Words by Jeff Burk
Photos by Ron Lewis
04/05/07
Houston Raceway Park is Texan Josh Hernandez’s home track and he has made many laps down that tricky race track in all sorts of conditions. That wealth of experience probably gave Hernandez and tuner Howard Moon the edge they needed to win their second straight race on the AMS/NHRA Pro Mod tour for AMS Staff Leasing owner and team owner Dave Wood.
Hernandez and Moon fell victim to an unplanned “one-shot” qualifying experience at Houston due to a lot of rain over the weekend and found themselves near the back of the qualifying line after an unspectacular 7.26 qualifying lap. But after the racing was over on Sunday the pair was at the front of the line -- the pay window line -- as they marched through a tough field of supercharged Pro Mods to win their second straight AMS “Eagle” of the 2007 season.
Hernandez, a Houston-area resident, has won the O'Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals the past three years, making his record in Pro Mod at the NHRA tour stop perfect.
The final round, run under the lights and appropriately for tuner Howard Mood a full moon, was indicative of the tricky track and weather conditions as Hernandez and his hemi-powered ’68 Camaro squared off against Scott Cannon and his legendary dad Scotty Cannon and their late model Pontiac GTO which is also Hemi-powered. Scott Cannon put a three-thousand hole on Hernandez but his 6.227/233.72 lap wasn’t enough to hold off Hernandez’s 6.208/225.26 winning lap. Hernandez took home $10,000 for the win.
Bryan Seward |
"Howard [Moon, crew chief] is so amazing - I don't think there's anyone else out there who can tune a car the way he does. He's definitely a doctor of tuning - if not a wizard,” Hernandez said. "I love racing at this track, and I've had really good success here. Now I want to take that success and keep the momentum going as we move on to Atlanta in a couple of weeks."
The team also left the event with the lead in the points championship.
The next race in the AMS Staff leasing Pro Modified Challenge presented by Tindle Enterprises, Inc. is the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals outside of Atlanta, Georgia, April 26-28.