Norwalk, Ohio (June 25, 2011) – NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Pro Stock driver Allen Johnson exited in the first round of the K&N Horsepower Challenge today, but the Mopar® Dodge Avenger pilot will have a chance for redemption tomorrow in the elimination rounds of the 5th Annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio. Johnson qualified in the top half of the field at No. 8 and will face off against Greg Anderson in the first round.
With the two qualifying rounds on Friday washed out due to inclement weather, Johnson put up a 6.602-second elapsed time at 209.20 mph in his first run down the Summit Motorsports Park track. The second Saturday session doubled as the first round of the K&N Horsepower Challenge, which featured the top eight Pro Stock qualifiers from the previous 20 events in a $50,000-to-win showdown. Johnson, champion of the 2008 event, went into tire shake and got out of the groove shortly after launching, losing to Shane Gray and ending his bid for a second K&N win.
“We had some fits today,” said Johnson, who will attempt to claim his second victory of year tomorrow. “We’ll go back and fix what we changed, and hopefully we’ll get back to square one for eliminations.
“I wanted to win both events so bad, but it wasn’t meant to be for us this year. We can still bring home the win tomorrow in the main event, and that’s our goal, of course.”
Rookie Pro Stocker Vincent Nobile led the way for the Mopar Dodge gang, seizing the No. 4 position on the strength of a 6.592/209.07 pass. He’ll face Warren Johnson in his opening battle tomorrow, with Mopar-powered Dodge Avenger pilot V. Gaines (No. 10 qualifier with a 6.602/208.52 effort) lining up against Larry Morgan.
With the two qualifying rounds on Friday washed out due to inclement weather, Johnson put up a 6.602-second elapsed time at 209.20 mph in his first run down the Summit Motorsports Park track. The second Saturday session doubled as the first round of the K&N Horsepower Challenge, which featured the top eight Pro Stock qualifiers from the previous 20 events in a $50,000-to-win showdown. Johnson, champion of the 2008 event, went into tire shake and got out of the groove shortly after launching, losing to Shane Gray and ending his bid for a second K&N win.
“We had some fits today,” said Johnson, who will attempt to claim his second victory of year tomorrow. “We’ll go back and fix what we changed, and hopefully we’ll get back to square one for eliminations.
“I wanted to win both events so bad, but it wasn’t meant to be for us this year. We can still bring home the win tomorrow in the main event, and that’s our goal, of course.”
Rookie Pro Stocker Vincent Nobile led the way for the Mopar Dodge gang, seizing the No. 4 position on the strength of a 6.592/209.07 pass. He’ll face Warren Johnson in his opening battle tomorrow, with Mopar-powered Dodge Avenger pilot V. Gaines (No. 10 qualifier with a 6.602/208.52 effort) lining up against Larry Morgan.
