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ROCKINGHAM, N.C.
– Australian
Andrew Cowin pulled off the biggest upset on a day of upsets
Sunday at Rockingham Dragway, but the 26-year-old Australian
couldn’t turn it into a Top Fuel victory in the 36th
annual IHRA Nicko’s NY Style Pizza Spring Nationals.
Cowin, now a resident of
Wrightsville Beach, N.C., stunned five-time reigning IHRA champion
Clay Millican in the semifinals and appeared on his way to a final
round victory over No. 1 qualifier Cory McClenathan before the
engine failed in his Serta-sponsored dragster.
“The fuse wasn’t really long
enough,” Cowin said of his final round problems, “but you know
what, this team is up-and-coming and we’re going to win one of
these drag races. We just need a little more track time, maybe
some testing and stuff (but) we ran 4.55 (in qualifying). We’ve
got a bad-to-the-bone hot rod right now.”
“I owed him one,” he said of
Millican, “because the last time we were at The Rock (2004), he
beat me in the semifinals (after Cowin had set an IHRA world
record in qualifying). He really brings out your best.”
McClenathan, a regular on the
rival NHRA tour, won with a time of 4.712 seconds at 309.91 miles
per hour. Cowin, who led by .029 of a second at 1,000 feet,
trailed in 4.786 seconds at 281.54 mph, a speed that reflected the
fact that his car wasn’t under power when it crossed the finish
line.
McClenathan was one of four first
time IHRA tour winners. The others were Jack Wyatt of Corydon,
Iowa, in Nitro Funny Car and a couple of Texans, Joshua Hernandez
and Dr. Tom Carter, who scored in Pro Modified and Alcohol Funny
Car, respectively.
The only pro champion to have
previously celebrated in an IHRA winners’ circle was Pro Stock
winner Tony Gillig of Lake Bluff, Ill., but even his win was a
surprise considering that his last victory came in 1998 and that
his Mustang was just the third quickest Ford in the qualified Pro
Stock field.
However, the door opened for the
veteran in the semifinals when No. 1 qualifier and IHRA eMAX
Series points leader Frank Gugliotta of Mt. Airy, Md., was guilty
of what Gillig called “a very uncharacteristic” a foul start just
one round after No. 2 starter and track record-holder Robert
Patrick of Ferdericksburg, Va., preceded him to the sidelines.
In the final, pitted against No.
16 qualifier and first time finalist Bert Jackson of Glen Allen,
Va., Gillig left no doubt, streaking through the quarter mile
timers in 6.497 seconds while Jackson was experiencing a tire
shake situation that forced him to abort the run.
“It’s been a long time,” Gillig
said. “This place has been kicking my butt for three years (but)
we put it together today. It went well for us. The first two
rounds were tough but we’ve been testing a lot and we’ve got the
car running real well when the track gets hot. Tire shake wasn’t
an issue at all for us whatsoever. The car made real smooth
runs.“
Cowin, driving for Wilmington, N.C., car owner Scott Griffin,
handed Millican his first loss at Rockingham since April 1, 2001,
4.942 to 5.075. Millican, who was bidding for his 10th
consecutive Top Fuel title at The Rock and his 11th in
12 races, saw his Rockingham winning streak ended at 28 straight
rounds.
The fact that Cowin was leading
the low qualifier beyond halftrack in the final was the more
surprising because his team didn’t have an opportunity to warm up
the engine before the final due to maintenance following the
semifinal.
“The track was very tricky today
with the sun beating on it,” McClenathan said. “It definitely was
different than it was the last two days. (Crew chief Wes) Cerny
and the guys made some very good calls.
“The kid (Cowin) was out on me,”
he continued, “(and) it was a real good drag race to about 1,000
foot (but Cowin and his team) have to be happy, too. It’s always
tough when you sell them all your stuff (as McClenathan did last
year) and then you have to come back and race your own car. I
knew what to expect. I knew it would run.
“It was a lot of fun coming back
here” McClenathan said. “The fans were great, the people were
great, the track guys did a great job prepping and taking care of
the track and I’ll tell you, I was very impressed. I’ve had kind
of a shady deal here in the past. I’ve been upside down on my
head here, on fire (in 1993, an incident that sidelined him for
six weeks). To come back and win at the Rock, it was very cool.”
Other than Millican’s loss, the
biggest surprise of the day was the Funny Car final, not because
Wyatt won but because neither points leader Gary Densham of
Bellflower, Calif., nor veteran Bob Gilbertson of Gastornia, N.C.,
the No. 1 qualifier, was around for the final, both victimized by
a loss of traction in a semifinal round contested on a 123 degree
racetrack.
