Rookie Mike Neff drove the only car in the nitro fields with a Ford engine between the pipes. His Old Spice-sponsored Mustang cruised into the No. 4 spot, tuned by John Medlen in Neff’s first full pass of the new season. (James Drew photo)
Tim Wilkerson holds down the provisional twelfth slot of the twenty-one funny cars entered. Force driver Robert Hight noted that the Force Mustang reacts to steering input so well that they are going to have slow down the steering.
John Force (Ron Lewis photo)
CSK driver Del Worsham had a comment on the new qualifying program after his first round on Thursday. He said, "We got the qualifying sheet after the lap and it was the first one we've ever seen with the new qualifying format in place. The cut-off line, after the No. 12 spot, is on there instead of the old 16th deal, but I don't think there's any way the new system will come into play here this weekend. It's basically a rule for the summer, when the Friday night session makes it impossible to improve on Saturday, and it gives those teams at the bottom of the sheet a chance to get in no matter how hot it gets, but here we have four very similar runs, no 'hero session', and the weather is usually so consistent you can be No. 1 after any of the four laps…”
Pro Stock drivers Kurt Johnson and Larry Morgan. (James Drew photo)
Usually a stronghold of entries, there are only twenty-two Pro Stockers at Pomona. Greg Anderson’s new Pontiac GXP is leading the pack with a strong 6.635 at 208.91 mph followed by Kurt Johnson’s AC Delco-backed Cobalt a 6.649 and Jeg Coughlin’s 6.651 for the third slot.
Morgan Lucas is pulling double duty again in his A/Fuel Dragster leading Top Alcohol Dragster qualifying with a stout 5.280 at 271.08 mph while the blown alky dragster of Jim Whiteley ran a 5.397 at 267.32 for the second slot.
Nineteen-year-old Courtney Force, driving the John Force Racin- backed A Fuel Dragster belonging to Jerry Darien in her first race, provisionally qualified number 11 in the 16-car field with a 5.566-second, 253.95 pass.
Frank Manzo leads Top Alcohol Funny Car at Pomona in his new Monte Carlo bodied flopper with a 5.540 at 262.23 mph followed by Oregon’s Brian Hough’s 5.617 at 255.29 mph pass.