NHRA Pros at Charlotte, NC

From left, Matt Smith, Jason Line, Ron Capps and Steve Torrence.  (Chris Haverly photo)

Steve Torrence remained perfect in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship and won his fourth straight race in Top Fuel on Sunday, Oct. 14, with his victory at the 11th annual NHRA Carolina Nationals presented by WIX Filters at zMAX Dragway.

Ron Capps (Funny Car), Jason Line (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) were also winners at the fourth of six playoff events during the 2018 Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship.

TOP FUEL

(Chris Haverly photo)

Steve Torrence extended his playoff winning streak to 16 consecutive rounds and took another step toward an historic Mello Yello Championship by driving his Capco Contractors Top Fuel dragster to victory.

There was a first-round scare against the legendary Chris Karamesines where Torrence’s dragster lost traction and he managed to pedal it back under control for the win. After that Torrence drove his dragster to a 3.716/330.96 to 4.222/219.76 defeat of Leah Pritchett and knocked out Tony Schumacher on a holeshot 3.728/328.38 to 3.718/329.42.

The final against Brittany Force, who beat out Torrence for last year’s championship on the final day at Pomona, saw the Texan turn in a run of 3.703 seconds at 329.67 mph to Ms. Force’s close 3.708 at 329.26.

“You don’t win the championship by default,” Torrence said. “You go up there and do your job when it’s crunch time. Clay going out (early) opened the door and we did what we needed to do.”

Torrence’s crew celebrates their third victory of the Countdown. (Chris Haverly photo)

If he finally is able to seal the deal, he will become the first driver to win NHRA championships in both the Alcohol and Fuel divisions. He was the NHRA Top Alcohol Dragster champion in 2005.

Brittany Force’s crew works with input from Alan Johnson (far right).  (Ron Lewis photo)

Brittany Force and her team turned a corner at this weekend’s race, with eight clean, solid and impressive runs down the racetrack.

In the first round Force had the advantage from the start and never trailed laying down a 3.717-second pass at 323.12 mph while Audrey Worm got into trouble early.

Dom Lagana (shown) had lane choice by one one-thousandth of second over Force in the second round, but lane choice didn’t matter when Force crossed the finish line at 3.702 seconds and 328.54 mph to put Force in the semifinals over Lagana’s 3.730 at 329.58.  (Ron Lewis photo)

Force matched up with a teammate of sorts in the semifinals. Mike Salinas and Force share the expertise of legendary tuner Alan Johnson. Force and her crew continued to show their dominance when they ran 3.708 seconds at 330.07 mph to send Salinas home with his 3.737 at 328.94. The Advance Auto Parts team would have lane choice over championship front-runner and 2017 runner-up Steve Torrence in the finals, but it would not matter.

DSR teammates Tony Schumacher and Antron Brown met in the first round with Schumacher’s 3.699/329.91 getting the win over Brown’s 3.736/328.14. Schumacher went on to defeat Clay Millican (3.712/330.55 to 3.729/328.86) before falling to Torrence’s 3.728/328.38 with a 3.718/329.42 in the semi.  (Ron Lewis photo)

Millican’s ouster put him further back in the points, now 169 behind Torrence.  (Ron Lewis photo)

FUNNY CAR

(Chris Haverly photo)

Ron Capps piloted the NAPA NIGHTVISION Lamps Dodge Charger R/T to his 60th Funny Car victory. By claiming 121 points over the course of the weekend, Capps moved up three spots to third in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship playoff standings, injecting new life into his bid for a second career Funny Car world championship.

Along his way to the zMAX Dragway winner’s circle, Capps defeated Dale Creasy Jr. (3.926/328.86 to 4.014/316.67) and three of the top-ranked 2018 Funny Car championship contenders – Robert Hight, Tim Wilkerson (3.903/320.97 to 3.978/323.97) and J.R. Todd – in crucial matchups with major Countdown implications.

“Tobler and I left Dallas, shook hands, gave each other a little hug like we always do when we leave the track and he said ‘let’s just go win the last three. If we win, they can’t,’ and I’m just so glad we came here and did what we talked about doing,” said Capps.

Capps ended Robert Hight’s winning streak in the second round with a 3.889/332.43 as smoke came from Hight’s car nearing the finish line.  (Ron Lewis photo)

J.R. Todd and the DHL/WIX Filters team continued their incredible streak of consistency with a final round appearance for the fourth time in the past five events. Unfortunately, for just the second time in six final round appearances this season, Todd was not able to earn the Wally.

Todd continued his incredibly consistent racing with four consecutive qualifying runs under the four-second range. He ended up fourth in qualifying for the second straight week and drove to a 3.874 at 330.55 to take down Jonnie Lindberg in the first round of eliminations.

In the quarterfinals, Todd lined up against Cruz Pedregon. The DHL team, led by Jon Oberhofer and Todd Smith, powered Todd to a 3.919-second pass to give him the victory against Pedregon’s 3.943. (Ron Lewis photo)

Todd lined up with John Force in the semifinals and despite getting off the tree first, was able to earn the win with a 3.891 at 326.48 to Force’s 3.968/331.12.

In the finals, the DHL/WIX Filters team had their first four-second run of the weekend, but were unable to chase down Capps.

Robert Hight held onto the points lead after a quarterfinal exit at the NHRA Carolina Nationals. Coming off back-to-back wins, Hight had a big round one match up against former champion Jack Beckman. Hight logged a 3.877 second pass at 330.96 mph in his Automobile Club of Southern California Chevy Camaro to Beckman’s 3.906 at 329.26 to defeat Beckman.

