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NMRA Atlanta 2011 Event Coverage

We’re here at the NMRA Atlanta race at Atlanta Raceway – and it’s going to be a great weekend. However it looks like rain is threatening at least part of the weekend. We’ve got some computer issues that are preventing us from bringing you the sizzling coverage you’re used to; but we’re going to make do with a remote-posting of news and coverage from the NMRA. On Monday we’ll bring you a complete re-cap with all of our high-resolution photos and analysis of a great weekend of racing. As always, SCT Flash helps make our race coverage possible. They’ve got a selection of great tuning products, including tuners for the new 2011 5.0L Mustang GT.

Friday was an exciting day for racing at the Third Annual Nitto Tire NMRA/NMCA All-Star Nationals. Even with the constant threat of rain, most of the schedule was completed with stellar performances. Unfortunately severe storms in the vicinity of Atlanta Dragway have forced officials to pull the plug on qualifying midway through the second round of 3rd Annual Nitto Tire NMRA/NMCA All-Star Nationals. The second round of qualifying will resume at 9 AM in the morning, followed by the third round. Gates will open at 8 AM.

In TurboSmart Pro Outlaw 10.5, which is combined with the NMCA’s Mickey Thompson Super Street 10.5 class for this race, Mike Murillo set the high-water mark with a 6.731-second blast at only 195 mph. The low trap speed is due in part to Murillo getting out of shape on the top end, and lightly tagging the wall past the finish line. After talking with him briefly this morning, he’s going to have the car back in fighting shape for eliminations, if not sooner.

In Blow-By Racing EFI Renegade action, Brian Mitchell seems to be running with the momentum of victory, taking the number one spot after winning the Bradenton race. B-Mitch posted an 8.373 at 163 miles per hour, putting him about eight hundredths of a second ahead of the number-two qualifier, Bart Tobener. With one more round of qualifying left on the schedule, that can change, because there are a number of players in the class capable of running in the 8.30s.

At the season-opening NMRA event, the racers in ProCharger Super Street Outlaw turned in a few amazing passes, but nobody was able to be consistently quick all weekend except for race winner Kenjo Kelley. Here in Commerce, there are four racers qualified quicker than 7.20 – an ET level unheard of up until this season. Torque converter technology has advanced so far, so quickly, that the turbocharged racers are finally able to take full advantage of the power they are making.

Topping the ladder is Chris Tuten, who bettered the 7.20 he turned in last month at Bradenton with an astounding 7.08 at nearly 203 MPH. John Kolivas, making his return to the NMRA this weekend in SSO, sits in the second position with a 7.11/208 mph blast, while nitrous racer Sammy Vincent’s 7.14 puts him in third. Andrew DeMarco clicked off a 7.19 at 201 mph, while Kelley sits fifth with a 7.31. This is without a doubt the quickest SSO field ever and it will be anyone’s game come elimination time.

BFGoodrich Tires Factory Stock is another class turning in amazing performances at the beginning of the season. In Florida, Carlos Sobrino became the second member of the Ten-Second club, and here he’s been able to top the ladder with an 11.01 entering today’s second round of qualifying.

Louie Sylvester Jr., fresh off an offseason suspension upgrade at Team Z Motorsports, also jumped into the fray with a stout 11.02 – his quickest pass ever – to land in the second spot on the ladder. John Leslie Jr. sits in third with an 11.271, while Brian Campbell (driving Matt Amrine’s hotrod) took fourth with an 11.273. This class only got one round in yesterday as we got pounded with a serious storm last evening, but we’ll be up and running again here shortly to get into their second round.

Qualifying Round 2

Special thanks to www.dragstory.com who scanned the official Round 2 qualifying sheets. We reposted them here.

We’ll be bringing you more through the weekend!

