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Kenny Bernstein has always named being the first to surpass the 300 mile-per-hour barrier as his crowning achievement, a feat that was accomplished at Gainesville Raceway in 1992. It was at the same track this weekend that Bernstein and the Monster Energy/Lucas Oil team rebounded and progressed to the semifinals at the ACDelco Gatornationals.
The final session of qualifying in Funny Car continues to be dramatic from race to race with many of the big names of the sport bumping in and out of the field. This time Bernstein narrowly missed tagging the wall in an all-out effort to post the quickest elapsed time he could wrangle from the tune-up in the Dodge Charger. Bernstein qualified 15th with a 4.840/314.39 mph.
“I got out of the groove and couldn’t bring it back from the wall,” said Bernstein. “But we are tickled to death to make the field and we are especially happy for our fans and all our sponsors.”
In round one of eliminations Bernstein pulled to the starting line to face Gary Scelzi. The only duo in NHRA history who have won championships in both Funny Car and Top Fuel dueled for bragging rights for their first-ever career match-up in Funny Car.
Bernstein sacrificed an engine but won the round with a 4.788/317.42 vs. Scelzi's 5.246/301.07 mph.
"We just climbed a higher mountain than anyone can imagine with that round win,” said Bernstein. “Jimmy Walsh has done a great job coming in here and turning this team around. And we owe a big debt of gratitude to the original team members who have worked and tested the past 90 days without a day off."
With a helping hand from some of the Budweiser/Lucas Oil Top Fuel team, the Monster Energy/Lucas Oil team headed for round two.
In this round, Bernstein met Eric Medlen for the first time, the 138th different driver he’s competed against in his career. Bernstein stopped the clocks at 5.338/198.85 while Eric was disqualified for hitting the wall while trying to tame an ill-handling race car.
“It’s nice to go another round,” said Bernstein. “We got a little loose on that run and I think Jimmy (Walsh, crew chief) will have to calm the tune-up down a bit.”
In the semifinals, Ron Capps won the round with a 4.857/322.58, despite Bernstein’s very quick .068-second reaction time off the starting line. Bernstein crossed the finish line was a 5.325/208.49.
“We had a great day,” said Bernstein. “I can’t say enough about the Monster Energy/Lucas Oil team. Today we experienced a tremendous upswing with new crew members Danny DeGennaro and especially crew chief Jimmy Walsh who adapted to tuning a Funny Car very quickly.
“Thanks also to the Budweiser/Lucas Oil team for helping out today. We couldn’t have done it without them. We appreciate Tim (Richards, crew chief) and Kim (Richards) helping us acquire Jimmy and Danny and we are grateful for help the entire dragster crew has given our Funny Car team not only today, but also in Indy the past two weeks after Jimmy and Danny came onboard. It was definitely a ‘family’ effort: both teams working together.
“We’re very sad that Brandon and the Budweiser/Lucas Oil team didn’t qualify. It was a shock, but they will rebound. They are a very talented team.
“We also want to thank the Mopar aerodynamicists Amy Cole and Terry DeKoninck, as well as program manager John Donato, for all their assistance this weekend.
“And of course, we always owe a tip of the helmet to each of our sponsors and all the fans that have stood by us through the tough times. We’re optimistic that we will continue to make progress.”
Bernstein is tied for 16th in NHRA Funny Car point standings.
Bernstein rebounds to reach semifinals in Florida
Kenny Bernstein has always named being the first to surpass the 300 mile-per-hour barrier as his crowning achievement, a feat that was accomplished at Gainesville Raceway in 1992. It was at the same track this weekend that Bernstein and the Monster Energy/Lucas Oil team rebounded and progressed to the semifinals at the ACDelco Gatornationals.
The final session of qualifying in Funny Car continues to be dramatic from race to race with many of the big names of the sport bumping in and out of the field. This time Bernstein narrowly missed tagging the wall in an all-out effort to post the quickest elapsed time he could wrangle from the tune-up in the Dodge Charger. Bernstein qualified 15th with a 4.840/314.39 mph.
“I got out of the groove and couldn’t bring it back from the wall,” said Bernstein. “But we are tickled to death to make the field and we are especially happy for our fans and all our sponsors.”
In round one of eliminations Bernstein pulled to the starting line to face Gary Scelzi. The only duo in NHRA history who have won championships in both Funny Car and Top Fuel dueled for bragging rights for their first-ever career match-up in Funny Car.
Bernstein sacrificed an engine but won the round with a 4.788/317.42 vs. Scelzi's 5.246/301.07 mph.
"We just climbed a higher mountain than anyone can imagine with that round win,” said Bernstein. “Jimmy Walsh has done a great job coming in here and turning this team around. And we owe a big debt of gratitude to the original team members who have worked and tested the past 90 days without a day off."
With a helping hand from some of the Budweiser/Lucas Oil Top Fuel team, the Monster Energy/Lucas Oil team headed for round two.
In this round, Bernstein met Eric Medlen for the first time, the 138th different driver he’s competed against in his career. Bernstein stopped the clocks at 5.338/198.85 while Eric was disqualified for hitting the wall while trying to tame an ill-handling race car.
“It’s nice to go another round,” said Bernstein. “We got a little loose on that run and I think Jimmy (Walsh, crew chief) will have to calm the tune-up down a bit.”
In the semifinals, Ron Capps won the round with a 4.857/322.58, despite Bernstein’s very quick .068-second reaction time off the starting line. Bernstein crossed the finish line was a 5.325/208.49.
“We had a great day,” said Bernstein. “I can’t say enough about the Monster Energy/Lucas Oil team. Today we experienced a tremendous upswing with new crew members Danny DeGennaro and especially crew chief Jimmy Walsh who adapted to tuning a Funny Car very quickly.
“Thanks also to the Budweiser/Lucas Oil team for helping out today. We couldn’t have done it without them. We appreciate Tim (Richards, crew chief) and Kim (Richards) helping us acquire Jimmy and Danny and we are grateful for help the entire dragster crew has given our Funny Car team not only today, but also in Indy the past two weeks after Jimmy and Danny came onboard. It was definitely a ‘family’ effort: both teams working together.
“We’re very sad that Brandon and the Budweiser/Lucas Oil team didn’t qualify. It was a shock, but they will rebound. They are a very talented team.
“We also want to thank the Mopar aerodynamicists Amy Cole and Terry DeKoninck, as well as program manager John Donato, for all their assistance this weekend.
“And of course, we always owe a tip of the helmet to each of our sponsors and all the fans that have stood by us through the tough times. We’re optimistic that we will continue to make progress.”
Bernstein is tied for 16th in NHRA Funny Car point standings.