In round two, Hight lined up against 2016 champion and 2017 runner-up Ron Capps. Hight’s Auto Club Camaro began trailing smoke mid-track with a burned piston and slowed to 285.23 mph and a 3.953-second pass. Capps picked up the win with his 3.889 pass at 332.43 mph. (Ron Lewis photo)

“We burned a piston that run and it shut off early because of the NHRA safety systems on the car. We are not far off. We had low E.T. first round and we are running well. It’s just the gremlins. Ron Capps and his team ran like they had nothing to lose. They threw the dice and got away with one,” Hight said. “So, two races to go and we don’t know how it’s going to shake out. We know this championship is going to come down to Pomona and the Auto Club Finals. We will be ready in Las Vegas. It will be close no matter what. I am proud of this Auto Club team. We will be ready for the last two races.”

The first round brought John Force and Bob Tasca against each other in a repeat matchup of the second round at Dallas. This time Force came out on top with a 3.970/325.45 to Tasca’s 4.146/256.60.  (Ron Lewis photo)

PRO STOCK

Jason Line got the win over Tanner Gray.  (Chris Haverly photo)

Team Summit NHRA Pro Stock driver Jason Line made a statement at the beginning of the 2018 season of NHRA's Mello Yello Drag Racing Series: He wanted to earn his 50th career victory during the 50th anniversary year of longtime sponsor Summit Racing. On Sunday at zMAX Dragway in Charlotte, he made it happen. Line, driving the blue Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro, scored his first win of the season with a final-round defeat of points leader Tanner Gray.

Line's quest for the trophy began with a first-round victory over KB Racing teammate Bo Butner, 6.503, 211.96 to 6.526, 211.76.

In the second round and without lane choice, Line rose to the challenge to knock out Jeg Coughlin Jr. with a .020-second reaction time to identically match that of his opponent, and the Mooresville, N.C.-based driver then threw down a low of the round 6.510/212.16 to beat a 6.527/211.89. (Ron Lewis photo)

With lane choice over No. 1 qualifier Drew Skillman, Line was again out of the gate first and first to the finish-line stripe for a 6.527, 211.86 victory over a 6.547, 211.10. His semifinals elapsed time matched that of soon-to-be final round opponent Gray, and with a bigger speed, Line scored lane choice in the money round. There, the three-time Pro Stock champion was again .020 at the tree to well surpass Gray's .044 reaction, and he charged toward the finish line to win with a 6.531, 211.89 to a 6.534, 211.43.

"It's been a struggle this year, but that just means that when you do finally win, you appreciate it that much more," said Line. "This win meant a lot for so many reasons, and the fact that it was the 300th Pro Stock win for Chevrolet made it even more special. I can't thank the folks at Chevrolet enough for all that they do for us, and I'm proud to be the one to win the 300th for them. Our team did a great job on my racecar today, and I was fortunate to do a good enough job with my left foot to get it done. I can't wait for Vegas."

There were only 14 entries in the Pro Stock field, meaning there was a bye run in the second round. Drew Skillman moved on, only to be defeated by Line in the semifinal, 6.527/211.86 to 6.547/211.10.   (Ron Lewis photo)

With lane choice over No. 1 qualifier Drew Skillman, Line was again out of the gate first and first to the finish-line stripe for a 6.527, 211.86 victory over a 6.547, 211.10. His semifinals elapsed time matched that of soon-to-be final round opponent Gray, and with a bigger speed, Line scored lane choice in the money round. There, the three-time Pro Stock champion was again .020 at the tree to well surpass Gray's .044 reaction, and he charged toward the finish line to win with a 6.531, 211.89 to a 6.534, 211.43.

"It's been a struggle this year, but that just means that when you do finally win, you appreciate it that much more," said Line. "This win meant a lot for so many reasons, and the fact that it was the 300th Pro Stock win for Chevrolet made it even more special. I can't thank the folks at Chevrolet enough for all that they do for us, and I'm proud to be the one to win the 300th for them. Our team did a great job on my racecar today, and I was fortunate to do a good enough job with my left foot to get it done. I can't wait for Vegas."

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE

Chip Ellis took off just a little bit too soon, giving the win to Matt Smith.  (Chris Haverly photo)

In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Matt Smith took over the points lead after his third victory of 2018 and 21st of his career after a run of 6.830 at 196.64 on his Elite Motorsports Denso Auto Parts EBR against Chip Ellis. The points lead changed hands for the fourth straight race as Smith, a two-time world champion, jumped back into the lead for the second time during the Countdown to the Championship. He knocked off Karen Stoffer (6.869/196.67 to 7.010/192.33), Scotty Pollacheck (6.881/197.19 to 6.890/194.27) and Angelle Sampey to reach his third final round in the playoffs, giving Smith a 41-point advantage over LE Tonglet.

Matt Smith (Ron Lewis photo)

“It’s pretty big if you look at the points,” said Smith, who has two playoff wins. “I went up and raced scared in Dallas and didn’t do my job, so I figured I would come here and do my job. All in all, the bike worked great and I just had to do my job. I said it to begin with that if we can win three races in the Countdown I think we can win this championship. We just can’t have another first-round loss and we have to keep going rounds. We’re going to do everything we can to make this dream come true again.”

Ellis, who won the fall race at zMAX Dragway in 2016, reached his first final of 2018 on his Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson, beating Joey Gladstone (6.778/197.19 to 6.973/194.32), Angie Smith and Jerry Savoie (shut off after launch) before going red in the final round.

Angelle Sampey defeated LE Tonglet with a 6.809/196.90 to his 6.940/194.77 in the first round. Her 6.922 at 193.18 was not enough to get past Matt Smith’s 6.869/194.86.  (Ron Lewis photo)