Mike Ashley made the decision to bring his new 2005 'Stang to Hattiesburg just a couple of days before the event and never was able to get a handle on the track, winding up dead last of 20 entries in qualifying. After running a best time of 5.202, the current NHRA Pro Mod champ explained he still had the Gainesville (FL) testing setup on the car and wasn't able to detune it enough in short order to hook up on the tricky 1/8-mile Hub City Dragway surface.

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Also debuting a new car in competition at Hattiesburg was Missouri's Ron Muenks with his "Black Bat" Larry Jeffers-built 1959 Corvette.

Kenny Rucker looked over his Sonny Leonard engine after an aborted test pass on Friday night. He went on to qualify third in the Pro Nitrous class at 4.540 secs and made it to the semis where he fell to eventual event winner Pilcher.