25th Sunoco World Nationals
Norwalk Ohio (Aug. 22-25th, 2002)
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Results | Photos
NATIONALS NOTEBOOK:
Tennessee’s Clay Millican keeps his phenomenal undefeated 2002 Top Fuel racing season intact after winning for the 9th consecutive time this year. Millican is in fact vulnerable going into the final round after opponent Bruce Litton earns lane choice for the championship bout. That proves to be a moot point however as Millican’s skilled crew chief Mike Kloeber dials the Werner Enterprises dragster to low ET of the meet and a winning 4.758 secs. That is the seventh time this season that Millican has defeated Bruce Litton’s Lucas Oil sponsored team in the final round. The victory all but mathematically assures the Peter Lehman owned team of their second consecutive IHRA World Title. The focus and mounting pressure is now on whether or not the team can accomplish the unthinkable -- a perfect Top Fuel season!
Jimmy Rector makes a huge step towards the IHRA 2002 Funny Car crown with another solid win driving the Holbook Performance Parts Chevy Camaro. Rector checks in to victory lane for the 6th time this season when he defeats defending World Nationals champion and Ohio fan favourite Mark Thomas in the final round. Rector did get help from Thomas in the semi final round when Thomas upset #2 points man Dale Brand. Brand who had won the previous two IHRA starts set both low ET and top speed of the event during AFC qualifying at 5.799 secs and 241.97 mph.
Canada’s John Konigshofer proves his first career win at Toronto two weeks before was just a preview of things to come when he racks up his second career Pro Stock title. Konigshofer is the most consistent runner in the class throughout the event and in the final round easily handles a red-lighting Elijah Morton. Morton had made the final round on some great driving after just barely qualifying 16th. Konigshofer ices the cake by unloading low ET of Sunday’s final eliminations in the victory lap at 6.633 secs. Michigan’s Chris Holbrook had paced the PS field with a stout 6.629 secs in qualifying however Holbrook was sent packing by Morton in round one after Morton has a great .408 RT.
Nitro Harley class racing features a final round showdown between the two top riders in the class with points leader Doug Vancil facing his top rival Steve Stordeur. That final is however anti-climatic when Stordeur goes .269 red which wastes a 6.373 secs. Vancil paced the field with a 6.331 secs (low ET). Stordeur went 221.31 mph in qualifying for top speed.
Norwalk’s Saturday event schedule features the 2002 Sunoco Race Fuels Pro Stock Shootout. That unexpectedly features an all Chevy final round with New York’s John Montecalvo taking the measure of Doug Kirk. Montecalvo has a great .411 RT in the final round, which sends him away to a winning 6.671 secs at 207.66 mph. Kirk ran a losing 6.705 secs at 207.05 mph. Montecalvo collected a cool $20G for the win.
Saturday’s Night of Fire includes a spectacular conclusion when for the first time in history the exhibition Jet-powered trucks of Bob Motz and Les Shockley are run side by side. The pair first burn down a large sign board (embossed with the face of Osama Bin Laden!) at the back of the burnout box before blasting off. The presentation is wildly visual and very entertaining. The race is reported to be the one and only time that the pair will face one another. The run is restricted to 1/8th mile over concerns that the huge parachutes used might become entangled. Oh yeah, for the record Motz won 5.07 secs to 5.30 secs.
Pro Modified racing is a ferocious deal at Norwalk with 37 cars vying for 16 spots. The bump spot is a super quick 6.338 secs which is just short of drag racing’s all time quickest program (6.328 secs at Rockingham ‘02). Shannon “Iceman” Jenkins earns a crucial win driving his nitrous-injected Camaro when he takes out Mitch Stott’s Radiac-sponsored Corvette in the final round. Stott rolls through the beams early (.269 red) and Shannon skips to a winning 6.290 secs at 222.95 mph. Jenkins’s victory also includes a key semi final round win over points leader Al Billes. Jenkins wins that very close tussle, 6.326 secs 221.38 mph to 6.349 secs 212.23 mph. Quain Stott, driving the LeeBoy supercharged Corvette nets both low ET (6.253 secs) and top speed (226.62 mph) in the class.
Norwalk’s Sunoco World Nationals attracts the largest car count in IHRA’s history with 981 teams officially entered. The event is concluded despite weather disruptions to both Thursday and Friday’s racing schedules.
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