NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Anthony Bongiovanni and Randi Lyn Shipp scored wins in Super Stock and Stock, respectively, during the NHRA New England Nationals, and first-time Super Gas champ Ken Bowers, at age 77, set the unofficial record as NHRA’s oldest national event winner. The rest of the winners crowned during NHRA’s annual trip to the Atlantic Northeast were Mike Robilotto (Super Comp), Peter Maduri (Super Street), Debby DiGenova (Top Dragster presented by Racing RVs), and Dave Testa (Top Sportsman presented by Racing RVs).
    
Appearing in his first national event final, Bongiovanni gave up a slight advantage against Tom Boucher, the 1992 U.S. Nationals champ, in Super Stock. At the finish line, Bongiovanni rallied to win with an 8.461 on his 8.45 dial. He crossed the stripe just two-thousandths of a second ahead of Boucher’s GT/GA Firebird. [video]
    

As the fiancée of reigning Pro Stock world champ Bo Butner, Shipp is able to race at almost all of the 24 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events, and she’s usually able to win her fair share. In Epping, Shipp made it to the Stock final round for the seventh time in her career and picked up her third Wally after defeating Howie Smith. Shipp, in her familiar white C/SA ’67 Firebird, won the final with a 10.548 on her 10.53 dial while Smith, in his M/SA Malibu, missed his 11.88 prediction with an 11.938. Shipp won her first national event title in Phoenix in 2011 and also banked wins in 2013, 2015, and 2016. [video]
    

Robilotto won back-to-back Bristol titles in Super Comp in 2008 and 2009 but it took him the better part of a decade to win again on the national event stage. Robilotto, the father of former Indy champ Heather Fetch, broke his drought with a holeshot win over Timmy Markoglu in the final round of Super Comp. Robilotto, who defeated Jack Sepanek in the semifinals, ran an 8.935 in the final round to stop Markoglu’s quicker 8.902. Robilotto made a near-perfect run of his own a few rounds earlier with an 8.906 that was enough to cover Stephen Logan’s 8.931. [video]
    

At age 77, Bowers became NHRA’s oldest national event winner when he stopped Justin Lopes in the Super Gas final. Bowers, of Islip, N.Y., drove his ’57 Corvette roadster to a great run that included a .007 light and a 9.919 to turn on the win light against Lopes, who trailed with a 9.943. Bowers, who had a tough path to the final with wins against Peter Luciano, Mike Sawyer, and Rick Price, joins a list of drivers who have won in their 70s, including Mike Saye, Chuck Gallagher, and Marlin Snyder. [video]
    

Super Street also featured a first-time winner in Maduri, who flirted with perfection in the final round with a .013 light and a 10.907 behind the wheel of his Chevy S-10 truck. Maduri defeated former Epping winner Brian Sawyer in the final after Sawyer broke out with a 10.881. Maduri topped former Division 1 champ Shawn Fricke in the quarterfinals to earn a bye into the final, and Sawyer defeated Robert Lattner and Cory Prindall in the late rounds. [video]
    

DiGenova successfully defended her 2017 title in the Top Dragster presented by Racing RVs class when she beat Rebecca Miller in an all-female final round. After nearly identical reaction times, DiGenova nailed her dial with a 6.082 on a 6.08 while Miller was also on the money with a 6.844 on her 6.84 prediction. At the stripe, DiGenova was ahead by seven-thousandths of a second. In the semifinal round, DiGenova was nearly perfect with a .006 light and a 6.803 on her 6.80 dial that was too much for opponent Albert Stafferi to overcome. [video]
    

As usual, the Top Sportsman presented by Racing RVs class provided some of the biggest thrills and best side-by-side racing of the weekend. After five tough rounds, Testa, of Seekonk, Mass., emerged as the champion. Testa drove his ’63 Corvette past the similar entry of Brian Conrey in the final. Testa left first and never looked back with a 7.221 on his 7.21 dial for the win. In the semifinals, Testa stopped Daniel Christopher, who normally races his ’93 Mustang in X-275 events but installed big-rear tires in order to compete in the Epping Top Sportsman field. [video]