Backstretch Motorsports

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Bob Tasca completed a dream weekend Sunday by racing to his first career victory at the ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals.

Larry Dixon, Jason Line and Hector Arana also were winners at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event at historic Gainesville Raceway.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Larry Dixon led the Top Fuel pack on Friday at the ACDelco NHRA Gatornationals by racing to the qualifying lead for the second consecutive race.

Dixon, who had a rough start to the season after failing to qualify at the season-opener in Pomona, qualified with the quickest run on Friday, a performance of 3.902 seconds at 310.20 mph in his Al-Anabi Racing dragster.

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CHANDLER, Ariz. – Ron Capps raced to his first No. 1 qualifying performance in Funny Car in more than four years Saturday at the Lucas Oil Slick Mist NHRA Nationals.

Larry Dixon and Mike Edwards also will lead their categories into Sunday’s 11 a.m. eliminations at the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series event.

Capps, who won the season-opening race two weeks ago in Pomona, Calif., powered his Napa Dodge Charger to a 4.023 second run at 305.63 mph to claim his eighth career No. 1 qualifying position and second at Firebird International Raceway near Phoenix.

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CHANDLER, Ariz. – Larry Dixon turned his season around Friday at the Lucas Oil Slick Mist NHRA Nationals by racing to the qualifying lead in Top Fuel.

Ron Capps and Mike Edwards also were qualifying leaders in their categories at the second race of the season in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.

Dixon, who failed to qualify for the NHRA season-opener two weeks ago in Pomona, Calif., rebounded with the quickest run on Friday at Firebird International Raceway, a performance o f 3.807 seconds at 313.95 mph in his Al-Anabi Racing dragster.

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POMONA, Calif. – The popularity of NHRA Championship Drag Racing has been framed throughout the years by dynamic on-track rivalries that have kept fans on the edge of their seats.

Though there have been many great rivalries in the one-on-one world of this high-speed, side-by-side, performance-driven sport, several instantly come to mind:

• Don “the Snake” Prudhomme vs. Tom “the Mongoose” McEwen in Funny Car
• Don Garlits vs. Shirley Muldowney in Top Fuel
• Bob Glidden vs. Lee Shepherd in Pro Stock
• John Force vs. Cruz Pedregon in Funny Car

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ENNIS, Texas – Larry Dixon’s up to bat with two strikes and a day to go.

At the past two events, Dixon’s qualified No. 1 on the strength of his provisional nights of qualifying. And at the last two events, he didn’t make it out of the second round on Sunday.

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Funny Car legend John Force fails to qualify in zMax Dragway debut and Countdown to 1 opener

CONCORD, N.C. – Larry Dixon put a temporary hold on Tony Schumacher’s recent dominance by racing to the No. 1 qualifying position in Top Fuel Saturday at the NHRA Carolinas Nationals. Meanwhile, Funny Car icon John Force failed to qualify in his debut at the spectacular zMAX Dragway and the opening race of the Countdown to 1, NHRA’s playoffs.

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Larry Dixon, Tony Pedregon, Allen Johnson, Matt Smith qualify No. 1

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Cruz Pedregon capped a momentous Sunday at the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals by defeating Tim Wilkerson to win the U.S. Smokeless Showdown, the annual bonus race for Funny Cars, and the $100,000 first prize that comes with the title.

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ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. – When Larry Dixon was 12 years old, he told race officials he was 14 just so he could get into the pits at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park.

It was against the rules for anyone younger than 14 to enter that area, he said. By that time, Dixon had already known for eight years he wanted to be a professional NHRA driver. Eight years of daydreaming about the car he’d have; eight years of sneaking off to read auto magazines while his mom shopped for groceries. Eight years of wanting to be his father. It didn’t seem like the time for patience.

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TOPEKA, Kan. – Larry Dixon, Tony Bartone, and Dave Connolly were able to hold on to the top spots in their respective categories Saturday at the O’Reilly NHRA Summer Nationals.

Despite the heat and humidity at Heartland Park Topeka the three drivers’ Friday night qualifying runs were enough for them to maintain the No. 1 qualifying positions in their respective categories.

Dixon’s run Friday night of 4.527 seconds at 325.30 mph in his U.S. Smokeless Tobacco dragster was strong enough to keep the top spot in Top Fuel. It’s Dixon’s first No. 1 qualifier of the season, 28th of his career, and third at Heartland Park Topeka.

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