NHRA

Dalls: Martino slots eleventh

Two weeks after rain postponed the originally scheduled running of the O'Reilly Fall Nationals the NHRA returned to the Texas Motorplex in hopes of completing the event. Unfortunately, Friday's scheduled day of qualifying found competitors once ...

Edited: Apr 15, 2002, 11:45 PM

Copy link

Share on Viber

Add as a preferred source

Two weeks after rain postponed the originally scheduled running of the O'Reilly Fall Nationals the NHRA returned to the Texas Motorplex in hopes of completing the event. Unfortunately, Friday's scheduled day of qualifying found competitors once again glaring at the skies as a constant downpour pelted the area. With the weekend's forecast calling for continued rain, and the season finale in Pomona less than a week away, officials were forced to take dramatic action, canceling qualifying for the first time in the history for the NHRA. The final eliminations ladder will be filled with those competitors occupying the top sixteen positions in the Winston Drag Racing season's point standings. As such, CENTURY 21 Firebird pilot Tom Martino will slot 11th and face No. 6 qualifier Troy Coughlin in the first round.

"I know we can't control the weather," said Martino. "But these conditions make it hard on everyone, especially the fans. I think the NHRA had no option but to fill the field on points, because listening to the forecast that seems like our only hope of getting the race in. This Century 21 Firebird Racing team would certainly like to get a chance to race, because we're battling for a spot in the Top 10, and we can use every opportunity we can get. But right now, it's out of our hands. If Mother Nature smiles on us, we'll go out and give it our best shot. If not, we'll pack up and head to Pomona. All we can do now is wait and see."

Final eliminations are scheduled to begin at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, weather permitting. However, should the rain continue to fall, the NHRA has announced that they will put an indefinite hold on all activities, and are prepared to wait until Monday in hopes of completing the event. Should that not prove possible, the race will be officially canceled, another first in the series' forty-nine year existence.

We want your opinion!

What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?

Take our 5 minute survey.

- The Motorsport.com Team

Read and post comments

Share Or Save This Story

Copy link

Share on Viber

Previous article Dallas: Dixon wants strong showing in Dallas rainout

Next article Dallas: Kurt Johnson takes the win

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

View More & Comment

Latest news

Laurent Mekies under the microscope: How different is his leadership at Red Bull from Christian Horner?

Formula 1

Singapore GP

Laurent Mekies under the microscope: How different is his leadership at Red Bull from Christian Horner?

Franco Morbidelli on securing most coveted WSBK ride: 'Clearly Ducati has some trust in me'

MotoGP

MGP MotoGP

Japanese GP

1 h

Franco Morbidelli on securing most coveted WSBK ride: 'Clearly Ducati has some trust in me'

"Not allowed, not made possible": Was BMW denied its title chance?

DTM

DTM DTM

Hockenheim

2 h

"Not allowed, not made possible": Was BMW denied its title chance?

Max Verstappen: FAQ on his GTWC Europe debut

Formula 1

F1 Formula 1 2 h

Max Verstappen: FAQ on his GTWC Europe debut

Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.

From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.

You have 2 options:

Become a subscriber.
Disable your adblocker.

Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here

Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page

Manage Alerts