Only one driver has the chance to sweep the 2021 Western Swing. That would be a known marauder in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series’ Top Fuel ranks: Steve Torrence, winner of the past 12 rounds of racing. The torrid Texan has wins at both Denver and Sonoma stops in the traditional three-races-in-three-weeks drama-laden exercise that tests drivers, crews and their machines.
Rather than headed to Seattle for the third stop, instead the Camping World entries are coming to Pomona, Calif., normally the first race of the year. In 2020, Pomona was one of only two regularly-scheduled races to be held before NHRA – and every other racing series and sporting event – called in sick for the second quarter of the year. As we all know, drag racing commenced in July of last year and NHRA did hold a viable series, finishing in Las Vegas, the city’s first sporting event since March of 2020.
So, yeah, it’s the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by Protect the Harvest, being held at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, at the end of July and start of August. Washington State’s continuing pandemic issues scotched a race at Pacific Raceways outside Seattle this year and Pomona picked up the slack by being the Western Swing anchor.
Will Steve Torrence become the first Top Fuel driver since 2009 to sweep the Swing? He’s got only 12 racers lining up to challenge him this weekend, but remember, neither Steve nor his absent father Billy raced here in 2020; they were objecting to NHRA’s dissatisfaction with Steve’s response to first-round competitor Cameron Ferre’s staging during the 2019 World Finals. Steve, of course, did earn his second championship that year, but he wasn’t happy with the sanction’s response.
None of that matters when the Christmas Tree lights up Friday night. Somewhere along the line, a racer will come through the pack and challenge Steve Torrence. Will it be the most recent racer to sweep the Western Swing, Antron Brown, who currently lags his friend and competitor by a massive 349 points in this regular season? Will be it mega-qualifier and 2017 champ Brittany Force, who seemingly can’t get down the track when it matters? Will it be the dormant Doug Kalitta, quantitatively in need of a real result. and the defending 2020 Winternationals champ? Kalitta’s teammate Shawn Langdon? Brown’s surging teammate Leah Pruett? Clay Millican or Mike Salinas? How about Justin Ashley?
All of the above currently occupy Top Fuel’s top 10, but there are other racers in this field who could be dangerous, like Buddy Hull, Steven Chrisman (in Terry Haddock’s dragster), Brandon Welch and James Maroney looking to make their marks this Sunday. They’ll all get an opportunity but it remains to be seen if they can take advantage in the heat of Sunday’s sun.
With 18 Funny Car entries for these Winternationals – and how strange it feels typing this in the waning days of July – the heat is definitely on Ford Mustang racer Bob Tasca III, who retained the points lead by a measly 21 points after last weekend’s first-round loss to Paul Lee, who finished the Sonoma race in the quarterfinals. Matt Hagan, the reigning Flopper champ from Don Schumacher Racing, finished second last week in his Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat after falling to Robert Hight, who stands only 19 points behind him in third place.
Hight, who won his third consecutive Funny Car race at Sonoma in his John Force Racing Chevrolet Camaro SS, has to be worried by the Toyota Camry of Alexis DeJoria, as that driver finished second in Denver and went to the semifinals in Sonoma. With her hometown crew chief, Del Worsham (and Nicky Boninfante) turning the dials, DeJoria will look to earn a victory that’s eluded her since returning to the class after a two-year absence. Hagan’s teammate, the exceptionally quick Ron Capps, would be looking to earn his first victory of the year in his NAPA Charger SRT Hellcat after being No. 1 last weekend. His crew chiefs, Dean Antonelli and John Medlen, took Jack Beckman to the win here in February of 2020 and have the track’s number.
Every other member of the Funny Car top 10 will be present for this race: John Force’s Camaro, J.R. Todd in his Camry, Tim Wilkerson’s Mustang, Cruz Pedregon in his Charger SRT Hellcat and the Mustang of Terry Haddock. To that group, add Lee’s Charger, Blake Alexander’s Jim Head Mustang, Steven Densham’s Mustang, Jeff Diehl’s Camry, nostalgia standout Jason Rupert, tuned this week by Rahn Tobler, Bobby Bode III in a Mustang and Alex Miladinovich’s Camry. It’s a huge crowd of Funny Car entries and no doubt someone’s feelings and fundings will be hurt in this competitive process.
