{"id":138,"date":"2016-02-14T23:05:37","date_gmt":"2016-02-15T05:05:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/?p=138"},"modified":"2016-02-21T15:18:03","modified_gmt":"2016-02-21T21:18:03","slug":"capps-torrence-and-anderson-winners-at-circle-k-nhra-winternationals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/2016\/02\/14\/capps-torrence-and-anderson-winners-at-circle-k-nhra-winternationals\/","title":{"rendered":"Capps, Torrence and Anderson winners at Circle K NHRA Winternationals"},"content":{"rendered":"

Courtesy of the NHRA<\/p>\n

POMONA, Calif. \u2013 Ron Capps raced to his first Funny Car victory in nearly a year Sunday at the Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.<\/p>\n

\"010-RonCapps-Sunday-Pomona1\"<\/p>\n

Steve Torrence (Top Fuel) and Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) also were winners at the season-opening NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series event near Los Angeles.<\/p>\n

Capps emerged from a strong performing field as the winner and had to defeat defending world champion Del Worsham in the final round to take his 46th career victory. He outran Jeff Diehl, Chad Head and Robert Hight in early rounds.<\/p>\n

In the final, Capps used a quicker reaction time and covered the distance in 3.981 seconds at 324.28 mph in his NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger to hold off the hard-charging DHL Toyota Camry of Worsham, which posted a quicker, but losing performance of 3.962 at 324.36.<\/p>\n

It was the third Winternationals win for the popular San Diego driver who calls the historic Southern California track a second home.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the most fabled track we go to and it\u2019s the birthplace of drag racing; it is unbelievable to win here,\u201d Capps said. \u201cI can\u2019t wait to get this season going. You wonder if you are ever going to see one of these [trophies] again. I am racing Del Worsham in the final, who is one of the best. We threw down. What a race. Just to know we can get in the circle and get another Wally feels good.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"008-SteveTorrence-Sunday-Pomona1\"<\/p>\n

In Top Fuel, red-hot Torrence powered to his first Winternationals victory and his sixth career win by outrunning Doug Kalitta in the final round. Torrence\u2019s Capco Contractors dragster posted a 3.735 at 326.48 to edge Kalitta\u2019s Mac Tools machine, which trailed with a 3.753 at 324.36.<\/p>\n

Torrence, whose car has been running like a very consistent bracket dragster since pre-season testing last week in Phoenix, used a string of low 3.7-second runs to beat Steve Faria, Morgan Lucas, and Richie Crampton in the first three rounds. He saved his quickest run on Sunday for the final to beat Kalitta.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Tuning consultant] Alan [Johnson] and [crew chief] Richard [Hogan] have worked really well together,\u201d said Torrence, who becomes the Top Fuel points leader for the first time in his career. \u201cAlan is that thorn who keeps poking Richard to tune it just a little bit farther. My crew guys have done a great job. I am just the guy that sits in there and gets to drive it. It feels good. I wish the season was over already. We are going to do what we can to keep the momentum going and go on to Phoenix and try to write a story just like this one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"012-GregAnderson-Sunday-Pomona1\"<\/p>\n

Four-time world champ Anderson earned the first win in the new EFI Pro Stock era, holding off his teammate Jason Line in a photo-finish final round. Anderson also won by using a holeshot start and finished in 6.617 at 207.85 in his Summit Racing Equipment Chevy Camaro to take the win over Line, whose 6.609 at 209.82 in his Summit Camaro wasn\u2019t enough to make up for Anderson\u2019s starting line advantage.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel honored to be the first winner of the fuel injection era and get the first trophy,\u201d said Anderson, who was the event\u2019s No. 1 qualifier and advanced to the final with round wins over Matt Hartford, five-time champ Jeg Coughlin Jr. and last season\u2019s top rookie Drew Skillman. With the win, he denied his teammate a third consecutive Winternationals trophy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI got a great light in the final and got it done,\u201d Anderson said. \u201cIt was my day. I can\u2019t tell you how proud I am of this Summit Racing team.\u00a0 It is getting better every run. That\u2019s going to pay off down the road. Everybody out there is in a steep learning curve right now. The other competitors in our class are going home and work hard and they will do better at Phoenix. We are going to have to buckle down and find something better again. Hopefully we will be better again come Phoenix.\u201d<\/p>\n

The NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series continues Feb. 26-28 at the CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Nationals at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park near Phoenix.<\/p>\n

* * *<\/p>\n

POMONA, Calif. — Final finish order (1-16) at the 56th annual Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.\u00a0 The race is the first of 24 events in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series.<\/p>\n

TOP FUEL:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Steve Torrence; 2.\u00a0 Doug Kalitta; 3.\u00a0 Richie Crampton; 4.\u00a0 J.R. Todd; 5.\u00a0 Antron Brown; 6. Terry McMillen; 7.\u00a0 Morgan Lucas; 8.\u00a0 Clay Millican; 9.\u00a0 Brittany Force; 10.\u00a0 Troy Buff; 11.\u00a0 Tony Schumacher; 12.\u00a0 Scott Palmer; 13.\u00a0 Steve Faria; 14.\u00a0 Dave Connolly; 15.\u00a0 Shawn Langdon; 16.\u00a0 Leah Pritchett.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    FUNNY CAR:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Ron Capps; 2.\u00a0 Del Worsham; 3.\u00a0 Robert Hight; 4.\u00a0 John Force; 5.\u00a0 Courtney Force; 6.\u00a0 Jack Beckman; 7.\u00a0 Alexis DeJoria; 8.\u00a0 Chad Head; 9.\u00a0 James Campbell; 10.\u00a0 John Hale; 11.\u00a0 Matt Hagan; 12.\u00a0 Tommy Johnson Jr.; 13.\u00a0 Cruz Pedregon; 14.\u00a0 Tim Wilkerson; 15.\u00a0 Jeff Diehl; 16.\u00a0 Gary Densham.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      PRO STOCK:<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Greg Anderson; 2.\u00a0 Jason Line; 3.\u00a0 Drew Skillman; 4.\u00a0 Bo Butner; 5.\u00a0 Shane Gray; 6.\u00a0 Jeg Coughlin; 7.\u00a0 Vincent Nobile; 8.\u00a0 Allen Johnson; 9.\u00a0 Chris McGaha; 10.\u00a0 Joey Grose; 11.\u00a0 V. Gaines; 12.\u00a0 Deric Kramer; 13.\u00a0 Matt Hartford; 14.\u00a0 Alex Laughlin; 15.\u00a0 Erica Enders; 16.\u00a0 Aaron Strong.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        POMONA, Calif. — Sunday’s final results from the 56th annual Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. The race is the first of 24 in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series:<\/p>\n

        Top Fuel — Steve Torrence, 3.735 seconds, 326.48 mph\u00a0 def. Doug Kalitta, 3.753 seconds, 324.36 mph.<\/p>\n

        Funny Car — Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 3.981, 324.28\u00a0 def. Del Worsham, Toyota Camry, 3.962, 324.36.<\/p>\n

        Pro Stock — Greg Anderson, Chevy Camaro, 6.617, 207.85\u00a0 def. Jason Line, Camaro, 6.609, 209.82.<\/p>\n

        Top Alcohol Dragster — Shawn Cowie, 5.314, 272.23\u00a0 def. Don St. Arnaud, 5.332, 279.85.<\/p>\n

        Top Alcohol Funny Car — Jonnie Lindberg, Chevy Monte Carlo, 5.423, 271.90\u00a0 def. John Lombardo Jr., Chevy Camaro, 5.456, 272.83.<\/p>\n

        Competition Eliminator — Doug Lambeck, Pontiac Sunfire, 8.406, 158.61\u00a0 def. Dan Fletcher, Chevy Cobalt, 8.027, 167.55.<\/p>\n

        Super Stock — Jimmy DeFrank, Chevy Cobalt, 9.315, 119.52\u00a0 def. Fred Moreno, Ford Mustang, Foul – Red Light.<\/p>\n

