3rd AC Delco Nationals
June 6-8th, 2003, Richmond, VA
Notes |
Results | Photos
NATIONALS NOTEBOOK:
For the fifth straight time this season IHRA’s scheduled event presentation is plagued by poor weather. Rain plays havoc once again at Virginia Motorsports Park washing out Saturday’s schedule completely. The Top Fuel field is set based on a single Friday qualifying session and Pro Stock, Pro Mod and Alcohol Funny Car drivers only get two qualifying runs (also on Friday). Pro eliminations on Sunday are also weather affected as they are not completed until late Sunday night just prior to curfew. Eliminations for the massive Sportsman program ultimately do not wrap up until Monday afternoon.
Robbie Atchison proves his first ever career win at Grand Bend Motorplex one week before was anything but a fluke as he drives the Erickson Manufacturing to another dominating win in Alcohol Funny Car. Robbie wins from the pole running both low ET (5.815 secs) and top speed (242.23 mph) and records low ET during each round of eliminations. In the final he KOs 3-time IHRA World Champion Von Smith. The win sends IHRA’s Alcohol Funny Car contingent a serious message as Robbie is now #1 in overall points.
Clay Millican wins his third straight event in Top Fuel and notches his 23rd career victory. Millican saves his quickest and fastest run for the final round as he clocks a 4.668 secs 311.85 mph in Peter Lehman’s Werner Enterprises dragster, which is both low ET and top speed, while beating John Smith’s Prestone dragster to the stripe. Millican had taken out Danny Dunn and Rhonda Hartman-Smith in rounds one and two.
Canada’s Todd Paton enters his second career Top Fuel event and records his first win light in the class. Todd runs a 5.107 secs at 264.23 mph to beat Roger Dean in round one but fireballs the motor near the top end. Todd’s independent team makes repairs in time for the semi final but they lose out to John Smith, again with the motor catching fire. Rumours circulating that the Paton’s “full flame show” at VMP had something to do with a certain decal on the nose of their car are unfounded and untrue...
John Montecalvo debuts a revolutionary new Chevy Hemi-motor in Pro Stock and runs very fast with the Sonny Leonard prepared piece. Montecalvo qualifies his Citgo-Cavalier #3 with a 6.597 secs at 212.90 mph, which is top speed of the meet. Montecalvo beats the Ford of Jeff Dobbins and the Mopar of Rick Jones in rounds one and two but his 6.582 secs in the semi final comes up short to Carl Baker’s low ET of the meet effort of 6.555 secs. Baker then takes his Summit Racing Mercury Cougar to it’s second straight event title when he rips on Elijah Morton’s Ford Probe in the final round, 6.565 secs 211.26 mph to 6.603 secs 210.18 mph. The win puts
Baker’s team #1 in Hooters season Pro Stock points.
The Pro Mod final round is an all family affair with brothers Mitch and Quain Stott facing off in a fierce confrontation driving their similar supercharged ‘63 Corvettes. Mitch wins a great battle driving the Radiac-sponsored machine as he edges Quain’s Lee-Boy-sponsored machine 6.211 secs 226.51 mph to 6.246 secs 229.20 mph. Mitch’s final round time was low ET of the meet.
Pro Mod racing at VMP featured some pretty good parity. 9 of the 16 qualified cars are nitrous injected and the final four cars are split 2 nitrous and 2 supercharged. The 16-car bump spot was dismal by usual IHRA standards at 6.476 secs -- indicative of the weather affected schedule.
Louisiana’s Slate Cummings collects a top prize of $22,500 in the Moser Mania shootout for Sportsman racers. The 1/8th mile clash features an interesting mix of head to head bracket racing competition between the top runners in all of IHRA’s Sportsman categories. Cummings rides his Top Dragster to a right on 4.620 secs (4.62 dial in) in the final round to beat Luke Bogacki. The 2003 Moser Mania was of course very subdued as all racers paid tribute to the events pioneers Greg and Marianne Moser who were fatally injured in a plane crash last May 16th.
