Hammonds' "ironman" performance produces runner-up finish in Joliet

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Hammonds Highlights
Final results from the 
Chicagoland Dodge Dealers NHRA Nationals

Hammonds' "ironman" performance produces runner-up finish in Joliet

Date: Sunday, June 2, 2002
Location: Route 66 Raceway, Joliet, IL

Tom Hammonds and the Winnebago/GM Vehicle Care Cavalier Racing team had their 
best performance of the season at this weekend's Chicagoland Dodge Dealers 
NHRA Nationals.  After a strong 6.870-second effort on Friday night had 
placed him second on Sunday's final eliminations ladder, Hammonds proceeded 
to march through a strong Pro Stock field to reach his first final round of 
the season, and third of his career.  

Making this accomplishment even more remarkable was the fact that Hammonds 
had released his crew chief on Friday morning, and had personally handled the 
tuning responsibilities during the weekend.  Despite constantly changing 
weather conditions, the Hammonds Racing entry was consistently one of the top 
performers in the Pro Stock Category throughout the event.

In the first round, Hammonds faced a tough challenge in No. 15 qualifier Kurt 
Johnson.  Hammonds gained the advantage by five hundredths of a second at the 
starting line and never looked back, using a strong 6.850-second elapsed time 
to easily defeat the younger member of the Johnson clan.

Hammonds' assignment did not get any easier, as he next faced defending IHRA 
Pro Stock champion Gene Wilson.  Although Wilson was able to gain a slight 
lead at the start, the former NBA forward displayed some power, using the 
quickest pass of the session at 6.844 seconds to drive by his opponent for 
the win.   The scene was quite similar in the semi-finals, as Hammonds' 
Cavalier was again the class of the field, edging a game Allen Johnson to 
reach the championship round.

Facing veteran Bruce Allen in the final, Hammonds knew a complete, 
mistake-free effort would be necessary to secure his first national event 
win.  However, the strain of the extra work finally took its toll, resulting 
in an atypical .510 reaction time.  Despite outrunning his rival by almost 
two hundredths of a second, it was not enough to overcome the advantage 
gained at the starting line, forcing Hammonds' victory celebration to wait 
for another day.  

Although understandably unhappy with the results of the final round, Hammonds 
nevertheless realized that it had been an outstanding weekend for the 
Winnebago/GM Vehicle Care team.

"We're naturally disappointed that we didn't get the win, but we're not about 
hang our heads.  We made good, consistent runs all day, and our Winnebago/GM 
Vehicle Care Cavalier was the fastest car.  We're going to focus on what we 
accomplished this weekend, making sure to stick with it and keep moving 
forward.  I'm looking forward to finishing this year in strong fashion.

"To be honest, I had a mini-training camp this weekend in terms of working on 
the motor again, and I just ran out of gas in the final.  It was tough, as 
tired as I was, to concentrate. But we're not about to use that as an excuse. 
 Bruce Allen is a tough competitor, and although you don't ever get used to 
losing to somebody, it's something we can live with.  Besides we were able to 
have two GM cars in the final at a Dodge-sponsored race, so that can't be too 
bad."

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