Final Qualifying has been posted:

Pro OutlawSuper Street 10.5 Qualifying for 8 entries

  1. 2 10.5 93 MUSTANG FORD 549 MIKE MURILLO SAN ANTONIO TX 6.731 195.76 215.62
  2. 2999 10.5 02 CORVETTE CHEV 737 TONY NESBITT LOMBARD IL 6.779 207.94 207.94
  3. 2001 10.5 95 MUSTANG FORD ??? EDGAR RICE SPRINGFIELD TN 6.982 207.02 207.02
  4. 2918 10.5 81 CAMARO CHEV 498 STEVE SUMMERS UTICA 7.084 196.53 196.53
  5. 1003 10.5 03 MUSTANG FORD 429 TIM ESSICK BRANDYWINE MD 7.109 166.83 166.83
  6. 1 10.5 88 TRANS AM CHEV 515 FRANK MEWSHAW MELBOURNE FL 7.142 169.74 169.74
  7. 3 10.5 03 COBRA FORD 440 DWAYNE JAMES 8.316 121.00 121.00
  8. 2000 10.5 69 CAMARO CHEV 747 JESSE VIOLANTE FELLSMERE FL 8.523 126.98 126.98


Procharger Super Street Outlaw Qualifying for 10 entries

  1. 2023 SSO 87 MUSTANG FORD 363 CHRIS TUTEN PELION SC 7.085 202.97 202.97
  2. 2005 SSO 95 MUSTANG FORD 427 JOHN KOLIVAS ASHLAND MS 7.116 208.17 208.17
  3. 2077 SSO 88 MUSTANG FORD 455 SAMUEL VINCENT CENTRAL CITY KY 7.149 195.11 195.11
  4. 7 SSO 86 MUSTANG FORD 414 ANDREW DEMARCO MALDEN MA 7.190 201.28 201.28
  5. 2000 SSO 98 MUSTANG FORD 427 KENJO KELLEY BRAZARIA TX 7.314 196.22 196.22
  6. 1 SSO MUSTANG FORD 420 JOHN URIST ALBUQURQE NM 7.317 198.12 198.12
  7. 4 SSO 01 MUSTANG FORD 423 PHIL HINES LEBANON OH 7.466 188.15 188.94
  8. 2 SSO 01 COBRA FORD 406 JOHN MACDONALD WHITE LIKE MI 7.480 186.30 189.76
  9. 2002 SSO 93 MUSTANG FORD 388 TRAVIS FRANKLIN MANSFIELD TX 8.416 175.78 175.78
  10. 2554 SSO 03 COBRA FORD 412 TERRY ELAM IRMO SC 12.601 70.10 70.10

275 Drag Radial Qualifying for 6 entries

  1. 4 DR 93 MUSTANG FORD 353 SEAN LYON PANAMA CITY FL 7.736 179.35 179.35
  2. 1 DR 86 MUSTANG FORD 360 JASON LEE MAUNEE OH 7.825 159.19 159.19
  3. 6112 DR 89 MUSTANG FORD 363 DAVID HILL CASSELBERRY FL 7.986 180.77 180.77
  4. 1X DR 89 CAMARO CHEV 365 MIKE FRATENA MELBOURNE FL 8.004 181.40 182.58
  5. 10099 DR 99 MUSTANG FORD 360 RONNIE DRAZ ELIZABETH NJ 8.185 151.14 164.99
  6. 8 DR 91 MUSTANG FORD 330 BRIAN TUTEN LEXINGTON SC 12.815 57.96 63.49

Pro StockHot Street Qualifying for 10 entries

  1. 5555 HS 67 CHEVY CHEV 420 DON BASKIN 8.421 158.80 158.80
  2. 3HS HS 04 MUSTANG FORD 400 ROBBIE BLAKENSHIP HUDSON FL 8.480 156.46 158.41
  3. 3398 HS 92 MUSTANG FORD 399 CHARLIE BOOZE JR MARION PA 8.492 159.53 159.53
  4. 3139 HS 00 MUSTANG FORD 399 KEITH COURTNEY MADISON IN 8.547 158.58 158.58
  5. 3131 HS 89 MUSTANG FORD 440 TIM EICHHORN BOYNTON BEACH FL 8.633 156.97 156.97
  6. 2PSTK HS 10 CAMARO CHEV 420 GREG DELANEY COVINGTON TN 8.646 154.55 154.55
  7. 2HS HS 75 MAVERICK FORD V8 DON BOWLES MADISONVILLE KY 8.653 155.11 155.11
  8. 5117 HS 95 MUSTANG FORD 420 MIKE DEMAYO BUTLER PA 8.655 158.28 158.28
  9. 5099 HS 90 MUSTANG FORD 419 ROB VALDEN WEST SUNBURY PA 8.663 156.05 156.05
  10. 10 HS 87 MUSTANG FORD 358 MIKE CURCIO EUSTON PA 8.854 155.60 155.60

