NHRA
Pomona II: Thursday qualifying report
Worsham, Kalitta, Anderson and Ellis Qualifying Leaders Thursday at Auto Club NHRA Finals POMONA, Calif. -- Del Worsham raced to the qualifying lead in Funny Car Thursday at the 40th annual Auto Club NHRA Finals at Pomona Raceway. Doug ...
Published: Nov 13, 2004, 4:19 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Worsham, Kalitta, Anderson and Ellis Qualifying Leaders Thursday at Auto Club NHRA Finals
POMONA, Calif. -- Del Worsham raced to the qualifying lead in Funny Car Thursday at the 40th annual Auto Club NHRA Finals at Pomona Raceway.
Doug Kalitta, Greg Anderson and Chip Ellis also were qualifying leaders at the $1.7 million race, the final of 23 events in the $50 million NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.
Worsham drove his Checker Schuck's Kragen Chevy Monte Carlo to a 4.737 second run at a track record speed of 328.54 mph to lead the Funny Car order.
"That was an exciting run," Worsham said. "It sure didn't hurt us that the session dragged out a little, although we kept the same tune-up in there. I kept running back to the trailer to check the weather station but I didn't see enough to make me want to change anything. It all worked out."
Worsham is tied with Gary Scezli for second place in the POWERade point standings with $100,000 up for grabs for the position. Scelzi lost traction in his Hemi Oakley Dodge Stratus and qualified 19th.
"We're in a big battle for second," Worsham said. "We came into the race tied in the points so every single one you earn, even in qualifying, is huge. The difference between first and second is big as far as money goes so we want to qualify better than them if we can. They smoked the tires so I know they were going for it."
John Force was second in the Castrol GTX Start Up Ford Mustang with a 4.747 at 324.12, while Auto Club Road to the Future candidate Eric Medlen was third with a 4.764 at 320.28 in the Castrol Syntec Mustang.
Kalitta led Top Fuel with a 4.472 at 328.62 in his Mac Tools dragster.
"Right out of the gate that was a great way to start," Kalitta said. "The car ran well, obviously, and it drove nice and straight down the lane. What a great way to start the weekend. We almost won here last year. We got to the finals and had a great car but didn't get it done.
"I've yet to win at this track so we'd really like to finish the deal this time through. In my family, this race and this track are very important. As far back as I can remember there was talk of going to California and racing at Pomona. There's so much history here and it just makes you want to win that much more."
David Baca posted a career-best performance of 4.487 at 327.43 in his family-owned dragster for second, while season champ Tony Schumacher was third in the U.S. Army dragster with a 4.503 at 318.99.
Anderson moved into the lead in Pro Stock, powering his Summit Racing Pontiac Grand Am to a 6.717 at 205.94. With a No. 1 performance this weekend he would become the NHRA's all-time leader for a top qualifying efforts in a season with 16.
"That run should show just what's going to happen here this weekend," Anderson said. "This should be the quickest field ever and I wouldn't be surprised to see a national record. The conditions are perfect and it's supposed to be like this all weekend. It's exciting and we're all anxious to get back out there.
"That number (6.71) will probably be the bump before we're through. This track always needs a few runs before it totally comes around. Certainly, everyone overestimated it today because I saw a lot of tire spin. By Saturday, everyone will be dialed in. Hopefully, we stay No. 1 because getting that record is our goal."
Fellow Grand Am drivers Mike Edwards (6.728 at 204.76) and Jason Line (6.729 at 204.82) were second and third respectively in the lineup.
Ellis raced to the top spot in Pro Stock Bike, covering the distance in a track record time of 7.063 at 187.36 on his G-Squared S&S Buell.
"The only word that can describe my run is awesome," Ellis said. "George Bryce and Ken Johnson (co-crew chiefs) had the bike tuned just right for the conditions here at Pomona. The bike ran straight, I made the shifts on time, and the result was an awesome opening pass."
Andrew Hines, who at 21 could become the youngest NHRA world champion in history by qualifying for the 16-bike field, was 21st after the first session, as his Screamin' Eagle/Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson slowed near mid-track.
Hines' closest competitor for the championship, Antron Brown, was third on his U.S. Army Suzuki with a 7.118 at 187.31.
Qualifying continues Friday with a professional session at 2 p.m. and two sessions on Saturday at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Eliminations start on Sunday at 11 a.m.
-nhra-
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
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Pomona II: Larry Dixon Thursday summary
Next article Pomona II: Goodyear Racing fast facts
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Tony Schumacher
Capps, Schumacher score their first wins of 2018
NHRA
NHRA
Bristol
Capps, Schumacher score their first wins of 2018
Schumacher unconcerned by new crew chief’s lack of Top Fuel experience
NHRA
NHRA
Schumacher unconcerned by new crew chief’s lack of Top Fuel experience
Hagan, Brown, Enders lead first day of NHRA Spring Training
NHRA
NHRA
Hagan, Brown, Enders lead first day of NHRA Spring Training
Latest news
Max Verstappen slams “unacceptable” bumps at Austin F1 track: “It's out of control”
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
United States GP
2 h
Max Verstappen slams “unacceptable” bumps at Austin F1 track: “It's out of control”
Kimi Antonelli ready to "finish the job" as first F1 title chance beckons at US GP
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
United States GP
2 h
Kimi Antonelli ready to "finish the job" as first F1 title chance beckons at US GP
How to watch NASCAR at Talladega II: Weekend schedule, start time, entry list, TV
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Talladega II
2 h
How to watch NASCAR at Talladega II: Weekend schedule, start time, entry list, TV
Peterson Racing addresses online abuse after parting ways with Austin Green
NASCAR O'Reilly
NOAP NASCAR O'Reilly
Talladega II
3 h
Peterson Racing addresses online abuse after parting ways with Austin Green
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
Subscribe