Saturday Qualifying/First round results

Don Walsh

The NHRA Pro Mod series is unique in that they only get three rounds of qualifying and then run the first round of eliminations on Saturday. Walsh drove Harry Hruska’s turbocharged Hemi-powered Camaro built by Larry Jeffers Race Cars to the No. 1 qualifying position with a lap of 5.880 at 249.44 mph. It was Walsh’s second No. 1 qualifier of the 2014 season.

“It was great to stay in the top spot,” said Walsh. “It’s nice to be No. 1 and important to be in a good spot on the ladder. It was exactly what we were looking for.”

Walsh followed his qualifying success with a first-round win over Pete Farber driving Al Billes’s Corvette while his own Dodge Daytona is being repaired after a crash at St. Louis in September. Walsh posted a 5.841 at 250.51 to Farber’s 5.962 at 242.93.

Reigning world champion Smith qualified his Camaro just behind Walsh with a 5.883/243.68 effort. He faced Agave Tequila-backed Danny Rowe in round one and in a very interesting race made a pedestrian 6.610/163.35 pass that was good enough to cover Rowe’s tire-shaking 11.925/91.28 effort. The win put Smith one round win away from clinching his second consecutive NHRA World Championship.

Troy Coughlin

Troy Coughlin, who had a mathematical chance of winning the championship if Smith faltered, beat Steven Whiteley with a 5.880/250.27.