Blow-By Racing EFI Renegade Qualifying for 6 entries

  1. 2 REN 04 MUSTANG FORD 310 BRIAN MITCHELL CHADDS FORD PA 8.373 163.55 163.55
  2. 4214 REN 92 MUSTANG FORD 337 BART TOBENEK WINDER GA 8.458 161.67 161.67
  3. 4126 REN 89 MUSTANG FORD 310 ALTON CLEMENTS CENTRAL SC 8.591 157.41 157.87
  4. 3 REN 90 MUSTANG FORD 311 BOB COOK HOMEWOOD IL 8.596 159.38 159.38
  5. 7 REN 00 MUSTANG FORD 306 BRYAN MUTH WALNUTPORT PA 8.946 155.92 155.92
  6. 4320 REN 98 MUSTANG FORD 316 AJ WYCE HAMMONNTON NJ 9.750 140.58 140.58

Steeda Real Street Qualifying for 7 entries

  1. 2 RS 86 MUSTANG FORD 302 BRUCE HEMMINGER BURNHAM IL 9.361 143.76 143.76
  2. 8062 RS 91 MUSTANG FORD 306 CRAIG BALDWIN PORT BRYON IL 9.423 146.83 146.83
  3. 3 RS 04 MUSTANG FORD 286 JIM BREESE TRANSFER PA 9.705 138.07 138.07
  4. 8910 RS 93 MUSTANG FORD 310 PAUL MILLER SUMMERVILLE SC 10.158 138.41 138.41
  5. 8082 RS 92 MUSTANG FORD 312 PAUL ALFEO W PALM BEACH FL 11.298 118.60 118.60
  6. 1 RS 10 MUSTANG FORD 286 TIM MATHERLY STATHAM GA 11.549 81.70 129.17
  7. 8015 RS FORD 286 JASON HOOTS MT VILLA NC 13.216 88.25 88.25

Eibach Pure Street Qualifying for 6 entries

  1. 3 PS 98 MUSTANG FORD 289 BRANDON ALSEPT CINCINNATI OH 10.139 132.26 132.26
  2. 5102 PS 01 MUSTANG FORD 310 TEDDY WEAVER STAFFORD VA 10.272 131.55 131.55
  3. 5119 PS 88 MUSTANG FORD 311 JIMMY WILSON GAINESVILLE FL 10.325 132.95 132.95
  4. 5 PS MUSTANG FORD 306 DREW LYONS ELLETTSVILLE IN 10.486 129.03 129.03
  5. 2 PS 97 MUSTANG FORD 289 STEVE GIFFORD BENNINGTON IN 10.527 127.98 127.98
  6. 8 PS 89 MUSTANG FORD 311 MARK ANDERSON LEXINGTON IL 28.028 46.55 46.55

BFGoodrich Tire Factory Stoc Qualifying for 7 entries

  1. 8 FS 91 MUSTANG FORD 308 LOUIS SYLVESTER MATTESON IL 11.024 121.55 121.55
  2. 2 FS 86 MUSTANG FORD 310 CARLOS SOBRINA FAIRVIEW NJ 11.066 122.61 122.61
  3. 6 FS 89 MUSTANG FORD 289 JOHN LESLIE JR DEMOTTA IN 11.181 119.05 121.16
  4. 6001 FS 88 MUSTANG FORD BRIAN CAMPBELL LOVELAND OH 11.273 121.05 121.05
  5. 6666 FS 11 MUSTANG FORD 302 JOHN ZEILINGA BOCA RATON FL 11.765 111.76 113.19
  6. 10 FS 89 MUSTANG FORD 284 ZANE REED TRENTON GA 11.860 115.68 115.68
  7. 6572 FS 92 MUSTANG FORD 311 ERIC SHANKLES RISING FAWN GA 12.107 113.29 113.29

Update from Sunday Morning:

The Crowd in Atlanta has been amazing!

In the ultra-competitive NMRA Edelbrock Hot Street class, horsepower is king. There are no superchargers, turbos, or nitrous solenoids to rely on when the going gets tough, just pure, naturally-aspirated power backed up by a choice of automatic or manual transmissions at varying weight breaks. Easton, Pennsylvania’s Mike Curcio has chosen the latter, and stands alone in the class at this point as the only racer to attempt to take advantage of each and every weight break that is offered while still retaining a manual transmission, which itself carries a stout 75-pound weight adder. They were hard at work in the pits making the necessary adjustments prior to the third round of qualifying, where Curcio shifted the clutch-assisted five-speed to an 8.85 at over 155 mph, showing that he has the power to compete but still needs to find the sweet spot in the suspension and clutch.

