NHRA: Warren Report - St. Louis Edition
20 June 1999
THE WARREN REPORT: ST. LOUIS EDITION
Warren Johnson GM Goodwrench Service Plus News & Notes for the NHRA
Sears Craftsman Nationals
Madison, Ill., June 24-26
NIGHT MOVES
Warren Johnson will try to extend his two-race winning streak when the
NHRA traveling acceleration show goes to the third annual Sears Craftsman
Nationals at Gateway International Raceway in Madison, Ill., just across
the river from St. Louis. Final eliminations are scheduled for Saturday
night, June 26, under the lights.
The Johnson family has won both of the previous national events at
Gateway International Raceway. Warren won the inaugural race in 1997,
defeating Jim Yates in the final round. Kurt Johnson won last year's race
when he beat Jeg Coughlin, Jr. for the trophy and the money.
"The weather during the last two races in St. Louis was extremely hot,
so I have to commend NHRA and the track management for scheduling this
year's race at night," Warren commented. "It's going to be much more
hospitable for the fans, but it's going to be a new situation for the
racers.
"Eliminations will begin while the sun is still on the track, and
the later rounds will be at night. There will be a dramatic change in
track temperature between rounds, so it's going to be a guessing game as
far as the chassis and clutch setup. Still, I would rather deal with a cool
track at night than one with a starting line temperature approaching 135
degrees."
W.J. TURNS UP THE HEAT IN OHIO
Fresh from a victory at Route 66 Raceway on June 6, W.J. returned to
the winner's circle for the second straight weekend when he defeated Jeg
Coughlin, Jr. in the final round of the Pontiac Excitement Nationals in
Columbus, Ohio, on June 13. Warren notched his fifth win of the season and
the 77th of his career at National Trail Raceway.
Johnson and his GM Goodwrench Service Plus Firebird dominated the
event, qualifying No. 1 and setting the track elapsed time and speed
records.
"We didn't leave too many scraps on the table," said Warren with
his characteristic understatement. "We're happy with the way it turned
out."
For the second straight race, W.J. faced a member of the Coughlin clan
in the run for the money. At Route 66, he defeated Troy Coughlin in the
final; this time he beat Jeg Coughlin, Jr., 7.008 to 7.061, to tally his
third career victory in Columbus.
"I think we've learned how to run this car in the heat," Warren
reported. "We didn't really push it that hard. Columbus is one of those
tracks where we try to stay as far away from the edge as possible. We
managed to keep the car on the safe side and still have a performance
advantage. Most of our competitors were running 1.08 and 1.09-second
elapsed times in the first 60 feet, and we were able to run 1.04's and
1.05's. In the final round, Jeg had a 1.08 60-foot time, and I went 1.04.
The race was just about over by the time we got to the Christmas Tree - and
that's about perfect from my perspective!"
PROFESSOR'S NOTE PAD
* W.J.'s 77th career victory at the Pontiac Excitement Nationals gave him
the lead over Funny Car driver John Force in the race to break Bob
Glidden's record of 85 career wins. Force lost in the semi-final round in
Columbus. Warren also extended his lead in the Pro Stock standings to 185
points (more than nine rounds) over his son Kurt, who continued to struggle
with handling problems and fell in the first round.
* Warren made the first 6-second Pro Stock run ever recorded at National
Trail Raceway when he qualified in the No. 1 spot with a 6.996-second
elapsed time. He later reset the track records at 6.995/198.15 mph in his
semi-final round victory over Mike Trumble.
* W.J.'s first six at National Trail came more than five years after his
son Kurt recorded the first sub-7-second run in NHRA history. Only two
tracks on the NHRA tour have yet to yield a 6-second Pro Stock run:
mile-high Bandimere Speedway and Brainerd (Minn.) International Raceway.
* And then there were two: Following John Nobile's DNQ in Columbus, only
two Pro Stock drivers have qualified for every national event in 1999:
Warren Johnson and Jim Yates.
MID-TERM REPORT CARD
The Sears Craftsman Nationals is the 11th of 22 races on the NHRA Winston
Drag Racing Series. So how does the Professor of Pro Stock grade his
performance at the midpoint of the season?
"About a B-," said Warren, who obviously grades on a very steep curve.
"I give myself a low mark because it took too long to figure out this new
car. We've been through four different rear suspensions already this season
and changed a considerable number of parts to find a combination that's
effective. If we had stumbled on this combination earlier in the season, we
could have avoided disasters like we experienced in Richmond when I lost in
the first round. We might have been able to set the record in the 6.70s, so
that was definitely a missed opportunity.
