Sunday, November 04, 2007

NHRA 2007 Countdown Wildly Successful















Pomona CA- For the first time in the history of professional drag racing and the NHRA, (founded by Okie, Wally Parks) all 4 professional category championships went down to the final race of the year due to the new countdown points structure, with 2 of the pro classes going down to the final round of competition in the final race!

It doesn't get any more exciting than this LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, Please step inside...(music by Saliva)


In the Top Fuel Dragster class, defending back to back to back champion Tony Schumacher started the day almost OUT of the championship hunt back in 4th place and needed not only to win the event but also for 1st place driver "Hot"-Rod Fuller to lose in the first round in order to even have a remote chance to become the first driver in NHRA T/F history to win 4 championships in a row. Not to mention Schumacher would have to find a way to get around second place Larry Dixon and third place Brandon Bernstein in the Budweiser King T/F Dragster as well as any other car that he faced. A tall order to say the least.

In a stunning upset, HotRod Fuller lost in the first round to the UPS T/F dragster driven by Bob Vandergriff, while Dixon, Bernstein and Schumacher all advanced into the second round with wins. Dixon and Bernstein each needed only to GET to the final round to overtake Fuller in the points and clinch the championship while Schumacher had to win the event to do so.

Larry Dixon went out in the second round and Brandon Bernstein lost to Schumacher in their third round (semifinals) showdown, leaving Schumacher as the only driver in a position to surpass HotRod Fuller for the Championship....but he still had to win the race to do it.

While it may not have been quite as unbelievable as last years "best ever" finish where Schumacher not only had to win the final race of the year to win the Championship, he had to set a new world record on that final run and receive the bonus points that go with a record to do it... and do it they did. They won the race and on the final run of the race set the world record which gave them just enough points to secure their 3rd championship in a row. This year, all Schumacher had to do was get to the finish line first against Bob Vandergriff in his pesky UPS dragster. Well, as they say... the rest is history. Schumacher wins his 4th in a row powered by the genius of crewchief Allen Johnson and funded by the United States Army.
(Video of Worlds Quickest Ever 1/4 Mile Run)

In Nitro Funnycar, Tony Pedregon clinched his second ever NHRA championship in the semifinals when all other contenders ran out of room to catch him in spite of his loss in that round. John Force Racing had two of their 4 cars in the final with Robert Hight taking the win and finishing 2nd in the NHRA Powerade Championship season. Hight was in a position to take the title away from Pedregon, but was unable to set the world record and grab those few needed extra bonus points. John Force was in attendance following his horrific accident back in October in Dallas Texas able to walk with assistance and bossing everyone around just like always.
Daughter Ashley Force (The AOL's Hottest Athlete in the World) finished in a very respectable 10th place in her ROOKIE season!
"The Driving Force" TV show on A&E.

In the Pro-Stock category, Greg Anderson was the obvious favorite coming into today... but also lost in the first round, opening the door for Dave Connolly and Jeg Coughlin to catch him... Connolly went out in the second round and Jeg Couglin went on to win the event and in the process... win the championship!


In Pro-Stock Motorcycle it was Matt Smith (right below)who also needed to win the event to win the championship... and guess what, he won the event and is the 2007 NHRA Powerade world Champion after defeating Chip Ellis (left below) in the final.


NHRA went to the new countdown format to create exactly what the they got today... exciting racing, unbelievable finishes and happy fans. As one of the doubters... I must say it was pretty impressive.

I Can't wait till February and the Winternationals... right back in Pomona CA.
It all starts and ends in Pomona with a ton of excitement in between.
Check it out for yourself.
-red

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1 Comments:

Blogger RD said...

Short skidmarks and skidmarks in your shorts.

If you can turn left, ...you aren't going fast enough.

-red

12:46 AM  

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