MORRISON, Colo.—Greg Anderson set two track records and Eddie Krawiec added another on the final day of qualifying Saturday at the NHRA Mile-High Nationals.
Anderson set Pro Stock track records in elapsed time (7.02 seconds) and miles per hour (196.30) on his first run of the day. The times earned him the top qualifying spot for the elimination rounds on Sunday.
“The track is the best it’s ever been,” Anderson said. “We’re happy with the race track, we’re happy with our race car.”
Allen Johnson had held the elapsed time record of 7.032 seconds, which he set on July 13, 2007. Jason Line captured the speed mark of 195.73 mph on the same day.
Coming off a victory at Norwalk, Ohio, Anderson is seeking his fifth win of the season. He’s also won in Englishtown, N.J., Houston and Pomona, Calif.
Krawiec made it back-to-back No. 1 qualifying spots in Pro Stock Motorcycle by setting the track record with a time of 7.328 seconds. The record of 7.332 seconds was posted by Chip Ellis on July 15, 2006.
“When you’re up on the mountain it’s hard to make horsepower,” Krawiec said.
Krawiec is winless in his career. He made it into the semifinal round at St. Louis and Norwalk earlier this year, where he was beaten both times.
There wasn’t much change at the top in Top Fuel or Funny Car classifications. The Top seven places remained the same with Top Fuel team members Cory McClenathan and Tony Schumacher holding the top two places.
McClenathan, whose only win this year came in Las Vegas, also earned a first-round bye for Sunday. Schumacher has Top Fuel wins in Englishtown, Chicago, Bristol, Conn., Gainesville, Fla., and Pomona.
Longtime combatants Tony Pedregon and John Force were the top two qualifiers in Funny Car.
The tandem went head-to-head in their two qualifying races on Saturday. Pedregon ran the 1,000-foot track in 4.275 seconds and Force in 4.297 seconds.
The drivers are still getting used to running the new distance. In the wake of Scott Kalitta’s recent death in a racing accident, the NHRA took an interim step, reducing the length of Top Fuel and Funny Car races to 1,000 feet. The change from the quarter-mile track took effect this weekend.
The race at Bandimere Speedway is the first time the NHRA has conducted racing at any distance other than a quarter-mile at a national event since the first one was held in 1955.
“It’s hard to judge where 1,000 feet is,” Pedregon said. “If anything, I may run it a little farther because you don’t want to shut it off early … We’re hoping they put a stripe or something on (the track). I don’t know if that will help going 300 miles per hour.”
