For the first time in over a month the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series returned. This time it was the Four-Wide Nationals in Las Vegas and saw former winners return.
Steve Torrence, Bob Tasca III, Erica Enders and Ryan Oehler each pick up the win in their respective classes. Torrence out ran the Top Fuelers to grab yet another victory as he looks for four straight Top Fuel titles. Tasca grabbed the win for the seventh time in his career. Enders, the defending Pro Stock champion, picked up yet another win in Las Vegas. This is a place she has owned. Oehler dueled with the Denso sponsored bikes this weekend and stole the show with his second win of his young career.
Torrence Top Fuel Reign
Once again, Steve Torrence found victory lane. In only the second event of the season, the defending Top Fuel champion, picked up his first win in 2021 and the 41st of his career.
In the final he out ran the other four drivers by clocking a 3.82 at 321mph in the 1,000 foot track. Second to the line was Doug Kalitta. The longtime driver finished with runner up honors as his engine expired at the end of the run. Kalitta ran a 3.86 but at only 270mph.
Clay Millican took the third place finish and similar to Kalitta his engine let go through the lights. Millican ran a 3.91 at 290mph. Former champion, Antron Brown, ran across the finish line at fourth. Brown was first out of the gate but lost traction and ran only a 4.72.
For Torrence to get to the finals he had to out run Kalitta, Shawn Langdon and Leah Pruett in the semi-finals to advance on. During the four-wide event if you finished in the top two in the first two rounds you advanced to the finals and had a shot to drive for the trophy. Torrence took second place in the semi-finals but still advanced to the finals where he would pick up the win.
Top qualifier, Brittany Force lost in the semi-finals along with Billy Torrence, Steve’s father, to Millican and Brown. Force was the top qualifier on the weekend and looked like the car to beat. However, Force had cylinders out and was unable to make it to the finals.
1. Steve Torrence 0.042 3.823 321.73
2. Doug Kalitta 0.059 3.866 270.75
3. Clay Millican 0.070 3.914 290.88
4. Antron Brown 0.041 4.728 157.83
Tasca Gets it Done
For the seventh time in his career, Bob Tasca III grabbed a Funny Car national event win. This time it comes at a four-wide event. His prior success in the four-wide came at Charlotte with a runner-up in 2011.
Tacsa picked up the win on a holeshot. Tim Wilkerson ran faster than Tasca but it was Tasca leaving the line first that helped him get the win. Wilkerson finished third in the race to the finish line. Last year’s Funny Car champion, Matt Hagan finished in the runner up position as he ran a consistent pass but was not able to catch Tasca. Also making the finals was Ron Capps but he finished fourth.
It was Tasca’s second quickest leaving time that put him in position to win in the finals. He ran a 3.93 to secure his seventh win of his career. Hagan ran a 3.95 on his way to runner up honors. Wilkerson was the quickest on the track but third to the line. He ran a 3.92 in the 1,000 feet. Capps was no slouch and ran a 3.97 but was fourth at the finish.
Literal fireworks took place in the opening round of the day for top qualifier Robert Hight. Hight exploded the motor in the first round but was able to make it to the next round. This sent his John Force Racing team into a mad thrash getting the car put back together in time for the semi-finals. He would make it back up in time for the semi-finals but lost to Tasca and Capps in that round.
1. Bob Tasca III, ’19 Mustang 0.057 3.938 328.46
2. Matt Hagan, ’21 Charger 0.056 3.955 324.98
3. Tim Wilkerson, ’20 Mustang 0.095 3.922 320.43
4. Ron Capps, ’20 Charger 0.071 3.978 316.75
Enders Dominance at Vegas Continues
Erica Enders not only is the defending Pro Stock champion but she also has won at Las Vegas a lot in her career. Count it, six times Enders has won at Las Vegas. Sunday, she added her seventh win at the Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and her 30th Wally to the collection. In her last six final rounds, Enders has been victorious and is the first driver to win from the bottom half of the field.
During the final round she ran the quickest at 6.656 at 205mph. Enders was second off the starting line but out ran Aaron Stanfield who was first to leave and second to the stripe. Stanfield, the son of former Pro Stock driver Greg, ran a 6.66 at 205mph but was first off the line leading to his runner up spot.
Deric Kramer would run third with a second quickest 6.659. First time finalist and second generation driver Mason McGaha would red light that would disqualify him from the finals.
Greg Anderson who was the fastest in qualifying would be ousted in the semi-finals. Anderson won in Gainesville to open the season from the top spot bit he wouldn’t be able to do the same in Vegas. It was Enders and Stanfield that beat Anderson in his semi-final quad.
Some surprise finalists came out in the four-wide as per usual. However, the winner was the least predictable of the four that were left standing. Enders qualified 13th but was able to run the table from the bottom half of the bracket to pick up the win.
1. Erica Enders, ’19 Camaro 0.021 6.656 205.88
2. Aaron Stanfield, ’19 Camaro 0.018 6.667 205.26
3. Deric Kramer, ’20 Camaro 0.042 6.659 205.57
4. Mason McGaha, ’21 Camaro -0.009(R) 6.698 201.70
Oehler Upsets the Bikes in Vegas
Continuing with the unlikely finalists ‘Flyin’ Ryan Oehler not only made the finals bit picked up his second career win. Oehler made the finals in Gainesville but lost there. His Pro Stock Motorcycle had been battling motor issues heading into the weekend and during qualifying. Those issues seemed to be figured out as it was Oehler stealing the win in Vegas.
One of the only riders who builds their own engines, Oehler and his family were able to fix the problems and ride to the winners circle in the second race of the season. He’s been hot to start the year after he made the finals in Gainesville and now winning in Las Vegas.
.@FlyinRyanPSM began his weekend at the #Vegas4WideNats with a triple brake failure that put his EBR into the top-end sand trap but ended up with him and his crew standing in their second career winner’s circle.https://t.co/MHlqFf8sUW pic.twitter.com/f9opUWfNhq
— National Dragster (@NHRADragster) April 19, 2021
Oehler left on green first and was the quickest to the stripe. It was his 6.91 at 194mph to pick up the victory in the four-wide race. It is his first four-wide win. Cory Reed took the runner up spot by running a 6.94 at 193mph. Steve Johnson by default takes the third place finish. His bike broke in the staging lights and he wasn’t able to make a pass. The favorite heading into the final was Scotty Pollacheck but that wasn’t the case. Pollacheck left the light too soon and ended his day by going red on the tree.
Probably the wildest day of the four professional classes came with the bikes. In the semi-final, Matt Smith who was the top qualifier lost. Not only did he lose but he was fourth to the stripe and not able to make it to the finals for back to back races. His wife, Angie Smith, was the second qualifier but she too lost and was fourth across the stripe.
Another upset was when Angelle Sampey lost in her semifinals. She had one of the most consistent bikes all weekend but couldn’t advance to the finals.
1. Ryan Oehler, ’18 EBR 0.025 6.911 194.83
2. Cory Reed, ’21 Suzuki 0.049 6.948 193.10
3. Steve Johnson, ’03 Suzuki NT-Broke After Staging
4. Scotty Pollacheck, ’19 EBR -0.010(R) 6.914 193.57
The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series returns to action in two weeks when they head to the Atlanta area for the final NHRA Southern Nationals before the Atlanta Dragway goes off the NHRA schedule.
