The right lane yielded all four winners in round one, with Parker, Griffis, Baker, and Hancock Jr. advancing to the semis, where the pairings were Parker versus Baker and Griffis against Hancock Jr. Unfortunately -- though it didn't appear a factor in the openers -- water seepage in the left lane helped decide both races.

Baker barely moved after spinning in some water that got pulled up through a crack on the starting line during his burnout. "I knew something had to be under the tire because it don't ever do that," he said later. Meanwhile, Parker dodged a bullet when he shook the tires hard off the launch, but pedaled and salvaged a 5.397-secs pass.

James Hancock Jr. set top speed of the meet at 175.13 mph straight off the trailer in the opening round of qualifying. The Opelika, AL-based racer said he's working on a new 2004 Corvette to replace his current ride about mid-season.

Hancock Jr. had an even more dramatic moment in his '57 Shoebox after losing traction on a damp spot about half-track and veering toward Griffis, who ran another 4.23 in the right lane with his Sonny's 706-equipped 2001 Viper. "It's carrying the front wheels too far down the track, but I don't want to mess with it," Griffis said. "It's consistent and that can win any race."

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In the final round, Griffis left first with a .012 holeshot, but Parker had already reeled him in by the 60-foot marker. They stayed side-by-side for nearly 300 feet, Parker said, but once he hit third gear and the third stage of nitrous, it was all over. He set low E.T. of the meet with a 4.185 at 172.31, while Griffis put together a 4.267-secs pass at 173.65 mph. "We had been running two stages all day, but when we saw him run that .23 in the semis, we knew we had to step it up," Parker explained.

David Griffis (near lane), from Albany, GA, had the better start in the final round, but Columbus, GA's Dan Parker reached the finish line first, marking the only victory in the left lane all day.