Backstretch Motorsports

SONOMA, Calif. – There aren’t many synonyms for the word “dominant” that haven’t already been used to describe Tony Schumacher. Perhaps none exist.

Schumacher, the 38-year-old son of team owner and drag racing pioneer Don Schumacher, took only three years to prove himself as a professional driver after his Top Fuel debut in Indianapolis, the oldest and most storied stop on the NHRA POWERade Series tour, in 1996.

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KENT, Wash. – After a shaky first half of the season that included six DNQs, Tony Bartone (shown left) raced to his first NHRA POWERade Series victory Sunday at the 21st annual Schuck’s Auto Supply NHRA Nationals after more than six years of professional racing.

Bartone defeated veteran driver Ron Capps, also looking to break out of a winless streak that dates back to Richmond 2007, in the final round. Bartone powered his Canidae Pet Foods Chevy Monte Carlo to a 4.454-second pass at 238.17 mph to get the long-awaited win, while Capps posted a 4.708 at 227.46 in his NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger R/T.

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KENT, Wash. – Tony Schumacher has been in the final round in Seattle every year since 2004. Out of four consecutive final rounds here, he’s won three. He looked primed to add a fifth after qualifying No. 1 Saturday at the 21st annual Schuck’s Auto Supply NHRA Nationals, piloting his U.S. Army dragster to a 3.802-second pass at 316.90 mph in prime conditions Friday for his fourth No. 1 qualifier of the season and the 51st of his career.

Robert Hight (shown left) and Dave Connolly also will lead their respective categories into Sunday’s eliminations on the power of the No. 1 qualifiers they earned during prime weather conditions of the first day of qualifying, on Friday.

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Springfield, IL — Tim Wilkerson is in the midst of a dream season. By anybody’s standards. The fact that his is a one car team winning against the likes of John Force Racing, Don Schumacher Racing and the unlimited budgets of those giants is downright inspirational.

The Levi, Ray and Shoup Chevrolet Impala SS driver is leading the NHRA Funny Car points with 4 event wins and round by round, leading the way for the independents of the sport. And as an independent driver/owner/crew chief that means giving a fit to the large, well-funded multi-car teams is pretty enjoyable.

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KENT, Wash. – Jack Beckman (shown left) describes the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series as the “Top Gun” for race car drivers. Its categories are the fastest motorsports contests in the world; where extremity runs headlong into a deep pool of stubborn talent.

And it’s where, as rookies soon find out, being just ‘good’ doesn’t always win.

Most of the focus in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing is, naturally, what happens during a run – the four-point-something-seconds-plus between the green light and a win light.

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MORRISON, Colo. – Cory McClenathan raced to the No. 1 qualifying position in Top Fuel as qualifying came to an end Saturday at the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals at Bandimere Speedway

Tony Pedregon (shown left), Greg Anderson and Eddie Krawiec were also No. 1 qualifiers in their respective categories at the 13th of 24 events on the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.

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MORRISON, Colo. – Tony Pedregon raced to the provisional No. 1 qualifier at the 29th annual Mopar Mile-High Nationals in Denver.

Cory McClenathan, Allen Johnson (shown left) and Steve Johnson were also No. 1 qualifiers in their respective categories at the 13th of 24 events on the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series.

This was the first time in NHRA history that Top Fuel and Funny Car ran at the interim distance of 1,000 feet.

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Doug Herbert and his SnaponFranchise.com Top Fuel dragster team lined up for photos, smiles wide and arms raised in a victory salute that never gets stale. That happiness wasn’t faked. Herbert had just broken a 10-month winless spell and with the win in Norwalk gave himself some breathing room with a 131-point cushion between his eighth-place current seed and Morgan Lucas, who sits in the No. 11 spot currently and is 32 points outside the cut for the Countdown to the Championship playoffs.

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GLENDORA, Calif.– As the investigation continues into the tragic accident that took the life of driver Scott Kalitta, NHRA announced today that beginning at the Mopar Mile High Nationals in Denver, Colorado, both the Top Fuel and Funny Car classes will race to 1,000 feet instead of the traditional 1,320 feet or one-quarter mile. This is an interim step that is being taken while NHRA continues to analyze and determine whether changes should be made to build upon the sport’s long standing safety record, given the inherent risks and ever-present dangers associated with the sport.

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T. Pedregon, Anderson and Arana also win at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park

NORWALK, Ohio – Doug Herbert raced to an emotional Top Fuel victory Sunday at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals and dedicated his first win of the season to the memory of his two young sons who were tragically killed in a highway auto accident in late January. Herbert had a good-luck angel with him in Norwalk in daughter Jessie and scored his first Top Fuel win of the season.

Tony Pedregon, Greg Anderson and Hector Arana also were winners of the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series event at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park.

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