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Sunday's Charlotte Shots
Sunday, September 18, 2011
News and views from the 
O'Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Nationals		 Last update 6:55 p.m.
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A steady stream of cars made their way along Bruton Smith Boulevard this morning, heading into zMAX Dragway for eliminations day of the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Nationals. Skies are once again overcast, but there are breaks in the clouds, and those breaks are expected to become more prevalent throughout the day with some sun here and there during the day. Temps will also increase from the previous two days with the high expected to be about 74 degrees, about 10 degrees warmer than yesterday. Conditions are still prime for quick times, creating an ideal situation for Matt Hagan to potentially back up his 3.99 run as a national Funny Car record; he needs to run a 4.035 to make it official and get the extra 20 points. Eliminations begin today at noon.
[12 p.m.] Race fans had the chance to kick off their race day with event legend “TV Tommy” Ivo, who joined NHRA announcer Bob Frey and those who came out to zMAX Dragway a little early for a track walk (above). Ivo then officially got race day started with the command to start engines, followed by him waving on the first pair of cars as they did their burnouts then launched to begin the process of determining a winner.
[12:20 p.m.] The record-setting performances are continuing in Charlotte. In the opening round of Top Fuel, Tony Schumacher set a new national speed record of 327.90 mph on his way to victory over Morgan Lucas. Schumacher also posted a strong 3.775 on the pass, giving him lane choice over Rod Fuller in round two.

[12:25 p.m.] Bob Vandergriff Jr. provided the biggest upset of the opening round when he wheeled his C&J Energy Services Top Fueler past regular season points champ Del Worsham, who spun the tires. Vandergriff faces Antron Brown, who will have lane choice, in the second round. Other second-round pairings are (lane choice first): Tony Schumacher vs. Rod Fuller, Spencer Massey vs. Doug Kalitta, and Larry Dixon vs. Brandon Bernstein.
[12:35 p.m.] After having a little fun together at driver introductions this morning, Jack Beckman, right, and Paul Lee took to the track in the first pair of Funny Car. Beckman won the battle, and on his winning run, Beckman clocked a speed of 316.01 mph that backed up the 318.92 he posted in qualifying, giving him the national record and making his “Fast Jack” nickname quite fitting.
[12:50 p.m.] Tommy DeLago continues to work his magic on the DieHard Dodge Charger, tuning driver Matt Hagan to a 4.018 that backs up the 3.995 from Friday night, giving the team the national e.t. record. Hagan’s run also featured a booming 322.27-mph speed, the first Funny Car run at more than 320 mph and a potential national speed record if the team can back it up later today.

[1:05 p.m.] After two days of overcast skies, the sun has made an appearance at zMAX Dragway today, which has raised the track temp to nearly 90 degrees, one of the warmest temps crew chiefs have seen all weekend. Local forecasters are calling for a mix of sun and clouds throughout the day.

[1:10 p.m.] Though his first-round pass wasn’t a perfect one — he smoked the tires downtrack — defending event Funny Car champion Cruz Pedregon was able to keep his hopes of a repeat alive when he bested Robert Hight, who had troubles early in the opening round. Pedregon will face Matt Hagan in round two; Hagan has lane choice. Other second-round pairings (lane choice first) are: Jack Beckman vs. Jeff Arend, Tim Wilkerson vs. Mike Neff, and Jim Head vs. Johnny Gray.

[1:30 p.m.] Shane Gray registered the biggest upset of race day in any class to this point when he stopped Indy champion and No. 2 qualifier Greg Anderson in the opening round of Pro Stock. Gray left the starting line first, .034 to .079, and parlayed it into a 6.60 to 6.55 holeshot win. Anderson’s efforts were hampered on the top end by a broken engine.
[1:35 p.m.] Steve Kent picked up his first Pro Stock round-win when he trailered Ronnie Humphrey in the first round. Kent won the match on the starting line when he grabbed an advantage of nearly a tenth, then posted a 6.586 to Humphreys’ 6.586. Kent will face Mike Edwards in second round; Edwards will have lane choice have running a thousandth quicker. Other second-pairings (lane choice first) are: Jason Line vs. Erica Enders, Vincent Nobile vs. Shane Gray, and Kurt Johnson vs. Greg Stanfield.
[1:40 p.m.] Michael Ray pulled the big upset of Pro Stock Motorcycle round one over Hector Arana Sr., getting the nod when Arana’s bike broke right off the starting line. Ray will face Shawn Gann in the next round; Gann had the better first-round run, 6.91 to 6.92, so he will have lane choice.

[1:50 p.m.] As was the case in the other categories, performances were quick in Pro Stock Motorcycle in the opening round with three riders dipping into the 6.8s. Karen Stoffer was the best of the bunch with a 6.825 against Justin Finley, which is the best time of the weekend to this point. Stoffer will choose her lane against Jim Underdahl next round. Other pairings in the second round (lane choice first) are: Eddie Krawiec vs. Hector Arana Jr., Shawn Gann vs. Michael Ray, and Matt Smith vs. Andrew Hines.
[2:30 p.m.] The second round of Top Fuel got off to a fiery start when Bob Vandergriff Jr.’s engine let go when he crossed the finish line against Antron Brown, who was the winner of the pairing. Brown’s run was far from perfect, too; he left oil on the track, costing him 10 points and, for the moment, the points lead.

