Mac Tools U.S. Nationals
Indianapolis, IN
(August 29-September 3)
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By Rob Geiger, NHRA.com
The dream weekends of Funny Car racer Jeff Arend and Pro Stock driver Max Naylor continued Saturday as the provisional qualifying fields of the 53rd annual Mac Tools U.S. Nationals remained unchanged. Arend and Naylor have never qualified No. 1 but are just two rounds away from getting it done at the sport's biggest drag race.
Top Fuel leader Tony Schumacher and Pro Stock Motorcycle top gun Chip Ellis also remained in control of their respective categories as temperatures soared at O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis. It was still a cool day for Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Andrew Hines, however, as he won the 17th annual Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle for his third win in the last four years in the special race within a race.
"It's great to qualify No. 1, yeah for getting the points and all that, but I'm way more impressed with the run we made today when it was 90 degrees outside because that's how it's gonna be on Monday," Schumacher said. "That run meant more to this team than the 4.47 did. "We perform very well under pressure, and the Countdown has added a lot of pressure to these last six races. There is no room for errors, especially in the next few events. You get behind at all, and you just don't have room to catch up. We can't let that happen." The pride of nearby Countdown to the Championship participants J.R. Todd and Whit Bazemore are not qualified with Sunday's final two rounds of time trials left on the schedule.
"I was pretty surprised it held up until I saw some of the big teams running right in front of us and they were topping out at 4.79, 4.80," Arend said. "That just told me the conditions and the track weren't quite there today. I wasn't complaining; believe me, I'm happy to stay No. 1. "I wasn't able to come to Eric Medlen's funeral, but we went by the cemetery earlier this week and spent some time there. I touched his [crypt] and it was very moving. I think maybe his spirit is with us this weekend, and that's an awesome deal." Ashley Force kept her No. 2 position with a 4.754 at 309.70 mph in her Castrol Ford Mustang. Jack Beckman was the big mover of the day in his Mail Terminal Services Dodge Charger R/T, jumping up to third place with an impressive 4.759 at 325.85 mph.
Army racer Schumacher didn't go any quicker than his round-one pass of 4.477 at 333.66 mph, but he was quickest of round three with a 4.494 at 330.23 mph and second quickest of round two with a 4.598 at 318.92 mph to show he has the car to beat this weekend.
Tony Schumacher
The smile on Arend's face seems impossible to remove as he took another big step toward his first Funny Car pole. If anyone was going to unseat the Checker Schuck's Kragen Chevrolet driver from the top slot it most likely would have happened Saturday evening when the Funny Cars ran last, but no one beat Arend's 4.754 at 327.51 mph from Friday.
Jeff Arend
Vegas Fuel racer Jon Capps anchors the 16-car field with his 4.826 at 311.49 mph in Paul Smith's
Naylor proved Friday night's heroic Pro Stock run of 6.655 at 206.39 mph in his Jagermeister Dodge Stratus R/T wasn't a fluke, backing it up with Saturday morning's best pass of 6.659. It wasn't enough to lower his previous mark, but he remained on top anyway.
Max Naylor
"They've done a real good job with the track," Naylor said. "We were back in the left lane for the first round today and ran another 6.65, so that was great. As competitive as this class is these days; if you're in the field you can win the race. We haven't had the best of luck on race day this year, but maybe this is turning into our weekend. Maybe we're due.
"Like I said yesterday, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for most racers, and we're living a dream. There are a lot of good racers out here, and any one of them can take us off that No. 1 perch. I'm just excited by the crowd response to what we've done so far. I'll never forget it. It's time to enjoy a Jager and have a good time."
Jim Yates was quickest of round three, zooming up to second with a 6.658 at 206.42 mph in his Wiley X Pontiac GTO. Allen Johnson was dropped to third in his Mopar Dodge Stratus R/T with a best of 6.661.
Greg Anderson got a little bit better Saturday as he moved into the 16-car field with an eighth-best 6.677 at 207.24 mph in his Summit Racing Pontiac GTO. Teammate Jason Line is 12th overall with a 6.694. Six-time Indy champ Warren Johnson is on the bump with a 6.706 at 206.45 mph in his GM Performance Parts Pontiac GTO.
Top 10 runners Richie Stevens Jr. and V. Gaines are in the 17-man provisional DNQ group.
Ellis' opening pass of 6.970 was mostly unchallenged in Saturday's heat, so the Drag Specialties S&S Buell V-Twin rider maintained his top ranking in Pro Stock Motorcycle for another day. His mood was tempered somewhat, however, by his loss in the final of Saturday's 17th annual Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle, which went to Hines.
Chip Ellis
"I thought I made a pretty good run in the final of the Ringers deal, but it just wasn't enough," Ellis said. "This is still a good payday, and I know there are six other riders who would gladly trade places with me. We've got a good bike and we've made some good runs, so I know we'll be in good shape for Monday.
"We spun the tire really hard on the first run today and still ran a 7.00, so I know we've got some left. We're just trying to go back to basics and not over-think what we're doing. Racing in the [Ringers Battle] was important, but we're still trying to keep our eyes on the big prize, which is a win on Monday."
Hines made the biggest charge at Ellis on the qualifying sheet, coming from out of contention to the No. 2 slot with a 7.007 at 189.18 mph on his Screamin' Eagle Harley-Davidson V-Rod. Hines also won $25,000 in the Ringers Gloves Pro Bike Battle late Saturday evening and stands to make an additional $10,000 from NHRA should he double up and win the event Monday.
Chris Rivas' Torco Buell got a little quicker Saturday, with Rivas moving up to third place with a 7.016. Karen Stoffer dropped two spots to fourth when she couldn't improve on her 7.018 from Friday.
The bump improved by three-hundredths of a second to Geno Scali's 7.151.
- Friday: Schumacher, Arend, Naylor, and Ellis grab opening-day leads at 53rd Indy (8/31/2007)
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