Fallen Patriots NHRA Route 66 Nationals presented by K&N Filters
Route 66 Raceway
July 6-9, 2017

SUNDAY

Points leader Tonglet secured his fourth Pro Stock Motorcycle victory in six events with a 6.835 at 195.99 on his Nitro Fish Racing Suzuki to defeat Hector Arana Jr. who ran a 6.878 at 193.29 on his Lucas Oil Buell in the finals. This is Tonglet’s first victory at Route 66 Raceway since he went back-to-back in 2010-11. He has now earned victories in all four of his final round appearances this season.

“We knew we had a good bike at the start of the season, but it was just a matter of getting tuned up as we learn more about the bike each week,” Tonglet said. “On Sunday our goal is to get win lights, so I’ve improved on being calm and staying focused to try and get the job done.”

Tonglet earned the No. 1 qualifier and defeated Cory Reed, Scotty Pollacheck and Karen Stoffer on his way to victory. Arana Jr. notched the second spot in qualifying, defeating Angelle Sampey, Angie Smith and Eddie Krawiec before earning his second runner-up finish of the season.

Krawiec remains in second following the semifinal appearance. Arana Jr. moves up to third with the runner-up, surpassing Pollacheck who fell to fourth.

The 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season continues with the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals at Bandimere Speedway July 21-23.

ELIMINATIONS ROUND 1

ELIMINATIONS ROUND 2

ELIMINATIONS ROUND 3

ELIMINATIONS – FINAL

SATURDAY

On the last run of the day, LE Tonglet stole the top spot in Pro Stock Motorcycle from Hector Arana Jr. Tonglet wheeled his Nitro Fish Suzuki to a 6.806, 196.13 to earn the pole, holding off Arana’s 6.811. It was the fifth time in his career and second time this year that Tonglet will be the last rider introduced during pre-race ceremonies. Tonglet’s teammate, Jerry Savoie also made a very competitive pass with a 6.823 while Karen Stoffer was the surprise of the round with a 6.848 on her Suzuki. Mike Berry began the round outside of the 16-bike field but rallied with a 6.908 to secure a spot, bumping out Ryan Oehler, who had earlier run a 6.976 in his NHRA debut.

“We had made some mistakes in the third round of qualifying, but I knew I just had to calm down and run better numbers in these great conditions,” Tonglet said. “We’ve had a very good season so far and it feels similar to our previous successful years, so I know we can continue to build off of it.”

First round pairings (lane choice first): LE Tonglet vs. Cory Reed; Hector Arana Jr. vs. Angelle Sampey; Matt Smith vs. Eddie Krawiec; Jerry Savoie vs. Chip Ellis; Karen Stoffer vs. Andrew Hines; Steve Johnson vs. Mike Berry; Angie Smith vs. Melissa Surber; Scotty Pollacheck vs. Joey Gladstone

Eliminations at the 20th annual Fallen Patriots NHRA Route 66 Nationals presented by K&N Filters begin 12:00 p.m. on Sunday at Route 66 Raceway.

QUALIFYING ORDER AFTER ROUND 4

QUALIFYING ROUND 4

QUALIFYING ROUND 3

Given the significant improvement in conditions, it was no surprise to see most of the Pro Stock Motorcycle competitors improve upon yesterday’s best runs. Of the 21 riders who made runs, 16 of them made their best run of the weekend including Hector Arana Jr., who took over the top spot from Matt Smith with a 6.832, 196.96. Smith improved on yesterday’s run with a 6.832, but his speed was 196.62, slightly slower than Arana’s. There are now nine bikes in the 6.8s including Jerry Savoie, who had the third-best run of the round with a 6.830 and LE Tonglet, who was close behind at 6.832.

NHRA SATURDAY PRE-EVENT NOTEBOOK

Matt Smith described his Polaris Victory Magnum as “pretty mean” after his strong 6.829 qualifying effort last night but that doesn’t begin to tell the story for the two-time world champion. Smith debuted the new Polaris/Victory engine and body combination earlier this year and struggled at the first few races. Smith’s frustration culminated with an embarrassing DNQ last month in Englishtown. Smith went to work and addressed a lot of the mechanical issues that had been plaguing him and he was rewarded in Norwalk with a No. 1 qualifying effort and a runner-up finish.

