It’s the last major, and certainly largest, doorslammer drag race of the year this weekend in Vegas for Street Car Super Nationals. From 46 Pro Street to 26 Outlaw 8.5 cars, the classes are packed. With cool, overcast weather look for some record breaking runs this weekend.
This all couldn’t be possible without our event coverage sponsor Mickey Thompson Tires. Please take a minute to go check out their latest wheel and tire technology via their website.
It's race day with Pro Street in the lanes! Needless to say, we all hope that the day goes smoother from a race day perspective.
Eliminations Round 1 Results
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Eliminations Notes
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Steve Matusek's weekend would come to an end when he would suffer massive tire shake right off the hit, which sent him into a violent spin into the wall. Matusek did a good job slowing the car down before the hit and only suffered minor damage.
Concluding his burnout, Mike Bowman was unable to get his car into reverse and had to abort his run.
Jose Gonzalez' Pro Mod runs like a true bracket car, continuing along with the 5.7X passes which netted him the fastest run of first round. Since Walsh was eliminated in round two, our current prediction is that the Pro Street final round will be Coughlin and Gonzalez.While we all figured it was going to be a Don Walsh Jr versus Jose Gonzalez final round race in Pro Street, Walsh's day was unexpectedly cut short in the second round when a turbo flange clamp came off during his burnout. This gave the win to Clint Hariston who ran his best run of the weekend with a 6.070 at 251.16 mphJeff Lutz' beautiful Camaro would succumb to wall damage after oil from Lutz' breather ended up under his wheels. This gave Rob Cacioppo the win with a 6.148 at 229.98 mph.Glidden's backfire during qualifying yesterday would be an unfortunate preview to what came today during the first round of Outlaw 10.5. At around the eighth mile marker, smoke could be seen trailing out of Glidden's Mustang. Stopping on the top end, the safety crew would have to put out the engine fire for him. Glidden suffered from a pair of melted carbs and was unable to get the car fixed for the second round.On the way into the track today we saw Shawn Fink's super cool Outlaw 10.5 Nova wagon on the side of the road (yes, you heard that right) with the rear tires off the car. After a two hour affair to fix the tubes in his slicks, he made it to the track. "It must have been the burnout I did on Fremont Street last night that did it," Fink laughed.Last night Murillo's last qualifier pass was cut short by a transmission that wouldn't go into high gear. All of that was fixed today and went on to win against tuner Brian Macy's beautiful Camaro. Macy's car is still new to him and he has been creeping up on his combination slowly.The MMR crew with their Pro Street Mustang out of contention put the pressure on Mark Luton to go rounds on behalf of the company. The team had struggled with the Coyote-powered Mustang all weekend but seemed to get the car sorted better during round one. Luton would be .057 on the tree against Arnie Fisher's .176 and Luton would loose it at the strip by a margin of .003.
WIllard Kinzer continued to mop up the Extreme Drag Radial field through the second round of eliminations where he ran a 6.588 at an unbelievable 234.61 mph against Neil Richards.Al Jimenez would have a bitter sweet first two rounds of eliminations. During the first round Jimenez would become the first leaf spring-equipped doorslammer to run a 6-second quarter mile with a 6.993 at 206.83 mph. In the second round Jimenez would face off against Rich Hoyle where he would get out of shape, giving the 7.433 at 183.34 mph win to Hoyle.
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Neil Richards and Brant Palmer would win the pedalfest of the round award. Palmer's Camaro would begin to wheelstand right off the hit while slightly down track Brant's car would begin to come up. As both bounced their way down the quarter mile, it would be Richards who would edge out the win with a 8.205 at 171.45 to Palmer's 8.250 at 189.36
The run to talk about in Hot Street was Michael DeMayo's fastest run of the weekend - a 8.193 at 163.28 mph run during the second round.It was a sloppy round in Wild Street - plagued by broken car no shows and bad reaction times. During the first round only two of the five races had both competitors racing. By the second round, it would be Artis Houston who had a competition single that would advance to the semis. The other two would be Kevin Young over Mike Orban and Jeff Young over Warren Saunders.
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The excitement never ends in Vegas as Aaron Wells' engine let go slightly past the 330 foot cone. What started as just smoke steadily developed into a full fledged fire. As Wells crossed the stripe, the car begin to spin in the middle of the track, coming to a rest without crashing into the wall.
