After setting new career bests in elapsed time and top speed in qualifying, Kurt Johnson and the ACDelco Cobalt Racing team entered Sunday’s final eliminations of the Virginia NHRA Nationals looking to gain ground in the championship standings. Things went according to plan in the first round, as Johnson used a lightning-quick .008 reaction time and a 6.563-second, 209.65 mph pass to eliminate veteran Larry Morgan.
In second round against David Connolly, KJ’s mount was the class of the field, covering the quarter-mile in 6.567-seconds with a top speed of 209.65 mph. Unfortunately, it fell two hundredths shy of crossing the finish line first, as his opponent used a .001 reaction time and a 6.588-second pass to advance. Although the premature exit dealt a blow to his championship hopes, Johnson remained optimistic about his chances in the last two races.
“After having that .008 in the first round, we were concerned about going red, so we backed it off for the second round, and ended up having the guy in the next lane go .001 and beat us. He knew he had to go for it, because he knew our ACDelco Cobalt had him covered by two hundredths, and he just let his foot off the clutch at the right time. Ironically enough, he went .035 and .044 in the next two rounds, either of which would have allowed us to win, but it’s just a part of racing.
“Naturally, we’re upset because we took a hit in the points. We had the fastest car, and would have beaten anyone else in that round, but it just wasn’t to be. Still, we made gains this weekend with the race car. We came out of the box strong, and ended up stronger than anyone else. We have two races left, so we’re just going to go out there, try our best and see what happens.”
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