when I left. Now we are going 6.68 at 205. I felt like I was being picked up by a jet flying by with a grappling hook." Keep an eye out for a future article with Jerry here on Dragzine.Courtney Force's crew in the JFR camp prepare her Funny Car for the second round of qualifying. Courtney currently leads the Funny Car qualifying with a 4.032 at 315.93 mph run. “This was kind of surreal, coming out here and remembering what it was like (at her first race) in February, when I was so sick to my stomach,” Force said. “I’ve got a great car and a great team. Running a 4.03 the first lap out is amazing. I’m hoping it hold up for No. 1. That would be pretty awesome.”Antron Brown is eagerly waiting to make his first run of the weekend in Funny Car. Brown currently leads the Top Fuel points over Tony Schumacher and Spencer Massey and is looking to end up in the final round this weekend as he did at the Pomona season opener.
Qualifying Round 2 Notes
Image/s missing.
Image/s missing.
Antron Brown's new tow vehicle, dubbed the 'DragQuoia' was revealed to the public at last week's SEMA show. This badass Sequioa comes complete with a TRD supercharged 5.7-liter that makes an estimated 650hp. Believe it or not, the carbon fiber Aerodine injector hat is functional. While this truck still looks faster than it is, it's by far the coolest tow vehicle on the property.
Andrew Hines distanced himself in the second round of Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying by bettering his 6.872 pass with a 6.838 at 196.10 mph. Other significant jumps in qualifying included LE Tonglet rising from 9th to 5th and Chip Ellis' DQed run was replaced with a 9th place pass.As yesterday we talked about how Jason Line had out performed teammate Greg Anderson by a large margin, we were sure that Anderson was looking for a way to change that. While Jason Line (pictured above) did slightly improve on his round one attempt, it was Anderson who pushed his teammate back to third with his number one qualifying pass of a 6.527 at 211.76 mph. Soon to be crowned Pro Stock champion Allen Johnson still sits in second.
Image/s missing.
(Left) Del Worsham watches Jack Beckman's explosion on the big screen while the NHRA crew preps the track for Top Fuel Funny Car. (Right) Running his unscathed chassis and back up body, Jack Beckman blasted to the number one qualifying spot. 'These are the things that you dream of,' said Beckman, who is going for the fifth pole of the year and ninth in his career. 'You don't think of blowing a car up that bad but when you do you think, Would that be unbelievable for this team to come back and go to the top. That's not practical most of the time. I thought they might give us a (4.07 or 4.08) and we'd be back to our baseline tune-up and could lean on it (Saturday).'
Missing an eye brow from the fire, Beckman still went on to talk to parents about safe driving for their teens.The entire Top Fuel class was eager to start their first round of qualifying after yesterday's rain out. Lucas attributes the solid 3.761 at 324.98 mph pass to being aggressive on his tune up. "A lot of people, because of looking at the weather forecast, were a little more conservative than they probably would be," Lucas said. "We're just happy to be in this position because it lets us have a chance to try some things tomorrow." But Lucas says that while this time was good, there is more to be had, "We're having a problem with the car not wearing as much clutch as we normally would, and it's been consistent in that regard," Lucas said. "That run, for example, it didn't wear nearly as much as we wanted to in the clutch, and that affects how it locks up in the middle and how it's going to run to the middle of the race track."
Image/s missing.
(Left) Spencer Massey is currently the top qualifier out of the top three drivers (Brown, Schumacher, and Massey) currently in the battle for the championship with a 4th spot 3.791 at 325.69 mph run. Brown currently sits in 6th and Schumacher in 9th.
After 22 races and tens of thousands of miles criss-crossing the nation, the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season comes down to this: the traditional season finale Auto Club NHRA Finals at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona. The first five races in the Countdown to the Championship have set up an epic battle amongst the Don Schumacher Racing camps, and it will all be decided this weekend as the curtain closes on the 2012 season and the Full Throttle era. Join us all weekend long as we bring you the sights of drag racing’s final hurrah of what’s been an incredible season.
A special thanks to the presenting sponsor of our same day coverage, Mickey Thompson Performance Tires & Wheels. Whether it’s your daily driver, your tow vehicle, or your race car, Mickey Thompson’s rolling hardware has the looks and the competitive edge you’re looking for!
It seems like a problem we can't get away from for the last few years here at Pomona, and that problem is rain. There has been some heads up qualifying shuffling today for Sportsman racers and the Pro classes have been pushed back slightly.It's historic NHRA announcer Bob Frey's last race behind the mic. Frey got his start announcing at Atco Raceway in 1966 and has been doing it before classes like Top Fuel Funny Car and Pro Stock have even existed. We will all miss hearing that familiar voice, but we are glad he is able to kick back and enjoy the retired lifestyle.
Image/s missing.
Dragzine sponsored driver and McLeod Racing owner Paul Lee is competing in his second race of the 2012 season. Lee, who secured a two race agreement with Gary Densham, made it to the quarter finals in Vegas where he defeated Robert Hight. Lee lost in the second round to Courtney Force, running a close 4.205 at 283.97 mph to Force's 4.128 at 312.42 mph.
Qualifying Round 1
John Force watches on as the rest of the Funny Car teams try to get down the track during the first round of qualifying. It was a tricky round for Top Fuel as only 6 of the 22 cars actually made it down the track, with 3 being from the JFR camp.Jack Beckman was the last pass of Funny Car's qualifying round 1 and the run went out with a bang. Less than a hundred feet before Beckman's Valvoline NextGen Dodge Charger R/T reached the finish line, his engine exploded and destroyed the carbon fiber body. Despite that, Beckman recorded an elapsed time of 4.117 seconds at a slowing 273.00 mph that was the fifth best run of the day. Pieces of the body ended up in the stands where fans collected the souvenir pieces. Photo by: David Hakim
Image/s missing.
After Beckman's crash, it began to rain again. Top Fuel teams began to put rain jackets on their hot rods, and were eventually told to return to the pits. As of 4:53pm PST, the round has been called. Courtney Force was one of the few that made it down the track under full throttle, which netted her the current number one qualifying position with a 4.032 at 315.93 mph. Team mate Mike Neff sits in second place with a 4.062 at 313.66 mph run.
Pro Stock
Allen Johnson has all but locked up the Pro Stock championship and will officially take the number one spot at the conclusion of Saturday's qualifying round...as long as he doesn't get disqualified. He currently sits in the number one qualifying spot as well by .004 over Jason Line.Jason Line's teammate Greg Anderson didn't fair so well in his 2012 Camaro by qualifying outside the bump with a 6.969 at 161.87 mph.
Pro Stock Motorcycle
Pro Stock Motorcycle started off the pro rounds for Thursday. They are the only pro class that only runs in Pomona one time a year.Pro Stock Motorcycle drivers get to be the only class that can safely practice their launches as they wait to race.
It isn't a big surprise for us to announce Harley teammates Andrew Hines (6.872 at 196.04 mph) and Eddie Krawiec (6.874 at 196.19 mph) are currently qualifying one and two.