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Jeff Young, with wheels in the air, defeated Artis Houston in the semi final round of Wild Street with a 7.598 at 187.70 mph to Houston's 8.041 at 177.93. It will be an all-Young final in Wild Street with brother Kevin not showing up, handing the win to Jeff.
In a holeshot victory upset in Hot Street, Victor Brum beat number one qualifier Tony Aneian who was sleeping on the tree with a .246 light. At the stripe Brum took it with a slower 8.261 a 164.67 to Aneian's 8.201 at 165.94. Mike DeMayo moves to the finals with a win over a non-appearing Rod DeWild.Eric Dillard ran the fastest pass of the round on Extreme Drag Radial with a 6.763 at 226.96 mph run, taking out Chris Groves. Willard Kinzer won on a lifting 7.414 at 188.38, though we are unsure if it was an intentional lift or he suffered from parts failure. We did note that Kinzer's car had been smoking most of the day.
Final Round Notes
In a disappointing turn of events Jose Gonzalez ended up with a rod kicked out the side of his block during his semi-final run, giving the win to Coughlin. On a bye Coughlin ran his best time of the weekend - a 5.802 at 254.18 mph.This is the most consistent we have ever seen Mike Murillo run. Every pass was straight down the track without any drama. Murillo ended up in the finals against Richard Klann where Murillo ran a 6.713 at 219.44 mph to Klann's 7.051 at 190.57. When Murillo came to pick up his money he said what he was using it for...a vasectomy...ouch.Eric Dillard was another that kept the consistency going which netted him the win in Extreme Drag Radial against veteran Dave Bowman, who suffered from traction problems. Dillard's pass was a 6.705 at 228.96 mph to Bowman's 7.272 at 200.26.It was a tight battle as usual in Hot Street as Michael DeMayo edged out Victor Brum on a 8.211 at 162.20 to a 8.226 at 163.65.Ryan Jones in his really nice '65 Nova took the win over Brent Ramsey - a 5.179 at 144.43 to a 5.273 at 134.46 on 8.5-inch tires!
Final Eliminations Ladders
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It’s the last major, and certainly largest, doorslammer drag race of the year this weekend in Vegas for Street Car Super Nationals. From 46 Pro Street to 26 Outlaw 8.5 cars, the classes are packed. With cool, overcast weather look for some record breaking runs this weekend.
This all couldn’t be possible without our event coverage sponsor Mickey Thompson Tires. Please take a minute to go check out their latest wheel and tire technology via their website.
Pro Mod racer and owner of Aeromotive, Steve Matusek, is frustrated about the Pro Mod class rules this weekend. Normally Matusek runs in the Get Screened NHRA Pro Mod series, which regulates turbo sizing to 88mm.
“We are running against guys with 98s out here and it’s just not fair,” explained Matusek. “The only regulation is the size of the inlet but that hardly compensates for it. We are running with all these guys to the eighth mile but we are just getting smoked on the top end.” Matusek still sits at a respectable 8th spot so far with a 5.974 at 249.95 mph.
In addition to the turbo sizing, Matusek is frustrated with the weight break for automatics, and states that his Liberty manual transmission should be on an even playing field. “Automatics aren’t what they use to be and that’s pretty clear for anyone that watches the sport,” said Matusek. “We are using this as a test session, which is still good, so it is what it is.”
More exciting news from the Aeromotive camp is that crew chief and fellow racer Chuck Samuel will be piloting the Mustang in the ADRL next year while Matusek still plans to race in the NHRA Get Screened Series.
It is confirmed, Mike Murillo’s mult-time championship winning Mustang is for sale – $85,000 gets the entire car, ready to race. “It’s time to step up,” said Murillo. “I want to go Pro Mod racing in the NHRA Get Screened series.” While Murillo wants to build a Fox body Mustang Pro Mod Mustang, he feels like the task will be more than he’s willing to take on and will instead just build the commonly-accepted Pro Stock-style Mustang. “If we can get the car sold, it will take us a few years to build the new Mustang,” said Murillo.
