Drag Illustrated Issue 138, November 2018

THE DI TOP 3 THE PDRA TOP 3 LIST IS THE LATEST ADDITION TO DRAG ILLUSTRATED’S COVERAGE OF THE 2018 PROFESSIONAL DRAG RACERS ASSOCIATION (PDRA) SEASON. THIS LIST, REPRESENTING PERFORMANCES FROM PDRA DRAG WARS AT GALOT MOTORSPORTS PARK, DOES NOT REFLECT THE CURRENT POINTS STANDINGS, THOUGH MOST OF THE DRIVERS WHO APPEAR ON THIS LIST CAN ALSO BE FOUND NEAR THE TOP OF THE POINTS STANDINGS IN THEIR RESPECTIVE CLASSES. AS DRIVERS BATTLE BACK AND FORTH FOR NO. 1 QUALIFYING SPOTS, EVENT WINS AND NATIONAL RECORDS OVER THE COURSE OF THE 2018 SEASON, THIS LIST WILL CHANGE TO REFLECT THOSE ACCOMPLISHMENTS. PRO NITROUS PRO BOOST EXTREME PRO STOCK PRO EXTREME MOTORCYCLE PRO OUTLAW 632 1. TOMMY FRANKLIN 2. DANNY SAURO 3. LIZZY MUSI 1. TOMMY D’APRILE 2. MELANIE SALEMI 3. MARC CARUSO 1. STEVEN BOONE 2. JEFF DOBBINS 3. DILLON VOSS 1. BRUNSON GROTHUS 2. TERRY SCHWEIGERT 3. SPENCER ALLEN 1. JOHNNY PLUCHINO 2. JORDAN ENSSLIN 3. DILLON VOSS With low elapsed time of the first three rounds of elimina- tion at the Fall Nationals, including a near-record 3.659-second blast in the semifinals, Tommy Franklin appeared to be well on his way to a second consecutive Pro Nitrous victory. Danny Sauro, appearing in his first final round, had a different outcome in mind, as his Justin Elkes-tuned Tischer Auto Group ’69 Camaro fired off a record 3.652 to defeat Franklin, who slowed to a 4-second pass. Finally, Lizzy Musi maintains her spot on the Top 3 List on the merit of her No. 1 qualifying effort and the recording-breaking 207.28 mph speed she posted in the process. Can anyone stop Tommy D’Aprile and his Al Billes- owned-and-tuned ’69 Camaro? The Floridian qual- ified No. 1 for the fifth time this season with a 3.688, then marched to his second consecutive victory, this time over Melanie Salemi and the “Purple Reign” ’68 Firebird. Salemi qualified No. 2 and recorded a career- best 3.706 to come up short in the final by just four thou- sandths of a second. Roch- ester, New York’s Marc Caruso holds on to a Top 3 List spot after following up his Drag Wars runner-up finish with a string of mid-3.7-second passes to reach the Fall Nationals semifinals. Steven Boone jumps to the top of the Top 3 List with his second career Extreme Pro Stock win at Darlington, also rising to the top of the points standings going into the World Finals. Drag Wars champion Jeff Dobbins came up just one round short of another final round, keeping him on the list. New to the list – in Extreme Pro Stock, anyway – is Dillon Voss, who made his way to the final round in just his second race in the class behind the wheel of Enoch Love’s ’05 Cavalier. Between Voss’s championship-caliber driving and a proven car, Voss and company just might have what it will take to pick up the win at the World Finals. Aside from a runner-up finish at the season opener, Brunson Grothus has had a rather average season. His Indocil Art Suzuki has come alive in the late part of the year, though, as he’s a round and a half away from the points lead after a semifinal finish at Drag Wars and a win at the Fall Nationals. While Terry Schweigert didn’t fare well in elimina- tions with a second-round red light, his record-break- ing 3.9-second passes on a new turbo bike – including an otherworldly 3.914 – had the motorcycle racing world on notice. Spencer Allen, a newcomer to the Top 3 List, ran a career-best race at Darlington, qualifying No. 3 and reaching the final round. Consistency and class-lead- ing elapsed times have kept Johnny Pluchino at the top of the Top 3 List and the points standings, as the two-time winner goes into the World Finals as the only driver in Pro Outlaw 632 without a first-round loss. Moving up a spot on the list is Jordan Ensslin, whose ’02 Pontiac Trans Am was locked in the 4.25s and took the young Floridian to his first PDRA victory at Darlington. Defending world champion Dillon Voss is third on the Top 3 List and second in points after late-round fin- ishes at GALOT and Darling- ton, but he’ll need a miracle to pass Pluchino at the World Finals. 20 PDRA660.com

Drag Illustrated Issue 138, November 2018 | Page 20