[2:45 p.m.] Don Schumacher Racing is dominating in Top Fuel. All three DSR cars advanced to the semifinals. Spencer Massey (pictured) defeated Doug Kalitta and will face the only non-DSR car in the final four: Larry Dixon in the semi’s; Massey has lane choice. On the other side of the ladder, teammates Antron Brown and Tony Schumacher will square off. Schumacher has lane choice thanks to his 3.798, the best time of the round.
[2:45 p.m.] Larry Dixon is the only driver in Top Fuel who can prevent a complete sweep of the weekend by Don Schumacher Racing. Dixon will stage his Al-Anabi dragster up against Spencer Massey next round. Both Dixon and Massey ran 3.81s with Massey having the slight edge in performance, 3.815 to 3.816.
[2:55 p.m.] The Don Schumacher Racing team is also ruling in Funny Car, in which all three of “the Don’s” cars made it through the second round. Matt Hagan continues to show the way, posting a 4.054 that gives him lane choice over teammate Jack Beckman in the semi’s.

[2:55 p.m.] Points leader Mike Neff will be the lone non-Don Schumacher Racing driver in the Funny Car semi’s. “Zippy” posted a 4.076, the second-best time of round two, that will let him select his lane against Johnny Gray.
[3:10 p.m.] After earning his first round-win in the opening round against Ronnie Humphrey, Steve Kent, who is sporting a special Charter Communications paint scheme this weekend, doubled his total when he bested Mike Edwards in round two. Kent ran a solid 6.55, while Edwards had troubles and slowed. Kent will face Jason Line in the semi’s; Line has lane choice by virtue of the 6.525 he registered against Erica Enders.
[3:10 p.m.] Rookie runner Vincent Nobile has lane choice in the other Pro Stock semifinal match, in which he’ll face a resurgent Kurt Johnson. Both Nobile and Johnson ran 6.57s in their respective second-round victories over Shane Gray and Greg Stanfield, but Nobile was quicker by four-thousandths.

[3:25 p.m.] Eddie Krawiec, who dominated qualifying and collected nine bonus points, is once again showing the way in Pro Stock Motorcycle. Krawiec powered his Vance & Hines Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson to a 6.810, the fourth-quickest time in history, at 196.79 mph, the fastest speed of the weekend, to pace the second round. Krawiec will have lane choice over surprise semifinalist Michael Ray next round.

[3:25 p.m.] Matt Smith is giving the Pro Stock Motorcycle fans who sponsored his bike this weekend a lot to cheer about, wheeling the signature-adorned Buell to the semifinals. Smith faces Karen Stoffer, who was quicker in the second round, 6.83 to 6.86, giving her lane choice.

[4:25 p.m.] Spencer Massey ensured an all-Don Schumacher Racing Top Fuel final when he bested Larry Dixon in the first pair of the semifinals. Massey clocked a 3.786, which stood as low e.t. of the round.
[4:25 p.m.] Antron Brown, who entered the event as Top Fuel’s hottest driver, winning three of last four events, continued to march, driving his dragster, which is sporting the Aaron’s colors this weekend, past teammate Tony Schumacher.

[4:35 p.m.] Mike Neff prevented Don Schumacher Racing from sweeping all four nitro spots when he drove around Johnny Gray in the Funny Car semifinals. No matter the outcome of the final round, Neff will leave the event as the points leader.

[4:35 p.m.] Matt Hagan’s DieHard Dodge Funny Car again was the class of the field, clocking a 4.032 en route to victory over teammate Jack Beckman. Hagan will select his lane against Mike Neff in the title round.
[4:50 p.m.] Kurt Johnson has plenty of reasons to smile after he eked out a narrow .009-second win over Vincent Nobile to earn a spot in the Pro Stock final. Johnson has one other final at zMAX Dragway, finishing as runner-up to Justin Humphreys at this event in 2008.

[4:50 p.m.] Jason Line has carried the Summit banner all the way to the Pro Stock title round, and he did so in impressive fashion, posting a 6.521 in the semi’s against Steve Kent. The run was about three-hundredths better than Kurt Johnson, so Line will have lane choice.
[5 p.m.] Karen Stoffer (right) and Eddie Krawiec (below) have arguably had the two strongest bikes in Pro Stock Motorcycle this weekend, so it’s fitting they make up the final in that category. Stoffer ran a 6.857 to defeat Matt Smith in the first semifinal match, and Krawiec posted his second straight 6.81, a 6.813, to trailer Michael Ray in the other pairing, giving the Harley-Davidson rider lane choice in the title round.

[6 p.m.] Kurt Johnson wheeled his Total Seal entry to the winner’s circle in Pro Stock. Johnson was joined in victory by Antron Brown (Top Fuel), Matt Hagan (Funny Car), and Eddie Krawiec (Pro Stock Motorcycle). Final rounds and a photo from the winner’s circle will be posted shortly.

Eddie Krawiec, near lane, got the automatic nod in the Pro Stock Motorcycle final when Karen Stoffer red-lighted by .028-second. Karwiec posted a fourth straight 6.8, a 6.87, on his victory pass.

Kurt Johnson, far lane, ended a win drought that extended back to the 2008 Brainerd event when he defeated Jason Line in the Pro Stock final. Line made Johnson’s job a lot easier when he left the starting line too soon.

After a 3.99 Friday night and a series of 4.0s in the opening three rounds, Matt Hagan, near lane, sealed a perfect weekend with a 4.13 to 4.43 triumph over Mike Neff in the Funny Car trophy round.

Antron Brown, far lane, picked up his fourth win in the last five events and took over the Top Fuel points lead when he bested teammate Spencer Massey in the final. Brown ran a strong 3.784 en route to the win, but he was also aided when Massey’s engine let go midway through.

The four Pro winners, from left, Kurt Johnson, Matt Hagan, Antron Brown, and Eddie Krawiec celebrated together in the winner’s circle at the end of the event.

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