The NMRA All-Star Nationals at Atlanta Dragway is a combined race with the NMCA. It’s not like the Super Bowl NMRA/NMCA race where the winners of each sanctioning body square off against each other after eliminations, but the Atlanta area is home to so many racers and fans that NMRA combined the two to make it entertaining for a broad range of people.
The All-Star Nationals is the second race of the NMRA season, but with rules changes already taking place in Renegade, and many people not having their car sorted out by the Spring Break Shootout, the race is always a gauge to see who has their program figured out. However, it’s also the event that makes or breaks some racers’ season. If they haven’t done well at either of the two first races, some racers, knowing they’re fighting an uphill battle, regroup their efforts for next year.
Street Outlaw
In Stainless Works/VP Fuels Street Outlaw, it has been the John Urist/Phil Hines show for a good bit, but at Atlanta it all came together for Dan Saitz. Saitz and his dad have been working hard on the car, having attended both the NMRA Spring Break Shootout, and the NMCA season opener at Bradenton Motorsports Park. However, the guys seemed to be about a tenth off when it came to elapsed time, and couldn’t quite crack the 6-second zone. That all changed at Atlanta. Saitz qualified with a 6.98 at 201 mph, ran a 7-flat in round on against Phil Smith, and then a 6.99 at 201 mph to get past John Urist in the semis. In the final against Phil Hines, Saitz basically made it a victory lap when Hines was unable to put up a fight.
Renegade
In Edelbrock Renegade, it appears the weight breaks given the non-turbocharged combinations within the class didn’t totally pay off at Atlanta; at least not during eliminations. A few racers times improved, but Frank Varela still has a choke hold on the class, running 7.70s like he’s going to the grocery store. Varela had defending champion Bart Tobener in the final, but Tobener’s car is still running in the7.90s, and we’re sure he didn’t want to work on his engine after basically having to rebuild it after Bradenton.
Coyote Modified
In ProCharger Coyote Modified, Bradenton winner Johnny Lightning sat at the top of the qualifying ladder Saturday night. A couple Coyote Modified racers had to work really hard just to make the race, so they were sneaking up on tune-ups. Haley James, however, is not sneaking up on anything. She is full-court press all the time, and she was able to get first NMRA win in only her second race. The youngster whipped out a .408 reaction time in the final against Lightning, and didn’t look back with an 8.28 at 166 mph to get the win.
Pure Street
In ACT Pure Street, it’s been the Teddy Weaver show for quite some time. No one has really challenged Weaver, but at the Spring Break Shootout we could tell Jimmy Wilson had the power to give Weaver a challenge. And you know we hate being right, but we were once again spot on. At the All-Star Nationals, Wilson put the power to the ground to the tune of a 9.62 at 139 mph to top the qualifying ladder. Wilson worked on his car’s Spec clutch set-up and UPR Products suspension between Bradenton and Atlanta, and it showed. He was able to take out Weaver in the final with a devilish 9.666 at 140 mph to a 9.67 at 139 for Weaver.
Coyote Stock
A class we like to keep up with is Strange Engineering Coyote Stock. The racers in this class like good- and bad-natured ribbing from time to time, and HiPo Joe Charles and Shiftin’ Shane Stymiest are always going back and forth, but let’s not forget Steve Gifford and Carlos Sobrino, either. Coyote Stock racers like to do a lot of testing, and even more so, they like talking about testing, as well. At Atlanta, though, it was a soft-spoken racer who has been racing with the NMRA quite a few years, but without a victory. Drew Lyons finally got the monkey off his back, earning his fist win in an ever-increasingly tough class. Realistically, we could see a different winner at each race in Coyote Stock, which makes for an interesting points race going down the stretch. Former racer Bruce Hemminger has been helping Lyons, and the hard work showed with consistent 10.30s on Sunday, and a final round win over Joe Marini.
Factory Stock
In American Racing Headers Factory Stock, the big talk in the off-season was about all the Coyote-powered cars infiltrating the class. So far, the little BES Two-Valve of Matt Amrine is not impressed. Amrine won Bradenton, and at Atlanta, it was more of the same. Amrine qualified with a 10.79 to take the top spot, and though he started out with a 10.81 for his first round bye run, he ran quicker each round, culminating in a 10.74 at 124 mph in the final against Joseph “JJ” Jones, who ran a 10.89 at 119 mph. Amrine showed his GT’s muscle by running 124 mph every round on Sunday.
We’ll be bringing you news of special performances by several racers as the week goes on.