Jason Hoots got a lot more than he bargained for this weekend in Steeda Real Street. The opportunity arose to drive Tim Matherly’s ’02 Mustang in the class for the weekend, as Matherly returned to the seat of his gorgeous ’10 Mustang, freshly returned from the body shop. “Hootie” struggled during qualifying, and when we caught up to him in the pits he was in the middle of repairing the transmission. “The slider just exploded. I don’t know that the car ever even had third or fourth gear, it may have been broken from the last time Tim drove it. We’ll get it fixed up and back on the track,” he explained. Ladies and gentlemen, this is what happens when you run approximately 700 horsepower through a stock-style transmission and diaphragm clutch.

At the season opener in Bradenton, Eibach Springs Pure Street had a light turnout with only three cars making the haul to Florida. However, the class’ qualifying sheet has filled out a little more here at the All-Star Nationals with six entries on file as of the final round of eliminations. Some of the drivers are still sorting out new combinations or dealing with random issues – like Drew Lyons pictured above, losing his exhaust on the hit. At the end of the third round of qualifying, Brandon Alsept leads the Pure Street field with a 10.13 at 132 miles per hour, for the top spot going into today’s eliminations.

Another class that had a rough car count in Bradenton and has redeemed itself here in Commerce is Steeda Real Street. There are seven cars on the ladder this weekend, with Bruce Hemminger at the top of the heap, carding a 9.36 at over 143 miles per hour. Today should be an exciting day of eliminations!

Final Results

The NMRA and NMCA made a triumphant return to Atlanta Dragway for the third annual Nitto Tire All Star Nationals during the weekend of April 14-17, 2011 – a weekend that will live on forever as the host of the some of the quickest passes either series has ever seen.

In the Kooks Custom Headers Pro Street class, a field of twelve cars rounded out the ladder with Chris Rini’s 6.03 topping the charts at the end of qualifying. Eliminations had Alex Viscardi taking home the win on a single after Joe Dunne was unable to take the tree under power on a single run in the semifinal.

The NMRA’s Turbosmart Pro Outlaw 10.5 and NMCA’s Mickey Thompson Super Street classes have been combined this weekend, and NMRA regular Mike Murillo topped the ladder with an awesome 6.73 blast to lead the field into eliminations. There, Ed Rice came out of nowhere uncorked a 6.72 at over 209 mph in the final round to send Murillo home.

It was a fantastic Friday for ProCharger Super Street Outlaw, as four racers ran a 7.19 or quicker, led by Chris Tuten’s insane 7.085 hit at over 202 mph. Eliminations found Tuten going red by .008 against Phil Hines in the final round to give Hines his first win of the year.

Dave Beeson has been at the front of the ARP Nostalgia Pro Street field for a while now, and his 7.17 pass at over 192 mph topped the ladder again this weekend. In a close final round, Jim Jarrett defeated Beeson, 7.26 to 7.27.

In CFE Xtreme Street, Bob Kurgan wheeled his familiar multicolored Vortech-powered ride to the front of the pack with a strong 7.86 during the qualifying sessions. Eliminations came down to Bill Trovato and ’10 champ Jamie Stanton, who cruised through the top end for the win with a stout 7.93 hit to Trovato’s bouncing and out-of-shape shutdown pass.

ATI Performance 275 Radial and AFCO Drag Radial were also combined this weekend, with NMRA star Sean Lyon at the top on Saturday night with a stout 7.73 at nearly 180 mph. Lyon lined up with ’10 champ Jason Lee in the final, and Lee had to pedal, while Lyon ran a 7.66 at over 180 MPH to take the win light.

The Edelbrock Hot Street/Comp Cams Pro Stock field had Robbie Blankenship’s 8.48 at the top of the ten car field heading into Sunday. In the final round, Charlie Booze Jr. had an easy time of it right out of the gates as Blankenship redlit to end the race before it started.

