CONCORD, N.C. — As the first group of Top Fuel competitors pulled into the staging lanes at zMAX Dragway, the track temperature was marked as the coolest of the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing season at 86 degrees.
It signaled a green light for elimination rounds during 14th annual Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals.
The red-white-and-blue themed stands slowly disappeared behind the growing crowd as the engines blared on the straightaway.
SEMIFINALS Results
After a round of Pro Mod and Top Alcohol eliminations, the track was prepped for the elite dragsters of Top Fuel to take their places for the semifinals. The track temperature (98 degrees) had heated up significantly from the morning.
The first matchup in the semifinals was between points leader Justin Ashley and Doug Kalitta, who took to their respective lanes on the drag strip.
The Phillips Connect team celebrated 3.691 seconds later, as Ashley secured his spot in the Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals finals.
Antron Brown and Clay Millican rolled up next to decide who would fight Ashley in the final elimination round of the day. Brown launched off the start in his Matco Tools dragster, stealing the spot with a 3.687-second ET.
“That was an incredible run there,” Brown said. “We just got to step up and keep doing what we do. We’ve got some more left in the tank.”
Brown and Ashley will take to the staging lanes for the final.
Onto the Funny Car matchup between Matt Hagan in his Dodge Charger and Alexis DeJoria in her Toyota Supra. DeJoria continued the momentum she’d been gathering through the day, beating Hagan with a 3.887-second ET.
In their 119th matchup on the race track, Ron Capps and John Force went head-to-head for a spot in the semifinals. Capps, the NHRA U.S. Nationals winner, sped down the straightaway, scoring a 3.899-second ET to Force’s 3.915-second run.
“Any race with him is all-time,” Capps said, referring to Force. As for his final elimination against DeJoria, he said, “I’m looking forward to this, because either way, a Toyota wins.”
The Pro Stocks brought the semifinal round of eliminations to a close, with Aaron Stanfield and Troy Coughlin Jr. waiting for the green light to appear.
Stanfield bested Coughlin with a 6.571-second ET, putting at least one Elite Motorsports car in the finals.
Points leader Erica Enders and Matt Hartford geared up for their shot at the strip and in a Pro Stock points shake-up, Hartford earned the win light.
Hartford’s 6.568-second run beat Enders’ 9.312-second ET after the points leader shook the tires on her Chevrolet Camaro.
“Totally unexpected going into that round,” Enders said. “I guarantee you we’ll rally back.”
Hartford and Stanfield will matchup for the final round.
Eliminations Round Two Results
The second round of eliminations at the Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMAX Dragway resulted in several upsets in the Top Fuel and Funny Car classes, taking out several key championship contenders early in the day.
Josh Hart lit his tires in the first Top Fuel matchup, allowing Clay Millican to advance to the semifinals.
A stout shootout between Brittany Force and Antron Brown was up next, with both drivers looking for crucial playoff points at second and fourth in the standings. The Matco Tools dragster fought hard against Force’s Flav-R-Pac machine, claiming a surprise victory with a 3.733-second elapsed time.
However, looking back to their five matchups this season, Brown has bested Force in every one.
“It’s heartbreaking for this entire team,” Force said when she reached the end of the drag strip. “We’re really struggling when it matters.”
Force looked to Steve Torrence in the next round as her last remaining hope for the weekend, as Torrence took on points leader Justin Ashley. As fate would have it, Ashley powered to the win with a 3.697-second ET.
“We’re happy,” Ashley said. “We’ve got to take it one round at a time.”
The final shootout was between Mike Salinas and Doug Kalitta, but despite identical reaction times, Kalitta made his way to the finish line first with a 3.696-second ET.
The Funny Cars were next to roll in front of the crowd as the sun began to peek through the clouds in Concord, N.C.
Matt Hagan lined up in the left lane – the preferred lane of the day – for his solo elimination.
The second matchup was between Alexis DeJoria, ninth in points, and points leader Robert Hight. In another surprising turn of events, Hight chased DeJoria’s Bandero/Rokit Toyota Funny Car to the line as DeJoria ran a 3.918-second ET.
DeJoria bested Hight by one-hundredth of a second.
