McClenathan Grabs First No. 1 Qualifying Spot Since Last July

BRISTOL, Tenn. – It seems like old times for Cory McClenathan at Bristol Dragway this weekend.

On Friday, he was reunited with one of the co-owners on his former Bristol-based Carrier Boyz Racing Top Fuel dragster team.

Saturday afternoon in the National Hot Rod Association Thunder Valley Nationals, McClenathan secured his first No. 1 qualifying spot since last July’s event in Denver.

“When we come back to Bristol, we have a lot of good memories,” said McClenathan, who drove for the Carrier team from 2001-06. “Mark Carrier came to the track Friday. The Carriers were great to me.

“I bounced around from team to team for a while before I landed at DSR [Don Schumacher Racing].”

The experience level of Carrier and the talent of the vast Schumacher team was apparent Saturday, as McClenathan retained the top spot with his run of 3.874 seconds at 312.21 miles per hour from Friday night.

With track temperatures hitting 124 degrees Saturday, all teams were forced to adapt to the conditions. McClenathan stuck to the basics.

“We’ve been to two finals this season,” McClenathan said. “We’ve not won a race with this car yet, but it has been very consistent.

“We [might] not be the quickest car all the time, but we’re always right in the hunt with everybody. That gives me a comfort zone.”

NHRA officials and drivers will conduct a spec engine test Monday with Funny Car driver Tim Wilkerson at Bristol Dragway. NHRA officials are exploring the feasibility of returning to the traditional quarter-mile distance for races in the nitromethane classes. That process will continue beyond Monday. The Schumacher team has also rented the track for testing Monday.

McClenathan did a little testing of his own Saturday, but he plans to stick to the proven approach for today’s final eliminations that begin at noon.

“We know it’s gonna be much cooler Sunday, at least 20 to 25 degrees,” McClenathan said. “We’ll go right back to Friday’s tuneup, and try to do the same thing.”

Rookie Spencer Massey was one of two Top Fuels drivers failing to qualify.

As expected, Ashley Force Hood kept the top spot in the Funny Car class with her run of 4.105 seconds at 298.67 miles per hour from Friday. It was the second pole of the season and fifth of her career.

Force Hood failed to qualify at Bristol Dragway two years ago.

“You will struggle at some tracks and do good at others,” Force Hood said. “We do well at Atlanta, then there are other tracks like [Bristol] where we’ve had tough times

“This year when we’ve been able to kind of conquer that and do better. There’s always hope at each new race.”

Robert Hight, a teammate to Force Hood on the John Force team, was the lone Funny Car driver failing to make the field

“We had some things go wrong but we also didn’t do a good job,” Hight said. “This is not an indication of what this team is capable of. We’ve got to get our act together and we will.”

This car will be in contention for the championship, I promise.”

Mike Edwards is still the driver to beat in Pro Stock, as his Friday night run of 6.698 seconds at 205.72 mph remained untouched in Saturday’s heat. It was the fourth No. 1 qualifying effort for Edwards, who was the quickest driver in both qualifying sessions this weekend.

“I can’t say enough about the guys on my crew,” Edwards said. “They’ve made all the right adjustments. This is a pretty tricky track to get through with the bumps.”

With the cooler weather forecast for today’s eliminations, Edwards realizes the adjustment process will intensify.

“You race the track when you’re qualifying, but you also have to race the guy in the other lane on Sunday,” Edwards said. “I’ve struggled a little bit with my driving, but hopefully I can turn that around and make it a great weekend for us.”

Allen Johnson of Greeneville, Tenn., who crashed in testing earlier in the week, earned the No. 6 qualifying spot.

Eric Enders and veteran racer V Gaines were the six Pro Stock racers failing to qualify.

NOTES: Schumacher announced Saturday Valvoline has renewed its multi-year sponsorship of all the teams competing under the DSR banner in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag
Racing Series through 2010 and beyond. Valvoline became co-primary sponsor in 2008 with Mail Terminal Services on the Dodge Funny Car driven by Jack Beckman. In that time,
DSR drivers in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle classes have won a total of 49 national events and three world championships.

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