NHRA NEWS: POST RACE NOTES FROM RICHMOND
NHRA POWERADE SERIES POST RACE NOTES: Inaugural Torco Racing Fuels NHRA Nationals Oct. 26-29, Virginia Motorsports Park, Dinwiddie, Va. TOP FUEL * Cory McClenathan, from Lake Havasu, Ariz., raced to his first victory of the season in his FRAM Boost dragster, defeating Valvoline/David Powers Homes dragster driver Rod Fuller in the final round. * The victory ended a two year winless drought for McClenathan, who last won at Atlanta Dragway in 2004. It was McClenathan's 29th career victory and his fourth at Virginia Motorsports Park. * Tony Schumacher claimed his 12th No. 1 qualifying award of the season and 34th of his career by powering his U.S. Army dragster to a qualifying best of 4.512 seconds at 313.37 mph in his U.S. Army dragster. With the effort, Schumacher set a single season record for No. 1 qualifying performances, breaking his own record from 2005. * J.R. Todd clocked a track record speed of 324.05 mph in his Skull Shine dragster. * Doug Kalitta extended his POWERade Series points lead to 83 over Brandon Bernstein and 89 over Schumacher, who lost in the first round. * Larry Dixon's Miller Lite dragster crew won the Full Throttle Pit Crew challenge award. FUNNY CAR * Eric Medlen, from Indianapolis, raced to the victory in his Castrol Syntec Ford Mustang over veteran Cruz Pedregon, driver of the Advance Auto Parts Chevy Monte Carlo. * It was Medlen's second victory of the season and the sixth of his career. * Medlen raced to his third No. 1 qualifying position of the season and eighth of his career with a track record time of 4.728 seconds at 311.49 mph in his Castrol Syntec Mustang. * John Force, who received minor burns to both legs after the engine on his Castrol GTX Ford Mustang exploded in a semifinal loss, set a track speed record at 315.78 mph. * Force extended his POWERade Series points lead to 46 over Ron Capps and 54 over teammate and son-in-law Robert Hight. Capps lost in the first round while Hight exited in the second round. * Mike Ashley defeated Tony Pedregon by .0052-second margin of victory in the first round to claim the $1,000 Motel 6 Who Got the Light Award. * Tony Pedregon was docked 10 championship points for oiling the racing surface in the first round in his Q Racing Chevy Monte Carlo. * Force's Castrol GTX Ford Mustang team won the Full Throttle Pit Crew challenge award. PRO STOCK * Jason Line, from Terrell, N.C, drove his Summit Racing Pontiac GTO to the victory over Tom Martino, who drives the Skull Gear Pontiac GTO. * Line earned the maximum amount of points in the victory, 138, which includes 118 for winning the race and qualifying No. 1 and an extra 20 bonus points for setting an NHRA national elapsed time record (6.558 seconds). Only three other Pro Stock drivers have claimed the maximum 138 in NHRA history, including Bob Glidden, Warren Johnson and Greg Anderson. * Line also set the national speed record at 209.75 mph. * Line claimed the No. 1 qualifying spot in his Summit Racing Pontiac GTO with a performance of 6.571 second run at 209.49 mph. It is Line's fifth top qualifying effort of the season, and ninth of his career. * With the victory, Line increased his series lead to 119 over Anderson and can clinch his first professional world championship title if he earns 20 points more than Anderson at the next event (Las Vegas). In NHRA Sportsman competition, Line was the 1993 NHRA Stock Eliminator world champion. * Anderson's Summit Racing Pontiac GTO team won the Full Throttle Pit Crew challenge award. POWERADE FAN NATIONALS * Elton Spain, of Washington, N.C., won the 21st round of the NHRA POWERade Fan Nationals. Spain, a 46-year-old construction worker and 30-year NHRA POWERade Series fan, defeated hundreds of area fans to claim the POWERade Fan Nationals victory, driving realistic POWERade Funny Car simulators. With the victory, Spain will have the opportunity to race for the ultimate title of 2006 POWERade Fan Nationals Series champion in November at the 42nd Annual Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals. -30-