Selling the Mustang is a hard decision, but with the NMRA Pro Outlaw 10.5 class being cut in addition to lowering car counts in NMCA Super Street, he feels there is no other choice. “We plan to run a select amount of NMCA events next year if we still have the car, starting in Bradenton. But you never know,” laughs Murillo, “if we end up doing well, we might continue on with the season.”
One would think it would be hard to sell a car that has done so well, especially this weekend, with Murillo running the fastest time ever with a 6.354 at 235.39 mph during last night’s qualifying session. “We are only 100 pounds lighter than NMCA trim, which is really nothing for these cars,” said Murillo. “The fastest we have gone before was a 6.49, so we are stoked with this weekend’s performance so far.”
There has been some chatter on the internet about Billy Glidden's Thursday qualifying pass being under weight. While the exact amount of weight under is not known, we have confirmed that Glidden's engine and power adder combination was miscalculated during tech, which led to Glidden being under weight. Everything has been fixed and all parties involved are fine with the adjustment.
Saturday Morning Qualifying Notes
Mike Bowman went for a wild ride during his Pro Street run, bring the wheels up from around the 330 foot box down to the eighth mile. Bowman kept it straight to a lifting 7.067 at 145.80 mph.
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Gary Soulgaes had a bit of a mishap when the back left tire on his Lightning blew out as he deployed the parachutes. The truck made a hard turn to the right, bouncing off towards mid track and then back into the right wall where it then stopped. Gary is OK.
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Who says you can't hook up hard on a 8.5-inch tire? Cedric Washington had a heck of a ride as his Mustang launched, momentarily bogged and the came straight up on the bumper. Steve Matusek had a close call when his Mustang pitched violently to the right at about 200 feet out, but luckily Steve's quick reaction kept everything under control.
Saturday Morning Qualifying Sheets
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Saturday Evening Qualifying Notes
Jose Gonzalez has been chipping away at his number one qualifying spot time and has run the fastest time ever for a Pro Mod car with a 5.730 at 258.02 mph run. Second spot Don Walsh Jr. sits close behind with a 5.736 at a faster 261 mph. There were a total of nine cars in the 5s with the bump spot being a 6.343.Extreme Drag Radial racer Doug Shelton, who has been unable to lay down a good qualifying pass yet, caused a complete oil down of the entire track, causing a 1.5+ hour clean up.Doug Sikora quietly stepped ahead of Mike Murillo during Saturday morning's qualifying session in Outlaw 10.5W and held the spot through the final session with a 6.350 at 226.54 mph run. Second place Murillo tried for another pass during the final round and ended up lifting at the eighth mile marker. Third spot Billy Glidden would suffer from a nitrous backfire on his final attempt.Willard Kinzer is showing all the youngsters, which is everyone compared to him, in the class how things are done in Extreme Drag Radial. Kinzer leads the pack in his ex-Wolfe Mustang with a 6.733 at 230.92 mph pull. Proline's own Eric Dillard is sitting in second with a 6.799 at 224.77 mph.While NMRA/NMCA racer Michael DeMayo managed to hold down the number one spot in Hot Street Friday, it was Tony Aneian that would take the number one today with a jaw dropping 8.140 at 165.29 mph run.
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Despite being firmly seated in the number one spot in Wild Street by one and a half tenths, (7.463 to Artis Houston's 7.637) Young scummed to mechanical issues while getting ready for his final qualifying hit. Family member Kevin Young sits in third with a 7.768 at 143.95 mph.
Final Qualifying Order
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It’s the last major, and certainly largest, doorslammer drag race of the year this weekend in Vegas for Street Car Super Nationals. From 46 Pro Street to 26 Outlaw 8.5 cars, the classes are packed. With cool, overcast weather look for some record breaking runs this weekend.
This all couldn’t be possible without our event coverage sponsor Mickey Thompson Tires. Please take a minute to go check out their latest wheel and tire technology via their website.
During yesterday's test session Troy Coughlin ripped off a stellar 5.80 at 253 mph pass in his one-race-old C6 Corvette Pro Street car. "We struggled a lot last year, but with Steve Petty helping out this season, things have really begin to turn around," said Coughlin. When we asked about last year's Camaro, he mentioned that the rolling chassis is for sale for $75,000 for anyone looking for a race proven combination.Willard Kinzer had some sort of 175 pound of dog/horse hybrid guarding the Kinzer/Lutz pit. Despite breaking a pair of ribs and puncturing a lung only three months ago, Kinzer has been back behind the seat, actively for the last month.