A full, 16-car field of Pro Stock cars has signed up to race the 2021 Winternationals, led by reigning champ Erica Enders and her perennial foe, points leader Greg Anderson. The Cuadra family is sitting these two races of the Western Swing, but there’s a hardy group to challenge the current leaders of the door- slammer pack. With his victory in Sonoma, Aaron Stanfield solidified his place in this category and now holds second-place points in the chase, behind Anderson by 135 points. Enders is third (-163), followed by Matt Hartford (-221) and Dallas Glenn, who is 237 points behind Anderson.
All of the top 10 will be trying to move forward in their Chevy Camaro race cars – everyone holding top-10 points races a Camaro – with Mason McGaha, Deric Kramer, Kyle Koretsky, Troy Coughlin Jr. and Chris McGaha prime in the chase to earn spots in the Countdown to the Championship. Look for Rob Tucker’s Dodge Dart, Alex Laughlin, making his final appearances in this class in an Elite Camaro, Alan Prusiensky’s Dart Val Smeland and Kenny Delco and Aaron Strong’s Camaros to give those higher in the pecking order a run for the minimal money.
This is the first time in recent memory that Pro Stock Motorcycle has run all three Western Swing races and run at the Winternationals; their season usually starts in Gainesville. While most PSM racers come to Pomona in February to cheer on their prior-year champion, they’re here this weekend to attempt to unseat four-time champ and points leader Matt Smith’s Buell. The No. 1 qualifier at Pomona will have a bye in Sunday’s first round, as there are 15 motorcycles entered, six EBR/Buell motorcycles and the balance either two- or four-valve Suzuki bikes.
That means the No. 1 qualifier gets a bye in the first round, and with the strength of this race’s field, it could be anyone’s opportunity to snag the top spot by Saturday evening. All the top-10 racers are on-site: Matt Smith (Buell), Steve Johnson 4-valve Suzuki), Scotty Pollacheck and Ryan Oehler’s Buell Sonoma victor Karen Stoffer on her 2-valve Suzuki, Angie Smith’s Buell, Angelle Sampey’s Vance & Hines’ Suzuki, Andrew Hines’ Buell, Cory Reed and teammate Joey Gladstone’s 4-valve Suzuki motorcycles.
Hard to believe Eddie Krawiec is 11th but he’s only three points behind Gladstone in the final Countdown spot and this, remember is not the arbiter of the regular season standings: that happens at the U.S. Nationals over Labor Day. Neither Krawiec nor Hines rode in the first couple of races, so to see them surging about now appears about right, as they’re both racing motorcycles that haven’t seen competition before this year. As for the Smith family, Matt and Angie are the quickest and fastest racers in the pits this season, with the primary competition being Steve Johnson, whose 4-valve Suzuki with Monster heads appears to be class of his field.
Stoffer’s teammate, 2016 class titleholder Jerry Savoie showed signs of his championship capabilities last weekend with his semifinal run on his 4-valve Suzuki, when he lost to Karen before she closely beat Andrew Hines in the finals. Longtime partial-season runner Fred Camarena is competing in his hometown race, as is Jim Underdahl and the most recent Pomona winner Jianna Salinas, who was able to take advantage of four foes’ mechanical difficulties to earn her first Wally trophy in the 2019 World Finals. It’s a tough field that promises some truly fine competition.
The weekend schedule is bowing to the July weather for a February race with Friday’s sole qualifying starting 7:15PM PT and Saturday’s two qualifying sessions beginning at 3:30 and 6:30PM. Sunday’s final eliminations are set to start at 10AM, an hour or two earlier than “normal”, again ceding to the weather gods, who are calling for daytime temps in the mid-90s and evening temps stopping in the mid-60s. Rain? If only for the parched Southern California earth, but no raindrops are expected. Hence, there won’t be any snowcaps on the mountains above Pomona, as we usually see in February. It’s doubtful anyone will notice but those looking for the familiar white caps on their television screens; the rest of us will be totally taken by the Western Swing finale.
Leave a Reply