        Stock Eliminator — Dan Fletcher, Chevy Camaro, 10.474, 128.36\u00a0 def. Don Little, Dodge Challenger, 9.899, 130.67.<\/p>\n

        Super Comp — Steve Williams, Dragster, 8.895, 186.25\u00a0 def. Robert Naber, Dragster, 8.880, 180.91.<\/p>\n

        Super Gas — Robert Naber, Chevy Corvette, 9.901, 160.23\u00a0 def. Mike Wiblishouser, Corvette, Foul – Red Light.<\/p>\n

        Top Fuel Harley — Len Darnell, Harley, 6.435, 218.16\u00a0 def. Kevin Boyer, American, Foul – Centerline.<\/p>\n

        POMONA, Calif. — Final round-by-round results from the 56th annual Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, the first of 24 events in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series:<\/p>\n

        TOP FUEL:<\/p>\n

        ROUND ONE — Richie Crampton, 3.794, 322.73 def. Troy Buff, 3.815, 315.56; Clay Millican, 3.724, 327.11 def. Leah Pritchett, Foul – Red Light; Terry McMillen, 3.837, 314.31 def. Tony Schumacher, 3.893, 299.06; Steve Torrence, 3.762, 326.08 def. Steve Faria, 4.220, 195.93; Doug Kalitta, 3.724, 328.22 def. Scott Palmer, 4.205, 248.29; J.R. Todd, 3.766, 325.45 def. Brittany Force, 3.756, 320.05; Antron Brown, 3.768, 320.97 def. Shawn Langdon, 5.478, 132.78; Morgan Lucas, 4.366, 182.33 def. Dave Connolly, 4.698, 140.18;<\/p>\n

        QUARTERFINALS — Todd, 3.797, 323.89 def. McMillen, 4.007, 291.13; Crampton, 4.056, 267.00 def. Millican, 6.274, 97.46; Torrence, 3.782, 324.98 def. Lucas, 4.244, 196.79; Kalitta, 3.785, 323.97 def. Brown, 3.803, 317.72;<\/p>\n

        SEMIFINALS — Kalitta, 3.731, 318.77 def. Todd, 4.620, 167.74; Torrence, 3.749, 323.97 def. Crampton, 3.760, 322.19;<\/p>\n

        FINAL — Torrence, 3.735, 326.48 def. Kalitta, 3.753, 324.36.<\/p>\n

        FUNNY CAR:<\/p>\n

        ROUND ONE — Courtney Force, Chevy Camaro, 3.925, 329.34 def. Gary Densham, Dodge Charger, Broke – No Show; Ron Capps, Charger, 4.009, 320.74 def. Jeff Diehl, Toyota Solara, 6.767, 101.42; Jack Beckman, Charger, 4.243, 286.98 def. John Hale, Charger, 4.231, 254.28; Robert Hight, Camaro, 3.928, 324.67 def. Tommy Johnson Jr., Charger, 4.413, 198.29; Alexis DeJoria, Toyota Camry, 3.968, 323.04 def. James Campbell, Charger, 4.048, 307.09; Del Worsham, Camry, 4.391, 213.70 def. Cruz Pedregon, Camry, 5.333, 134.97; Chad Head, Camry, 3.986, 320.97 def. Matt Hagan, Charger, 4.278, 229.51; John Force, Camaro, 3.975, 320.81 def. Tim Wilkerson, Ford Mustang, 6.418, 101.95;<\/p>\n

        QUARTERFINALS — Capps, 3.972, 322.81 def. Head, 4.592, 264.86; Worsham, 3.981, 322.04 def. DeJoria, 4.164, 246.93; Hight, 3.955, 324.67 def. C. Force, 4.101, 258.62; J. Force, 4.010, 315.34 def. Beckman, 4.131, 292.46;<\/p>\n

        SEMIFINALS — Worsham, 3.978, 321.81 def. J. Force, 4.033, 315.71; Capps, 3.938, 321.35 def. Hight, 3.949, 313.44;<\/p>\n