“Even though we didn’t qualify in Englishtown, I knew we had very good power; we’ve had that all year,” said Smith. “I was so upset after that [DNQ] that I was ready to sell everything for pennies on the dollar. I was over it. Then, we started to take a look at it and we made a few changes and it turned the corner.

“The last two races have been awesome,” Smith said. “It was good to be No. 1 in Norwalk but I wanted to come here and prove that it wasn’t a fluke. I want people to know we’re here to stay.”

Smith’s first run in Chicago, a 6.836, was impressive and his second, the aforementioned 6.829 was off the charts. Heading into Saturday, he has the field covered by more than five-hundredths of a second. Smith cites several factors for his improved performance and at least one of them is a partnership with Elite Performance. The Elite team reportedly helped Smith built the bottom end of his V-twin engines in a manner that improved durability and performance.

“I was surprised that no one ran a 6.84 or .85 last night,” said Smith. “Junior [Hector Arana Jr.] ran almost 195-mph so I know he has good power. This track is very good. You can throw almost everything at it. The biggest challenge is keeping the bike from bogging. If you can get past that, you’re going to make some good runs. I’m in contract negotiations with Victory for our 2018 program and I need to show them what we’re capable of.

“We’re off to a good start this weekend but I also need to mention Terry Chandler,” said Smith, referring to the popular Funny Car team sponsor who passed away last week. “She was a fantastic person and we’re going to miss her a lot.”

In the third race with their new Harley-Davidson Street Rod bikes, teammates  Eddie Krawiec and Andrew Hines are still attempting to find the sweet spot for their combination. After Friday’s two runs, Krawiec is ranked No. 9 with a 6.945 and Hines is No. 10 with a 6.951 best.

“We’ve done a lot of work on these bikes since the last race in Norwalk,” said Krawiec. “My bike has some new chassis parts on it and we’re just trying to get a handle on them. We knew that it was going to be a different deal with these new bikes but I’m not sure we knew how different it would be.”

Krawiec and Hines have both noted that the new bikes are not only more aerodynamic than their predecessors but the chassis also produces more traction. The end result is the need for an entirely different clutch and chassis set-up.

“We know it’s not a power issue; we have the same power we’ve always had so I’m not worried about that,” said Krawiec. “We just need to get the chassis sorted out. It’s out there. Matt Smith ran a 6.82 and that proves it can be done. I think we can run right with him but we need to hit the set-up.

FRIDAY

Smith finished atop the Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying order with an elapsed time track record 6.829 at 195.19 in his second pass of the day. He is aiming for his 26th career No. 1 qualifier and his second consecutive this season.

“The last two races have been awesome for us, especially getting the No. 1 qualifier in Norwalk the last time out,” Smith said. “It’s good to come here and be No. 1 and prove that we could do it again, but I think we are here to stay this year and we will make a run at the championship.”

Scotty Pollacheck is in the No. 2 slot after a 6.883 at 193.65 in his Extended Protection Suzuki during his second pass of the day, while Hector Arana Jr. sits at third with a 6.884 at 194.97 in his Lucas Oil Buell.

Qualifying at the 20th annual Fallen Patriots NHRA Route 66 Nationals presented by K&N Filters continues at 3:15 and 6:00 p.m. on Saturday at Route 66 Raceway.

QUALIFYING ORDER AFTER ROUND 2

NHRA FRIDAY NOTEBOOK

When Steve Johnson stages his Suzuki for Q1 at Route 66 Raceway it will officially mark his 400th start in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class. Johnson, who made his Pro debut aboard a Kawasaki in 1987, is far and away the leader in among NHRA’s two wheel racers. In fact, the rider with the second-most appearances is Hector Arana Sr. who has appeared in 293 events. The only other active riders with more than 200 appearances are Andrew Hines (235), Mike Berry (226), Angelle Sampey (216), Matt Smith (216) and Karen Stoffer (203).

“Consistency; that’s what I think about when I think 400 races,” said Johnson. “I haven’t missed a race since the start of the 1989 season and that’s what I’m most proud of. I don’t think there is anyone who can say that. It took me 17 years to win my first race but I’m proud of that. That’s part of the message that I share with kids.”