That propelled Wyatt and Vinny
Arcadi of Lancaster, N.Y., to a level neither had reached
previously and neither one wasted the opportunity. Wyatt won in
5.033 seconds with Arcadi close behind in 5.102 seconds in the
first Funny Car final contested at The Rock since the days of the
NHRA’s Winston Invitational, which ended in 1998.
“I heard him, but I never saw
him,” Wyatt said of his final round foe. “We came out there
Friday night and stepped on it a little too hard and it shook and
rattled the tires. We backed it up and when it went out first
round and ran like it did, the game plan was just to make it
repeat every round. “
Although both Cowin and
Gilbertson stumbled in eliminations, Carolina wasn’t shut out of
the winners’ circle. Many-time IHRA champion Steve Furr of
Harrisburg and 16-year-old Travis Womble Jr. of Sanford managed to
score in Super Rod and Stock, respectively.
Final round results from Sunday’s
36th annual IHRA Nicko’s NY Style Pizza Spring
Nationals at Rockingham Dragway:
TOP FUEL – Cory McClenathan,
Anaheim, Calif., 4.712, 309.91 mph, def. Andrew Cowin,
Wrightsville Beach, N.C., 4.786, 281.54 mph.
NITRO FUNNY CAR – Jack Wyatt,
Corydon, Iowa, 2002 Pontiac Firebird, 5.033, 290.01 mph, def.
Vinny Arcadi, Lancaster, N.Y., 2001 Chevrolet Camaro, 5.102,
296.44 mph.
PRO MODIFIED – Joshua Hernandez,
Conroe, Texas, 1968 Chevrolet Camaro, 6.274, 226.07 mph, def. Glen
Kerunsky, Priddis, Alberta, Canada, 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air,
10.258, 101.12 mph.
PRO STOCK – Tony Gillig, Lake
Bluff, Ill., 2004 Ford Mustang, 6.497, 203.28 mph, def. Bert
Jackson, Glen Allen, Va., 2003 Chevrolet Cavalier, 6.930, 209.98
mph.
ALCOHOL FUNNY CAR – Thomas
Carter, Cuero, Texas, 2004 Chevrolet Camaro, 5.947, 236.42 mph,
def. Fred Tigges, Holbrook, Mass., 2001 Dodge Avenger, 5.931,
240.24 mph.
TOP DRAGSTER – Jason Lynch,
Pleasant View, Tenn., def. Brett Nesbitt, McLeansville, N.C.
TOP SPORTSMAN – Chris Nyerges,
Burton, Ohio, 2000 Pontiac Firebird, def. Gary Bingham, King,
N.C., 2001 Pontiac Grand Am.
TOP STOCK – Bo Kenney, Manassas,
Va., 2001 Pontiac Firebird, def. Paul Mercure, White Lake, Mich.,
1968 Chevrolet Camaro.
SUPER STOCK – Scotty Stillings,
Indianapolis, Ind., 1999 Pontiac Grand Am, def. Joe Tysinger,
Wrightsville Beach, N.C., 1987 Pontiac Firebird.
STOCK – Travis Womble Jr.,
Sanford, N.C., 1987 Chevrolet Camaro, def. Myron Piatek, Holly
Hill, 1975 Dodge Dart
QUICK ROD – Troy Williams Jr.,
Bradenton, Fla., 8.881, 155.59 mph, def. Larry Ericksmoen, St.
Petersburg, Fla., 8.857, 157.59 mph.
SUPER ROD – Steve Furr,
Harrisburg, N.C., 1968 Chevrolet Camaro, 9.887, 155.81 mph, def.
Tracy Ogden, Elkridge, Md., 1998 Chevrolet S-10 truck, 9.869,
156.12 mph.
HOT ROD – Kenny Underwood, Tampa,
Fla., 1967 Chevrolet Vega, 17.700, 72.15 mph, def. Gary Bryant,
Sanford, N.C., 1984 Chevrolet Camaro, broke.
Round-by-round results from
Sunday’s 36th annual IHRA Nicko’s NY Style Pizza Spring
Nationals presented by Advance Auto Parts and Castrol.:
TOP FUEL
First round – 1.Cory McClenathan, Anaheim, Calif., 4.801, 250.92
mph, def. 5. Rick Cooper, Boise, Idaho, 5.478, 205.54 mph; 2.
Andrew Cowin, Wrightsville Beach, N.C., 4.758, 305.63 mph, def. 6.
Michael Gunderson, Middleburg, Fla., 49.187, 32.31 mph; 3. Doug
Foley, Sewell, N.J., def. 7. Rhonda Hartman-Smith, Williamston,
S.C.,; 4. Clay Millican, Drummonds, Tenn., 4.744, 274.05 mph, def.