        FINAL — Capps, 3.981, 324.28 def. Worsham, 3.962, 324.36.<\/p>\n

        PRO STOCK:<\/p>\n

        ROUND ONE — Jeg Coughlin, Dodge Dart, 6.671, 207.88 def. Erica Enders, Dart, 15.804, 55.37; Allen Johnson, Dart, 8.381, 115.66 def. Alex Laughlin, Chevy Camaro, 11.387, 80.24; Shane Gray, Camaro, 6.693, 208.59 def. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.670, 208.97; Vincent Nobile, Camaro, 6.675, 209.01 def. Aaron Strong, Camaro, Foul – Red Light; Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.601, 209.79 def. Deric Kramer, Dart, 6.729, 207.88; Jason Line, Camaro, 6.606, 210.21 def. V. Gaines, Dart, 6.694, 208.26; Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.593, 208.14 def. Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.778, 206.54; Drew Skillman, Camaro, 6.642, 208.68 def. Joey Grose, Camaro, 6.684, 207.02;<\/p>\n

        QUARTERFINALS — Skillman, 6.658, 208.42 def. Nobile, Foul – Centerline; Line, 6.623, 209.72 def. Johnson, Broke; Butner, 6.623, 208.91 def. Gray, 6.716, 208.17; Anderson, 6.615, 207.85 def. Coughlin, Foul – Red Light;<\/p>\n

        SEMIFINALS — Line, 6.624, 209.46 def. Butner, 6.653, 209.26; Anderson, 6.622, 207.94 def. Skillman, 6.651, 208.91;<\/p>\n

        FINAL — Anderson, 6.617, 207.85 def. Line, 6.609, 209.82.<\/p>\n

        POMONA, Calif. — Point standings (top 10) following the 56th annual Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, the first of 24 events in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series –<\/p>\n

        Top Fuel<\/p>\n

          \n
        1. Steve Torrence, 106; 2.\u00a0 Doug Kalitta, 94; 3.\u00a0 Richie Crampton, 77; 4.\u00a0 J.R. Todd, 72; 5.\u00a0 Clay Millican, 57; 6.\u00a0 Morgan Lucas, 52; 7.\u00a0 Antron Brown, 48; 8.\u00a0 Terry McMillen, 46; 9.\u00a0 Tony Schumacher, 42; 10.\u00a0 Brittany Force, 37.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          Funny Car<\/p>\n

            \n
          1. Ron Capps, 119; 2.\u00a0 Del Worsham, 97; 3.\u00a0 Robert Hight, 80; 4.\u00a0 John Force, 69; 5.\u00a0 Jack Beckman, 65; 6.\u00a0 Courtney Force, 59; 7.\u00a0 Alexis DeJoria, 55; 8.\u00a0 Chad Head, 54; 9.\u00a0 Tim Wilkerson, 33; 10.\u00a0 (tie) Gary Densham, 32; Matt Hagan, 32; Cruz Pedregon, 32.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            Pro Stock<\/p>\n

              \n
            1. Greg Anderson, 125; 2.\u00a0 Jason Line, 105; 3.\u00a0 Bo Butner, 84; 4.\u00a0 Drew Skillman, 75; 5.\u00a0 Vincent Nobile, 54; 6.\u00a0 Jeg Coughlin, 53; 7.\u00a0 (tie) Shane Gray, 52; Allen Johnson, 52; 9.\u00a0 Chris McGaha, 35; 10.\u00a0 Alex Laughlin, 33.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

              Courtesy of the NHRA POMONA, Calif. \u2013 Ron Capps raced to his first Funny Car victory in nearly a year Sunday at the Circle K NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. Steve Torrence (Top Fuel) and Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) also were winners at the season-opening NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series event […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":140,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4],"tags":[5,6],"class_list":["post-138","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nhra","tag-drag-racing","tag-nhra"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racedaysa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/008-SteveTorrence-Sunday-Pomona1.jpg?fit=2200%2C1464","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7hzTZ-2e","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=138"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":150,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138\/revisions\/150"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/140"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=138"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=138"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=138"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}