Saturday's Chicago Chronicles
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Sportsman qualifying, including the Top Alcohol Dragsters, took the stage early Saturday at Route 66 Raceway with the final two Full Throttle qualifying sessions scheduled for 4 and 7 p.m. tonight. |
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[Noon] Even four hours before their first runs, the Full Throttle pit areas are abuzz as teams go through various stages of preparation.
For the Chicago-area Peak Top Fuel team of TJ Zizzo (above) that means dissecting the damage from last night's run.
For fellow Illini Tim Wilkerson (left), it means signing autographs for his home-state fans.
(Below) Meanwhile, the crew of Jack Beckman's Schumacher Electric Funny Car wheel out some of the rubber they'll be putting to the road this weekend. |
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In a sea of 18-wheelers in the pit area sits the humble fifth-wheel trailer of Chicagland Top Fuel legend Chris "the Golden Greek" Karamesines, who has been competing in the sport since the 1950s. |
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[1 p.m.] The best Sportsman-level drivers from NHRA’s Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series have again converged on Route 66 Raceway this weekend for the highly anticipated JEGS Allstars competition.
Seventy-seven drivers representing 25 states are competing for individual and team honors plus a share of nearly $120,000 at stake during the event.
Bill Reichert (left), a two-time winner in the Top Alcohol Dragster class representing the Division 3 host team, won his opening-round race when Joey Severence red-lighted alongside him.
Event preview
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Chicagoland fans have come out to Route 66 Raceway in large numbers, braving searing heat and soaring humidity to enjoy the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series' visit to their hometown.
Pro Stock Motorcycle rider "Kalifornia Kate" Sullivan has at least one new area fan when Jenae Henao added her autograph to a growing collection. |
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[4:40 p.m.] Andrew Hines' Vance & Hines Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson (above) is clearly on the rebound, posting a 6.917, the second-best pass of the day's first session to take the No. 2 spot. His previous best at this event was 6.945.
Meanwhile, Hector Arana Sr. ran 6.884 to set a new track record and maintain his No. 1 spot. Arana so far has collected the maximum nine session bonus points.
In an unusual move, Jerry Savoie (left) parked his White Alligator Racing Buell and returned to his Suzuki Hayabusa. Savoie eclipsed his 7.106 event-best run aboard the Buell with his first run on the Suzuki, which netted a 7.096, good for the No. 14 spot. |
[5:30 p.m.] Local favorite Luigi Novelli, of Crete, Ill., ran a career-best 3.905 to put his National Machine Repair dragster into the field on the bump spot. On the pass, Novelli, a Top Fuel racer since the 1970s, bumped another longtime Illinois nitro veteran, Chris Karamesines, from the field. |
[5:50 p.m.] Spencer Massey had the best pass of the third Top Fuel qualifying session with a 3.806 in the Prestone dragster. Tony Schumacher (3.835) and Steve Torrence (3.836) had the round's next-best times. |
[6:30 p.m.] John Force had the best e.t. for the second straight Funny Car qualifying session, posting a 4.147, and maintained his qualifying lead heading into the final session. Jack Beckman (4.151) and Cruz Pedregon (4.161) had the round's next-best numbers. Pedregon (below) is representing the Wounded Warrior Project at this event. |
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Frank Manzo, left, won the JEGS Allstars Top Alcohol Funny Car crown for the 10th time and was congratulated by Troy Coughlin Sr. and Jr. Manzo's final-round win over Mickey Ferro also decided the team title for Division 7. |
[7:30 p.m.] Hector Arana Sr., left, completed a clean sweep of qualifying bonus points in Pro Stock Motorcycle with a 6.892, quickest of the final session, and remained No. 1 qualifier. Son Hector Jr. is qualified No. 3. |
Pro Stock Motorcycle newcomer Kieth Burley overcame a trouble-plagued Friday to make two representative laps Saturday, but his 7.11 aboard Junior Pippin's Castrol/Triumph-sponsored entry fell short of the field. |
[7:50 p.m.] Veteran Warren Johnson improved by a half-tenth on his final qualifying pass, going from a 6.703 outside the field to a 6.648 and a solid spot in Sunday's Pro Stock field. |
Erica Enders made a great run on her final qualifying pass, a 6.616 that moved her GK Motorsports Chevy to the No. 3 spot behind Allen Johnson and Jason Line, who had the top-two passes of the session. Last year at this event, Enders also qualified No. 3 and reached the final round but fell to Greg Anderson. She also reached the final here in 2005 — becoming the first female to reach an NHRA Pro Stock final — but lost the final round to Line. |
[8:30 p.m.] With his precious and precarious spot in the top 10 in jeopardy with a possible DNQ, David Grubnic powered his way into the Top Fuel field with a 3.845 from the Optima Batteries entry. |
[8:40 p.m.] Tony Schumacher and the U.S. Army team took over the No. 1 spot in Top Fuel with a new track record pass of 3.763 at 324.83 mph. The old record was 3.771, co-held by Larry Dixon (2010) and Antron Brown (2012). |
[9:35 p.m.] Rookie Courtney Force kept her perfect qualifying streak alive with a last-ditch 4.141 that got her back into the field after she was bumped earlier in the session. Force's teammate, Mike Neff, also raced from outside the field to a solid spot with a 4.134, avoiding what would have been a disastrous second DNQ of the season. |
[10 p.m.] Tim Wilkerson unloaded a monster pass to highight the final Funny Car session, his 4.052 falling just short of John Force's field-leading 4.050. Robert Hight (4.067) and Bob Tasca III (4.073) also had solid passes. |
The legendary Chi-Town Hustler nostalgia Funny Car closed the show with an exhibition pass. |