8. Bruce Litton, Indianapolis, Ind., 4.791, 306.67 mph.
Semifinals – Cowin, 4.942, 275.06
mph, def. Millican, 5.075, 234.66 mph; McClenathan, 4.868, 295.74
mph, def. Foley, 11.016, 88.90 mph.
FINAL – Cory McClenathan,
Anaheim, Calif., 4.712, 309.91 mph, def. Andrew Cowin,
Wrightsville Beach, N.C., 4.786, 281.54 mph.
NITRO FUNNY CAR
First round – 1. Bob Gilbertson, Gastonia, N.C., 2005 Dodge
Stratus, 5.964, 254.97 mph, def. 5. Terry Haddock, Lynnwood,
Wash., 2005 Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 10.168, 103.33 mph; 2. Gary
Densham, Bellflower, Calif., 2005 Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 6.404,
164.69 mph, def. 6. Paul Lee, Gaithersburg, Md, 2001 Chevrolet
Camaro, 7.965, 109.07 mph; 7. Jack Wyatt, Corydon, Iowa, 2002
Ponitac Firebird, 5.010, 283.79 mph, def. 3. Dale Creasy Jr.,
Beecher, Ill., 2006 Chevrolet Mont Carlo, def. 5.208, 217.77 mph;
4. Vinny Arcadi, Lancaster, N.Y., 2001 Chevrolet Camaro, 5.453,
269.78 mph, def. 8. Gary Cooper, Omaha, Neb., 2005 Dodge Stratus,
15.685, 76.43 mph.
Semifinals – Wyatt, 5.031, 269.05
mph, def. Gilbertson, 5.466, 220.55 mph; Arcadi, 5.190, 293.35
mph, def. Densham, 5.720, 191.16 mph.
FINAL – Jack Wyatt, Corydon,
Iowa, 2002 Pontiac Firebird, 5.033, 290.01 mph, def. Vinny Arcadi,
Lancaster, N.Y., 2001 Chevrolet Camaro, 5.102, 296.44 mph.
PRO MODIFIED
First round – 1. Tommy D'Aprile, Port Charlotte, Fla., 1963
Chevrolet Corvette, 6.358, 226.43 mph, def. 9. Mike Bell,
Asheboro, N.C., 1966 Ford Mustang, 7.108, 154.03 mph; 2. Mike
Janis, Lancaster, N.Y., 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt, 6.181, 225.95 mph,
def. 10. Chip King, Semora, N.C., 1969 Dodge Daytona, 6.452,
223.14 mph; 11. Joshua Hernandez, Conroe, Texas, 1968 Chevrolet
Camaro, 6.185, 228.27 mph, def. 3. Rick Distefano, Calgary,
Alberta, Canada, 1953 Chevrolet Corvette, 6.194, 228.27 mph; 4.
Mike Castellana, Westbury, N.Y., 2005 Chevrolet Cavalier, 6.194,
227.42 mph, def. 12. Alan Pittman, Greenville, S.C., 1962
Chevrolet Bel Air, 6.304, 219.51 mph; 5. Quain Stott, Columbus,
N.C., 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 6.158, 229.91 mph, def. 13. Steve
Vick, Mocksville, N.C., 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 6.393, 219.83
mph; 6. Jim Halsey, Street, Md., 1968 Chevrolet Camaro, 6.221,
222.77 mph, def. 14. Jason Hamstra, Demotte, Ind., 1963 Chevrolet
Corvette, 14.088, 56.42 mph; 7. Burton Auxier, Dixie, West Va.,
1953 Chevrolet Corvette, 6.205, 221.85 mph, def. 15. Carl Spiering,
Jordan Station, Ontario, Canada, 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 6.373,
188.33 mph; 8. Glen Kerunsky, Priddis, Alberta, Canada, 1957
Chevrolet Bel Air, 6.209, 226.81 mph, def. 16. Matt Hagan,
Christianburg, Va., 1963 Chevrolet Corvette, 6.242, 226.05 mph.
Second round – Hernandez, 6.191,
228.25 mph, def. Auxier, 11.111, 81.03 mph; Kerunsky, 8.039,
200.06 mph, def. Castellana, broke; Halsley, 6.218, 225.22 mph,
def. Janis, 8.445 117.02 mph; Stott, 6.204, 230.53 mph, def.
D’Aprile, 6.554, 218.19 mph.
Semifinals – Hernandez, 6.248, 227.59 mph, def. Stott, 6.195,
229.51 mph; Kerunsky, 6.222, 229.00 mph, def. Halsey, 6.556,
223.84 mph.
