IHRA President’s Cup at Budds Creek, Maryland

President's Cup Returns

Words by Jeff Burk
Photos by Richard Muir

Before this season Texas AA Funny Car racer John Hale hadn’t experienced the dark side of nitro racing in his short career. He has had a great deal of success winning two straight DRO AA/FC Challenge championships in 2011-12 and being a perennial favorite in the nostalgia Nitro Funny Car class for some time. He is one of only two nostalgia nitro Funny Cars that have run laps in the 5.50’s. But all of that changed for his team when they joined the IHRA Nitro Jam tour for the 2014 season.

For the most part of the season Hale’s team left the racetracks with a trail of smoking aluminum parts, DNQ’s, and not a single round win!  To say that the team was frustrated would be an understatement. But that slump seems to be over when at MIR June 13-14 Hale became just the third nitro funny car winner on the IHRA circuit that has been dominated this year by California racer Jason Rupert.

Hale wasn’t the only IHRA pro racer to change his season at MIR. Canadian Pro Stock racer John Konigshofer was the upset winner getting the win in just his fourth Nitro Jam appearance this year. He qualified sixth out of seven cars in the field and then went on to win, defeating Todd Hoerner in the finals.

In the Fuel Altered and Nitro Harley Don Blackshear and Ron Maroney made singles when their opponents couldn’t answer the call.