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NHRA: Scelzi powers to top qualifying position in Pomona

14 November 1999

Posted By Terry Callahan
Motorsports Editor, The Auto Channel
POMONA, Calif. - Two-time defending NHRA Winston champion Gary Scelzi powered his Team Winston dragster to the top qualifying position Friday at the Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals. Ron Capps, Warren Johnson, Matt Hines and Bob Panella continued to be the leaders in their respective pro categories at the $1.7 million race, the final of 22 events in the $40 million NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series.

Fresno's Scelzi covered the Pomona Raceway quarter-mile in 4.570 seconds at 322.11 mph, edging Winston championship points leader Tony Schumacher for the No. 1 position.

"The car is running great and it went down the track on a string on that run," Scelzi said. "It was a very smooth run. We've got a real race car. A run like that gives you a lot of confidence." Schumacher, who needs only to qualify to clinch his first Winston championship, recorded a 4.574 with a track record speed of 327.03 mph to anchor the No. 2 position.

Scelzi will lead seven other competitors in search of a $200,000 payday in Saturday's Big Bud Shootout, a special event for Top Fuel. Doug Kalitta is the defending champion of the special bonus event.

Capps, from San Diego, improved on his run from Thursday, covering the quarter-mile distance with a career-best time of 4.853 seconds at 309.34 mph in his Copenhagen Camaro. John Force moved into second in the 16-car order with a 4.923 second effort at 300.46 mph in his Castrol GTX Ford Mustang.

"When it runs that good it's a fun ride," Capps said. "The car made a move at about half-track, and it wanted to go right a little. But it was a good ride."

Capps said the addition of new crew chief Ed 'The Ace' McCulloch has been a good fit for the team.

"It certainly makes Snake (Don Prudhomme, team owner) look like a genius," Capps said. "It's amazing. He really knows how to shake things up."

Johnson, from Buford, Ga., remained quickest in Pro Stock with his category-best 6.908 at 201.07 in his GM Goodwrench Pontiac Firebird.

"We tried a new engine today that we're trying to bring into our rotation," said Johnson, who posted a 6.968 at 200.23 effort which didn't improve upon Thursday's run. "It makes more power than the engine we ran the 6.90 with yesterday, so it should be faster. It's just a matter of getting the gearing and clutch right to take advantage of the power.

Hines, from Trinidad, Colo., continued to set the pace in Pro Stock Motorcycle with a run of 7.225 at 182.45 on his Eagle One Suzuki. Winston points leader Angelle Seeling, who holds a 14-point advantage over Hines, was third in the qualifying order with a 7.258 at 182.92 on her Team Winston Suzuki.

Panella, from Stockton, earned his fifth No. 1 qualifying position of the season in Pro Stock Truck, earning the spot with a national record time of 7.491, with a track record speed of 178.92. With the No. 1 effort, Panella moved closer to his first Winston championship, increasing his lead to 61 over closest pursuer Brad Jeter. Fellow Chevy S-10 driver Jeter, the defending truck winner of this event, qualified seventh with a 7.588 at 177.63.

Qualifying continues Saturday with pro sessions at 11:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m.

Pomona, Calif. - Friday's qualifying results for the 35th annual Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals at Pomona Raceway, the final of 22 events in the $40 million NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series.

Top Fuel -- 1. Gary Scelzi, Fresno, Calif., 4.570 seconds, 322.11 mph; 2. Tony Schumacher, Park Ridge, Ill., 4.574, 327.03; 3. Doug Kalitta, Ann Arbor, Mich., 4.586, 307.16; 4. Joe Amato, Exeter, Pa., 4.587, 322.58; 5. Cory McClenathan, Anaheim, Calif., 4.597, 317.34; 6. Don Lampus, Garland, Texas, 4.632, 312.06; 7. Kenny Bernstein, Lake Forest, Calif., 4.653, 314.75; 8. Bob Vandergriff, Cumming, Ga., 4.675, 295.79; 9. Tim Gibson, Irvine, Calif., 4.693, 304.39; 10. Larry Dixon, San Diego, 4.718, 297.48; 11. Mike Dunn, Wrightsville, Pa., 4.720, 286.13; 12. Bruce Litton, Indianapolis, 4.744, 301.74; 13. Jim Head, Columbus, Ohio, 4.750, 299.46; 14. Scott Kalitta, Ypsilanti, Mich., 4.775, 274.27; 15. Mike Smith, Round Rock, Texas, 4.781, 301.13; 16. Terry Mullins, Oak Ridge, Tenn., 4.792, 297.42.

Funny Car -- 1. Ron Capps, La Costa, Calif., Camaro, 4.853, 309.34; 2. John Force, Yorba Linda, Calif., Mustang, 4.923, 300.46; 3. Tony Pedregon, Gardena, Calif., Mustang, 4.957, 314.31; 4. Jim Epler, Phoenix, Firebird, 4.990, 308.07; 5. Whit Bazemore, Indianapolis, Camaro, 5.032, 304.25; 6. Dale Creasy Jr., Lansing, Ill., Firebird, 5.071, 300.13; 7. Dean Skuza, Brecksville, Ohio, Avenger, 5.082, 308.85; 8. Del Worsham, Costa Mesa, Calif., Firebird, 5.220, 252.14; 9. Tim Wilkerson, Springfield, Ill., Firebird, 5.237, 262.33; 10. Cory Lee, Sierra Del Oro, Calif., Avenger, 5.248, 295.72; 11. Al Hofmann, Umatilla, Fla., Firebird, 5.251, 288.27; 12. Wyatt Radke, Alta Loma, Calif., Avenger, 5.318, 282.01; 13. Mitch McDowell, Jerome, Idaho, Firebird, 5.452, 276.80; 14. Scotty Cannon, Lyman, S.C., Camaro, 5.470, 264.08; 15. Glenn Mikres, Dana Point, Calif., Mustang, 5.541, 253.99; 16. Larry Huff, Bell Canyon, Calif., Firebird, 5.544, 260.97.

