Lucas Oil Fuel Treatment driver, J.R. Todd led the way in the opening round of Top Fuel qualifying for the 44th annual Auto Club NHRA Finals at the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona taking the provisional pole position with an elapsed time of 3.851 seconds, 308.14 mph. That was followed by his Lucas Oil teammate, Morgan Lucas, who grabbed the second spot on the railer roster with an almost identical time of 3.855 seconds, 306.46 mph.
If it holds, this will be Todd’s first No. 1 start of the 2008 season and third overall with low ET awards last year in Seattle and Dallas.
“That’s just the way we planned it,” said a grinning Todd. “You can’t get much closer than that. That was a great run for us right straight out of the box as we’ve been struggling all year. I don’t know if that is going to hold up throughout the weekend, but I think that will keep us in the show. That is what matters most is to play on Sunday because anyone has a chance as long as you’re in the field. That’s a pretty good run for us, the 4.85, and honestly, I didn’t expect it to run that well. If it hadn’t gotten out of the groove down the track, I think it could have run a little bit better. We’ll tune her up, get ready for tomorrow and Saturday and prepare for race day.”
Todd, 26, had always dreamed of this moment being from back East and fulfilled one of his drag racing wishes, so far.
“Growing up in Indiana, I used to dream about coming out here and racing,” said Todd. “The weather is good, the fans are great and the racetrack is awesome. It’s the Lucas Oil Products home track and there’s no pressure. I just want to go out there and do well. I want to solidify things for next year and that’s my main goal. This is the last race of the season and besides the win in Dallas, I would like to forget this year because it’s been pretty miserable. The car has come around the last half of the year. I know it’s almost over, but at the same time, I wish we could keep on going because of the way it has been going for us lately. I hope that we can put the pieces together for a good run in 2009.”
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