The NMRA season pushes to the back half of their schedule as they move into Milan, Michigan – the local dragstrip hotspot for the neighboring Motor City. This is the NMRA’s only two day event, with two rounds of qualifying on Friday, one more round Saturday, and then straight into eliminations. Keep it tuned to Stang TV all day Friday and Saturday for updates from Milan!
Special thanks to our event coverage sponsor SCT Performance. Check out their fine line of tuners at www.sctflash.com
Pit News and Notes
Saturday is really getting off to a slow start. So far a handful of cars were able to make test passes but that was about it. The rain has really delayed the action for today. There are some crews that have been working hard on their rides to get them ready for competition.
It was a late last night for the crew of DMC Racing. The members installed a new transmission in Andrew DeMarco's SSO car. Ronnie Diaz is back with a new motor and ready to show us his new edge Mustang. This is his first time out since being replaced. Ronnie did 7.90 with a shut down pass. His engine build was by Paschal Performance. 2007 Hot Street Champion Ben Mens is here to get back his game. This is only his second race since his sugery on his torn bicep back in February. Ben said "It feels good to get back." While not being able to race Ben did some minor updates such as changing his windows and door for lighter substitutes.
Qualifying Round Three Results
Eliminations Round One
Drew 'I Like to do wheelies' Lyons doing what he does best. Carlos Sabrino, points leader for factory stock, was a little late on the tree. Carlos was up against the Joliet's first place winner John Leslie Jr. Carlos ran an 11.33 while Jr. went 11.21! This now tightens up the points chase. Who will end this season on top? During the round one eliminations here in Milan, Sean Lyons trans brake malfunctioned and ended up rolling the beams. He looked like he was going to be unstoppable, but this just killed his weekend.
Wrap Up
The day ended a little short because of the weather. A couple of racers had to pack up and make their trip back home without the chance of a win. Andrew DeMarco was one of the competitors that had to leave. He was to run up against John Kolivas which would’ve been a nail biter. In the first round of eliminations Kolivas ran a 7.407 while DeMarco ran a 7.409. Would’ve been a good matchup. There were others that also could not make it to the Sunday eliminations. Sometimes unexpected changes in the schedule really put a wrench into things, good and bad. Sunday should be an early but interesting day of racing.
Sunday Final Eliminations
The competitors are ready to finish up this unexpected day of racing here in Milan. Eliminations started off promptly at 9am this morning. The NMRA has to share the track with the local bracket racers today. So, we will be alternating between the final eliminations and the locals today. We just got in an hour of racing and Factory Stock’s John Leslie Jr. had some issues on the line. One of the track officials noticed that Jr’s car was dripping oil. Louis Sylvester Jr. took the first place win in Factory stock.
After taking out his close competitors, John Urist takes the win with his 7.34 time in the final this weekend in Milan. In this final round 'the fireball' was up against John Kolivas. Kolivas had to cut his run short and ended up with a 10.60. Bruce Hemminger going 9.36 just barely takes the win over Tim Mattherly with a 9.53 for the Real Street win! Louis Sylvester Jr. gets handed the win. John Leslie Jr. did not make it down the track due to an oil leak at the starting line. Congrats to Louis for his first win this season!Robbie Blankenship takes the win for Hot Street. Two of the closest times I've ever seen. Robbie went 8.59 and Charlie Booze Jr. went 8.61! Talk about a close race. Von Ahnen takes the win in Milan from Mike Winters by only .20. This is Von Ahnen's second race this 2011 season.
Final Results
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The NMRA season pushes to the back half of their schedule as they move into Milan, Michigan – the local dragstrip hotspot for the neighboring Motor City. This is the NMRA’s only two day event, with two rounds of qualifying on Friday, one more round Saturday, and then straight into eliminations. Keep it tuned to Stang TV all day Friday and Saturday for updates from Milan!
Special thanks to our event coverage sponsor SCT Performance. Check out their fine line of tuners at www.sctflash.com
Drivers are in the pits getting their cars ready for the event.
Andrew DeMarco's crew making final preparations before making their test hit.Due to the 10.5 class not running this event in Milan Super Street Outlaw is the class to watch. We are still looking for the first 6 second pass in SSO and with his 7.05 hit this man, John Kolivas is one of the top contenders. John Urist is also here who is the closest to run those numbers with a Procharger combination. Due to the 6pm qualifier some of the other long distance contenders such as Chris Tuten have not shown up yet.
Due to the weather rolling in, the officials got test and tune up and running right away. However, only about 6 passes were made before mother nature cut things short.
The JDM Super Stang class are all lining up and ready to make their test passes.
When making the schedule for the year, the NMRA officials decided not to run Pro Outlaw 10.5 for the races in Michigan and Ohio. But don't worry the Super Street Outlaw competitors will keep the competition fierce.
Due to the weather, and an accident on the track Test and Tune was cut short today. There is not a very high turn out of racers and or fans tonight for this NMRA event but the competition is always strong. So we move on to Qualifying Round One.
Chris Tuten did not make it down the track today for his first qualifying pass. They are still working out the bug. You may remember from Joliet that he swapped his turbo out from his SS Outlaw car to put onto his brothers Drag Radial car and still went a few rounds to gain points. In the Procharger SS Outlaw John Urist is leading the pack with his 7.24 pass. Andrew DeMarco is very close behind with his 7.28 time. Some of the local racers came to see how they match up in the NMRA classes. Fred Bodmar from Brighton, MI has shown up in Drag Radial to see how well he fairs in the competition. Jack Rouch is down here at his home track watching his daughter and also his good friend, Don Bowles making a nice 8.63 pass @ 166 mph.
The Results from Round One Qualifying
Round Two Qualifying
With the missing of 10.5 Outlaw there is no action missed with the SS Outlaw class. With the top four drivers, John Urist, Andrew DeMarco, John Kolivas, and Chris Tuten all running in the 7.20’s this is going to be a close match up. The heat does not seem to be affecting Drag Radial Sean Lyon ran a 7.59 going 187 Mph. He is trying to catch up to the SS Outlaw cars. EFI Renegade class only has three competitors but with a tight field of 8.60-8.63 this class could be won off reaction time alone. The car count is low but the racing is action packed here at Milan. If you are in the local area, it is definitely worth the trip.
Rob Valden really put on a show by putting his front end down and up four different times up and down the track. May not have given him the magic numbers but it surely gave the crowd something to get excited about. With running a 8.71 going 158 mph his time puts him in the middle of the pack. Brian Muth was at the bottom of the list with a time of 8.63. However, he is barely behind Alton Clemmons with an 8.62 and 8.60 from Chad Allmandiner. Brandon Alsept is trying to hold onto his first place points lead in the Pure Street Class. He is a closely behind Aan Von Ahnen in round two qualifying here in Milan with a 10.23 going 131 mph. Aan went 10.18 going 130 mph.