Pro Stock -- 1. Warren Johnson, Buford, Ga., Pontiac Firebird, 6.908, 201.07; 2. Troy Coughlin, Columbus, Ohio, Oldsmobile Cutlass, 6.923, 198.88; 3. Mark Pawuk, Bath, Ohio, Firebird, 6.924, 198.70; 4. Richie Stevens, New Orleans, Firebird, 6.928, 198.00; 5. Tom Martino, Farmingdale, N.J., Firebird, 6.933, 199.40; 6. Bruce Allen, Arlington, Texas, Firebird, 6.937, 198.79; 7. Jim Yates, Alexandria, Va., Firebird, 6.939, 198.55; 8. Jeg Coughlin, Columbus, Ohio, Cutlass, 6.940, 199.55; 9. Kurt Johnson, Lawrenceville, Ga., Chevrolet Camaro, 6.951, 199.49; 10. Allen Johnson, Greeneville, Tenn., Dodge Avenger, 6.959, 197.83; 11. Mike Trumble, Pasadena, Texas, Firebird, 6.964, 198.67; 12. Tony Gillig, Lake Zurich, Ill., Cutlass, 6.966, 198.15; 13. Ron Krisher, Warren, Ohio, Firebird, 6.967, 198.41; 14. Arturo Delgado, McAllen, Texas, Firebird, 6.973, 197.91; 15. Mike Edwards, Broken Arrow, Okla., Camaro, 6.975, 198.41; 16. Greg Anderson, Jacksonville, N.C., Cutlass, 6.980, 198.41.

Pro Stock Bike -- 1. Matt Hines, Trinidad, Colo., Suzuki GSXR, 7.225, 182.45; 2. Antron Brown, Chesterfield, N.J., Suzuki, 7.242, 184.80; 3. Angelle Seeling, New Orleans, Suzuki, 7.258, 182.92; 4. David Schultz, Fort Myers, Fla., Suzuki, 7.286, 184.12; 5. Craig Treble, Chandler, Ariz., Suzuki, 7.329, 178.50; 6. Steve Johnson, Chatsworth, Calif., Suzuki, 7.383, 181.94; 7. Greg Underdahl, Minneapolis, Suzuki, 7.384, 185.82; 8. Larry Cook, West Linn, Ore., Suzuki, 7.410, 177.63; 9. Ron Ayers, Greenville, N.C., Suzuki, 7.424, 179.09; 10. Joe DeSantis, Rootstown, Ohio, Suzuki, 7.434, 180.74; 11. Gary Tonglet, Metairie, La., Suzuki, 7.443, 178.57; 12. Tony Mullen, Bradenton, Fla., Suzuki, 7.449, 182.18; 13. Chris Reuter, Gretna, Neb., Suzuki, 7.490, 177.32; 14. Fred Camarena, Placentia, Calif., Suzuki, 7.490, 175.94; 15. Brian Ayers, Greenville, N.C., Suzuki, 7.504, 176.93; 16. Brian DeLong, Circleville, Ohio, Suzuki, 7.526, 175.82.

Pomona, Calif. -- First-round pairings for Pro Stock Truck eliminations Saturday for the 35th annual Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals at Pomona Raceway, the final of 14 events for Pro Stock Trucks in the $40 million NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series.

Pro Stock Truck -- 1. Bob Panella Jr, Stockton, Calif., Chevrolet S-10, 7.491, 178.92 vs. 16. Mark Whisnant, Stockbridge, Ga., S-10, 7.620, 176.77; 2. Steve Johns, Mountville, Va., S-10, 7.539, 178.85 vs. 15. Scott Perin, Pen Argyl, Pa., S-10, 7.620, 177.14; 3. Mark Osborne, Abingdon, Va., S-10, 7.552, 178.78 vs. 14. Craig Eaton, Glendale, Ariz., Dodge Dakota, 7.618, 176.07; 4. Greg Stanfield, Bossier City, La., S-10, 7.570, 178.94 vs. 13. Mike Coughlin, Columbus, Ohio, S-10, 7.614, 177.04; 5. Jerry Haas, St. Louis, S-10, 7.574, 178.26 vs. 12. Todd Patterson, Augusta, Kan., Dakota, 7.611, 175.68; 6. Don Smith, Keller, Texas, S-10, 7.584, 178.02 vs. 11. John Lingenfelter, Decatur, Ind., S-10, 7.605, 178.07; 7. Brad Jeter, Greenville, S.C., S-10, 7.588, 177.63 vs. 10. John Coughlin, Columbus, Ohio, S-10, 7.593, 177.18; 8. Randy Daniels, Grantsboro, N.C., S-10, 7.590, 178.52 vs. 9. Brian Self, Houston, S-10, 7.592, 178.00.

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