Johnson’s journey began at the 1987 Englishtown race. Then a resident of California, he put his Kawasaki in a crate and had it shipped to the track. Johnson used the crate as his pit area for the weekend. For the record, Johnson qualified No. 16 at that event and defeated Rick Gero in the first round before losing to Frank Martorelli. Johnson didn’t win his first race until 2004 and now has six wins in 20 final rounds. His career round win record is 233-366 with 27 DNQ’s.

David Hope, who rides John Hammock’s Vroom Racing Buell, has to go to great lengths to get to the races. Working on a job site in Alaska, Hope usually takes three or four flights to get to each race and that travel can take a day or more.

“It’s not easy but it tells you how much I want to race,” said Hope. “I was off the bike for a couple of years and I really missed it.”

Hope has struggled to qualify so far this year but he feels like his team is on the verge of a major breakthrough. Teammate Mike Berry, who races out of the same trailer as Hammock, ran a 6.932 in Norwalk to qualify in the top half of the field.

“We know we have good power, but we’re not getting it down the track consistently,” said Hammock. “When you have to abort runs, you get no data and that makes it hard to fix whatever issues you have. It’s easy to get behind the curve. This year, we changed our ECU to a Magnetti Morelli and that has been a big help. Hopefully, we’re about to turn things around quickly.

During Friday’s Q1, Hope did not make the sort of run he was looking for with a 7.181, but he ended the session as the 16th quickest qualifier.

The Stoffer/Underdahl team trailer is normally a very busy place but it’s especially hectic this weekend with the team fielding five Suzuki entries. Top ten contenders Scotty Pollacheck, Karen Stoffer, and rookie Joey Gladstone are being joined by part-timers Kelly Clontz and Andie Rawlings. The team may soon expand to six bikes after Greg Underdahl recently purchased Joe DeSantis’ Suzuki. John Hall is expected to ride the sixth bike, possibly as soon as the next round in Denver.

“We have a good group assembled here and right now, we have enough people to make it work,” said Underdahl. “This is the first time that Andie and Kelly are racing at the same race but they both wanted to come here. In a perfect world, we’d be really busy on Sunday. I’d love to see all five bikes being worked on after the first round.”

In Q1, Pollacheck was the quickest of the Stoffer/Underdahl Suzuki entires with a third-quickest 6.892. After a horrible 2016 season on Matt Smith’s Buell, Pollacheck is thrilled to have a motorcycle that is capable of contending for victories.

“I look at the points and see that I’m third but it doesn’t really feel like is,” said Pollacheck. “We’re doing well; we’re qualifying really solidly and we’re winning rounds. I just need to concentrate on getting to final rounds and not give myself a false sense of security. My bike goal is to make the Countdown. We need to be sure of that.”

QUALIFYING ROUND 2

As if his earlier 6.836 run wasn’t impressive enough, Matt Smith lowered the boom again with a 6.829 to lead the Pro Stock Motorcycle field. Smith’s Polaris Magnum has been the quickest bike in the last six sessions dating back to the Norwalk race two weeks ago. The second-quickest run of the round was Scotty Pollacheck’s 6.883 and Hector Arana Jr. was third-best at 6.884. It took just a few pairs for the bump spot in Pro Stock Motorcycle to dip into the six-second zone as conditions improved for Q2. After two runs, Angelle Sampey is the No. 16 qualifier with a 6.999.

QUALIFYING ROUND 1

After running the table during qualifying in Norwalk, Matt Smith picked up where he left off with a strong first qualifying effort at the Fallen Patriots NHRA Route 66 Nationals. Smith rode to a 6.836 for the top spot, and he is well ahead of second-ranked Hector Arana Jr., who posted a 6.891 on his Lucas Oil Buell. Scotty Pollacheck also picked up a qualifying bonus point with a 6.892 on his Suzuki Extended Protection bike. The current bump after one session is David Hope with a 7.181 on John Hammock’s Buell.

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Headquartered in Glendora, Calif., NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. NHRA presents 24 national events featuring the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series and NHRA J&A Service Pro Mod Drag Racing Series. NHRA provides competition opportunities for drivers of all levels in the NHRA Summit Racing Series and the NHRA Drags: Street Legal Style presented by AAA. NHRA also offers NHRA Jr. Street for teens and the Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League for youth ages 5 to 17. In addition, NHRA owns and operates five racing facilities: Atlanta Dragway in Georgia; Gainesville Raceway in Florida; National Trail Raceway in Ohio; Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis; and Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in Southern California. For more information, log on to NHRA.com