Ron Capps and Bob Tasca III faced off next, with Capps successfully launching off the start and Tasca blowing a tire shortly after the green light.
Capps emerged the winner with a 3.885-second ET.
Last up for the Funny Car division was Chad Green and John Force, who currently sits fourth in points. With Hight eliminated, the opportunity to make up some valuable championship points was awaiting the 16-time champion on the track ahead.
Force flipped the win light, posting a 3.918-second ET.
Finally, the Pro Stocks rumbled to the starting line, with the first matchup between Troy Coughlin Jr. and Kyle Koretsky on tap. Coughlin ended Kortesky’s hope for another win at the Charlotte track when he clinched the victory with a 6.570-second ET.
Matt Hartford bested Dallas Glenn with a 6.552-second ET in the second round.
Glenn’s KB Racing teammate Greg Anderson was up against the Janac Bros/JC3 Energy-sponsored car of Aaron Stanfield. Stanfield launched off the start two-hundredths of a second faster than Anderson and stole a spot in the semifinals.
“We were behind the 8-ball a little bit. We can make no more mistakes from here on out,” Anderson said, in reference to his championship hopes.
Pro Stock points leader Erica Enders matched up to Cristian Cuadra and once again dominated her elimination, ending her run at a 6.545-second ET.
The semifinal rounds are next up for the Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals.
Elimination Round One Results
Brittany Force was in the second pair to hit to the track, facing off to Spencer Massey in her Flav-R-Pac dragster and taking the win light with a 3.670-second elapsed time.
“Man, to turn that win light first round, I’m pumped. But we still have a long road ahead of us,” Force said in her post-elimination interview.
Points leader Justin Ashley had a smile on his face during driver introductions early in the morning, later using the positive energy of his No. 1 qualifying position to claim a first-round victory against Alex Laughlin.
Ashley’s 3.688-second ET was the quickest of the Top Fuel session.
The pressure was on for Mike Salinas as he watched his top two championship opponents race to their respective win lights. His Scrappers Racing dragster was matched against Leah Pruett’s Tony Stewart Racing machine, and fortunately for him, he recorded a 3.696-second ET and a victory.
Josh Hart, Clay Millican, Doug Kalitta, Antron Brown and Steve Torrence were the remaining winners in the first round of eliminations.
The Funny Cars were next to roll onto the strip.
The first matchup was between Alexis DeJoria and J.R. Todd, with DeJoria racing to her career-best speed of 334.7 mph and taking the win with a 3.878-second ET.
“It’s also my personal-best ET. Really excited about that all the way around,” DeJoria said. “We really needed that round win.”
The formidable points leader Robert Hight was up next, facing Jim Campbell. To no one’s surprise, Hight continued his hot streak and stole the win light from Campbell, recording a 3.869-second ET.
Iconic Funny Car driver John Force took his place in the left staging lane, taking the elimination run solo as the weekend’s No. 1 qualifier. Luckily, he had secured the win light before he even took off from the starting line, as his John Force Racing machine experienced an issue and recorded a 7.621-second ET.
Next, Ron Capps, third in the points chase, turned on a win light against Blake Alexander, turning in a 3.889-second ET in his NAPA Auto Parts-sponsored Funny Car.
Other first round winners included the man second in points, Matt Hagan, and Chad Green.
The Pro Stock competitors began to roll into their respective lanes as track personnel cleared the clutch dust off the drag strip.
Kyle Koretsky began a hot streak early at the Carolina Nationals, taking the win against Mason McGaha with a 6.563-second ET. The KB Racing driver is in the hunt for his second career victory – Koretsky’s first win came here in Charlotte last year.
Smoke billowed into the air as another steed from KB Racing burned it down on the track.
While facing Chris McGaha, Greg Anderson scored a 6.558-second ET as his chief title rival and the weekend’s No. 1 qualifier Erica Enders watched from the starting line.
After opting to go last in eliminations, Enders confidently rolled into her matchup against Larry Morgan. At a peak speed of 210 mph, Enders roared to a 6.550-second ET and took the win light, posting the lowest ET of the session.
Cristian Cuadra, Matt Hartford, Dallas Glenn, Troy Coughlin Jr. and Aaron Stanfield also picked up round wins.