{"id":30785,"date":"2016-10-03T10:31:55","date_gmt":"2016-10-03T17:31:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/?p=30785"},"modified":"2018-08-16T12:35:44","modified_gmt":"2018-08-16T19:35:44","slug":"brown-johnson-jr-nobile-and-krawiec-marvel-at-maple-grove","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/brown-johnson-jr-nobile-and-krawiec-marvel-at-maple-grove\/","title":{"rendered":"Brown, Johnson, Jr. Nobile and Krawiec Marvel at Maple Grove"},"content":{"rendered":"

Just as the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing series reaches its midway point, Antron Brown extends his Top Fuel point lead on a hole shot over Brittany Force. Tommy Johnson finally won in Funny Car, taking down current points leader Ron Capps at the NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway just south of Reading, Pa.<\/p>\n

Vincent Nobile pursued the Pro Stock field, upsetting Greg Anderson. Eddie Krawiec upped the ante in Pro Stock Motorcycle, beating a defiant Cory Reed with all the championships tightening up.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

TOP FUEL<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Brown,<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Antron Brown and his Don Schumacher Top Fuel team debuted a new pink Matco Tools dragster honoring Breast Cancer Awareness as part of the \u2018Tools for a Cause\u2019 program. On Sunday, despite only one qualifying session, the N.J. native soared through eliminations to win his 60th<\/sup> overall NHRA National event this weekend at Maple Grove Raceway.<\/p>\n

The victory was his sixth of the season; 44 in Top Fuel and 16 in Pro Stock Motorcycle rank him fourth on the all-time winner\u2019s list. \u00a0It was his 10th<\/sup> final round and fourth in the last six races, and his 75th<\/sup> career Top Fuel final.<\/p>\n

“It felt good,” Brown said.\u00a0 “I’m not going to lie to everyone; all of the credit goes to my team.\u00a0 I have never had this happen before; I closed my helmet visor down, I had my fresh air on, and I couldn’t see anything.\u00a0 I just tried to keep in the groove and honestly, I overdrove the car a little bit.\u00a0 We cut just a good enough light to get that win.\u00a0 We had some lucky breaks go our way but we kept our heads down and kept on fighting.”<\/p>\n

Defending champion Brown eliminated J.R. Todd, Clay Millican, and a tire-smoking Shawn Langdon in the semi-finals before facing Brittany Force.<\/p>\n

Both Force and Brown ran exact elapsed times of 3.721 seconds in the finals with Brown prevailing by three-thousandths of a second, the exact difference in reaction starting line times (.066-.069).<\/p>\n

He heads the Top Fuel points standings by 77 over Doug Kalitta in second as the Countdown to the Championship has reached its halfway point.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Brown,<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

“This championship, there’s plenty of racing left,” Brown said. \u00a0“We just have to continue and get in that groove and fight hard. \u00a0No one is going to give you a championship. \u00a0Everybody is winning who needs to win to survive. \u00a0The competition is at an all-time high. \u00a0I’m really enjoying racing in this kind of competition because it’s bringing the best out of everyone.”<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the unofficial NHRA Top Fuel points standings with three Countdown races remaining:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Antron Brown, 2,377; 2. Doug Kalitta, 2,300; 3. Brittany Force, 2,259; 4. Shawn Langdon, 2,258; 5. Tony Schumacher, 2,236; 6. Steve Torrence, 2,214; 7. Leah Pritchett, 2,188; 8. J.R. Todd, 2,183; 9. Richie Crampton, 2,159; 10. Clay Millican, 2,136.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

     <\/p>\n

    FUNNY CAR<\/strong><\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    \"Brown,<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    For the third week in a row, Tommy Johnson Jr., drove the Make-A-Wish Dodge Charger Funny Car, funded by Terry Chandler, to the final round of competition. On Sunday he was able to drive it to the winner’s circle.<\/p>\n

    The Keystone Nationals gave many NHRA teams headaches, with three of four qualifying sessions cancelled because of rain. Johnson Jr. landed in the No. 2 position with a 3.897-second lap at 330.80 mph on Saturday.<\/p>\n

    “It was a tough track because the conditions were so good,” Johnson said. \u00a0“The track is so tight; you have to be perfect or the car won’t make it.”<\/p>\n

    Johnson defeated Cruz Pedregon, Mike Smith and DSR teammate Jack Beckman in the semi-finals before battling with his DSR-mate Ron Capps in the finals for his 14th<\/sup> victory.<\/p>\n

    Johnson, after being the runner-up in the last two races of the Countdown, felt his third time would be a charm. This proved true as he ran a time of 3.895 seconds, 330.63 mph to Capps\u2019 pass of 3.911 seconds, 324.12 mph for his second win of the season.<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    \"Brown,<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    “You want to have a strong start, and we knew that going into Charlotte – we needed a strong start to the Countdown,\u201d said Johnson, just 24 points back in second.\u00a0 \u201cWe started seventh in points, unfortunately, and would have liked to have started a little bit higher. \u00a0But we went from seventh to fourth. \u00a0A runner-up is good, and we went to St. Louis and went to another final round and I said I’d be happy with four more runner-ups. \u00a0If we could do that the rest of the way, I figured we could win the championship.<\/p>\n

