Doug Kalitta, Robert Hight, and Mike Edwards finished atop their fields as qualifying drew to a close at the NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways outside of Seattle.
The event marks the opening of the Western Swing, a staple on the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series tour since 1988. teams spend a grueling three weeks in the western U.S. racing in three different types of conditions in a span that will help determine the final positions in the NHRA's regular season, which ends one race later. This year, the tour is reversed as the Seattle event, traditionally either the second or third leg on the Swing, kicks off things. The teams head next week to Sonoma, Calif., before going back east to compete in Denver in two weeks
Doug Kalitta
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There wasn’t a whole lot of improvement in the Top Fuel class, which is just fine with Kalitta, who secured his first No. 1 qualifying berth since the 2006 World Finals with his Friday pass of 3.884. Kalitta had been the No. 2 qualifier three times this season before locking down the 29th No. 1 berth of his Pro career.
"We were happy to hold on," said Kalitta. "We were nervous, because Dixon sure got close. I'm real proud of how the guys kept banging away on this thing to get it running good. All the crew chiefs and Connie [Kalitta] are working hard to get all the Kalitta cars running up front.
"It's kind of nice to get a bye in the first round. It's been a long stretch since we've been low qualifier. We used to get a check and a plaque for being No. 1 qualifier; I guess now we get a bye run. I'll try not to screw it up."
Points leader Larry Dixon and the Al-Anabi dragster remained No. 2 despite improving slightly from a 3.904 to a 3.896 though Dixon did make the quickest laps of both Saturday’s qualifying sessions and earned a total of eight bonus points throughout the four runs. The situation was the same for Cory McClenathan, who picked up from his Friday 3.936 to a 3.921 yet remained third and for Tony Schumacher, who ran a 3.937 after a 3.959 Friday best and stayed fourth.
Defending event champ Antron Brown made it three Don Schumacher Racing cars in a row using his Friday 3.964 in the Matco Tools entry. Brandon Bernstein is sixth at 3.976 -- his “worst” start since the Las Vegas event in April -- and teammates Shawn Langdon (3.993) and Morgan Lucas (4.002) round out the top eight. Washington state native Ron Smith qualified a career-high No. 12 during his sole effort in the third round of qualifying.
With only 15 Top Fuel cars on the grounds, Kalitta will receive a bye run in the first round. Based on their qualifying efforts, Kalitta and Brown both secured their positions in the Countdown to 1 playoffs.
Robert Hight
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Hight remained atop the Funny Car field with his Automobile Club of Southern California Mustang thanks to his Friday 4.194 though he did come close to duplicating that number with a 4.199 in the morning session, giving him the two best runs of the event. The No. 1 berth is Hight’s fourth in the last six events and the 38th of his career. Jeff Diehl qualified his Rimz One Monte Carlo on the bump spot with a 5.120 and will be Hight’s first-round opponent Sunday.
"We finally missed in the last qualifying run," said Hight. "I saw [Del] Worsham run a 4.20, and a couple guys were close to going No. 1. The top 10 is so bunched up right now. Jimmy Prock is doing a great job, and so is Eric Lane, who John just promoted to backup crew chief after 10 years on this team. He really knows his stuff, and it's great to have a young guy like him working with Jimmy."
"It will be a tough race tomorrow. Jeff Diehl ran a 4.22 in the heat in Norwalk, which was killer, so we'll be on the trailer if we take him lightly."
Del Worsham, who won this event back in 1999, also had a great Saturday, moving his Al-Anabi Racing Solara to the No. 2 spot with a 4.202 while Cruz Pedregon raced to the No. 3 spot overnight from 12th with a 4.220 in his Snap-on Solara. Ron Capps, who finished Friday 10th with the NAPA Auto Parts Charger, moved up to fourth with a 4.22.
Ashley Force Hood (4.225), Bob Tasca III (4.257), Matt Hagan (4.258), and seven-time Seattle winner John Force (4.269) round out the top eight. Force clinched a spot in the playoffs by qualifying for this event.
There are a lot of interesting first-round matchup. Nos. 7 and 10 qualifiers Hagan and Jeff Arend are set to race each other for the fifth consecutive event and the eighth time this season. Brothers Cruz and Tony Pedregon will face each other in round one. Cruz made the best lap in the final session by running a 4.22 in the Snap-on Solara, solidifying his fourth consecutive top-half qualifying position.
Mike Edwards
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After failing to qualify No. 1 at the last two races – the first time in a year he hadn’t led the field at least every other race -- Edwards bounced right back from disappointing 12th-place qualifying effort two weeks ago in Norwalk to grab his 10th No. 1 qualifying position in the season’s first 14 events. Edwards moved up from the No. 3 spot Friday to claim the pole with a 6.598 pass Saturday morning with his Penhall/K&N/Interstate Pontiac. It’s the 32nd pole of Edwards’ career.
"We stepped a little bit out of the box yesterday and tried something different," said Edwards, who won this race last season. "I thought it work, but we didn't like what it showed us. We went back to how we ran the car at this track last year and made a good run. A lot of guys were inching up on us like Johnny Gray, who made an awesome run.
"I drove the truck 2100 miles to get here [from Coweta, Okla.], and that's a long ways for us old guys. There aren't many dirt roads and cows out here like there are at home."
Johnny Gray finished a season-best second with his NTB Pontiac after posting a close 6.599 while Allen Johnson’s Mopar Avenger sits third with a 6.601 at 210.28 mph, which is top speed of the meet. Greg Anderson also has a season-best qualifying, fourth, with his Summit Racing Equipment Pontiac thanks to a 6.610.
Jeg Coughlin is fifth at 6.611 while Friday leader Jason Line, who was unable to improve on his Friday 6.612, slid to sixth with that number. Ron Krisher’s Valvoline Cobalt is No. 7 at 6.617 and Shane Gray’s Tire Kingdom GXP is eighth at 6.631.
73-year-old Jim Cunningham qualified his Mustang on the bump at 6.741 – his first field berth in 67 Pro Stock starts dating back to 1990. His reward is a first-round date with Edwards Sunday. Cunningham’s teammate, Erica Enders, is the field’s lone alternate.
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Friday: Kalitta, Line looking for first No.1s of season in Seattle; Hight leads FC