Championship Drag Racing

KEYSTONE NATIONALS
READING (Sept. 14-17)

EVENT HOME
   Event schedule
   Results
   Star Tracks
   Audio Broadcast
   Photo Gallery
   Video highlights
   Race Notebook

   Preview
    Event records
    Ticket information
    How to get there
    Where to stay
    Where to eat
    Visitor Information

Darrell Alderman

Darrell Alderman Scott Geofrion Team Mopar Pro Stockers

Reports: Sunday Saturday Friday

Reading, Sunday: Darrell Alderman, driver of the Team Mopar Dodge Pro Stock entry, fell to Jeg Coughlin, Jr. in the quarterfinals of today’s Keystone NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway.

Coughlin edged Alderman at the top end with a 6.901-second run at 198.64 mph. to 6.909/198.67 Coughlin also held a (.448-.471) starting line advantage.

“We had a nice weekend and ran some great times,” said the three-time NHRA Winston Pros Stock World Champion. “The car left pretty well, but I was just a little behind at the start.”

Alderman advanced to the second round after defeating the Team Amoco Dodge R/T of Allen Johnson in round one. Alderman ran the third-quickest time of the first round with a 6.887/199.05 combination. Johnson drove to a 6.942/197.57.

The Team Mopar Dodge R/T of Scott Geoffrion fell in the first round of competition to No. 1 qualifier Ron Krisher. The nine-time NHRA national event winner managed a 6.962/198.06 effort, while Krisher had a 6.898/200.26.

“We had a pretty good weekend,” Geoffrion said. “That was only the fifth run with this new setup. I’m excited about this team’s direction.”

Reading, Saturday: Team Mopar ace Darrell Alderman ended a dramatic Pro Stock qualifying session by taking home the second position on the strength of a career-best 6.853-second elapsed time at 199.17 mph. The three-time NHRA Winston Pro Stock World Champion lost the No. 1 slot to Ron Krisher (6.846/200.56) during the same run.

“I can’t say enough about this new Hemi engine and the Nickens Brothers Racing Team,” said Alderman, who will face the Team Amoco Dodge of Allen Johnson in Round 1. “We had a couple of nice runs today. We improved during every session.”

Scott Geoffrion, Alderman’s teammate and driver of the other Team Mopar Dodge, also made it into the field with a strong 6.915/198.64 effort. The nine-time NHRA national event winner lauded his team for his 16th-place outing.

“This is what a team is all about,” said Geoffrion, who will take on Krisher in a Round 1 eliminator. “I am so pumped about this team. We took this car to (car builder) Rick Jones last week. Darrell and I now have the same cars and we’re really sharing that information. This Mopar program is really together.”

Reading, Friday: The three-time NHRA Winston Pro Stock World Champion grabbed a bit of the spotlight Friday evening when he laid down a 6.874-second elapsed time at 198.55 mph en route to the No. 1 qualifying position for the Keystone NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway.

Alderman, who pilots the Team Mopar Dodge R/T, collected his first top qualifier for Dodge since teammate Scott Geoffrion during the 1995 Autozone Nationals at Memphis (Tenn.) Motorsports Park.

“The car was in the air through second gear and it really left hard,” Alderman noted. “I knew it was running well because the shift lights were coming up pretty quick.

“This new Hemi engine really surprises me,” Alderman added. “We are fast right now. (Car owner) David Nickens has worked really hard on continually adding horsepower to the Hemi.”

The Team Mopar Dodge R/T of Geoffrion missed the cut when he managed a 6.976/197.86. Despite missing the field, Geoffrion is pleased with his team’s direction.

“This whole team is pumped up,” Geoffrion said. “We finally have the same setup as Darrell and he was number one.”