    “But when you look in the other lane in the final and you got Capps, who’s leading it, it’s a must-win. \u00a0You can’t have another runner-up. \u00a0You have to gain some ground. \u00a0I’m really happy. \u00a0I couldn’t be any happier with this start to the Countdown. \u00a0That’s getting it done, and we have to keep doing it to get it done. \u00a0I said it at the other end, neither one of us has won the championship, and I think you can see how bad we both want it. \u00a0It’s going to be a fight, I can tell you that right now. \u00a0It’s not going to be easy, but if we can continue this consistency, we’ll be alright.”<\/p>\n

    Here\u2019s the unofficial Funny Car points standings after Maple Grove:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. Ron Capps, 2,368; 2. Tommy Johnson Jr., 2,344; 3. Jack Beckman, 2,275; 4. Matt Hagan, 2,258; 5. Del Worsham, 2,246; 6. John Force, 2,230; 7. Tim Wilkerson, 2,196; 8. Robert Hight, 2,193; 9. Courtney Force, 2,182; 10. Alexis DeJoria, 2,099.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

       <\/p>\n

      PRO STOCK<\/strong><\/p>\n

       <\/p>\n

      \"Brown,<\/p>\n

       <\/p>\n

      Vincent Nobile earned his first victory of 2016 by posting a 6.575-second pass at 209.85 mph, in his Chevy Camaro, to defeat seven-time 2016 event winner Greg Anderson\u2019s 6.582 at 210.37, in his Chevrolet.<\/p>\n

      Nobile entered the event on a bit of hot streak, with two-runner up finishes on the season, and ended a 56-race drought with the win. It marks the 10th victory of his career and first at Reading. Nobile, who qualified No. 1, moved to third in the Pro Stock points standings behind Jason Line and Anderson, respectively. \u00a0He beat 2015 top rookie Drew Skillman, back-to-back and reigning world champion Erica Enders, and Shane Gray before meeting Anderson in the final.<\/p>\n

       <\/p>\n

      \"Brown,<\/p>\n

       <\/p>\n

      \u201cIt was a big day for Mountain View Racing and NAPA Auto Parts,\u201d said Nobile. \u201cWe got the Chevrolet in the winner\u2019s circle, and I\u2019m semi-speechless. \u00a0We turned it around right at the right time. \u00a0Don\u2019t get me wrong; at the beginning of the year, we were like give us our carburetors back. \u00a0It certainly was a pain in the butt, not necessarily for me as a driver but for the crew chiefs and the guys working on the car.\u201d<\/p>\n

      Line still leads by 45 over Anderson and 83 over Nobile.<\/p>\n

      Here\u2019s the unofficial Pro Stock standings after three of six races completed:<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. Jason Line, 2,389; 2. Greg Anderson, 2,344; 3. Vincent Nobile, 2,306; 4. Bo Butner, 2,256; 5. Shane Gray, 2,242; 6. Chris McGaha, 2,189; 7. Allen Johnson, 2,160; 8. Drew Skillman, 2,157; 9. Jeg Coughlin, 2,115; 10. Erica Enders, 2,104.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

         <\/p>\n

        PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE<\/strong><\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

        \"Brown,<\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

        In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Eddie Krawiec rode his Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson to win with a time of 6.818 seconds at 193.88 mph, to outlast rookie Cory Reed\u2019s 6.958 at 186.43 on his Star Racing Buell in the final round.<\/p>\n

        This is Krawiec\u2019s 35th career victory, fourth of 2016 and fourth at Maple Grove Raceway. \u00a0The three-time world champion started the weekend fifth in points and moved up to second behind teammate Andrew Hines. \u00a0Krawiec rode past Englishtown, N.J. winner Angelle Sampey, Karen Stoffer, and Sonoma, Calif. winner LE Tonglet to make it to the final round.<\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

        \"Brown,<\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

        \u201cMy main goal this weekend here was to win,\u201d Krawiec said. \u00a0\u201cIf you win races in the Countdown, you\u2019re going to be fighting for the championship when you get to Pomona. \u00a0This was a big day for all of our team actually, Andrew and myself getting past the first round. \u00a0When you draw Angelle and Chip Ellis in round one, you don\u2019t say, \u2018Well, this should be easy. \u00a0This should be no problem this weekend.\u2019 \u00a0For me, I was on a mission first round because I knew if I went past first round I could keep the momentum and keep it rolling.\u201d<\/p>\n

        Here are the NHRA Mello Yello Pro Stock points standings through Oct. 2.<\/p>\n

          \n
        1. Andrew Hines, 2,341; 2. Eddie Krawiec, 2,303; 3. Angelle Sampey, 2,289; 4. Chip Ellis, 2,274; 5. Jerry Savoie, 2,271; 6. LE Tonglet, 2,215; 7. Cory Reed, 2,196; 8. Hector Arana, 2,159; 9. Matt Smith, 2,150; 10. Hector Arana Jr, 2,149.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

           <\/p>\n

          The NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship continues Oct. 13-16 with the AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex in Ennis, TX.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          A slew of updates as the NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship reaches its halfway point.<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":30794,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[3465,4802,3470,16,3399],"tags":[3945,82,1259,177,547,41,7,1632,484,1022],"class_list":["post-30785","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-drag-racing","category-motorcycles-and-powersports","category-news","category-pro-stock","category-nhra","tag-2016-nhra-mello-yello-series","tag-antron-brown","tag-countdown-to-the-championship","tag-eddie-kraweic","tag-jay-wells","tag-news","tag-nhra","tag-racing","tag-tommy-johnson","tag-vincent-nobile"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/side.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p42YSK-80x","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30785","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30785"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30785\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":30796,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30785\/revisions\/30796"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30794"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30785"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30785"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racingjunk.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30785"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}