Indianapolis: Ron Capps final summary

CLERMONT, Ind. (Sept. 6, 2004) - Ron Capps drove his green Skoal RacingSM Chevy Monte Carlo to a first-round finish Monday at Indianapolis Raceway Park, and in doing so, moved up one spot in the Funny Car points standings.

After qualifying in the No. 10 position in the strongest Funny Car field of the season, Capps was matched up against No. 7 qualifier Phil Burkart Jr. in the opening round of eliminations. Capps, a 14-time NHRA winner, used a starting line advantage to take the early lead on Burkart before his Skoal Racing flopper overpowered the I.R.P. quarter mile and slowed to a pass of 5.804 seconds at 177.37 mph. Burkart raced to the win with a performance of 4.927 at 312.93.

"We were the first pair of Funny Cars to go down the track," Capps said. "Qualifying bit us and that's why we were in the first pair. You don't have the luxury of watching any other cars go down the track when you go out first. We were looking for a low 4.90, but (Phil) Burkart stepped up and ran better than us."

The next NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series event is the 20th annual Lucas Oil Nationals, Sept. 16-19, at Maple Grove Raceway near Reading, Pa. Capps is a two-time finalist at the Reading race.

-www.snakeracing.com