HORNE NIPS GRIMES FOR TOP FUEL TITLE IN AHDRA CLASSIC AT THE ROCK     It lacked its usual quantity of high-speed Harley-Davidsons, but there was no shortage of quality in Sunday’s third annual Screamin’ Eagle Performance Parts Spring Nitro Nationals at Rockingham Dragway. The highlight of the two-day, two-wheel speed-fest was a classic final round battle for the Top Fuel championship between reigning All-Harley Drag Racing Association champion Douglas Horne and No. 1 qualifier Tommy Grimes of Pfafftown, N.C. Horne, the 23-year-old phenom from Aberdeen, Md., used the narrowest of starting line advantages (.016 to .028) to beat Grimes to the finish by just .012 of a second in a race in which both riders crossed the finish line in a best-of-the-event 6.306 seconds at speeds of more than 219 miles per hour. It was Horne’s second straight AHDRA Top Fuel win at Rockingham (he also won last October in the Jim McClure Memorial Nitro Nationals) – but it wasn’t easy. In fact, the man who set the AHDRA national speed record in last fall’s race needed all of his skill at the starting line just to make the final. In the semis, against No. 2 qualifier Joey Sternotti of Blackwood, N.J., he used a .054 of a second edge in reaction time to offset a .012 disadvantage in quarter mile track time to advance. Horne also claimed his fifth straight Pro Fuel victory at The Rock by beating Craig Pelrine of Redwater, Alberta, Canada, in the final. That insured his second straight Rockingham “double.” Other winners in the AHDRA’s spring spectacular included Mark Cox of Fleetwood, N.C., in Hawaya/Vreeland Pro Drag; Tom Caldwell of Knoxville, Tenn., in AHDRA Pro Stock; Hank Stanton of East Rochester, N.Y., who beat fellow New Yorker Bruce Chandler; Charley Douglass of Staunton, Va., in Rightquick Street Pro; and Keith Browne of Semora, N.C., in Rush Pro Gas. In the sportsman division, Kevin Gauntt of Egg Harbor City, N.J., joined Horne as a double-up winner with victories in the Rush Super Eliminator and Screamin’ Eagle SEP classes. * * * * TOP FUEL Qualifying – 1. Tommy Grimes, Pfafftown, N.C., 6.393, 218.02 mph; 2. Joey Sternotti, Blackwood, N.J., 6.397, 203.71 mph; 3. Douglas Horne, Aberdeen, Md., 6.427, 215.79 mph; 4. Dean Comunal, Stroudsburg, Pa., 6.592, 193.99 mph; 5. Mike Pelrine, Bruderheim, Alberta, Canada, 6.976, 161.56 mph; 6. Devin Pelrine, Bruderheim, Alberta, Canada, 7.255, 193.46 mph; 7. Larry “Drums” Brancaccio, Nutley, N.J., 7.391, 178.83 mph; 8. Rickey House, Humble, Texas, 7.546, 187.31 mph. Round 1 – Mike Pelrine, Bruderheim, Alberta, Canada, .090, 6.507, 196.33 mph, def. Dean Comunal, Stroudsburg, Pa., .076, 7.020, 197.52 mph; Joey Sternotti, Blackwood, N.J., .125, 6.314, 211.43 mph, def. Larry “Drums” Brancaccio, Nutley, N.J., .037, 7.237, 183.39 mph; Douglas Horne, Aberdeen, Md., .039, 6.296, 221.42 mph, def. Devin Pelrine, Bruderheim, Alberta, Canada, .063, 7.574, 186.67 mph; Tommy Grimes, Pfafftown, N.C., .036, 6.384, 218.94 mph, def. Rickey House, Humble, Texas, .081, 6.880, 193.18 mph. Semifinals – Grimes, .045, 6.325, 221.42 mph, def. M. Pelrine, .048, 6.486, 212.33 mph; Horne, .027, 6.371, 211.86 mph, def. Sternotti, .081, 6.359, 215.27 mph. FINAL – Douglas Horne, Aberdeen, Md., .016, 