BROWN, HAGAN, NOBILE, ARANA JR. GRAB ROUTE 66 VICTORIES

For the second weekend in a row, Don Schumacher Racing swept the nitro podium as Antron Brown (Top Fuel) and Matt Hagan (Funny Car) collected victories Sunday at the Route 66 Raceway, joining Vincent Nobile (Pro Stock) and Hector Arana Jr. (Pro Stock Motorcycle) as professional winners of the O’Reilly Auto Parts Route 66 NHRA Nationals.

NHRA Route 66 Nationals

Matt Hagan snapped an 11-race winless streak in Funny Car on Sunday afternoon when he defeated his teammate, Tommy Johnson Jr., for the O’Reilly Auto Parts Route 66 NHRA Nationals crown at the Route 66 Raceway near Chicago, 4.09 to a 4.14. Hagan’s Top Fuel teammate at DSR, Antron Brown, won for the fourth time this season in Top Fuel, denying Brittany Force of her first career victory in a 3.81 to 3.85 final round match. In Pro Stock, Vincent Nobile notched his first win of 2014 with an impressive holeshot defeat of Jason Line, as he used a .004 light and a slower 6.65 to edge Line’s 6.63. And in Pro Stock Motorcycle, Hector Arana Jr. met his father, Hector Arana Sr., for the first time in a final round, and took the matchup by a 6.92 to 6.94 count.

Event Winners:

Top Fuel: Antron Brown
Funny Car: Matt Hagan
Pro Stock: Vincent Nobile
Pro Stock Motorcycle: Hector Arana Jr.
Top Alcohol Dragster: Chris Demke
Top Alcohol Funny Car: John Lombardo Jr.
Competition Eliminator: Troy Galbraith
Super Stock: Larry Hodge
Stock: Justin Lamb
Super Comp: Trevor Larson
Super Gas: Luke Bogacki
Super Street: Nick Folk

PDRA Summer Drags

In what could be called one of the most impressive streaks the sport has seen in quite some time, Jason Harris rolled to his fourth consecutive victory in Pro Nitrous on Saturday at the PDRA’s inaugural visit to the U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Michigan for the Summer Drags. With the victory, which came on a single when opponent Lizzy Musi broke on the starting line, Harris remains unbeaten, untied, and unscored upon since the PDRA debuted earlier this year. Randall Reid scored in Pro Extreme, using a stout 3.53 in the final to turn back Brandon Snider, and Eric Latino captured the hardware in Pro Boost over Todd Tutterow. In Extreme Pro Stock, Brian Gahm used a holeshot advantage and a 4.09-second lap to edge out Cary Goforth’s quicker 4.08, and Eric McKinney took Pro Extreme Motorcycle honors with a 4.08 versus opponent Dave Norris’ red-light in the final.

Event Winners:

Pro Extreme: Randall Reid
Pro Nitrous: Jason Harris
Extreme Pro Stock: Brian Gahm
Pro Boost: Eric Latino
Pro Extreme Motorcycle: Eric McKinney
Top Dragster: Jeff Mandell
Top Sportsman: Aaron Glaser
Pro Junior Dragster: Isaac Evans
Top Junior Dragster: Scottie Taylor

JEGS Allstars

After 29 years of trying, the NHRA’s West Central Division 5 team finally scored their first-ever title on Saturday at the prestigious JEGS Allstars battle at the Route 66 Raceway, with four of the categories won by racers out of America’s heartland, including Phil Unruh (Top Dragster), Brett Speer (Stock), Trevor Larson (Super Gas), and Roger Sauder (Super Street). All said, Division 5 beat out second-place Division 2 by 400 points in the final tally. On the regional side, Randy Meyer won the Allstars title in Top Alcohol Dragster, running 5.36 in the final to oust a slowing Joey Severance, and John Lombardo Jr. took down Dan Pomponio, 5.66 to 5.76. Lombardo later added a double-up bonus to his weekend winnings, as he scored the Route 66 Nationals crown a day later.

Event Winners:

Top Alcohol Dragster: Randy Meyer
Top Alcohol Funny Car: John Lombardo Jr.
Competition Eliminator: Greg Kamplain
Super Stock: Mike Crutchfield
Stock: Brett Speer
Super Comp: Ray Miller
Super Gas: Trevor Larson
Super Street: Rodger Sauder
Top Dragster: Phil Unruh
Top Sportsman: Jerry Albert

IHRA Division 9

The IHRA’s Division 9 Raiders competitors visited the Piedmont Dragway in North Carolina over the weekend, where Tim West led the list of Summit Pro-Am Tour winners with his victory in Top Sportsman at the wheel of his Monte Carlo, running dead-on the dial to defeat Donny Urban in the money round. Dennis Rinehardt did likewise in Top Dragster, running a dead-on 4.90 in the final to oust Brett Nesbitt. Brandon Peterson was the benefactor of a breakout run by James Stoneman in the Super Stock final, and Eddie Longhany Jr. outran Kevin Locklear in the Stock final to emerge victorious.

Event Winners: 

Top Sportsman: Tim West
Top Dragster: Dennis Rinehardt
Super Stock: Brandon Peterson
Stock: Eddie Longhany Jr.
Quick Rod: Franklin Dibartolomeo
Super Rod: Johnny Cobb
Hot Rod: Chris Webb
Junior Dragster Master: Blake Hickman
Junior Dragster Advanced: Blane Parrish
Junior Dragster Beginner: Hunter Moss