FINAL – Joshua Hernandez, Conroe,
Texas, 1968 Chevrolet Camaro, 6.274, 226.07 mph, def. Glen
Kerunsky, Priddis, Alberta, Canada, 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air,
10.258, 101.12 mph.
PRO STOCK
First round – 1. Frank Gugliotta, Mt. Airy, Md., 2005 Ford Escort,
6.450, 215.48 mph, def. 9. Steve Spiess, Manhattan, Ill., 2005
Chevrolet Cobalt, 6.498, 212.76 mph; 2. Robert Patrick,
Fredericksburg, Va., 2004 Ford Cobra, 6.451, 214.62 mph, def. 10.
Jason Collins, Rainbow City, Ala., 2004 Ford Mustang, 7.072,
149.70 mph; 3. Tony Gillig, Lake Bluff, Ill., 2004 Ford Mustang,
6.447, 214.75 mph, def. 11. Dan Sweeney, Groton, Mass., 2006
Pontiac GTO, 6.493, 212.93 mph; 4. John Nobile, Dix Hills, N.Y.,
2003 Ford Escort ZX2, 6.454, 214.48 mph, def. 12. Brian Gahm,
Lucasville, Ohio, 2003 Ford Mustang, 8.614, 108.68 mph; 13. John
Bartunek, Pearl River, N.Y., 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt, 6.454, 215.14
mph, def. 5. Jeff Dobbins, Wilminton, N.C., 2006 Ford Escort,
6.445, 215.34 mph; 6. Larry O'Brien, Lakeshore, Ontario, Canada,
2004 Dodge Stratus, 6.470, 212.93 mph, def. 14. Ed Mahacek,
Atkins, Iowa, 2004 Chevrolet Cavalier, 15.770, 61.23 mph; 7. John
Montecalvo, Center Moriches, N.Y., 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt, 6.456,
214.62 mph, def. 15. Michael Bruno, Frankfort, Ill., 2005 Pontiac
GTO, 6.498, 213.84 mph; 16. Bert Jackson, Glen Allen, Va., 2003
Chevrolet Cavalier, 6.482, 214.35 mph, def. 8. Cary Goforth,
Holdenville, Okla., 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt, 13.298, 75.41 mph.
Second round – Jackson, 6.962,
211.56 mph, def. Nobile, 7.340, 164.37 mph; O’Brien, 6.510, 213.50
mph, def. Patrick, 7.448, 142.84 mph; Gugliotta, 6.469, 215.68
mph, def. Bartunek, 6.495, 214.31 mph; Gillig, 6.470, 215.39 mph,
def. Montecalvo, 11.980, 93.74 mph.
Semifinals – Jackson, 6.521,
213.23 mph, def. O’Brien, 8.745, 121.01 mph; Gillig, 6.483, 214.96
mph, def. Gugliotta, foul.
FINAL – Tony Gillig, Lake Bluff,
Ill., 2004 Ford Mustang, 6.497, 203.28 mph, def. Bert Jackson,
Glen Allen, Va., 2003 Chevrolet Cavalier, 6.930, 209.98 mph.
ALCOHOL FUNNY CAR
First round – 1. Rob Atchison, London, Ontario, Canada, 2006
Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 5.812, 242.56 mph, def. 5. Neal Parker,
Millville, N.J., 2005 Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 7.241, 137.11 mph; 2.
Mark Thomas, Louisville, Ohio, 2006 Chevrolet Monte Carlo, 5.869,
236.65 mph, def. 6. Melinda Green-King, Norfolk, Va., 2002 Dodge
Avenger, 5.949, 234.78 mph; 3. Fred Tigges, Holbrook, Mass., 2001
Dodge Avenger, 6.045, 239.82 mph, def. 7. Larry Dobbs, Welland,
Ontario, Canada, 2001 Chevrolet Corvette, 14.512, 66.25 mph; 8.
Thomas Carter, Cuero, Texas, 2004 Chevrolet Camaro, 5.911, 230.88
mph, def. 4. Trevor Lebsack, Slave Lake, Alberta, Canada, 1999
Ford Mustang, 6.044, 225.51 mph.
Semifinals – Tigges, 5.844, 240.47 mph, def. Atchison, 5.798,
242.02 mph; Carter, 5.940, 236.55 mph, def. Thomas, 5.955, 237.96
mph.
FINAL – Thomas Carter, Cuero,
Texas, 2004 Chevrolet Camaro, 5.947, 236.42 mph, def. Fred Tigges,
Holbrook, Mass., 2001 Dodge Avenger, 5.931, 240.24 mph. |
