- AFTER HISTORIC FUNNY CAR WIN, BOB TASCA AFTER MORE AT CHARLOTTE’S NHRA 4-WIDE NATIONALS
- This Week at MBE
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- Josh Hart Looking for Continued Success at Charlotte Four-Wides
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Urban, D’Agnolo, Santangelo, Milstead, Furr and Wood take wins in Maryland
Courtesy of IHRA
BUDDS CREEK, MD – When it comes to big races, no one does it better than Steve Furr.
Furr, the defending Super Rod World Champion from Harrisburg, N.C., traveled to Maryland International Raceway over the weekend for the Summit Racing Equipment Sportsman Spectacular presented by AMSOIL and battled his way through one of the toughest fields
of the year en route to winning the Super Rod title and reaching the finals in Top Dragster as over 400 cars – a record for this event – came to play in the IHRA’s biggest sportsman race of the year.
Furr won the Super Rod Ironman over Mike Daymude and reached the finals in Top Dragster against Tommy Cable, but heavy rains moved in just as the pair were set to fire leaving the only undecided race of the weekend to be made up at a later date. The rest of the winners from the $5,000 to win Summit Sportsman Spectacular at MIR were Donny Urban (TS), Pete D’Agnolo (SS), Joe Santangelo (ST), Jake Milstead (QR) and Doug Wood (HR).
Easily the most successful weekend belonged to the Division 9 regular and two-time world champion as Furr punched his ticket to the Summit Tournament of Champions later this year and stands to possibly collect over $10,000 when all is said and done if he manages the double.
Eastern Canada’s Biggest Drag Race Returns to Picturesque Grand Bend
Courtesy of IHRA
GRAND BEND, ON – Race fans looking for the ultimate drag racing getaway need look no further than the Grand Bend Motorplex in Grand Bend, Ontario. 
Located just a few miles from the picturesque resort town on the shores of Lake Huron, the Grand Bend Motorplex offers all the amenities race fans could ever want – from good food to great racing – all on display during one of Canada’s premier motorsports events July 21-22 at the IHRA Mopar Nitro Jam Nationals.
Grand Bend always features one of the biggest drag racing events in all of Canada, bringing thousands of fans from across North America to the campgrounds and grandstands at the Motorplex.
This year’s event will feature a full contingent of sportsman competition plus an exciting lineup of nitro classes – from 320 mph Top Fuel Dragsters to Prostalgia Nitro Funny Cars, Nitro Harleys and Nostalgia Fuel Altereds – plus the stars of the Pro Mod Racing Association, the two-wheel daredevils of Harley Destroys along with a huge show featuring the 30,000 horsepower Shockwave jet semi, the PT Cruiser wheelstander and much more.
Kevin Bealko on the fast track at Martin 131 Event
Courtesy of Black Diamonf Motorsports
Photo by Roger Richards
Martin, MI – Patience and perseverance were the theme of the day at Summer Drags VIII at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Mich. Fridays first session of qualifying saw the Black Diamond Motorsports 2011 GXP driven by Kevin Bealko sitting in the number
one position with a 4.072 seconds elapsed time (ET) at 175.45 miles per hour (MPH).
Six hours later after several rain showers in the second round of qualifying with the humidity at the extreme end of the gauge, Kevin aborted the run when the GXP headed for the wall but his previous qualifying run held up enough for third position as the rain returned again canceling the rest of qualifying. Saturday would be the final qualifying session in which the Black Diamond Motorsports crew hoped to improve in.
Saturday’s qualifying session did not see any improvement in the ET but no other competitor was able to improve their ET’s either allowing the GXP to remain in the third position and would have to face the Lone Mopar driven by Larry O’Brien in the first round of eliminations.
John Deflorian Wins ADRL Summer Drags VIII
Photo by Roger Richards
American Drag Racing’s League’s (ADRL) Extreme Pro Stock class.In its sixth pass in competition the Jerry Haas Race Cars 2012 Camaro driven by John and his Black Diamond Motorsports crew qualified number one in the second session with 4.105 elapsed time (ET) at 175.91miles per hour (MPH) at ADRL Spring Drags III in Bristol then upped the ante with a 4.091 ET at 176.05 MPH in the third session to cement his first number one qualifying position .
John accomplished another of his goal’s in the third session of qualifying at ADRL’s Gateway Drags IV presented by CarSafe held at Gateway Motorsports Park in St. Louis his home track . John ran the fastest ET and MPH of Extreme Pro Stock class racing with a 4.018 ET at 179.92 MPH capturing both records in the sixteenth pass on the Camaro .
TNT Super Series competes Friday at Mopar IHRA Nitro Jam Nationals in Grand Bend
Courtesy of TNT
GRAND BEND, ON – For the second consecutive year, the Joe’s Transmission TNT Super Series will compete during the Mopar IHRA Nitro Jam Nationals this weekend. Grand Bend Motorplex will host a complete TNTSS 10.90 drag race on Friday July 20th
presented by Rosehill Auction House.
Paying $1000 to win, this is race #7 on the 2012 TNTSS schedule and counts towards the series points championship. It will offer all of the features the TNTSS is known for – including round money, specialty awards and contingency postings – PLUS a chance to get into the Performance Improvements Race of Champions in September.
Last year’s event was a huge success with 35 cars in TNTSS competition. “We had pretty much every Hot Rod and Super Rod car that was on the property Friday afternoon run our race,” said Ted Barnes, TNTSS Director. “We’re looking to hit 40 this year!” And since the TNTSS has no minimum weight and allows left-hand steer roadsters, they have a good chance to do just that.
