Smokies Garage presents results summaries from more major league Pro Mod class competition….
A Rousing Round 3!
For the second consecutive race on the 2024 Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series tour it was 4X Switzer Dynamics Pro Nitrous world champion Jim Halsey winning the event after qualifying No. 1.
Halsey’s latest victory came Saturday night at the Smokies Garage American Doorslammer Challenge presented by Callies Performance at Summit Motorsports Park when he defeated fellow Maryland native Fredy Scriba in the final round. Halsey led wire to wire, posting a 3.665-second pass at 207.53 MPH to beat a 3.673 at 203.03 from Scriba, who also appeared in his second final round of the season.
Jim Halsey roared to another PDRA Pro Nitrous event title during the Smokies Garage American Door Slammer Challenge event.
Todd Tutterow, who won the season opener in April, rebounded from his DNQ at the last race on tour by qualifying No. 1 and winning the American Doorslammer Challenge. The two-time Pro Boost world champion stepped up his performance in each round behind the wheel of his screw-blown Quik Fuel ’69 Camaro. Tutterow won on the starting line in the final round, as first-time finalist Marcus Birt went red by .043 seconds on a 3.661-second pass at 205.63. Tutterow set low E.T. of the event with his winning 3.62 at 208.30.
2X PDRA World Champ Todd Tutterow scored in Pro Boost at Norwalk.
Halsey & Tutterrow shared the winner’s circle with Daryl Stewart in Liberty’s Gears Extreme Pro Stock presented by AED Competition, Walter Lannigan Jr. in PDRA Pro 632, Brunson Grothus in Drag 965 Pro Extreme Motorcycle, Ethan Steding in Menscer Motorsports Pro Street presented by Afco Racing, and Connor McGee in Afco Racing Super Street presented by Menscer Motorsports
In the PDRA’s sportsman categories, trophies went to Bruce Thrift in MagnaFuel Elite Top Sportsman presented by PAR Racing Engines, KC Ingram in Laris Motorsports Insurance Elite Top Dragster presented by Greenbrier Excavating & Paving, Mike Alexander Jr. in MagnaFuel Top Sportsman presented by Corbin’s RV, and Richie Allen in Laris Motorsports Insurance Top Dragster presented by Younce RV. The Edelbrock Bracket Bash presented by COMP Cams win went to Brittanie Ulmer from nearby Port Clinton. Driving her ’10 American dragster, she defeated Bernard Weaver in his ’84 Daytona in the sixth and final round.
The American Doorslammer Challenge also included fierce competition in the PDRA’s Jr. Dragster classes, where Carson Hoyle (Coolshirt Systems Pro Jr. Dragster presented by Philadelphia Racing Products) and Lexus Trauth (Classic Graphix Top Jr. Dragster presented by Philadelphia Racing Products) were victorious.
A Successful Subsitution!
Filling in for former world champion Jose Gonzalez, Eric Dillard picked up the victory in the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+ — part of the 24th annual Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals presented by PEAK Performance at Chicago’s Route 66 Raceway.
It was the third of 10 races during the 2024 season and this weekend’s event was powered by PGT Trucking, Inc. Facing off with Khalid AlBalooshi in the final round, Dillard went 5.766-seconds at 249.95 mph in the Q80 Chevrolet Camaro, picking up his second career win in the category.
After qualifying second with a 5.732 at 246.62, Dillard was impressively consistent throughout eliminations, going either 5.75 or 5.76 in every round, defeating Stan Shelton, Justin Bond and Billy Banaka to reach the final round. He left with AlBalooshi and then drove off for the victory to finish off a stellar weekend.
Eric Dillard picked up the victory in the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series race held at Chicago.
“It’s crazy I even get to come out here and do this,” Dillard said. “I’ve got to thank Jose and this team. They carried me today and I’m just blessed to be able to come out here and race. I can’t thank everybody enough for supporting what we do. This is awesome and I appreciate everyone on this team. It’s all the people behind me. This thing was on point all day. At the end of the day, that’s what teamwork is all about. I got carried today and it felt pretty good.”
To reach his first final round this season and the ninth in his career, AlBalooshi, a former world champion, knocked off Jason Lee, Ken Quartuccio and Kris Thorne.
Khalid AlBalooshi raced his supercharged Bahrain 1 Camaro to a strong R/UP finish.
PM class racing was an exciting affair at Joliet with 22 cars entered producing a bump spot of 5.814 secs. Ken Quartuccio was the pole sitter (5.718 secs) however it was Canadian racer Jordan Lazic (Rutland BC) who collected both low ET and top speed of the race – running a career fast 5.687 secs at 253.94 mph while winning in round one.
Canada’s Jordan Lazic was credited with both top speed and low ET for Pro Mod at the NHRA Chicagoland event.
The Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+ returns to action May 31-June 2 with the 14th annual NHRA New England Nationals at New England Dragway in Epping, N.H.
Father V Son Finale!
The opening season round for the NEOPMA Season Opener (held at Maryland International Raceway) featured an all family affair final round.
For the second time in three years, the father-son duo of Mike Decker Jr. and Mike “Hollywood” Decker III met up this time for the 16th annual Atomizer Racing Injectors Door Wars presented by ATI Performance Products event title.
And it was Decker III defeating his father to earn his first win in Pro Modified competition.
Mike Decker III won his first career Pro Mod race during the NEOPM season opener.
In qualifying, the Deckers went to the No. 1 and 2 spots, with Decker Jr. in his screw-blown Decker’s Salvage ’17 Camaro going No. 1 with a 3.576-second pass at 211.06 MPH. Decker III wasn’t far behind with his 3.591 in his screw-blown Decker’s Salvage ’23 Camaro
Decker III started eliminations with a 3.637 at 206.61 to get the first-round win over Matt Deitsch, who ran a 3.737 in his nitrous-fed ’69 Camaro. He improved to a 3.628 at 207.02 to get the win over Jay Santos, who slowed to a 6.626. That set up a semifinal pairing with the red-hot Derek Ward. As expected, it was a side-by-side race, with Decker III’s 3.628 at 207.43 beating Ward’s 3.632 at 209.33 by just 13 thousandths of a second.
In the final round, Decker III fired off low E.T. of eliminations, a 3.597 at 207.82, to get the decisive win over his father, who started to get sideways and lifted to a 4.924 at 100.90. Decker III collected a $7,000 payday for his win.
“Three times we’ve met in the finals, and finally I had the upper hand,” Decker III said.
With a win at the NEOPMA season opener, Decker III now has the confidence boost and the points he needs to pursue a NEOPMA championship to go along with Decker Jr.’s two titles in the series.
The NEOPMA will next to Empire Dragway in Leicester, New York, on June 21-22 for the Northeast Outlaw Pro Mod Challenge VI.
Posted with files by Nate Van Wagnen – NHRA Communications – Bruce Biegler
Photos by Steve Embling, Tara Bowker, Dave DeAngelis, AJ Pinder, Sadie Glenn & Courtesy of NHRA
