{"id":4990,"date":"2016-08-05T23:46:17","date_gmt":"2016-08-06T04:46:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/?p=4990"},"modified":"2016-08-06T01:11:46","modified_gmt":"2016-08-06T06:11:46","slug":"track-records-fall-as-worsham-torrence-and-nobile-race-to-qualifying-leads-at-seattle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/2016\/08\/05\/track-records-fall-as-worsham-torrence-and-nobile-race-to-qualifying-leads-at-seattle\/","title":{"rendered":"Track records fall as Worsham, Torrence and Nobile race to qualifying leads at Seattle"},"content":{"rendered":"

KENT, Wash.\u00a0 \u2013 Reigning Funny Car world champion Del Worsham<\/strong> sprinted to the provisional top qualifier in record setting fashion Friday at the Protect the Harvest NHRA<\/a> Northwest Nationals presented by Lucas Oil.<\/p>\n

\"Del

Del Worsham – NHRA photo<\/p><\/div>\n

Steve Torrence (Top Fuel) and Vincent Nobile (Pro Stock) also were qualifying leaders in their respective categories at the 16th event of 24 on the 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series schedule.<\/p>\n

Worsham posted a 3.886-second pass at 327.98 mph in his DHL Toyota Camry to reset both ends of the track record at Pacific Raceways and lead the Funny Car class through Friday. Worsham, who has victories at Seattle in both Funny Car (1999) and Top Fuel (2011), has 19 No. 1 qualifiers in his career and two this season. Worsham raced to the No. 1 qualifier last weekend in Sonoma and is two sessions away from securing back-to-back top spots for the first time in his Funny Car career.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been coming here most of my life, going back to the early-80s, and this track has always been great,\u201d said Worsham, who is fourth in points. \u201cIt\u2019s always been fast. We\u2019ve always come to Seattle and made usually our best runs ever. This run didn\u2019t let anybody down. We\u2019re making runs on 120-degree tracks that 12 months ago nobody believed you could make.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chad Head pushed his Head Racing Toyota Camry to the No. 2 spot with a 3.894 at 327.11. Head is 11th in points and hoping to string together a series of strong performances to move into the top-10 and qualify for the Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship playoffs.<\/p>\n

Two-time 2016 event winner Tim Wilkerson is third in his Levi, Ray and Shoup Ford Shelby Mustang. Points leader Ron Capps, who has four victories in seven final round appearances this season and has clinched his spot in the Countdown, is fourth in his NAPA Auto Parts Dodge Charger R\/T. Courtney Force, who has also clinched a spot in the Countdown, is fifth.<\/p>\n

\"Steve

Steve Torrence – NHRA photo<\/p><\/div>\n

Top Fuel\u2019s Torrence also reset both ends of the track record when he navigated his Capco Contractors \/ Torrence Racing dragster down the dragstrip in 3.701 at 328.54. Torrence, who suffered a heart attack in late June, has eight No. 1 qualifiers so far this season and two victories in four final rounds. He is third in points and has already claimed his spot in the Countdown.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think you could script this any better in a fairytale story book for a kid that wants to be a racecar driver,\u201d said Torrence, who is having the best season of his career. \u201cI\u2019ve got a really great group of guys that stand beside me and they\u2019ve pushed this car to the front. It takes absolute dedication and consistency for that car to go out and be able to do that time after time. I just try to not be the weak link. This track has proven to be pretty stellar right off the bat. We\u2019ll just continue marching forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brittany Force posted a 3.729 at 325.06 at the controls of her Monster Energy dragster to claim the second spot through two sessions. Force has two wins this year and has secured a spot in the Countdown.<\/p>\n

Clay Millican is third with a 3.733 at 319.29 and is trailed by reigning world champ Antron Brown in fourth and Doug Kalitta in fifth.<\/p>\n

\"Vincent

Vincent Nobile – NHRA photo<\/p><\/div>\n

In Pro Stock, Vincent Nobile powered to the top qualifying position with a 6.549 at 211.10 in his Mountain View Tire Chevy Camaro. The 2013 event winner is pursuing his first No. 1 qualifier of the season and fifth of his career. This is the first time this season Nobile has led qualifying through Friday.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe No. 1 qualifier is great, but more importantly I have a really fast, consistent racecar,\u201d said Nobile, who is currently fifth in points with a runner-up finish in Denver. \u201cFirst round we were No. 3 and second round we were No. 1, but in my head, as a driver, I\u2019ve got a really good, top-five car consistently and I think that\u2019s what really wins races. Tomorrow we\u2019re going to do our best to hold the spot.\u201d<\/p>\n

