Special Section
THE PDRA TOP 3 LIST IS AN EVER-CHANGING LIST OF THE BIGGEST NEWSMAKERS AND POWER PLAYERS IN THE PDRA ’ S PROFESSIONAL CLASSES . THIS MONTH ’ S EDITION , REPRESENTING PERFORMANCES FROM THE PROLINE RACING BRIAN OLSON MEMORIAL WORLD FINALS , OCTOBER 22-25 AT VIRGINIA 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 . NOTE : PERSISTENT RAIN AND HUMIDITY ISSUES PUSHED THE WORLD FINALS INTO TUESDAY , BY WHICH POINT MOST CLASSES DECIDED TO SPLIT IN THE SEMIFINALS OR FINALS .
PHOTOGRAPHS BY TARA BOWKER
PRO NITROUS |
PRO BOOST |
EXTREME PRO STOCK |
PRO OUTLAW 632 |
PRO NITROUS MOTORCYCLE |
JIM HALSEY TOMMY FRANKLIN MATT GUENTHER |
JOHNNY CAMP KURT STEDING JOHN STRICKLAND |
JR CARR JOHNNY PLUCHINO DWAYNE RICE |
DILLON VOSS CHRIS HOLDORF WES DISTEFANO |
CHRIS GARNER-JONES TRAVIS DAVIS ASHLEY OWENS |
Defending Switzer Dynamics Pro Nitrous world champion Jim Halsey pulled off a second consecutive No . 1 qualifying effort in his Fulton-powered ’ 68 Camaro , bringing him less than one round behind two-time champion Tommy Franklin , who qualified 10th . Halsey was able to capitalize on that when Franklin fell to Matt Guenther in the semis , while Halsey went 3.645 at 207 mph to beat Ron Muenks ’ 3.684 and clinch another title . While the points battle was taking place , Matt Guenther quietly made his way to his first final round , running solid 3.70-second passes to beat the likes of Lizzy Musi and Franklin . Halsey and Guenther split before the final round .
It took a few races for things to line up for Johnny Camp and his ProCharger-boosted “ Hells Bells ” ’ 69 Camaro , but now he ’ s really rolling . His race day elapsed times varied only one thousandth , going 3.686 , 3.685 and 3.686 to reach his second final round . John Strickland took his Pro- Charged GALOT Motorsports ’ 69 Camaro to the No . 1 spot and was carrying momentum until Camp beat his 3.666 on a holeshot in the semis . Still , Strickland clinched his first Penske / PRS Pro Boost presented by WS Construction world championship and the third for Team GALOT . Kurt Steding continued to impress in his roots-blown P2 Contracting ’ 20 Camaro , racing to his third final round . He took the tree on Tuesday after Camp had left and was awarded the win .
After Johnny Pluchino clinched the Liberty ’ s Gears Extreme Pro Stock championship at the last race , JR Carr was focused solely on closing out the season with a victory in his Frank Gugliotta-tuned ’ 20 Camaro . He pulled that off – from the No . 1 spot – when final-round opponent Dwayne Rice had to shut off after the burnout , allowing Carr to single his way to his second victory . Pluchino qualified No . 2 in his Strutmasters . com ’ 13 Mustang , but threw away the second-quickest pass of first round , a 4.07 , when he went red against Chris Powers . Rice laid down a 4.09 to beat outgoing world champ John Montecalvo in the first round , then benefitted from Powers turning on the red light in the semis .
The $ hameless Racing Pro Outlaw 632 class only ran two rounds before the rain ended on-track action Saturday night . Dillon Voss was the star of the show , qualifying No . 1 in his Race Lite Lithium ’ 17 Corvette and winning with low 4.20-second passes , earning a bye to the final . Chris Holdorf was slightly quicker in his round wins , taking his Nelson-powered ’ 53 Corvette to the semis . He was set to face the newly crowned world champion , Wes Distefano , who struggled a bit in his Musi-powered $ hameless Racing ’ 68 Camaro with passes in the 4.30s . Voss , Holdorf and Distefano agreed to take the semifinal points and race for the trophy at the World Street Nationals in Orlando , November 13-15 .
Perennial Drag 965 Pro Nitrous Motorcycle championship contender Chris Garner-Jones delivered perhaps his best performance of the season , but it was too late to pass Travis Davis for the 2020 world title . Garner-Jones qualified third and went 4.012 and 4.002 to beat Gerald Smith and Paul Gast , respectively , giving him lane choice in the final . Davis moved past the first round in a bizarre incident where Mantez Thompson launched way too early and Davis ’ bike didn ’ t make it past the Christmas tree . He rebounded with a clutch 4.085 , though Ashley Owens handed him the win when he went red . Owens seemed to have the bike to beat after qualifying No . 1 and running 4.011 in the first round . Davis and Garner- Jones split in the final , each getting runner-up points .
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