Seattle: Larry Dixon final summary

DIXON RACES TO SECOND-ROUND FINISH AT SEATTLE RACE KENT, Wash. (July 24, 2005) -- Two-time NHRA Top Fuel champion Larry Dixon raced his Miller Lite dragster to a round-two finish Sunday at Pacific Raceways after setting both ends of the track ...

DIXON RACES TO SECOND-ROUND FINISH AT SEATTLE RACE

KENT, Wash. (July 24, 2005) -- Two-time NHRA Top Fuel champion Larry Dixon raced his Miller Lite dragster to a round-two finish Sunday at Pacific Raceways after setting both ends of the track record during qualifying for the 18th annual CARQUEST Auto Parts Nationals.

The 37-time NHRA winner earned his 26th career No. 1 qualifying position on Saturday with a track record pass of 4.490 seconds at 331.36 mph. The veteran Don Prudhomme Racing driver opened the first round of eliminations by racing to the quickest pass of the round to best No. 16 qualifier Don Sosenka. The Miller Lite/Ameriquest rail record a run of 4.552 seconds at 328.86 mph.

In round two, Dixon used a starting-line advantage to race to the early lead over rival Brandon Bernstein, but the Miller Lite dragster lost traction before the 60-foot mark and in one of wackiest races of the day Bernstein scored the win. Both dragsters lost traction in the second-round match-up on a sunny Pacific Raceways quarter mile as Bernstein recorded a run of 6.079 at 230.13, while the Miller Lite/Lucas Oil car stopped the timers in 8.281 at 113.43.

"Anytime the car smokes the tires, it's a surprise to me," Dixon said. "You don't set the car up to smoke the tires. I think it surprised everyone in our pit. If both cars blow the tires off at the same time, you're in the race, but we blew them off before 60-feet. Brandon (Bernstein) was further down track when he lost traction and he was going at least 100-mph faster and it's a lot easier to recover down track."

Dixon remains third in the NHRA Top Fuel standings. The next NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series event is the 18th annual FRAM-Autolite Nationals, July 29-31, at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif. Dixon won the Sonoma event in 2003. The Miller Lite Top Fuel team will service the Don Prudhomme-owned dragster on Monday at the Seattle track before making the trip south on I-5 to complete the Western Swing.