Duane Shields has a good tune up in store for the NHRA Gatornationals field thanks to the NHRA Lucas Oil Regional held at Gainesville the week before one of NHRA’s most historical events. Duane shattered the clock with an outstanding 5.19 at 276 MPH to earn the pole position in the PEAK A/Fuel Dragster. “That was our quickest pass since we ran a 5.17 in Seattle eight years ago. The car is running very consistent this year and we really like these Regional events that are contested the week prior to the nationals at the same track” Duane said.
In round one, Duane raced number eight qualifier Dan Mercier. At the hit it was Mercier out first but he was riddled with traction problems and had to idle through. Meanwhile, it was smooth sailing for Duane as he made another good run and posted a 5.29 at 275 MPH for the win. “We backed it down a little bit before eliminations to make sure we could get from point A to point B without smoking the tires so that was the ET we were expecting” Duane explained.
The semifinal match up was between Duane and Mia Tedesco. As the lights came down on the tree it was Tedesco out first with an .032 to Duane’s .070. Tedesco continued to stay out in front of Duane and crossed the finish line first with a 5.26 at 274 MPH to take the victory. In a valiant effort, Duane posted a 5.30 at 273 MPH but he was just short of getting around Tedesco. “Mia did a great job. They made a very good run when they needed it so hats off to them” Duane concluded.
Duane has an enormous amount of respect for the entire Top Alcohol Dragster field that was in Gainesville for the regional and is excited to return for the Gators this coming weekend. “Everyone that was here was very competitive which makes for great racing. I’m looking forward to coming back next weekend because we have had a lot of success in Gainesville” he said.
Duane would like to thank his sponsors PEAK Antifreeze and Motor Oil, Final Charge, Blue Def, NGK, GRP and Brad Anderson Enterprises for their support in 2016.
In round one, Duane raced number eight qualifier Dan Mercier. At the hit it was Mercier out first but he was riddled with traction problems and had to idle through. Meanwhile, it was smooth sailing for Duane as he made another good run and posted a 5.29 at 275 MPH for the win. “We backed it down a little bit before eliminations to make sure we could get from point A to point B without smoking the tires so that was the ET we were expecting” Duane explained.
The semifinal match up was between Duane and Mia Tedesco. As the lights came down on the tree it was Tedesco out first with an .032 to Duane’s .070. Tedesco continued to stay out in front of Duane and crossed the finish line first with a 5.26 at 274 MPH to take the victory. In a valiant effort, Duane posted a 5.30 at 273 MPH but he was just short of getting around Tedesco. “Mia did a great job. They made a very good run when they needed it so hats off to them” Duane concluded.
Duane has an enormous amount of respect for the entire Top Alcohol Dragster field that was in Gainesville for the regional and is excited to return for the Gators this coming weekend. “Everyone that was here was very competitive which makes for great racing. I’m looking forward to coming back next weekend because we have had a lot of success in Gainesville” he said.
Duane would like to thank his sponsors PEAK Antifreeze and Motor Oil, Final Charge, Blue Def, NGK, GRP and Brad Anderson Enterprises for their support in 2016.
