In a spectacular top-end qualifying incident Whit Bazemore exploded his right rear Goodyear in a shower of sparks, tearing off a large part of the body and wing, and pushing the car into the guardrail. Whit and crew chief, Lee Beard, went to the trailer for the "Bling Bling" MOPAR body to race for the rest of the weekend. Whit qualified 4th and would meet number 5 qualifier, teammate Gary Scelzi (below), a 25-time Top Fuel winner who was still searching for his Funny Car win.

Under the tuning of Mike Neff, Scelzi marched through the Funny Car field, defeating Scotty Cannon, Bazemore, Force in the semis, and then Skuza in the final. Scelzi said, "It's great to get this thing off our backs and prove we could win."

PRO STOCK

Jeg Coughlin grabbed his first victory of the season on a hole shot, defeating point's leader Greg Anderson. Coughlin ran 6.839 at 201.07 to beat Anderson's quicker 6.798 at 203.37 in his Grand Am.

THE BIKES

Pro Stock bike qualifying was amazing, with a strong 7.189 bump spot lead by Craig Treble's track record 7.062 at 189.79. Champion crew chief George Bryce's influence has spread to his involvement with Reggie Showers and Fred Collis, who qualified third and tenth, respectively.

Bryce characterized the Army's entry into Pro Stock Bike and their sponsorship of Angelle and Antron Brown, saying, "It's all good for the class. The Army is putting water into the Pro Stock Bike lake and it's helping all the boats float. It is going to help us grow from that standpoint. Also, the class needs the Schumacher effort, the Army sponsorship, and Angelle's presence."

George Bryce will soon be changing his focus to the Harley Davidson side by his development of a Buell Firebolt XB9R seen here under the scrutiny of NHRA's Tech Department.

In the finals, Geno Scali rode his Suzuki to a 7.177 at 189.68, holding off Andrew Hines' Harley that recorded a run of 7.264 at 180.48. Scali now leads Angelle by 188 points for the bike points championship.