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QUALIFYING ROUND RECAPS

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE Q3 (1:03 p.m.): As expected, there were dramatic improvements in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class on Saturday but Matt Smith managed to hang on to the top spot with a session-best 6.824. Smith managed to hold off LE Tonglet, who rode his Nitro Fish Suzuki to a 6.847. The only other rider to venture into the six-second zone was Hector Arana Jr. who is currently third after a 6.886. There are currently 14 bikes in the six-second zone and the bump is held by Michael Ray at 7.164. Melissa Surber and Oodolph Daniels are out of the field after three runs and will have one more shot to make the show.

PRO STOCK Q3 (1:15 p.m.): There was plenty of shuffling in the Pro Stock field as drivers took advantage of improved conditions to make their best runs of the weekend. Less than an hour after suffering a loss in his Stock Eliminator car, Drew Skillman took over the top spot with a 6.593 in his Gray Motorsports-powered Camaro. Jason Line also found the 6.5s with a 6.599 to move into the second spot and points leader Bo Butner also picked up a bonus point after a 6.601. Greg Anderson began the session in the No. 1 spot and was bumped to No. 4 in spite of a competitive 6.607 pass. The top half of the field remains close with just .030-second separating low qualifier Skillman and Erica Enders, who is currently eighth with a 6.623.

Brittany Force

TOP FUEL Q3 (1:50 p.m.): Brittany Force picked up the three bonus points for running the best time in the third session with a 3.77-second pass while Antron Brown and Clay Millican each hit 3.786-second runs. Brown earned the tiebreaker based on mph. Shawn Langdon got into the field at No. 11, for now, with a 3.837. That’s good news for one Kalitta driver; but it’s not good news for another: Troy Coughlin Jr. He’s at No. 17 with a 6.5-second run as his best right now. Luigi Novelli holds onto the bump spot (4.429) with one session to go.

FUNNY CAR Q3 (2:15 p.m.): Nobody in a Funny Car managed to figure out the toasty Saturday afternoon race track except for Tim Wilkerson. He ran a 3.991, the best of the session, and the only pass in the 3-second range. Tommy Johnson Jr. picked up a pair of points for running a 4.008 and Matt Hagan grabbed one for a 4.034 run. The 17-car field has Courtney Force sitting on the outside looking in with a 4.627 time behind Jeff Diehl’s 4.561. Jack Beckman is at No. 15 with a 4.321 and Ron Capps hasn’t done much better; he’s at No. 13 with a 4.201 time to his name.

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE Q4 (3:45 p.m.): Matt Smith ran the table with 12 out of a possible 12 qualifying bonus points on his Polaris Magnum to qualify No. 1 for the 25th time in his career. Smith closed out the round with a 6.875, just ahead of LE Tonglet’s 6.884. Hector Arana Jr. was third-quickest with a 6.911. After a bit of last-minute bumping, the field was set for the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals. Melissa Surber made the biggest move when she rode to a 7.018 to knock Michael Ray out of the show. The other big surprise came when Eddie Krawiec could not improve on his Harley Street Rod and will start from the No. 13 spot on race day.

First round pairings (lane choice first): Matt Smith vs. Joe DeSantis; LE Tonglet vs. Melissa Surber; Hector Arana Jr. vs. Karen Stoffer; Joey Gladstone vs Eddie Krawiec; Scotty Pollacheck vs. Angelle Sampey; Andrew Hines vs. Angie Smith; Chip Ellis vs. Steve Johnson; Mike Berry vs. Cory Reed.

PRO STOCK Q4 (4:10 p.m.): The quickest runs of the weekend came in the final Pro Stock session including a 6.584 by Greg Anderson who locked up the pole for the 88th time in his career. Anderson held off a late charge by teammate, Bo Butner, who moved into second with a 6.588 and rookie Tanner Gray, who also made his best run of the weekend with a 6.593 to take the fourth spot. Drew Skillman, who began the final session in the No. 1 spot, ran a respectable 6.597 but will now start from the No. 3 spot.

