NHRA Funny Car - Tasca Suffers First-Round Loss At Sonoma

SONOMA, August 1, 2011: Bob Tasca III and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Mustang Funny Car team held a slight advantage over opponent Ron Capps at the 330-foot mark in Round 1 of the NHRA Nationals at Infineon Raceway, but a win was not to be. However, what made headlines for the team was not that round loss – it was the ultimate sign of sportsmanship they showed later.

Tasca clocked a 4.178-second finish at 300.73 mph in that loss to Capps’ 4.167 at 303.98 after qualifying 14th with a 4.259 at 295.14. But after setting their disappointment aside, Tasca and the Motorcraft/Quick Lane team stepped up to the aid of fellow “One Ford” driver Tim Wilkerson and his Levi, Ray and Shoup Ford Mustang team, helping them swap out an engine before their semifinal win against No. 1 qualifier John Force. It was difficult to know who to cheer for.

Wilkerson ultimately lost to Capps in the final round. But thanks to Tasca, Wilkerson and both teams, Ford kept its final-round streak alive – the Blue Oval has made every Funny Car final this year.

The day was still difficult for Tasca.

“It’s hard to imagine having so many races this year decided by 100th of a second not go our way,” Tasca said. “You can look at that two ways. We’ve got a race car that is right there with the best of the best, in this case, with the guy (Capps) who won the race. I’m an optimist. I’m going to look forward, not back. In the heat of the moment, you just feel dejected. But I’m going to look ahead to Seattle.

“We’re going to Seattle, which is great because it’s four days away. When you have a car that is racing like ours is, you want to keep racing. I can’t believe how many races we’ve lost by feet in 1 ½ years. We’ll look at the glass half full. We’re as good as any car out there. The breaks aren’t going our way right now, but they will.”