Nineteen Nitro Funny Cars made the call for the session with Todd Lesenko in Steve Plueger’s “Jolly Rogers” Mustang on the bump with an off-pace 6.559 ET.  (James Drew photo)

The second session provided the fireworks with John Hale’s jaw dropping 5.698 ET at 247.16 mph run: a .971 60-foot time and 3.746 ET at 201.04 mph to the eighth mile! In second remained Jason Rupert, who sat out the second session, followed by Mike Halstead in Mike McCain’s newly renamed “Nitro Angel” with a 5.995 ET at 238.22 mph.

Sitting on the bump was Will Martin’s “Jam Air2” Mustang with a 6.394 ET at 228.50 mph.

By the third round of qualifying, the Las Vegas desert winds were the winner and with qualifying cancelled, the Nitro Funny Car field was set. 

Several of the teams that qualified initially sustained irreparable damage and as a result three alternates entered the qualified 16-car eliminations. Canadian newcomer Nathan Sitko’s Plymouth Arrow replaced Will Martin (crankshaft). Former NHRA Heritage Top Fuel Champ Brad Thompson, in Mike Stallings’ Nova, replaced Ronny Young in the original Raymond Beadle “Blue Max”, which was sidelined by engine problems, Arrow, and Rian Konno’s Mustang filled in for Twig Ziegler’s Satellite.

SUNDAY ELIMINATIONS POSTPONED

With continued high winds on Sunday, there were contingency plans for a possible change to eighth-mile racing for heads-up class eliminations. With no hope in sight, and periodic reality checks from the weather experts at nearby Nellis Air Force base, Sunday’s eliminations were also cancelled and moved to Monday.

“Our number-one priority is the safety of our racers and we cannot safely compete under these conditions today,” said Chris Blair, vice president of racing operations for LVMS. “The constant wind and dust on the track make it impossible to maintain the racing surface to safely operate any type of race car.”