Ashley and Schumacher to Final Round of Top Fuel

Justin Ashley competing in the NHRA Winternationals at Pomona Dragstrip (Photo: NHRA Media)

POMONA, Calif. — Final eliminations for the Top Fuel dragsters started off with a major bang at the NHRA Winternationals at Pomona Dragstrip.

ROUND ONE:

Antron Brown and Clay Millican kicked off Round 1 with a blistering pace. Brown shot off the line quicker with a reaction time of .062, while Millican had .070. However, Millican was victorious for the round with an elapsed time of 3.738 seconds and a final speed of 332.34. Brown had 3.743 seconds and 329.10, respectively. Despite taking the victory, Millican’s engine detonated at the end of his pass.

Krista Baldwin and Shawn Langdon took to the strip next. As soon as the race started, Baldwin dropped a cylinder, handing the win to Langdon. Baldwin had a quicker reaction time of .098 over Langdon’s .099. Langdon’s elapsed time and final speed, 3.680 seconds and 334.24, were far superior to Baldwin’s after the engine failure, which were 4.370 seconds and 193.82, respectively.

The third pairing of Round 1 was supposed to be between Jasmine Salinas and Doug Kalitta. However, the pin holding the throttle cable to the pedal fell out of Salinas’s car, ending her day. Kalitta went down the track by himself and clocked a reaction time of .067, an elapsed time of 3.699 seconds and a final speed of 335.40.

Shawn Reed and Justin Ashley lined up next. When the Christmas tree flashed green, Ashley zoomed away while Reed did not really go anywhere. Ashley was the winner with a reaction time of .035, an elapsed time of 3.831 seconds and a final speed of 317.87. Reed had a much slower reaction time of .078, an elapsed time of 7.630 seconds and a final speed of 124.93.

Earning the number one qualifying spot earned Brittany Force a bye round. Racing down the track by herself, she earned a reaction time of .072, an elapsed time of 3.714 seconds and a final speed of 336.91.

Missing cylinders were a consistent theme for the Top Fuel class as Justin Hart had a cylinder misfire, causing him to lose the round against Billy Torrence. Hart started off strong with a reaction time of .043, while Torrence had .094. But as soon as that cylinder misfired, Hart lost all momentum and had an elapsed time of 3.903 seconds and a final speed of 274.61 as Torrence took off with an elapsed time of 3.716 seconds and a final speed of 335.98.

The second to last round of Round 1 was between Terry Totten and Tony Schumacher. Schumacher was declared the winner after Totten’s tires shook, preventing him from going anywhere. Schumacher had a reaction time of .104, an elapsed time of 3.752 seconds and a final speed of 329.83. Totten only clocked a reaction time of .121, an elapsed time of 8.561 and a final speed of 60.04.

Steve Torrence and Tony Stewart made up the final match. Torrence was named the winner after Stewart dramatically lost traction. Torrence had a reaction time of .061, an elapsed time of 3.695 seconds and a final speed of 336.65. Stewart only pulled off a reaction time of .068, an elapsed time of 8.841 seconds and a final speed of 76.15.

ROUND TWO:

Force was scheduled to go up against Millican for her round, however Millican’s team decided that they had blown up enough engines the weekend and pulled out at the last second. Force took to the strip by herself once again, ending with a reaction time of .510, an elapsed time of 3.723 seconds and a final speed of 333.99. When asked about going down the track on her own again, Force was not too pleased.

“That’s not how we want to win,” Force said. “We want someone next to us and we want to win fair and square.”

The next matchup was between Kalitta and B. Torrence. Even though Kalitta started quicker off the line with a reaction time of .056, Torrence ended as the winner due to Kalitta smoking his tires. Kalitta had an elapsed time of 5.792 seconds and a final speed of 150.88. Meanwhile, Torrence had a reaction time of .085, an elapsed time of 3.736 seconds and a final speed of 331.20. Torrence also had a cylinder misfire at the end of the race.

Ashley and S. Torrence squared up at the start line next. Torrence smoked his tires once again, handing the win to Ashley. Ashley clocked a reaction time of .057, an elapsed time of 3.706 seconds and a final speed of 334.65. Torrence only clocked in 0.79, 7.359 seconds and 98.98, respectively.

The duo of Langdon and Schumacher rounded out Round 2 of final eliminations. Schumacher was declared the winner with a reaction time of .056, an elapsed time of 3.774 seconds and a final speed of 327.03. Langdon’s car suffered a cylinder misfire, resulting in a reaction time of .064, an elapsed time of 4.589 seconds and a final speed of 164.07.

Tony Schumacher all smiles after winning the semifinal round of the NHRA Winternationals at Pomona Dragstrip (Photo: NHRA Media)

SEMIFINALS:

The matchup between Schumacher and Torrence ended with the former grabbing the victory. Torrence had a reaction time of .110, an elapsed time of 3.786 seconds and a final speed of 317.19. Schumacher had a reaction time of .069, an elapsed time of 3.762 seconds and a final speed of 330.47.

For the first and last time over the weekend, Force raced against another driver. Her competitor was Ashley, who won the race with a reaction time of .050, an elapsed time of 4.198 seconds and a final speed of 296.63. Force had a .076 reaction time, a 4.626 second elapsed time and 216.13 final speed. Despite the victory, Ashley ended up losing a cylinder at the end of the run.

Due to severe hail, rain and thunderstorms, the final round was moved to the next NHRA event, which will be held in Arizona on April 5-7.