Yahoo Autos Sunday NHRA Results: Two Top Seeds Fall Early at Rain-Delayed Countdown Opener at Reading
Before showers arrive, plenty of drama unfolds at Maple Grove Raceway to disrupt Countdown opener.
The lone driver to advance to the final round, Doug Kalitta hardly misses a beat Sunday after Top Fuel dragster tire shreds, causes serious damage to primary car during Saturday qualifying.
Pair of No. 1 seeds exit early.
Tony Stewart set to face Madison Payne in Top Alcohol Dragster rematch of Vegas final she won last fall.
Eliminations continue Monday. The race will be broadcast on FS1 at 9:30 p.m. ET on Monday.
Rain was a big winner Sunday at the interrupted Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway near Reading, Pa.
However, top Funny Car qualifier Bob Tasca III was right in his prediction Saturday evening that fans “could see some big-time upsets” in this first of six Countdown to the Championship events.
The NHRA started eliminations an hour early, hoping to avoid a storm front that was predicted to roll through in mid- to late afternoon. Ultimately, a rain delay robbed racers of daylight, racing-safe temperatures, and a chance to show off in full force on an NFL-adjacent FOX broadcast.
Instead, eliminations will continue Monday at 10 a.m. and Maple Grove Raceway. The final day's action will be broadcast Monday at 9:30 p.m. ET on FS1.
Kalitta Still Unsure Why Tire Shredded – But He Keeps On Winning
Top Fuel’s Doug Kalitta still isn’t sure what caused his right rear tire to shred and damage the rear wing and chassis of his primary Mac Tools during Saturday as he completed his 3.748-second, 332.10-mph qualifying pass at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Reading, Pa.’s Maple Grove Raceway.
“The tire did not fault. There was nothing wrong with the tire,” Kalitta Motorsports General Manager Chad Head said. “The car did not have any malfunctions on the run, but something caused the tire to explode. We do not know what caused the tire explosion.”
Nevertheless, that forced his team to scramble to prepare a back-up car overnight Saturday.
None of it seemed to faze Kalitta, who got into his car – one without a cockpit canopy he was starting to get used to this season – and won the first three rounds Sunday in dramatic fashion.
In the only pass that weather permitted after the lengthy rain delay, Kalitta knocked off Leah Pruett to reach his third final round in seven races. After another brief stoppage, Tony Schumacher and Steve Torrence rolled to the line for their semifinal match to see who would face Kalitta in the final. Then it began to rain again. By then, track conditions had deteriorated.
The drama started much earlier in the day.
In his opening-round match-up against Josh Hart, Kalitta recorded low elapsed time of the meet with a 3.658-second pass at 335.73 mph. (That was quicker than No. 1 qualifier Justin Ashley’s 3.687 seconds.) In the second round, Kalitta ambushed Kalitta Motorsports teammate Shawn Langdon and won by seven-thousandths of a second.