Greg Anderson sits second with a 6.560 at 210.01 in his Summit Racing Equipment Chevy Camaro. Anderson, the Pro Stock points leader, has raced to seven victories in 2016 and has already clinched his spot in the Countdown. He is a three-time Seattle winner.<\/p>\n

In third is Bo Butner in his Jim Butner Auto Chevy Camaro with a 6.565 at 210.11. He is followed by Shane Gray, who was the No. 1 qualifier in Chicago, in fourth and Drew Skillman in fifth.<\/p>\n

The final two qualifying sessions of the Protect the Harvest NHRA Northwest Nationals presented by Lucas Oil will be held Saturday, Aug. 6, at 1 and 4 p.m. and will set the field for Sunday\u2019s eliminations, scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

KENT, Wash. — Friday’s results after the first two of four rounds of qualifying for the 29th annual Protect the Harvest NHRA Northwest Nationals presented by Lucas Oil at Pacific Raceways, 16th of 24 events in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series.\u00a0 Qualifying will continue Saturday for Sunday’s final eliminations.<\/p>\n

Top Fuel — 1. Steve Torrence, 3.701 seconds, 328.54 mph; 2. Brittany Force, 3.729, 325.06; 3. Clay Millican, 3.733, 319.29; 4. Antron Brown, 3.737, 323.19; 5. Doug Kalitta, 3.741, 324.98; 6. Tony Schumacher, 3.745, 318.24; 7. Leah Pritchett, 3.781, 319.45; 8. Terry McMillen, 3.792, 313.58; 9. T.J. Zizzo, 3.794, 319.22; 10. Shawn Langdon, 3.814, 316.75; 11. J.R. Todd, 3.816, 318.69; 12. Morgan Lucas, 3.836, 289.82.\u00a0 Not Qualified: 13. Richie Crampton, 3.911, 278.06; 14. Bill Litton, 4.044, 268.92; 15. Troy Buff, 4.136, 227.57; 16. Ron Smith, 4.242, 259.46; 17. Scott Palmer, 6.396, 96.17.<\/p>\n

Funny Car — 1. Del Worsham, Toyota Camry, 3.886, 327.98; 2. Chad Head, Camry, 3.894, 327.11; 3. Tim Wilkerson, Ford Mustang, 3.901, 324.05; 4. Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 3.902, 324.59; 5. Courtney Force, Chevy Camaro, 3.902, 325.06; 6. Tommy Johnson Jr., Charger, 3.903, 322.73; 7. Jack Beckman, Charger, 3.918, 324.75; 8. Cruz Pedregon, Camry, 3.927, 321.88; 9. Robert Hight, Camaro, 3.928, 319.98; 10. John Force, Camaro, 3.940, 325.85; 11. Matt Hagan, Charger, 3.941, 325.22; 12. John Hale, Charger, 4.005, 315.86.\u00a0 Not Qualified: 13. Gary Densham, 4.052, 307.72; 14. Jeff Diehl, 6.609, 100.55; 15. Tim Gibbons, 7.090, 92.45.<\/p>\n

Pro Stock — 1. Vincent Nobile, Chevy Camaro, 6.549, 211.10; 2. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.560, 211.26; 3. Bo Butner, Camaro, 6.565, 211.86; 4. Shane Gray, Camaro, 6.572, 210.93; 5. Drew Skillman, Camaro, 6.576, 210.28; 6. Alex Laughlin, Camaro, 6.580, 210.50; 7. Allen Johnson, Dodge Dart, 6.594, 209.43; 8. Jeg Coughlin, Dart, 6.597, 208.97; 9. Jason Line, Camaro, 6.612, 209.07; 10. Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.622, 209.14; 11. Aaron Strong, Camaro, 6.640, 208.46; 12. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.645, 207.94.\u00a0 Not Qualified: 13. Deric Kramer, 6.661, 207.75; 14. Alan Prusiensky, 6.783, 203.06; 15. Erica Enders, 12.279, 70.99.<\/p>\n

Story and photos courtesy of the NHRA<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KENT, Wash.\u00a0 \u2013 Reigning Funny Car world champion Del Worsham sprinted to the provisional top qualifier in record setting fashion Friday at the Protect the Harvest NHRA Northwest Nationals presented by Lucas Oil. Steve Torrence (Top Fuel) and Vincent Nobile (Pro Stock) also were qualifying leaders in their respective categories at the 16th event of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4992,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4],"tags":[6,309],"class_list":["post-4990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nhra","tag-nhra","tag-nhra-northwest-nationals"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/racedaysa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/262-DelWorsham-Friday-Seattle.jpg?fit=2200%2C1464","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7hzTZ-1iu","jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4990","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=4990"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4990\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4995,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4990\/revisions\/4995"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4992"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4990"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4990"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/racedaysa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4990"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}