First round pairings (lane choice first): Greg Anderson vs. Mark Hogan; Bo Butner vs. Val Smeland; Drew Skillman vs John Gaydosh; Tanner Gray vs. Kenny Delco; Jason Line vs. Alan Pruisensky; Jeg Coughlin Jr. vs. Alex Laughlin; Vincent Nobile vs. Erica Enders; Chris McGaha vs. Allen Johnson.

TOP FUEL Q4 (4:50 p.m.): Doug Kalitta holds onto the green No. 1 qualifier hat, but Brittany Force gets the three bonus points for the best time of the session with a 3.767-second pass. Tony Schumacher (3.789) and Shawn Langdon (3.799) had the second and third best times of the session. Troy Coughlin Jr. snuck in the back door of the Top Fuel field with a 3.894; that’s great news for the Sealmaster dragster pilot as the drivers around him in the standings surely smelled blood while he was on the outside looking in through three qualifying sessions. He ended up No. 14 and will face Steve Torrence in the first round as he looks to hold off Terry McMillen, Scott Palmer and Shawn Langdon.
First round pairings (lane-choice first): Doug Kalitta vs. Troy Buff; Brittany Force vs. Pat Dakin; Steve Torrence vs. Troy Coughlin Jr.; Leah Pritchett vs. Ike Maier; Antron Brown vs. Dom Lagana; Clay Millican vs. Scott Palmer; Terry McMillen vs. Shawn Langdon; Tony Schumacher vs. Mike Salinas.

Robert Hight

FUNNY CAR Q4 (5:25 p.m.): Robert Hight put down the best pass of the final qualifying session (3.921), but Matt Hagan held on to the No. 1 qualifying position and the track record. Bob Tasca (3.952) and Cruz Pedregon (3.962) rounded out the top three of the last qualifying session of the weekend. Perhaps most notable, for the first time in her career, Courtney Force did make the cut on Sunday. She pedaled her way down the track in the final qualifying session but her 5.206-second run wasn’t enough to get into the field. Her best run (4.627) was .66 second slower than the bump spot time set by Jeff Diehl who will race Hagan in the first round.
First-round pairings (lane choice first): Matt Hagan vs. Jeff Diehl; Robert Hight vs. Jim Campbell; John Force vs. Dale Creasy; Jonnie Lindberg vs. Ron Capps; Tommy Johnson Jr. vs J.R. Todd; Bob Tasca vs. Tim Wilkerson; Alexis DeJoria vs. Del Worsham; Cruz Pedregon vs. Jack Beckman.

Saturday night recap: Hagan, Kalitta, Anderson and Smith hold onto No. 1 qualifying spots. 

FEATURES

A tough stretch for Brittany Force finally bore fruit when she opened the Eastern Swing with a win in Epping. Now she’s looking to close out the four-in-a-row swing the way she started it, with a win in Norwalk. 

“We did pretty well last year in Norwalk and went to the semifinals,” Force said. “But this year, we’re coming back and want to take it all the way. It’s the ending stretch of our four in a row, and there’s no better place to bring home another win than Norwalk before we start the Western Swing.”

Since winning in Epping, the Monster Energy car driver lost in the semi’s and then in the second round. While Force hasn’t jumped right back into the winner’s circle, her performance has remained relatively consistent. She fell to Clay Millican in Bristol while posting an unspectacular run in the 4-second range, but averaged a 3.869-second pass in the four elimination rounds preceding that (three in Englishtown and one in Bristol). 

That may bode well in Norwalk as it seems tuner Alan Johnson and company have found the right combination for John Force Racing’s lone dragster. Brittany enters the race in sixth place, just 29 points behind Doug Kalitta, but only 10 points ahead of Millican. It’s not out of the question for Force to climb in the standings as jockeying for points ahead of the Countdown continues. 

Picking up her first career win in Norwalk would help. She finished the first day of qualifying in second with a 3.714. Her best qualifying position of the season is second in Epping; Force has only qualified outside of the top eight once: in Atlanta when she snuck into the field in 16th. Two races later, she found the winner’s circle.