Rahaim, DeFlorian Garner First ADRL Wins, Lead Winners List At Summer Drags VIII
Courtesy of ADRL
MARTIN, MI – Bob Rahaim couldn’t have picked a better place for his first American Drag Racing League (ADRL) win.
Racing at his home ADRL track, the Pro Nitrous standout delivered an incredible performance in front of a huge gathering of
friends and family, going a career-best 3.797 at 197.10 miles per hour on Saturday to beat Pat Stoken in the finals of the Summer Drags VIII at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park.
It capped off a day the Grosse Point, Mich. native won?t ever forget.
I’m feeling numb. This is pretty overwhelming. To do this at your home track and have everybody here, it’s just a storybook thing,? Rahaim said. ?You couldn’t have scripted it any better
I can say my life is complete. I’ve always wanted to win one of these races and I’ve always wanted to do it at my home track with everybody here in person.
Other Summer Drags VIII winners included Jason Scruggs (Pro Extreme), Alan Pittman (Mickey Thompson Extreme 10.5), Eric McKinney (Pro Extreme Motorcycle), John DeFlorian (Extreme Pro Stock), Mike Castellana (Aeromotive Fuel Systems Pro Modified), Bruce Thrift (Summit Racing Equipment Top Sportsman) and Bo Butner (SuperCar Showdown).
Bealko and Deflorian, 3rd and 4th after 2 Sessions at ADRL Martin
Courtesy of Black Diamond Motorsports
Photo Courtesy of Roger Richards
Martn, MI – Black Diamond Motorsports driver’s Kevin Bealko and John Deflorian, Jr. closed Friday’s day of qualifying in third and fourth qualifying positions. With two separate rain delays that wiped away one total round of qualifying,
patience was the key at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park.
The 2011 GXP driven by Kevin Bealko opened the first qualifying session with a 4.072 seconds elapsed time which placed him in the number one spot. In the second round of qualifying six hours later with the humidity at the extreme end of the gauge, Kevin aborted the run when the GXP headed for the wall but his previous qualifying run held up enough for third position for Saturday final qualifying session
The 2012 Camaro driven by John Deflorian, Jr. opened the first qualifying session with a tire shaking 4.279 seconds elapsed time which placed him outside of the field. With the rain delays John waited patiently for his turn to qualify and parlayed it into a 4.088 seconds elapsed time placing him on the same side of the qualifying ladder with Kevin in the fourth position .
Riesterer Sets Track Record, Heads Top Qualifiers List At Summer Drags VIII
Courtesy of ADRL
MARTIN, MI – American Drag Racing League (ADRL) Pro Nitrous driver Doug Riesterer is trying for his third straight win in the class, and the talented Texan got off to a strong start on Friday at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park.
On a rain-soaked day in Martin, Mich., Riesterer delivered the most impressive run of the day, going 3.80 at 195.22 mph on new Hoosier Tires to set a track record and take the top qualifying spot at the Summer Drags VIII.
Riesterer is trying to become the first driver in Pro Nitrous to win three straight races since Rickie Smith did it in 2010.
“We put new tires on, it was a different day and a different track. You never know what to expect,” Riesterer said. “We put our best guess into it and I thought there was about a 20 percent chance it would go down the track. With new tires, you usually struggle but hopefully this is a good indicator.”
Joey Severance, Continues a Family Tradition
Written by Todd Veney/Pro Sportsman Association
Photo by David Smith
Fresh off a victory at Mission Raceway in his most recent regional start, Joey Severance will be a huge favorite at this weekend’s regional in Woodburn, Ore. He’s the defending Top Alcohol Dragster winner, the reigning Division 6
champion, and just missed winning the 2011 national championship. Oh, and he’s a co-owner of Woodburn Dragstrip and obviously knows the facility better than anyone who’ll line up against him.
“This track is a seven-days-a-week job,” says Severance, who does everything from plunging toilets to handling souvenir sales to prepping the all-concrete surface. “It’s a lot different, being on this side of things. Instead of complaining about not getting paid enough, now I’m complaining about how much money we have to pay out.”
It was Severance who collected the Top Alcohol Dragster winner’s check in each of the past two seasons at Woodburn, but nothing could have prepared him for the phenomenal success that he and his dad, Joe Sr., one of the original heroes of Pro Comp, had everywhere else last year. They entered seven divisional events, reached the final at all seven, and won five, including Woodburn.
Opportunity knocks for Troy Coughlin Jr. at Tenn-Tuck event
Courtesy of Jegs
BOWLING GREEN, KY – To the racers who regularly compete in high stakes E.T. Bracket racing, there are a handful of event wins that everyone wants on their résumé, and the Tenn-Tuck Triple Crown is certainly one of them.
Held tri-annually in March, July and October, each Tenn-Tuck Triple Crown weekend features three “Big Bucks” races that award $10,000 to the champion and two “Little Bucks” events with a $5,000 winner’s share.
All told, the popular series awards more than $350,000 in prize money each year and Troy Coughlin Jr., is looking to take home a share. He’ll have plenty of chances as he is entered in all five events with his JEGS.com dragster.
“The best part of these races is that you have so many chances to win,” Coughlin said. “If you make a mistake and get beat, you have a chance to make up for it in the next race. And, if you happen to get in a groove, you could really win a lot of rounds.
