Mopar Wins Funny Car Title in Norwalk, Loses Pro Stock Finals

Team Mopar had a chance to take back to back double wins this past weekend at Summit Raceway Park in Norwalk Ohio with a pair of Dodge Chargers in the Funny Car finals and the top qualifier over in the Pro Stock class but in the end – only Johnny Gray was able to take home a win from Norwalk.

Things got started off well for the Team Mopar in the NHRA Pro Stock class this past weekend when Allen Johnson grabbed the top qualifying spot with a fast pass of 6.592 at 209.75 miles per hour.  In fact, all four of the Dodge Avenger race cars qualified in the top 6 with Jeg Coughlin qualifying 3^rd, V Gaines qualifying 4^th and Vincent Nobile qualifying 6^th.  Round 1 went great for all four drivers with Gaines beating Kenny Delco, Coughlin taking down Steve Spiess and Nobile beating Steve Kent while Allen Johnson got the easy win with a first round bye run.  Much like qualifying, Johnson turned the best time of round 1 on that free pass.

In round 2, Johnson again ran the fastest pass of the round as he beat Jason Line and in a battle of the Mopars, Vincent Nobile took down Jeg Coughlin in a very close run.  Unfortunately for V Gaines, troubles at the starting line sent him home as Shane Grey got the easy win.  In round 3, Johnson knocked out Shane Grey while Vincent Nobile lost to class leader Mike Edwards – who turned the best pass of the round against Nobile’s Avenger.  In the finals, Allen Johnson got the Mopar Avenger out to an early lead but when he ran into traction problems, it handed Mike Edwards his 4^th win of the 2013 season.

On the season, Allen Johnson sits second in the run for the championship, 153 points behind Edwards.  Jeg Coughlin is 3^rd (198 back of Edwards), Vincent Nobile is 6^th (468 points back) and V Gaines is in the 10^th spot, 629 out of first.

While the Team Mopar drivers in the Funny Car class weren’t able to tie down the top qualifying spot, Chargers landed in the 3^rd, 4^th, 6^th, 9^th, 14^th and 16^th thanks to Ron Capps, Johnny Gray, Matt Hagan, Jack Beckman, Jeff Arend and Blake Alexander in that order.  In round 1, 4 of the 6 Team Mopar drivers moved on as Blake Alexander lost to top qualifier John Force and Jeff Arend lost to fellow Charger driver Ron Capps.  Beckman made short work of Cruz Pedregon, Gray beat Alexis DeJoria, Hagan beat Tony Pedregon and as mentioned – Capps beat Arend.

In round 2, Beckman took on fast qualifier John Force and won when Force’s Mustang ran into traction issues.  Gray knocked out Chad Head with a big hole shot win and in a battle of the Mopar heavy hitters, Ron Capps beat Matt Hagan with the fastest run of the round.  In round 3, Beckman befell the same traction fate as Force in round 2 and that gave an easy win to Johnny Gray while Ron Capps beat John’s daughter Courtney Force to go onto the finals.  In the final run, Johnny Gray pulled a slight advantage of around 6 thousandths of a second and when both he and Capps ran identical 4.103 ETs – Gray got the big win.  That is how drag racing is done.

With the win, Johnny Gray pulled within 101 points of series point leader and fellow Team Mopar driver Matt Hagan.  Ron Capps sits in the 4^th spot 127 points back while Jack Beckman sits in the 6^th spot, 167 points out of first.

Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com

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