6.306, 219.69 mph, def. Tommy Grimes, Pfafftown, N.C., .028, 6.306, 219.47 mph. RUSH PRO FUEL Semifinals – Craig Pelrine, Redwater, Alberta, Canada, .356, 7.066, 180.14 mph, def. Dean Comunal, Stroudsburg, Pa., .070, 16.789, 42.86 mph; Douglas Horne, Aberdeen, Md., .058, 6.882, 181.45 mph, def. Russell Sowers, Hermitage, Pa., .113, 6.940, 190.70 mph. FINAL – Douglas Horne, Aberdeen, Md., .052, 6.586, 207.15 mph, def. Craig Pelrine, Redwater, Alberta, Canada, .174, 7.397, 154.00 mph. HAWAYA/VREELAND PRO DRAG Semifinals – Mark Cox, Fleetwood, N.C., .108. 7.167, 168.96 mph, def. Carrie Seifert Tate, Mt. Vernon, Ark., .147, 7.290, 168.45 mph; Rich Vreeland, Bloomsburg, Pa., .061, 7.411, 161.05 mph, def. Janette Thornley, Roseville, Calif., .164, 7.475, 160.14 mph. FINAL – Mark Cox, Fleetwood, N.C., .127, 7.238, 173.70 mph, def. Rick Vreeland, Bloomsburg, Pa., .055, 7.351, 162.59 mph. AHDRA PRO STOCK Semifinals – Tom Caldwell, Knoxville, Tenn., 045, 8.146, 151.77 mph, bye; Kevin Seneca, Irving, N.Y., .363, 8.663, 143.03 mph, def. John Marinelli, Debary, Fla., broke. FINAL – Tom Caldwell, Knoxville, Tenn., .053, 8.120, 155.79 mph, def. Kevin Seneca, Irving, N.Y., no time. AHDRA PRO MODIFIED Semifinals – Hank Stanton, East Rochester, N.Y., .077, 12.041, 77.91 mph, def. Joey Thomson, Hopewell, N.J., foul; Bruce Chandler, Irving, N.Y., .023, 8.512, 153.07 mph, def. Frank Capone, Wakefield, Mass., foul. FINAL – Hank Stanton, East Rochester, N.Y., .098, 8.457, 152.99 mph, def. Bruce Chandler, Irving, N.Y., .024, 8.580, 152.81 mph. RIGHTQUICK STREET PRO Semifinals – Charley Douglass, Staunton, Va., .048, 8.810, 148.54 mph, def. Mike Motto, Jacksonville, N.C., .201, 9.449, 135.29 mph; Bruce Croneberger III, Cressona, Pa., .295, 8.926, 147.20 mph, bye. FINAL – Charley Douglass, Staunton, Va., .048, 8.810, 148.54 mph, def. Bruce Croneberger III, Cressona, Pa., .185, 26.418, 23.19 mph. RUSH PRO GAS FINAL – Keith Browne, Semora, N.C., .219, 7.403, 152.43 mph, def. Bruce Croneberger III, Cressona, Pa., .071, 8.607, 150.23 mph. OTHER FINALS SCREAMIN’ EAGLE V-ROD – Jim Sweet, Osceola, Ind., .156, 9.296, 143.32 mph, def. Rich Vreeland, Bloomsburg, Ind., .099, 10.133, 138.23 mph; SCREAMIN’ EAGLE DESTROYER – Alan Essreg, Fort Meyers, Fla., .071, 9.882, 131.86 mph, unopposed. AHDRA HOT STREET – Bruce Croneberger III, Cressona, Pa., .099, 9.732, 135.77 mph, def. Charley Douglass, Staunton, Va., .091, 10.214, 127.56 mph. BISON RACING SUPER GAS – Bob Drapp, Winter Haven, Fla., .021, 9.705 on a 9.700, 123.73 mph, def. Chris Hoppe, Pennington, N.J., .084, 9.599 breakout on a 9.700, 124.87 mph. AHDRA SUPER SPORT – Justin Collier, Orlando, Fla., .172, 13.928, 82.93 mph, def. Donnie Huffman, Lakeland, Fla., foul. RUSH SUPER ELIMINATOR – Kevin Gauntt, Egg Harbor City, N.J., .066, 10.930 on a 10.900, 119.234 mph; def. Keith Carper, Laurel, Md., .136, 10.868 breakout on a 10.900, 104.46 mph. SCREAMIN’ EAGLE SEP – Kevin Gauntt, Egg Harbor City, N.J., .010, 11.307 on an 11.500, 113.80 mph, def. Gerald Sutinen, NA, .056, 11.298 breakout on an 11.500, 119.75 mph. SYN 3 ET – Keith Carper, Laurel, Md., .070, 11.165 on an 11.060, 105.60 mph, def. Bob Blevins, West Point, Va., .026, 11.715 on an 11.500, 110.90 mph.