Perennial contender and multi-time champ Brian Mitchell occupied his familiar position atop the Blow-By Racing EFI Renegade field with an awesome 8.37 before heading into eliminations. There, he met up with Alton Clements, who treed him, then powered through the traps with an 8.51 to take home a win in his first race since the middle of last season.

Steeda Real Street and Bruce Hemminger have become quite familiar over the last decade, with Hemminger’s nitrous machine at the front of the pack at Saturday’s end with a sweet 9.36 pass. In the final, Craig Baldwin uncorked a perfect reaction time on Hemminger, who missed third gear and had to shut down, handing Baldwin the easy win.

A 10.13 and the top qualifier spot was Eibach Springs Pure Street racer Brandon Alsept’s reward for a few weeks of hard work since the last event. Alsept met up with Teddy Weaver in the final round, where dual wheelstands on the launch led to Alsept turning on the win light with a 10.10 at 132 mph to Weaver’s 10.15.

BFGoodrich Tires Mean Street champ Jeremy Gillam continued his roll this weekend by beating the competition to the stripe for the number-one qualifier spot with a 10.08 at nearly 132 mph heading into Sunday. The final saw Don Baskin turned on the win light with his best pass of the weekend with a 9.98 at 132 mph while Gillam slowed down with apparent problems.

Louie Sylvester Jr. took his very first top-qualifier spot in the BFGoodrich Tires Factory Stock field, taking the top spot with a strong 11.02, just four ticks quicker than Carlos Sobrino. In the final, Sobrino turned in a stellar 10.991 at over 122 MPH to earning the win over Sylvester.

Indy Cylinder Heads Nostalgia Super Stock had Brian Merrick at the top of the qualifying ladder. On elimination day, due to a late evening, the final four racers (Brian Merrick, Doug Duell, Kurt Neighbor, and Steve Wilson) decided to split the points and the prize money for the weekend.

In Mr. Gasket Nostalgia Muscle Car, Tony Miles was only .003 off his dial for the top qualified position. However, on elimination day, it was two-time champ Andy Warren taking the win over Jeff Anderson on a redlight start.

Johnny Lightning lived up to his name by beating out sixteen other racers to top the Detroit Locker Truck and Lightning ladder with a .008 reaction time, but the final round had Steve Martin and Patrick Hooper lined up for all the glory. Hooper easily took the win light as Martin redlit.

The NMRA’s Trick Flow Specialties Open Comp class had Shane Smith card a perfect .000 reaction time to top the field. In eliminations, Larry Geddes and Greg Cole outlasted the field to meet up in the final, where Geddes ran an 11.05 on an 11.04 dial to take the winner’s check back to Ohio.

In NMCA’s Hawk Performance Open Comp class, Brent Carver drove his father’s Mustang to the top qualified position, and eliminations found John Norris lined up with Michael Rickman. Rickman ran an 11.78 on his .76 dial to claim the prize over Norris.

In Exedy Clutch Modular Muscle, former champ Reggie Burnette Jr. was just ahead of Jeff Stafford heading into Sunday. Charlie McCulloch and Jacob Lamb made their way to the final round, where Lamb ran closer to his dial in for his first win in over ten years of racing.

Edgar “REDGAR” Perez took his Corvette to the top of the Eaton Posi Late Model EFI field during qualifying, then ran through the competition on Sunday to meet up with Alan Kasper in the final round. There, he ran a 10.51 on a 10.50 dial to take the win back to New Jersey.

The JE Pistons LSX Drag Radial field saw Mark Carlyle blast off to a stout 7.897 hit to top the ladder. Eliminations found Mark Carlyle and Michael Meeks in the final round, where Meeks turned in a stout 8.19 to Carlyle’s 8.86 hit.

ERL LSX All Motor had Judson Massingill on top of the field at the end of qualifying with an 8.24. On Sunday, Massingill was again the class of the field, running consistent numbers all day before turning in an 8.23 to take the win over Chris Woods’ 8.66.

Adam Preston led the Holley EFI Performance Products LSX Real Street class into eliminations, where he made his way through the field on Sunday to meet up with Jay McCardle in the final round. There, Preston clicked off an 8.57 to McCardle’s 8.86 to bookend his weekend with a win.

In the Camaro Performance 5th Gen class, Loganville, Georgia’s John Bates qualified at the top of the field. When the final round rolled around, Shawn Calabrese took the stripe ahead of Kelly Homm with a 12.09 to Homm’s 12.59.