Doug Kalitta has been one of the most consistent drivers in Top Fuel this season but hasn’t found the winner’s circle yet. He finished as the No. 2 qualifier in Bristol but fell in the first round to teammate Shawn Langdon thanks to a rare poor run. He hasn’t had too many of those this season.

That run against Langdon clocked in at 4.414 seconds and is one of just three passes on Sunday where Kalitta posted a pass slower than 3 seconds. 20 of his 23 passes have been in the 3-second range and, if you exclude one 7-second run, his average e.t. is 3.806 in 22 elimination runs. That’s second only to Leah Pritchett in Top Fuel.

And yet, Kalitta is the only Top Fuel pilot who hasn’t won a race this season. He’s in fifth place, though not particularly comfortable. He’s 29 points ahead of Brittany Force and 123 behind Tony Schumacher. A win would help him put some distance between himself and Force and move up the ladder, but he might need a little bit of good fortune to do that.

“We’re feeling good about coming in here, it’s our home track and our home fans and we’re hoping to turn things around this weekend,” said Kalitta. “It’s great to have a round, very encouraging, and we’ve got a very good opportunity this weekend.”

Kalitta picked up a win here in 2015, beating Antron Brown in the process. He’s reached one final this year; he lost to Leah Pritchett in the season opener in Pomona. Since then Kalitta has been good, but not quite good enough (or lucky enough) to add another Wally to his collection. Maybe a home game is just what he needs to get that back on his side. 

Mike Salinas is making an appearance at back-to-back races for the first time this season. That means he can take a long, hard look at his car and his tune-up while trying to carry some momentum from his second-career round win from Bristol last weekend into the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals.

Salinas ran a career-best 3.855 at 320.05 against Kebin Kinsley in the first round of the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals before failing to get his car started against Steve Torrence in the second round. He bettered that on Friday night by running a 3.792. 

“We’re expecting good things from this car and driver and everybody else, our expectations are pretty high,” said Salinas. “Alan (Johnson) is expecting us to run good, our expectations of Doug and everybody on the team are very high. We have a good program, and having a little more time to get familiar with everything… we’ll be just fine.”

All three races have shown signs of improvement for the Scrappers Racing crew, who continue to show they’re the real deal on a part-time schedule. That’s great news for anyone who’s a fan of independent racers. Of course, the next step is for Salinas to pick up that all important second-round win. 

“You don’t want to get ahead of yourself and you run each round at a time, but the part of what we’re doing is we know we have a good program,” said Salinas. “We know we have a good program now. We’re not hurting for parts and pieces. Anything we need, we’re gonna get and Doug’s doing really well. I honestly think Doug’s one of the crew chiefs out here that everyone underestimates, and we’re gonna change that.”

A racer Salinas has pointed to time and again is Billy Torrence, father of Top Fuel pilot Steve Torrence. That’s a name that has come up a lot lately as Clay Millican got his first win of the season driving a Billy Torrence chassis. 

“Everything they do is a certain way and it’s awesome,” said Salinas. “The man is seriously impressive. It’s the way he runs his life and the way he runs his business. It shows in his son and the program they have.”

Salinas enters the second day of qualifying in the No. 9 slot. He faced off against Steve Torrence in the second round of last week’s event, the Thunder Valley Nationals; or, he would have. A bolt came out of the dragster during the burn out, and while nothing was damaged, the Scrappers Racing crew decided to play it safe and skip the run.

Ron Capps

Coming off his first ever Funny Car title and an incredible start to the 2017 season, Ron Capps has been nominated for an ESPY for Best Driver. Fans can head to (link) to vote for the driver of the NAPA car. 
"What we did with our NAPA team last year was huge after trying to win the championship for about 20 years," Capps said. "Just to be nominated in that group is unbelievable."

Other drivers nominated for the award include Lewis Hamilton, Jimmie Johnson, Simon Pagenaud and Martin Truex Jr.

Capps has already matched his 2016-win total by winning five races this season. He enters racing on Saturday qualified No. 11. That shouldn’t concern fans of the racer; he won in Bristol after qualifying in the No. 10 position. 