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Mickey Thompson Extreme 10.5 standout Billy Glidden will be running the full quarter mile this weekend in Outlaw 10.5. Glidden goes into the 2012 SCSN race as the defending champion, having defeated Mike Murillo in the finals a year ago. Over in the ADRL, Glidden finished second in points to Alan Pittman and finished the year on a positive note, defeating Dan Myers to win the World Finals VIII.
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One of the smallest engines in Outlaw 10.5 this weekend will be Mark Luton and the MMR Racing crew 5.0L Coyote-powered Mustang. But don't take the small displacement for granted, as MMR managed a 7.02 pass at the NMCA West finals race, which was its first official race with that powerplant. Can MMR break another record this weekend by having the first ever six-second Coyote? Defending Pro Street champion Jose Gonzalez has swapped out his late model GTO for a first generation Camaro. Gonzalez has shown that he will be a force to be reckoned with this weekend by winning last night's Pro Street Quickest Pass Challenge with a 5.80 at 256 mph.
Friday Qualifying Notes
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Three hours into the first round of Friday qualifying and we are still only half way through Pro Street. The weather has not been very cooperative so far today with a few spurts of rain randomly occurring. One of those spurts started as John Durden began to stage his Chevy truck. After rattling the tires and coasting down the track, he made a slight correction which sent him into a spin across the track. What will probably be a controversial call to race during the drizzle, Durden ended up with a mildly bashed up truck. Other reports confirm that there was some sort of liquid coming out of the truck as well before the spin.
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Defending 2011 SCSN Wild Street champion Jeff Kyle pulled a rather 'rookie' move during the evening round of qualifying by staying on the trans break for an abnormally long amount of time, thus causing a massive transmission spill 700 feet down the track. Kyle has recently upgraded his Mustang to Xtreme Drag Radial trim for 2012. Mike Murillo ran the best pass of his career in Outlaw 10.5 with a 6.354 at 235.39 to take the number one spot. There has been some rumors that Murillo's multi-time NMRA Pro Outlaw 10.5 and NMCA Super Street Mustang is up for sale. We will investigate this rumor and get back with you.The MMR crew has had a tough time getting their 5-liter Coyote-powered Mustang to do a burnout. Both attempts today ended in the same way with the car being backed out of the water box as the car would just sputter.
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It would be a ironic fireworks ending for the final pair of heads up cars to race the Friday evening qualifier. Outlaw 8.5 racer Matt Sudyao suffered from a nitrous backfire that ended up having to be put out by a fire extinguisher. While Sudyao sits at the bottom of the list currently, George Rayguza currently sits first with a 5.132 at 142.07 mph.
With nine cars in the 5s already in Pro Street, this weekend is surely going to be a tough one for racers in the class. Don Walsh shocked the crowd by putting down a 5.748 in the first round Friday and dropped it even lower with a 5.745 in the second session at a booming 259.41 mph.Defending champion Jose Gonzalez, coming off his fresh shootout win on Thursday sits in second with a 5.770 at 256.60 mph, which is a mere .025 behind Walsh and the only other car in the 5.70s.
Pro Mod racer and owner of Aeromotive, Steve Matusek, is frustrated about the Pro Mod class rules this weekend. Normally Matusek runs in the Get Screened NHRA Pro Mod series, which regulates turbo sizing to 88mm.
It is confirmed, Mike Murillo’s mult-time championship winning Mustang is for sale – $85,000 gets the entire car, ready to race. “It’s time to step up,” said Murillo. “I want to go Pro Mod racing in the NHRA Get Screened series.” While Murillo wants to build a Fox body Mustang Pro Mod Mustang, he feels like the task will be more than he’s willing to take on and will instead just build the commonly-accepted Pro Stock-style Mustang. “If we can get the car sold, it will take us a few years to build the new Mustang,” said Murillo.
Selling the Mustang is a hard decision, but with the NMRA Pro Outlaw 10.5 class being cut in addition to lowering car counts in NMCA Super Street, he feels there is no other choice. “We plan to run a select amount of NMCA events next year if we still have the car, starting in Bradenton. But you never know,” laughs Murillo, “if we end up doing well, we might continue on with the season.”