"If we can come out of St. Louis with a semi-final or final-round
finish, then I think we'll be in excellent shape for the upcoming races,"
W.J. predicted. "It's likely to be hot in Denver and Sonoma, but we won't
have the midwestern humidity to contend with. Seattle might even give us
cool race conditions."
FOR THE RECORD: NHRA National Event Marks
Warren Johnson now holds event elapsed time records at 17 of the 22 races
on the NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series. He holds event speed records at
every stop on the tour.
The oldest e.t. record in the book is Jim Yates' 6.975-second mark set
at Gateway International Raceway in June 1997. The oldest speed record is
Warren Johnson's 196.75 mph run at Brainerd (Minn.) International Raceway
in August 1997. Only Brainerd and mile-high Bandimere Speedway near Denver
have elapsed time records above 6.99 seconds.
Event E.T. Record Record Holder Speed Record Record Holder
Pomona 1 6.888* Warren Johnson, 2/99 200.95 mph Warren
Johnson, 2/99
Phoenix 6.920 Warren Johnson, 2/99 199.64 Warren
Johnson, 2/99
Gainesville 6.866 Warren Johnson, 3/99 201.37 Warren
Johnson, 3/99
Houston 1 6.874* Warren Johnson, 3/98 201.11* Warren
Johnson, 3/98
Dallas 1 6.904 Warren Johnson, 4/99 200.22 Warren
Johnson, 4/99
Richmond 6.840# Kurt Johnson, 4/99 202.24# Warren
Johnson, 4/99
Atlanta 6.901 Warren Johnson, 5/99 201.01 Warren
Johnson, 5/99
Englishtown 6.875 Warren Johnson, 5/99 201.58 Warren
Johnson, 5/99
Chicago 6.955 Kurt Johnson, 6/99 198.70 Warren
Johnson, 6/99
Columbus 6.955 Warren Johnson, 6/99 198.15 Warren
Johnson, 6/99
Madison 6.975 Jim Yates, 6/97 197.06 Warren
Johnson, 6/98
Denver 7.346 Warren Johnson, 7/98 187.45 Warren
Johnson, 7/98
Sonoma 6.949 Warren Johnson, 7/98 199.64 Warren
Johnson, 7/98
Seattle 6.884 Warren Johnson, 8/98 200.53 Warren
Johnson, 8/98
Brainerd 7.002 Warren Johnson, 8/97 196.76 Warren
Johnson, 8/97
Indianapolis 6.977 Warren Johnson, 9/98 197.67 Warren
Johnson, 9/98
Reading 6.940 Warren Johnson, 9/98 198.36 Warren
Johnson, 9/98
Topeka 6.924 Mark Osborne, 10/98 197.93 Warren
Johnson, 10/98
Memphis 6.881 Warren Johnson, 10/98 200.88 Warren
Johnson, 10/98
Dallas 2 6.867* Warren Johnson, 10/98 201.34* Warren
Johnson, 10/98
Houston 2 6.920 Kurt Johnson, 11/98 199.73 Warren
Johnson, 11/98
Pomona 2 6.891 Warren Johnson, 10/98 201.02* Warren
Johnson, 11/98
*Track Record; #National Record
E.T. Record Totals:
Warren Johnson 17
Kurt Johnson 3
Jim Yates 1
Mark Osborne 1
Speed Record Totals:
Warren Johnson 22
LAST RACE:
Pontiac Excitement Nationals, Columbus, Ohio, June 13, 1999
Qualifying: Warren Johnson qualified No. 1 at 6.996/197.68
Eliminations:
Round 1: Warren Johnson defeated George Marnell
Round 2: Warren Johnson defeated Robert Patrick
Semi-Final: Warren Johnson defeated Mike Trumble
Final Round: Warren Johnson (7.008/197.57) defeated Jeg Coughlin,
Jr. (7.061/197.97)
Low ET: Warren Johnson, 6.995 seconds (track record)
Top Speed: Warren Johnson, 198.15 mph (track record)
POINTS RACE:
(After 10 of 22 events)
Driver Wins Points
1. Warren Johnson 5 878
2. Kurt Johnson 2 693
3. Richie Stevens 1 569
4. Jim Yates 0 532
5. Jeg Coughlin 1 528