A season that started out very promising has devolved into big-time frustration for Jim Campbell and Jim Dunn Racing. After reaching the semifinals in Phoenix and the second round the following race in Gainesville, Campbell and company haven’t won a round since and have qualified in the top half of the field just once (No. 7 in Atlanta).

“This clutch has been nasty,” said Campbell. “We’ve switched from a five to a six and we’re just playing catch up. One minute we’re running 4.02 and the next we’re smoking the tires.”

That inconsistency landed Campbell in 13th, but he’s only 21 points behind Cruz Pedregon who currently holds the 10th place slot. Still, with Jonnie Lindberg and Del Worsham running more consistently ahead of him it’s starting to get a little more tenuous for the driver of the 7-11 car. 

“It’s driving me nuts,” said Campbell. “We started the season great with the semi’s in Phoenix but the last five or six races we’ve been all over the place. One minute we’ll make a good run and the next we’ll spin the tires.”

Campbell’s 4.151 pass has him No. 12 in the 17-car field. The Funny Car driver certainly can’t afford to DNQ like he did in Topeka; but if he can better his position as the temperatures climb on Saturday, even better.

Okay, so it wasn’t quite the show put on at Heartland Park in Topeka way back in May; but round two (or is this round three?) of Robert Hight and Matt Hagan on Friday night in Norwalk was a lot of fun. Perhaps more accurately it’s the next bout between crew chiefs Jimmy Prock and Dickie Venables. 

The drivers get their names next to the records, but the crew chiefs are the ones tuning up the Funny Cars that throw down the incredible times and speeds. Let’s call it a group effort. On Friday night, the two drivers split the Summit Motorsports Park records; Hagan took elapsed time (3.865) and Hight grabbed speed (334.65).

“It was a great run,” Hight said. “Any time you run that fast, 334 mph, you know everything is happy, the motor looked beautiful. It’s kind of a shame we didn’t make it down the first run, because you’re kind of on defense. When you don’t go down the first run, you’ve got to be careful and make sure it goes on the night run.”

Hagan gave most of the credit to his crew chief, much like he did when he took the national speed record (338.85) in Topeka.  

“Dickie Venables man, I can’t say enough about the guy, he’s on top of it,” said Hagan. “He’s working real hard and he’s always good on the tune up and he’s always on top of the conditions. It’s just the folks you surround yourself with at (Don Schumacher Racing). It’s just fun to drive a race car right now.”

It’s certainly a lot of fun to watch Funny Car right now. Hagan and Hight are qualified No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, after the first day of racing. We’ll see what the pair can do with warmer temperatures on Saturday and Sunday.

Greg Anderson has been racing Pro Stock long enough to know that there is no such thing as a perfect run but he also wasn’t afraid to admit that the 6.608 pass he made on Friday night in his Summit Camaro was darn close to perfection.

“That was just about a perfect run and I don’t say that often,” said Anderson. “On the first run, we were not quite ready yet; we didn’t have enough cars down the track. On the second, the track was perfect where you could throw everything at it and it stuck. Of course, everyone else ran 6.62 or better so that shows how tight the class is.”

Anderson barely needed to see a weather forecast to know that his 6.608 run will not stand through two more qualifying sessions on Saturday. With cooler temperatures and a dramatic reduction in humidity, it’s entirely possible that every one of the 16 cars that ran on Friday will improve their performance.

“I won day one,” said Anderson. “I was the best in class today [Friday] and that’s all that means. We’re going to have to go faster. The barometer is going up and the track will be better today. For me, that’s also fun. It’s the next challenge. It’s all about making changes, and seeing where you stack up.”

Anderson also addressed the excitement he feels anytime he returns to Norwalk, a track that is wall-papered with the logos of his longtime sponsor, Summit Racing Equipment. In the last decade, Anderson has won the event three times in four final rounds.

“I’ve been off my game lately; I’ve been in a bit of a funk but no matter what happens, we always seem to snap out of it when we get here to Norwalk,” Anderson said. “It’s like an extra home field advantage. We dig deep and try a little harder. I know you think you give 100-percent every time, but there are some races where you put forth a little extra effort and this is one of them.”

