NMRA Atco 2009 Event Coverage

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Interview with Anthony Disomma's on his new Outlaw 10.5W Car:

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StangTV Qualifying Round 3: Outlaw 10.5W and Super Street Outlaw

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Round 3 Qualifying: Drag Radial, Renegade, Hot Street

[Matt@TMKPhoto]

It was another questionable morning at Atco as the rain moved in and appeared to be settled in for the long haul. As the NMRA officials watched the radar it seemed as if there would be a opening to make racing possible and to start eliminations. The call rangout through the pits at 12:30 for cars to head to the lanes and racing was underway.

Our coverage is brought to you by SCT Performance.



One of the most talked about happenings was the fire that Max Gross experienced in last evening's last qualifier. I had the opportunity to speak with Max after the incident and he was fine and happy to escaped uninjured. The Powerhead Team was working feverishly through the night to make repairs and from the looks of things this morning they are ready for first round.



Another team that had there fair share of trouble this weekend is the Pro Outlaw team of Dan Millen. Millen showed up here at Atco with a brand new look on his car courtesy of a vinyl wrap yet there was speculation of whether it was even the same car. Millen was eventually was protested for alledged carbon fiber body panels that are not permitted within the rules. It wouldn't matter though as he hurt the engine severely in the last qualifier so that puts another heavy hitter out of eliminations for today.

[Matt@TMKPhoto]

Round one eliminations updates



Factory Stock continues to suffer in the competitors eyes as 2008 Champion Tommy Godfrey is working his majic right out of the gate and is looking like the runaway favorite to be headed to the finals. Godfrey is being chased though by John Leslie Jr. who has been consistent all weekend.



Another huge round one happening was the derailing of John Urist. Urist who is a multi time champion in Super Street Outlaw was at the head of the field from the first qualifier and would face off against Chris Tuten. Tuten would put Urist on the trailer as he left him setting at the line and never looked back. They both ran identical 7.51 elapsed times but it was Tuten's holeshot that led him to victory.



In Drag Radial it was Enzo Pecchini who stepped up big with a victory over Orson Johnson and his wheelstanding convertible. Enzo continues to test a new air induction systm with high hopes that the performance level will continue to grow. His 8.26@175mph would be his new best time for the event.

[Matt@TMKPhoto]

Around the pits after Round One



Heading to the pits I found the team of Yanni Papakosmos and Joe Tomas working feverishly as they have had their fair share of problems this weekend. From electrical to transmission they have done it. Plenty of chassis adjustments have been made along the way courtesy of the talented hands of Jamie Miller. Miller has the car leaving hard and going straight on every pass after struggling to get down the track in the opening two qualifiers.



Veteran competitor Bob Hanlon went to work on his Hot Street entry in between rounds. It seemed as just routine maintenance as I observed what Bob was doing and with the track starting to come around with the more cars that went down it Bob should be able to be slightly more aggressive with his tune-up for round two.

[Matt@TMKPhoto]

Round Three Updates

Round three turned out to be the most exciting of the day with most competitors putting it all on the line along with some bumpers on the track surface. The track surface was as good as it had been all weekend and the results are in the photos.



First up was Tim Matherly in his Real Street entry. Matherly has been fast all weekend with consistent performances each round. Tim knows how to win championships and now he can add bumper draggin' to his resume. Matherly would advance to the final round against teammate Dave Ginter.



Dave Ginter would not be out done by Tim Matherly though as he and his newly labeled "Screaming Spongebob" SN-95 would put the wheels way up in the air and bring them down much more gracefully than Matherly on his bye run into the finals.



Next to head out to the track was the Pure Street warriors and what has been the Jimmy Wilson show each round as he wheelied well past the sixty foot mark on each pass. Wilson must have felt the need to show off his valuable real estate that he has for sale on his oil pan. If interested in sponsorship this spot will get plenty of recognition with the driving skills of Wilson.

[Matt@TMKPhoto]

The finals shaped up to be great on all levels with some great stories of hard work perseverence throughout the weekend. From Texas to Florida racers traveled to find their spot in the winners circle at this weekends race but only one in each class will do just that. The air conditions were as good or if not better than they had been all weekend and the results were astounding.

Mike Murillo and Tim Essick lined up in Pro Outlaw 10.5 and it would be Murillo who was victorious as he simply outran Essick. Essick gave it his all and did a excellent job of driving as his car did not set the front end down till nearly 300 feet down track. Murillo's 6.77@216mph is a new record, Essick posted a slowing 7.31@197mph.

Next would be the ever tough Super Street Outlaw finale with Maryland's Don Burton and "Supergreek" Yanni Papakosmos wheeling his black Mustang. The Miller Race Cars built entry leaving first but Burton appeared as if he may pull the win out. Yanni held on for the win at the top end and the holeshot was the factor in the end equation. Yanni's 7.61@190mph would get to the stripe first over Don's 7.59@185mph.

Steve Gifford and his Modular Depot entry faced off against the JPC entry of Ryan Hecox. Hecox is always tough and Gifford is usually a croed pleaser with huge wheelstands. The finals would be no different but it would be Hecox who would lay down the fastest pass in Pure Street history. Hecox's 10.12@132 would be enough to outrun Gifford's 10.20@135mph.

Factory stock continued to be the battle of number one and two in the world. Tommy Godfrey of JPC Performance would take on John Leslie Jr. once again and the familiar result was no surprise to others in the class as Godfrey had just a boit more in the tune than Leslie Jr. could muster. Tommy ran a 11.21@121mph to Leslie Jr.'s 11.32.

Two familiar faces in EFI Renegade lined up to do battle in the finals with Brian Mitchell and Bart Toebner coming into the beams. MItchell has uncorked some impressive runs throughout eliminations as well as doing his part on the tree to get a good jump on the combination. The pair would leave together but it would be Mitchell pulling away at the big end. Mitchell's 8.55@152mph was just too much for Bart's 8.89 elapsed time.

Hot Street was a showdown of Roush power as 2008 Champion Robbie Blankenship took on the veteran Don Bowles of Kentucky. It could have been considered a showdown between teacher and student as Bowles has more years racing then Blankenship is old and experience would prevail. Bowles left extremely hard with the wheels high in the air and marched on down the 1320 as he pulled away from a slowing Blankenship. Don Bowles 8.66@153mph would put him in the winners circle.

Last but not least it would be newcomer Ken Ewer trying to defeat Jason Lee who has been the fastest at both events so far this year. Ewer put together several impressive passes and consistently was faster each round as he and his team were creeping in on the perfect tune. Ewer threw it all at it he had but it would not be enough to outrun the huge top end charge of Jason Lee. Lee laid down another 8.10@176mph to Ewer's 8.42@156mph.

For the full Sunday photo gallery click here

Videos to follow soon. Thanks for everyones patience this weekend as we struggled with intrenet issues each day.

[Matt@TMKPhoto]

Factory Stock, Pure Street, Real Street

[Matt@TMKPhoto]

Drag Radial, Hot Street, EFI Renegade, Super Street Outlaw, Pro Outlaw 10.5