Norwalk: Tommy Johnson Jr final report

SKOAL RACING STOPPED AT NORWALK Norwalk, OH (July 3, 2007) -- After an incredible victory in Englishtown and a series of impressive runs, Skoal Racing and its Funny Car driver Tommy Johnson Jr. were surprisingly defeated by Cruz Pedregon in the ...

SKOAL RACING STOPPED AT NORWALK

Norwalk, OH (July 3, 2007) -- After an incredible victory in Englishtown and a series of impressive runs, Skoal Racing and its Funny Car driver Tommy Johnson Jr. were surprisingly defeated by Cruz Pedregon in the first round of the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk.

Pedregon inched by the Skoal Racing Chevy Impala with a run of 4.848 seconds at 312 mph, while Johnson pulled in at 4.972 at 307 mph. Pedregon eventually lost to the track's champion Mike Ashley in the Semi-Finals of the eliminators.

"We came into Sunday knowing we were in good position to take this thing far--unfortunately that's just not what happened," said Johnson. "We had a problem with the car first round and I had to peddle it. The car's performance level is really good right now, and I think we can rebound with another win shortly."

Johnson entered Sunday's elimination rounds with the fourth best run of the weekend, capturing a 4.759 second pass at 302 mph on Friday's qualifiers. Saturday's runs didn't advance him to the top of the brackets because the track was much warmer on Saturday.

After this weekend's run, Johnson dropped to the ninth position in the POWERade points standings, right below Jack Beckman. Him, Johnson and Pedregon are all within striking distance of each other (473, 463, and 461, respectively).

This weekend's race is the re-scheduled O'Reilly NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals in Bristol, TN (from May 18 due to poor track conditions). At last year's race in Bristol, Johnson advanced to the second round where he was defeated by Gary Scelzi.