By Jerry Jordan, Editor
ENNIS, Texas – Shawn Langdon made the quickest run of his career under the lights Friday night at Texas Motorplex, grabbing the provisional No. 1 qualifier in Top Fuel and the $15,000 Battle for the Saddle bonus to open the Texas NHRA FallNationals.
The Top Fuel points leader went 3.648 seconds at 340.39 mph in his Kalitta Air dragster during JEGS Friday Night Live. It was the quickest Top Fuel run of the season, and it has Langdon in line for his eighth No. 1 qualifier of the year and the 30th of his career as the Kalitta Motorsports driver chases a fifth straight win and a fourth straight in the Countdown to the Championship.
Shawn Langdon, the Kalitta Motorsports driver who leads the Top Fuel standings by 116 points over Doug Kalitta, said the team was actually trying to run quicker.
“We were actually trying to run a little bit better than that, but in these conditions, you have to have everything perfect to do it – too much you’ll smoke, and not enough you’ll shake,” Langdon said. “So it’s a fine line. You have to hit it right, and, fortunately, we were able to.
“I’ve been a big advocate for night runs. I love racing at night and being able to make qualifying runs is awesome. Obviously, the track’s good here. You have good conditions. You know, with a little bit of incentivized money, those things are going to happen.”
Tony Stewart is second after a 3.668 at a track-record 343.70 mph, and defending event winner Doug Kalitta is third at 3.668 and 338.80 mph.
Beckman Banks the Funny Car Bonus
Jack Beckman matched Langdon on the Funny Car side, winning the Battle for the Saddle with a 3.852 at 330.13 mph in his PEAK Chevrolet Camaro SS for John Force Racing. Beckman entered the weekend fourth in points and is closing in on his fourth No. 1 qualifier of the season.
Jack Beckman, the John Force Racing veteran who needs a big weekend to stay in the championship conversation, said the hardest part was watching the eight pairs behind him take their shots.
“We were sixth pair, and there’s 10 pairs here with a huge Funny Car turnout here. So we ran well, but then we’ve got to watch eight quality cars behind us, any one of which could have exceeded our run, and [Matt] Hagan came closest, but nobody exceeded us,” Beckman said. “So, it’s 15 grand from the Texas Motorplex, and then JEGS sweetened the pot with another 1,000 bucks. I just thought that was fantastic.
“We were pushing hard. I could feel it, but I had my hands full. The car started going right, and when you’re pushing that hard, any steering input is detrimental to performance, and too much steering input is going to upset the rear tires. So I moved it back into the groove. I thought I did a reasonable job, straightened it out and started going to the right again.”
Points leader Matt Hagan is second at 3.855 and 334.80 mph, and Cruz Pedregon is third at 3.855 and 323.83 mph. The shocker on the qualifying sheet is defending event winner Austin Prock, who sits 18th at 4.201 and is not qualified with two sessions left on Saturday.
Stanfield and Herrera Lead After One Session
Changing weather limited Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle to a single qualifying session on Friday, and both points pictures tightened at the top.
Pro Stock leader Greg Stanfield went 6.460 at 212.80 mph in his Janac Brothers Racing Camaro for Elite Motorsports and is in line for his second No. 1 qualifier of the year. Troy Coughlin Jr. is second at 6.464, Greg Anderson is third at 6.468 and Dallas Glenn is fourth at 6.469.
Greg Stanfield, the Pro Stock points leader who has built his Countdown run on mistake-free consistency, said the team left a little on the table.
“This says a lot for our team. Things are going well for us, and we’re just trying to keep that momentum going,” Stanfield said. “We haven’t made any mistakes, and we’re just trying to build off of that. We did a little testing last week, and we’re working hard to try to keep this thing up front.
“We felt like we needed to go a .45 to be what I call a ‘perfect pass,’ so there was a little bit left there. We were just trying to pick it apart as best as we can and trying to get those little points.”
In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Gaige Herrera ripped off a 6.676 at 202.22 mph on his RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki to lead the lone session. The two-time world champion would bank his fourth No. 1 qualifier of the year if the run holds through Saturday, and he has the points leader on the ropes early. Richard Gadson, who leads Herrera by 32 points, sits 12th after a troubled 7.794 at 124.56 mph. Matt Smith is second at 6.709 and Angie Smith is third at 6.725.
Gaige Herrera, the two-time Pro Stock Motorcycle world champion who won at St. Louis to pull within 32 points of the lead, said the bike never missed a beat in the wind.
“My bike’s been phenomenal lately. I don’t think Andrew [Hines] touched it since St. Louis. He said it was good. He put the cover on it and headed to Dallas,” Herrera said.
“Today we were battling with the weather and the wind. For me to go up there and go a nice straight run, I was very happy with that. I didn’t feel the wind much at all. So we’re off to a good start here in Dallas. This track has been good to me and I hope to keep it going throughout the weekend.”
Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle get three qualifying sessions on Saturday, including their own Battle for the Saddle bonus session. Qualifying continues Saturday and final eliminations are set for Sunday.