Sunday's Sonoma Spotlight
Sunday, July 29, 2012
The day began with a track walk down the dragstrip in Sonoma, where fans were joined by drivers such as John and Courtney Force. |
A flock of sheep grazed in the grassy hills that provide a backdrop for the unique racing facility. |
Shawn Langdon made his best run of the event with a 3.78 in the first round of Top Fuel that was enough to defeat Al-Anabi Racing teammate Khalid alBalooshi. |
| Gary Densham delivered the biggest upset of the event in Funny Car when his Lawson Rock & Oil Dodge Charger defeated defending event winner Ron Capps in the opening round. Densham is 4-3 in eliminations this season in the three events he competed at with his Greg Amaral-tuned car. |
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Larry Morgan delivered one of his best performances of the season when he stopped V. Gaines in round one of Pro Stock. Morgan was also well ahead of round-two opponent Mike Edwards until his Lucas Oil Mustang shook the tires. |
Karen Stoffer made one of the best runs of her long career when she put up a 6.82 in her first-round Pro Stock Motorcycle win over Michael Phillips. |
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Brandon Bernstein reached the semifinal round for the second straight event when his MavTV/Lucas Oil dragster ousted David Grubnic in round two of Top Fuel. |
No. 1 qualifier Cruz Pedregon made the best runs of the first two Funny Car elimination rounds when the Snap-on driver recorded a 4.06 and 4.11 in respective wins over Jeff Diehl and Robert Hight. |
Jeg Coughlin Jr. moved back into the Pro Stock top 10 for the first time since the spring Charlotte event after he drove his JEGS.com Dodge to a quarterfinal finish. |
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Hector Arana Sr. rode to a steady string of 6.8-second runs on his Lucas Oil Buell but couldn’t get past eventual Pro Stock Motorcycle winner Eddie Krawiec in the semi’s. Arana’s 6.85 lost to Krawiec’s 6.81. |
Justin Lamb won the event title in Sonoma for the third time when he defeated Dave Raybourn in the Super Stock final. Lamb also won Sonoma Super Comp titles in 2007 and 2009. |
For the third time this season, Harley teammates Eddie Krawiec, near lane, and Andrew Hines met in the final round, and Krawiec maintained his perfect record with a 6.80 to 6.83 victory. The Harley V-Rods have won all eight Pro Stock Motorcycle races this season. |
Allen Johnson’s chances to sweep the Western Swing remain intact after he drove to his second straight Pro Stock victory with a 6.54 to 6.57 win over Greg Anderson in the final. Anderson had a .001 light, but Johnson, far lane, was close behind with a .011. |
Johnny Gray, far lane, nabbed his second Funny Car win of the season and third of his career when his Rob Wendland-tuned Big O Tires Charger ran 4.14 against tire-smoking teammate Matt Hagan. Hagan, who had struggled this season after winning the championship in 2011, reached the final for the first time this season. |
Antron Brown, near lane, kept his hopes for a second career sweep of the Western Swing alive in a thrilling 3.81 to 3.82 final-round contest against teammate Spencer Massey that was decided by .005-second. |
The four Professional winners celebrated their triumphs on the 14th of 23 stops in the 2012 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series with silver Wallys commemorating the 25th anniversary of this event. |