Drew Skillman entered Saturday’s action in Norwalk with a chance to double-up. He began the day as the No. 7 qualifier in Pro Stock and he was also still in competition in the third round of Stock Eliminator with his Skillman Auto Cobra Jet Mustang. Skillman’s shot at the Stock title ended Saturday morning when he lost to Tom Russell’s B/Stock Camaro. Skillman made a competitive pass, but couldn’t overcome Russell’s nearly-perfect .003 reaction time.

“I was late and then gave up the [finish line],” said Skillman. “I was pretty much just in his way. It’s okay, though. Stock is tough and I managed to win a few rounds. Now we can focus on this [Pro Stock] car.”

So far this season, there have been eight different Pro Stock winners and surprisingly, Skillman isn’t one of them. The best finish so far is a runner-up in Phoenix and he was also a semifinalist in Charlotte and Epping.

“We know we have what it takes to win,” Skillman said. “We just need to find a way to make it happen. This class is tough. It’s always been tough. That’s what makes it Pro Stock.”

“We’re tired of sucking”

Those four words, uttered by driver Vincent Nobile, sum up the entire mood of the Mountain View Tire & Auto Service Pro Stock team after a winless start to the 2017 season. At times, Nobile has shown signs that he’s about to snap out of the funk, but he’s yet to score a victory and in a year where there have been eight different winners, he’s shocked to not be one of them.

“There is no reason; no reason, why this team can’t win races,” said Nobile. “We’ve got the best of everything and while I’m not perfect, I think I can still get the job done driving. We’ve got good speed so I know it’s not a power issue but something is missing.”

Nobile went to the semifinals in Topeka and then raced in the final two races ago in Englishtown so the news hasn’t all been bad, but he’s not going to be content until he joins the list of 2017 winners.

“Right now we’re just scratching our heads looking for answers,” he says. “We don’t know. Maybe it’s the car but even if it is, we don’t have another one we can use right now. We’re just going to have to keep fighting until we figure it out.”

The entire Pro Stock Motorcycle field woke up on Saturday to the welcome news that Mickey Thompson Tires had agreed to become the title rights sponsor of the Mickey Thompson Tires Pro Bike Battle in Sonoma. The specialty event, which features the top eight riders in the class based on qualifying performances, will pay $10,000 to the champion this season and a whopping $25,000 to the winner in 2018 and 2019.

“This is a really great deal for all of us motorcycle racers, “ said five-time Pro Stock Motorcycle champion Andrew Hines. “I’ve been fortunate enough to win this [specialty event] a few times and it’s something I look forward to each year. I’d love to become the first winner in the new Mickey Thompson era.”

Entering the Summit Racing Equipment Nationals, Eddie Krawiec is the top seed in the Pro Bike Battle standings. He is followed by Jerry Savoie, Hines, LE Tonglet, Hector Arana Jr. Angelle Sampey, Hector Arana Sr., and Chip Ellis. Arana Sr. will be sidelined for three months following recent shoulder surgery so it is almost a certainty that he will be bumped from the field, a move that opens the door for ninth-ranked Matt Smith or tenth-ranked Cory Reed to make the field.

Harley-Davidson teammates Eddie Krawiec and Andrew Hines have very little data on their new Street Rod bikes so it might not be surprising that they are a bit off the pace. Their V-twin engine program remains solid, but learning the nuances of a new chassis and body has been their biggest challenge although Hines insists the team is further along than the results have shown so far.

“We’re plenty fast but last night I had a shifting problem which is something that hasn’t happened in a long time,” said Hines. “I missed the [air shifter] button for the 3-4 shift and that just killed the run. We lost a lot in the middle, but the rest of the run looked pretty good. We had a good sixty-foot time and we were No. 1 from 60 to 330 so it was definitely not as bad as it looked.”

Since their introduction in Englishtown, the Vance & Hines riders have tested several times including Wednesday before the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals.

“Honestly, it’s just a matter of fine-tuning,” said Hines. “These bikes have a huge amount of traction which is 180-degrees from what we had with our old bikes. We have an idea of what they want, but we haven’t found the perfect spot yet. We keep getting closer, though.”

