Life was a breeze for Mike Salinas in the Top Fuel portion of NGK Spark Plugs NHRA Four-Wide Nationals qualifying on Friday at zMAX Dragway. In a spectacular Friday Night of Fire at the Bellagio of drag strips, neither afternoon rain nor wind could dampen the spirits of drag racing’s most ardent fans – and Salinas made it worth the wait, with a track-record elapsed time of 3.687 seconds under the lights.
Salinas had to reach into his bag of tricks to knock Antron Brown off the provisional pole, but a 327.43-mile-per-hour run was enough to eclipse Brown’s pass by a scant .038 seconds.
“The car did exactly what we wanted it to do: get the No. 1 spot,” Salinas said. “All in all, I think we had a great run right off the trailer from our disappointment in Houston. I don’t count my chickens before they hatch (on the pole). The way I do it we take it one round at a time. Antron’s car is back up. I want to run these guys. I don’t want to beat them when they spin their tires. I want to run them. I felt a couple quivers in there (during my run) and it wanted to shake a little bit but we got it down there.”
Jack Beckman lived up to his “Fast Jack” nickname in Funny Car qualifying. Beckman roared to the top of the charts with a 3.891-second, 321.42-mph pass. In a round that was heavy on early lifting, Robert Hight trailed Beckman with a 3.935-second, 285.11-mph run
“At 300 feet I knew (it was the best),” Beckman said. “It was the quickest 60-foot (run) I’ve ever had. It actually had way more in it but it dropped the clutch out of it. It feels good as a driver to see the looks on the crew’s faces, because they work just as hard when we’re No. 1 as when we’re 19th. Tonight will be way easier for them to tuck that car in knowing it’s No. 1. … I forgot about the fire (part of pre-race entertainment). I realized, ‘This is my job. I’m getting strapped in, they’re playing my song, it really makes you not want to go out there and be lackluster. (This time) gives us something to swing for (on Saturday).”
Karen Stoffer stormed to the top in Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying. Stoffer edged Angie Smith by .003 seconds with a blistering, 6.864-second, 195.17-mph pass that set the standard heading into Saturday.
“We had all different types of weather today, which I’ve never experienced in Charlotte,” Stoffer said. “In a night race, it’s different. We definitely had fun doing it. When the bike left, it felt really good so I was hoping for it to put up a good number and it did.
Jose Gonzalez paced Pro Mod qualifying with a 5.657-second, 257.14-mph pass.
The forecast for Saturday’s final qualifying rounds features plenty of clear skies and sun, as drivers and teams prepare to make their final two time-trial passes count in pursuit of a coveted four-wide Wally on Sunday.
TICKETS:
Single-day tickets and hospitality upgrades to this weekend’s NGK Spark Plugs NHRA Four-Wide Nationals are still available. Visit www.charlottemotorspeedway.com/tickets or call 800-455-FANS (3267) for more details.
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