Drag racing’s fastest drag strip on the tour once again delivers big time performances as NHRA’s Pro racers descend on Chicagoland’s super swift Route 66 Raceway.

The event is highlighted by yet another sparkling performance by hometown native Tony Schumacher who takes a vice like grip on the 2005 NHRA POWERade Top Fuel crown following his 6th victory of the season. Schumacher’s win may have in fact been his most impressive of year so far, as it includes a flurry of 4.4 secs elapsed times including a new NHRA national record 4.437 secs which is set during qualifying. Schumacher’s final round win combined with the round one exits of both Larry Dixon and Doug Kalitta pretty well wraps up the ’05 title for the US Army-sponsored team. They hold a commanding 205 points lead with only three events remaining.

Top Fuel racing features another strong showing by Doug Herbert driving the Snap-On Tools dragster. Herbert qualifies #3 with a 4.480 secs and goes to the final round only to lose out to Schumacher.

The Top Fuel class at Joliet is an extremely fast one with the bump spot of 4.681 secs being only two cars away from the sport’s all-time quickest field. The first 5 qualified cars are all in the 4.4 secs zone and 13 of 16 cars run quicker then 4.6 secs.

NHRA’s ferocious Funny Car title chase gets even more interesting following a big win by Ron Capps driving the Brut Racing Dodge Stratus. Capps runs a solid 4.760 secs at 328.94 mph in the final round to beat the suddenly rejuvenated Tony Pedregon and with that moved into 3rd place in NHRA points. Capps’s 2nd win of the season includes round wins over Robert Hight, Cruz Pedregon and John Force.

The FC class is paced by the Pedregon brothers, Cruz and Tony, who both wheel their Chevy Monte Carlos to identical times of 4.680 secs (career bests) to qualify 1st and 2nd respectively. Top speed also goes to a Chevy Monte Carlo, the Skoal-sponsored machine driven by Tommy Johnson Jr which roars to a highly impressive 331.45 mph clocking during time trials.

FC racing, like Top Fuel, produces numerous career quick runs not the least of which is a 4.787 secs at 324.98 mph blast by class newcomer Mike Ashley Ashley, in only his 3rd FC start, then gives overall points leader Gary Scelzi a good go in round one however ultimately loses a 4.773 secs 325.06 mph to 4.820 secs 325.45 mph tussle.

The 25-cars entered in Funny Car eliminator produce the quickest 16-car field in NHRA history. 15 of 16 drivers run sub 4.7 secs and the new all time quick bump spot is Gary Densham’s 4.842 secs.

Erica Enders makes absolutely huge news in Pro Stock as she just about does what nobody expects -- win the race. The Houston-based rookie lady racer goes all the way to the PS final round driving her Slammers Ultimate Milk-sponsored Chevy Cobalt before fouling out to the Jason Line-driven Summit Racing sponsored Pontiac GTO. Enders, who had only won her first ever round of racing at the previous NHRA event in Pennsylvania, beat Ron Krisher, Mike Edwards and a red-lighting Warren Johnson to get to the final round. Line’s path to victory lane included round wins over Greg Stanfield, Kurt Johnson and David Connolly.

Overall Pro Stock points leader and soon to be 3X POWERade World Champion Greg Anderson, suffered a rare round two defeat, falling to a quicker leaving “WJ” in round two. That however came after Anderson set low ET of the meet at 6.646 secs during qualifying. PS winner Line was credited with Top Speed at an amazing 208.17 mph – the second fastest speed in NHRA class history.

The Pro Stock program was a record setter for NHRA with the bump spot dipping to a new low of 6.707 secs. In fact 15 of the 16 qualified cars ran in the 6.6 secs zone.

The Chicago-area race also included the highly prestigious 21st Annual JEG’s All-Stars competition. That race-within-a-race featured the best eight racers in each of NHRA’s Lucas Oil Sportsman categories and from all seven NHRA geographical divisions. NHRA’s Pacific Northwest Division, prevailed in overall team total points. The individual class titles went to Gene Snow (TAD), Frank Manzo (TAFC), Dave Barcelon (Comp), Kevin Smith (Super Stock), Rod Johnson (Stock), Shawn Langdon (Super Comp), Steve Cohen (Super Gas) and Eric Reiff (Super Street).

Frank Manzo followed up his JEG’s All-Stars win on Saturday with another victory on Sunday driving the Lucas Oil-sponsored Pontiac TAFC. Manzo ran down a determined Mick Snyder in that final round, 5.615 secs 257.87 mph to 5.666 secs 254.71 mph, to score the impressive “double up”. Manzo’s event win came over NHRA’s all time quickest assembly of TAFC racers – a 5.735 secs bump.

California’s Jay Payne, driving his Valvoline-sponsored Chevy Camaro set both low ET and top speed in TAFC, running 5.537 secs at 259.91 mph.

Michigan’s Bill Reichert won his second TAD national event title of the season when his nitro-injected Bars Leaks Dragster outran the supercharged Torco-sponsored car of Jeff Wilson in the final round. Reichart’s event win included a new official national speed record setting 280.66 mph blast. That speed (the fastest ever recorded in TAD) came during a qualifying run of 5.182 secs.

The event also included the 2nd NHRA demonstration eliminator of the season for Screamin’ Eagle Harley Davidson riders. That program was won by Tommy Grimes (who also races in Pro Stock Motorcycle). Grimes was dominating, as his 6.256 secs at 222.51 mph in round one was low ET and top speed. In the final round he clocked in at 6.336 secs 220.04 mph to beat out Doug Vancil’s 6.393 secs at 203.58 mph.

The Ameriquest Mortgage NHRA Nationals did include a number of special edition cars for the event. TF racer Morgan Lucas and TAD driver Aaron Olivarez teamed up to fight breast cancer with their cool-looking pink painted “Fuel the Fight” dragsters. Tony Bartone (CMKX/Johnny Lightning) and Whit Bazemore (Matco Tools/Rat Fink) ran special schemes on their Funny Cars. In Pro Stock, Jeg Coughlin debuted a new Jeg’s Mail Order look for his Dodge Stratus while fellow Pro Stock racer and class new comer Max Naylor, had sponsorship from local Chicago-area rockers “Disturbed” on his Stratus.