Hines kicked off Q3 with a 6.916 which is good for the No. 6 spot after three of four qualifying rounds. 

A year ago, Cory Reed established his credentials as a Pro Stock Motorcycle  rider when he scored his first-ever round win at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals. Reed was riding a Star Racing Buell last season and after qualifying a then-best No. 7, he defeated Scotty Pollacheck in the first round. A lot has changed in the last 12 months. Reed won the Auto Club Road to the Future award as NHRA’s top rookie and then he and teammate Angelle Sampey announced that they were leaving the Star outfit in order to form their own Liberty Racing team. 

“No wonder I like Norwalk so much,” Reed said. “Coming back a year later, I think people don’t look at me as a new rider anymore and they definitely know every time me or my team comes to the line, we’re there to race. I’m excited to get back to Norwalk since this is where I finally started gaining momentum in my rookie season last year.”

Building a team from the ground-up proved to be a challenge for Reed who had to build a new shop, two new bikes, and prepare enough engines and spare parts to compete in 16 events. This weekend, the hard work is beginning to pay off as Reed is the No. 9 qualifier after a 6.932 best.

“We’re headed in the right direction,” said Reed. “We’ve done a lot of testing and that helps. We knew this was going to be a long process. We just have to stay patient and keep working.”

PHOTOS

PREVIEW

Track records fell in both nitro classes under the lights at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park. Doug Kalitta blasted to the top spot in Top Fuel with a 3.709 in his Mac Tools dragster while two-time world champion Matt Hagan powered to a 3.865 in his Mopar Express Lane Dodge to re-set the Norwalk Funny Car marks. For good measure, Robert Hight drove his Auto Club Camaro to a 334.65 mph top speed, the fastest run in the history of the scenic Norwalk facility.

Doug Kalitta

Kalitta is one of nine Top Fuel racers who found the 3.7-second zone including provisional No. 2 qualifier Brittany Force (3.714), Steve Torrence (3.715), and Leah Pritchett (3.720). One of the most surprising runs of the day came from part-time competitor Mike Salinas when he drove his show quality Scrappers dragster to a career-best 3.792. There are more than 16 cars attempting to qualify in Top Fuel and currently, world champ Shawn Langdon is on the outside of the field after smoking the tires twice.

Matt Hagan

Hagan and Hight sit atop the uber-competitive Funny Car class but there are already nine drivers in the threes with several more sure to follow in today’s two qualifying rounds. John Force enters the day in third with a 3.911 and nitro rookie Jonnie Lindberg is fourth following a career-best 3.922 in Jim Head’s Ohio-based Toyota. There is also a full field in Funny Car and Courtney Force is the lone driver yet to qualify. J.R. Todd Ron Capps, Tim Wilkerson, and Jack Beckman are also currently seeded in the bottom half of the field.

Greg Anderson

Two weeks removed from his win in Englishtown, Greg Anderson is the provisional low qualifier following a 6.608 run on Friday in his Summit Camaro. The four-time champion is nearly a hundredth of a second ahead of teammate Bo Butner, who posted a best of 6.617. Epping winner Erica Enders heads into Saturday’s rounds as the No. 3 seed following a 6.623. Jason Line, Jeg Coughlin Jr. Bristol winner Alex Laughlin, Drew Skillman, and Allen Johnson currently make up the top half of the field.

Matt Smith

Coming off a DNQ in Englishtown, Matt Smith worked hard to improve his Polaris Magnum bike and as a result he had the quickest run in both sessions including a 6.885 to lead the field. Smith is nearly two-hundredths ahead of LE Tonglet, who rode to a 6.903 on his Nitro Fish Suzuki. Hector Arana Jr., Scotty Pollacheck, Cory Reed, Chip Ellis, Andrew Hines, and Angelle Sampey also begin the day in the top half of the field.

Competitors in the J&A Pro Mod Series also got their first qualifying run in and three-time series champ Rickie Smith is the leader with a 5.821 in his nitrous-assisted Camaro. After one run, the bump is already a competitive 6.066 and with 26 cars competing for just 16 spots, it is sure to get much quicker.