PRO NITROUS

Tommy Franklin (near lane) and Stevie “Fast” Jackson.

Pro Nitrous stars Jay Cox and Tommy Franklin looked to be the championship favorites entering last weekend’s Bradenton and Virginia races, though Travis Harvey also had a mathematical shot at the title. The championship ultimately came down to the semifinal round, when Franklin’s Pat Musi-powered 1969 Camaro unleashed a 3.699 at 204.20 alongside Cox’s troubled 5.76 pass. With that, Franklin locked up the championship and set himself up for a potential world record.

With all of the pressure off, the Fredericksburg electrical contractor fired off a screaming 3.677 at 204.70 against Bradenton winner Steve Jackson’s 3.765 pass.

“The conditions were ideal for setting records,” Franklin claimed. “We don’t get that too often – at the beginning of the year and the end of the year. We knew we were going to have some good air. We made it into the final after winning the championship. As much as we wanted to win the race, the pressure was off and we decided just to see what we could lower the record to. We don’t always get that opportunity, so we swung for it.”

It was a storybook ending to a dramatic weekend for Franklin. He entered the final qualifying session on the bump spot. His Bickel-built Camaro broke the driveshaft around 400 feet into the run, but a 3.759 pass was enough to take the eighth spot in qualifying. Franklin and team spent all of Saturday night looking over every section of the car to help prevent any further issues from getting in the way of the championship. The result was a 3.705 win over Randy Weatherford in the first round, followed by a 3.706 over Dean Marinis in the quarterfinals. The drama ramped back up again for the semifinal run against Cox since the winner would clinch the championship.

“A lot of emotions were going around,” said of the atmosphere around his team. “After winning the round, it was the best way it could’ve happened, right? But leading into it I’m thinking, Man, this is in my hands now. Nobody knocked Jay out before me and no one knocked me out for him.”

Franklin went on to thank the Lord, as well as wife Judy and daughters Amber and Ashley, adding, “We have great horsepower, a great car, and a great crew to put this thing together every pass.”