Bazz Young made the eight-car field and signed a few autographs too. (Dennis Mothershed photo)

All eleven cars made two qualifying laps Friday and didn’t put a single drop of oil on the racing service. The bump spot for the eight-car field was occupied by second-year Funny Car racer Barrie “Bazz” Young in the “Down Under Thunder” with a 6.540/214.62 effort.

ELIMINATIONS

Mike Garland photo

The first round of AA/FC Eliminations went off promptly at 6 p.m. Saturday night under clear and cool skies and a grandstand full of nitro fans. Number-one qualifier Stewart was matched up against the Fred Mandoline-tuned “Flashback” Pontiac driven by Marc White. White was the only driver in the field who was driving on Hoosier tires. Stewart left first with an outstanding 0.106 RT to White’s also good 0.160. Stewart motored to the win with a 6.092/235.51 to White’s 6.291/225.97 but unfortunately Stewart’s motor threw the rods out at the top end of the track.

White also had some engine issues but told reporters after the race, “We’re going to put a fresh motor in now then freshen the engine that hurt itself. We’ll be ready for Maple Grove (on Aug. 2-3). We’re running all of the races in the series. We’re having a lot of fun!”