Friday Results-Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Silver Dollar Raceway , Reynolds, Ga.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE NHRA LUCAS OIL DRAG RACING SERIES - NHRA SOUTHEAST DIVISION SILVER DOLLAR RACEWAY FRIDAY, MAY 31, 2002 Gunderson and Payne Lead Top Alcohol Fields in Opening Rounds of Lucas Qualifying Reynolds, Ga. -In the opening rounds of qualifying at the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event being held at Silver Dollar Raceway, Top Alcohol Dragster driver Michael Gunderson and Top Alcohol Funny Car driver Jay Payne are leading their respective fields. Gunderson of Middleburg, Fla. piloted his Top Alcohol Dragster to a 5.549-second pass at 254.23 mph to claim the top spot in the class. Gunderson is the defending Southeast Division Champion in the class as well as the current division points leader. He's currently in a heated battle for points with fellow Middleburg, Fla. runner Jason Cannon, who is qualified third. In Top Alcohol Funny Car Jay Payne of Claremont, Calif. laid down a 5.913-second pass at 246.53 mph to take the lead in Funny Car. Payne, who is leading the national points chase in the class is the defending Southeast Division Champion in Top Alcohol Funny Car. Within the Southeast Division though, Payne is currently duking it out with the Jensen Audio backed funny car driven by Von Smith, of Oak Ridge, Tenn. Smith is currently the Southeast Division Top Alcohol Funny Car points leader. Top qualifiers in other classes are Larry Pritchett of Clarkrange, Tenn., in Competition Eliminator; Bobby Dennis of Shorter, Ala., in Super Stock; and Woodro Josey of Byron, Ga. in Stock. Final qualifying for Competition Eliminator, Super Stock and Stock, as well as Super Comp, Super Gas and Super Street will continue tomorrow. Gates at Silver Dollar Raceway will open Saturday at 9 a.m. with qualifying set to continue at 10 a.m. Eliminations in Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car are slated for at 6 p.m. For more information please contact Silver Dollar Raceway at (478) 847-4414. They can also be reached via their web site at www.SilverDollarRaceway.com. The following are Friday's qualifying results from the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event at Silver Dollar Raceway: Top Alcohol Dragster 1. Michael Gunderson, Middleburg, Fla., 5.549 seconds, 254.23 mph 2. Marty Thacker, Robinson, Ill., 5.574, 252.00 3. Jason Cannon, Middleburg, Fla., 5.582, 252.00 4. Guy Kelly, Wadley, Ala., 5.597, 251.39 5. John Haley, Wayzata, Minn., 5.689, 247.75 6. Tony Bartone, Manhasset, N.Y., 5.726, 234.13 7. Artie Allen, Jacksonville, Fla., 5.852, 244.56 8. Don Fiorelli, Palm Bay, Fla., 5.885, 226.32 --------------------NOT QUALIFIED-------------------------------- 9. John Sullivan, Montgomery, Ala., 6.780, 208.14 10. Duke McDonald, Gainesville, Fla., 7.207,179.02 First Round Pairings 1) Michael Gunderson, Middleburg, Fla. vs. 8) Don Fiorelli, Palm Bay, Fla. 2) Marty Thacker, Robinson, Ill. vs. 7) Artie Allen, Jacksonville, Fla. 3) Jason Cannon, Middleburg, Fla. vs. 6) Tony Bartone, Manhasset, N.Y. 4) Guy Kelly, Wadley, Ala. vs. 5) John Haley, Wayzata, Minn. Top Alcohol Funny Car 1. Jay Payne, Claremont, Calif., '02 Camaro, 5.913 seconds, 246.53 mph 2. Von Smith, Oak Ridge, Tenn., '01 Firebird, 5.923, 243.63 3. Mark Billington, Apopka, Fla., '01 Avenger, 6.007, 240.94 4. John Patton, Peoria Ariz., '99 Pontiac, 6.059, 239.27 First Round Pairings 1) Jay Payne, Claremont, Calif. vs. 4) John Patton, Peoria, Ariz. 2) Von Smith, Oak Ridge, Tenn. vs. 3) Mark Billington, Apopka, Fla. Comp Eliminator 1. Larry Pritchett, Clarkrange, Tenn., A/SM, '98 Pontiac, 8.044 seconds, -0.576 (under index) 2. Mike Aye, Johnston, S.C., G/A, '92 Cutlass, 8.684, -0.556 3. Charlie Watson, Humble, Texas, G/A, '96 Lumina, 8.744, -0.496 4. J Allen Sherman, Donaldsonville, La., D/SMA,'90 Grand Am, 9.133, -0.267 5. Bobby Dennis, Shorter, Ala., H/AA, '91 Calais, 9.355, -0.235 6. Richard Larsen, Tyrone, Ga., A/ND, Dragster, 7.885, 0.095 7. Dick Maris, Valrico, Fla., Dragster, C/D, 8.048, 0.438 8. Thomas Frye, Englewood, Ohio, A/ND, Dragster, 8.773, 0.983 --------------------------NOT QUALIFIED-------------------------------------- 9. Ron Griffis, Gainesville FL A/EA, '32 Bantam DQ Super Stock 1. Bobby Dennis, Shorter Ala., GT/MA, '97 Firebird, 10.968 seconds, -1.082 (under index) 2. Steven Reynolds, Pasadena, Texas, GT/MA, '86 Monte Carlo, 11.194, -0.856 3. Kenny Schindler, Hendersonville, Tenn., SS/EA, '68 Corvette, 9.851, -0.799 4. Jason Davis, Wetumpka, Ala., GT/MA, '00 Firebird, 11.261, -0.789 5. Gilbert Johnson Jr., Lecompte, La.,, GT/JA, '91 Calias, 10.879, -0.771 6. Bruce Campbell, Waynesville, N.C., GT/HA, '88 Firebird, 10.579, -0.771 7. Don Barber, Hohenwald, Tenn., GT/BA, '93 Achieva, 9.790, -0.760 8. Blair Patrick, Jasper, Tenn., SS/EA, '68 Mustang, 9.898, -0.752 9. Mike Crutchfield, Montgomery, Ala., SS/BS, '90 Camaro, 9.266, -0.734 10. Brent Johnson, Lecompte, La., GT/IA, '91 Calais, 10.766, -0.734 Stock 1. Woodro Josey, Byron, Ga., C/SA, '98 Firebird, 10.666 seconds, -1.034 (under index) 2. Anthony Volpe Sr., New Orleans, La., K/SA, '86 Firebird, 12.021, -0.929 3. Andy Thornburg, Wilmer, Ala., J/SA, '79 Aspen, 11.830, -0.920 4. Tom Marinelli, Tallahassee, Fla., K/SA, '79 Malibu, 12.058, -0.892 5. Robbie Shaw, Douglasville, Ga., M/SA, '87 Formula, 12.258, -0.892 6. Harold Culpepper, Pine Mountain. Valley, Ga., D/SA, '94 Camaro, 10.975, -0.875 7. Arnold Greene, Matthews, N.C., A/S, '69 Camaro, 10.396, -0.854 8. Don Himes, Port Charlotte, Fla., P/SA, '77 Grand Am, 12.908, -0.842 9. Jeff Velde, Vero Beach, Fla., B/SA, '68 Mustang, 10.711, -0.839 10. Garry Glazener, Jackson, S.C., G/SA, '72 Mustang, 11.466, -0.834