With the title chase a bit of a mess after TJ Jr’s suspension, the points became even murkier after the first round of eliminations when Mäkelä, Urs Erbacher (lost to Neergaard), and Risto Poutiainen all fell by the wayside at the first hurdle. Poutiainen’s red light enabled Timo Lehtimäki to progress to the semifinals, and, despite the loss to the Nataas/Andersen juggernaut, the Finn moves into second spot behind the American with five racers separated by barely a single elimination round as we move towards the Euro Finals. If TJ Jr’s licence is returned then all he requires is a decent qualifying performance. If not, then it will be a nail biter, but not too many of the teams we spoke to over the course of the weekend would be happy to take the championship win under these circumstances.

FIA Top Fuel Dragster

1. Thomas Nataas      (Nor)    4.839/305.84 mph       finalist
2. Stig Neergaard        (Den)   4.881/266.95 mph       semi-final
3. Anita Mäkelä           (Fin)     4.926/293.99 mph       1st round
4. Timo Lehtimäki       (Fin)     5.053/271.63 mph       semi-final
5. Risto Poutiainen      (Fin)     5.056/223.62 mph       1st round
6. Mikael Kågered       (Swe)  5.123/251.77 mph       finalist
7. Urs Erbacher          (CH)    5.150/281.65 mph       1st round
8. Andy Carter             (UK)    5.431/212.60 mph       1st round
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9. Jari Halinen             (Fin)     6.469/132.14 mph                  

Low ET            4.839               Nataas
Best TS           305.84 mph     Nataas