Driving the FRAM Top Fuel Dragster, Cory McClenathan advanced to the semifinal round at the 23rd annual NHRA Spring Nationals today at Houston Raceway Park, before falling to Larry Dixon. He held onto No. 1 in the point standings, and is now 28 points ahead of Dixon, in second.
McClenathan and the FRAM crew continued their strong performance on the race track by pulling out a duo of strong laps to reach the semis: a 3.878/315.05 to defeat T.J. Zizzo, and a 3.857/321.12 to eliminate Doug Kalitta.
He enjoyed lane choice through the first two rounds, but lost it in his semifinal match-up against Dixon, which may have been the difference on a track that some considered challenging today, as temperatures rose. McClenathan struck the tires, which was followed by a burst of flame as he crossed the finish line with a 4.581/169.34 to Dixon’s 3.891/313.95.
“Lane choice was definitely important today,” said McClenathan. “We were thinking, go in light. Even now if we were able to win that round I still would have wanted to try to go for lane choice in the final.
“It’s just one of those things where conditions jump up and bite you and I think that’s what happened to us today. We kind of rallied back after a couple of qualifying runs that weren’t exactly what we wanted them to be, so I’d say it was still a successful day.
“That left-hand land was the preferred lane and we just couldn’t keep it. We ran that .85 in the second round and so did Dixon, but he was just a little bit better than we were (3.857 versus 3.854). It’s just one of those deals.
“If you keep going to the semis every time you go out and you win a few along the way, you’re going to stay right there in first, and that’s where we want to be.”
Next up is the 11th annual NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, April 16-18.
TOP FUEL POINT STANDINGS, after five of 23 events:
1. Cory McClenathan, 456
2. Larry Dixon, 428 (winner today)
3. Doug Kalitta, 381
4. Antron Brown, 378 (runner-up today)
5. Tony Schumacher, 366
6. Shawn Langdon, 275
7. Morgan Lucas, 245
8. Steve Torrence, 228
9. Brandon Bernstein, 219
10. Dave Grubnic, 206
Click Here to Read More:
Hagan (Funny Car), Dixon (Top Fuel) & Coughlin (Pro Stock) Claim O’Reilly NHRA Spring Nationals Win
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