Saturday's Motorplex Memories
Saturday, September 24, 2011
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| Welcome to Saturday at the AAA Texas NHRA Fall Nationals. The warm-up is supposed to continue today, with temps in the middle 90s and heading even higher Sunday. Full Throttle qualifying is scheduled for 11 a.m., and conditions should still be relatively cool then, but it's going to be a scorcher after that by the time the Pros take the track again at 1:30 p.m. Sportsman eliminations are continuing and track owner (right) Billy Meyer, right, and manager Gabrielle Stevenson are wearing Texas-sized smiles as the crowd continues to pour into Texas Motorplex. |
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The AAA Texas display behind the tower has played host to a number of special activities this weekend. (Above) Earlier today, John Force Racing/AAA drivers Mike Neff, Robert Hight, and Force drew a huge crowd for an interactive Q&A with fans, and so did a similar function (left) with Texas legends Raymond Beadle, left, and Billy Meyer. |
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[11:45 a.m.] It was a good Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying session for the Arana family; Hector Jr. (above) rode his Lucas Oil Buell to the No. 1 qualifying spot with a 6.828 and his father, Hector Sr. (right), rode to a 6.856 that for a time was good for the No. 2 spot.
Andrew Hines closed the session with a 6.850 from his Screamin' Eagle Vance & Hines Harley Davidson that while it did not reclaim the top spot he held at the end of Friday, earned him two qualifying bonus points for the session (six total for the event so far). He's now just four points behind third-place Matt Smith in the Countdown championship points.
The bump spot currently sits at 7.027, with 14 bikes qualified in the sixes. One session remains, which is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. |
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[12:15 p.m.] Mike Edwards wasn't able to overhaul Jason Line and Greg Anderson for the top spot on the Pro Stock qualifying sheets, but his Penhall Pontiac did have the first session's best pass, a 6.561, for three bonus points, and No. 3. Anderson also ran 6.561 but at a slower speed for two points, and Line's 6.569 was third quickest. |
[12:40 p.m.] Reigning Top Fuel event champ Tony Schumacher put the U.S. Army dragster into the No. 1 spot with a 3.863 that took away the No. 1 spot from Del Worsham's 3.869, which Worsham duplicated to the thousandth on his shot in this session to fall into the No. 2 spot. "Hot Rod" Fuller had the round's third best time, a 3.880. |
[1:10 p.m.] Ron Capps had the quickest Funny Car pass of the third session with a 4.190 to earn three bonus points. Melanie Troxel (4.208) and Jeff Arend (4.214) were the second and third quickest of the session, respectively. |
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| Between qualifying sessions, the Full Throttle drivers interacted with their fans. (Above left) Bob Tasca III answered questions at the Motorcraft display, and Brandon Bernstein signed autographs at the Copart tent. |
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A Cacklefest in the pits featured some great old Texas cars, including John Dearmore's AA/FD, circa 1969, from Alba, Texas; Larry Ladue's Rat Patrol, AA/FD, circa 1969, owned by Kenneth Reireson from Cranfields Gap, Texas; the Pony, a Pontiac-powered AA/FD, a survivor car, circa 1960, owned by Bobby Malone from Navasota, Texas; Don Cobb's B/Comp T roadster, circa 1968 (an NHRA record holder and Division 4 points champion), from Edmond, Okla., The Gizzle Hopper, AA/Fuel Coupe, circa 1961, owned by Brian and Vicky Perrenot from Highland Village, Texas; Bobby Langley's Scorpion I (left), a B/D circa 1958 owned by Don Ross from Richardson, Texas; and Langley's Scorpion V, AA/FD, circa 1964, AHRA World Champion in 1964, owned by Bill Crosby from Mesquite, Texas. |
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[2:30 p.m.] With their championship hopes on the line and their bikes not qualified, both Jim Underdahl (above) and Michael Phillips (left) made the Pro Stock Motorcycle field on their final attempts.
Underdahl entered the session on the bump at 7.027, but Phillips, who was not qualified, bumped him with a 6.964 at 197.22, the new top speed of the meet. Underdahl then bumped his way back into the show with a 7.013 to eke past Bailey Whitaker's 7.016.
Hector Arana Sr. (6.875) had the best run of the session followed by Karen Stoffer (6.908) and Hector Arana Jr., whose 6.919 fell well short of his own field-leading 6.828.
Hector Jr.'s No. 1 berth is the fourth of his impressive rookie campaign. |
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[3 p.m.] Texan Chris McGaha, who qualified in his Pro Stock debut in Indy, is now two for two after making the show here in the Elite Motorsports machine, qualifying No. 15 with a 6.610. He'll take on Greg Anderson in round one.
Mike Edwards had the best run of the final session with a 6.582 followed by Anderson (6.586) and Jason Line (6.597). So far at this event, Anderson and Line have earned eight bonus session points and Edwards seven. |
Line qualified No. 1 in Pro Stock for the fourth straight race, sixth time this year, and 23rd time in his career. |
[3:30 p.m.] Winternationals Top Fuel champ Morgan Lucas is a surprise DNQ when his 4.140 best was not quick enough to keep him in the field. Failing to make the show for the first time this year dropped him to 10th in points. |
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[3:30 p.m.] Although Tony Schumacher stayed on the Top Fuel pole with a 3.863, his DSR teammate, native Texan Spencer Massey, had the quickest pass of the final session, a 3.905 in the FRAM dragster.
Defending world champ Larry Dixon was next quickest with a 3.907, and Antron Brown third best with a 3.947.
Scott Palmer ended up on the bump spot with a 4.088. |
[3:45 p.m.] Alexis DeJoria's nitro Funny Car debut ended with a DNQ in the No. 17 spot, but the rookie driver looked at home in her new Tequila Patron Toyota, deftly backpedaling her ride on a failed final qualifying attempt. |
[4:20 p.m.] Jon Capps is the pleasant surprise of the event because the younger brother of NAPA Auto Parts driver Ron Capps wheeled David Beisenbach's Monte Carlo to a career-best No. 3 berth in Funny Car with a 4.152. Jack Beckman (4.204), and Mike Neff (4.211), and Cruz Pedregon 4.214) had the round's three-quickest times. |