Jeff Taylor Secures his 49th NHRA Wally
Jeff Taylor leads the weekend with his win in Stock Eliminator at the Auto Club NHRA Finals, making it his 49th National event Wally.
POMONA, CA – NHRA closed out their 70th year of racing at the Auto Club Finals in Pomona, CA. Jeff Taylor (STK) and Jimmy DeFrank (SS) were just two of the several people who visited the winners circle to close out their year.
Joining them in the winners circle were Ryan Warter (Comp), Cody Perkins (SC), Steve Williams (SG), Parker Theobald (TD), and Jeff Gillette (TS).
Read the race recap below to meet the winners and see who closed out the year with a win!
2021 Auto Club NHRA Finals Recap
Competition Eliminator – Ryan Warter
Ryan Warter collected his second National event Wally after defeating Scott McClay in the final round. McClay nailed the tree with a .006 reaction time, but Warter got to the stripe first by running an 8.749 at 159 mph.
John Edwards and Tibor Kadar were the semi-finalists.
Stock Eliminator – Jeff Taylor
Jeff Taylor defeated Randi Lyn Shipp in the final round to take home his 49th National event Wally. Taylor had the starting line advantage, .044 to .088, and he took the DeFrank owned FS/B Camaro to the stripe running a 9.422 at 132 mph on his 9.25 dial-in.
Mark Kirby and Leo Glasbrenner were the semi-finalists.
Super Stock – Jimmy DeFrank
Jimmy DeFrank won his 21st National event Wally after defeating Angelo DeCarlo in the final round. DeFrank had a slight starting line advantage, .014 to .018, and had problems going down to the track but DeCarlo took too much stripe to breakout!
Jon Irving and Chris Hall were the semi-finalists.
Super Comp – Cody Perkins
Cody Perkins defeated Ken Mostowich in the final round to take home his second National event Wally. Perkins had the starting line advantage, .018 to .054, and ran a 8.904 at 151 mph on the 8.90 index. Mostowich ran a 8.908 at 188 mph but his late reaction time did not help him.
Damon Bustamante and Matt Woodard were the semi-finalists.
Super Gas – Steve Williams
Steve Williams won his 15th National event Wally after taking out Roger Kato in the final round. Kato turned on the red bulb by -.016 to hand the win over to Williams who was .029 and ran a 9.877 at 164 mph on the 9.90 index.
Devin Isenhower and Greg Martin were the semi-finalists.
Top Dragster – Parker Theobald
Parker Theobald won his second National event Wally, his first in Top Dragster, after defeating Jennifer Wiens in the final round. Theobald had the starting line advantage, .025 to .061, and Wiens slowed down-track to give Theobald the win, who ran a 7.498 at 164 mph on his 7.47 dial-in.
Summer Richardson and John Richardson were the semi-finalists.
Top Sportsman – Jeff Gillette
Jeff Gillette won his fifth National event Wally after defeating Ryan Priddy in the final round. Gillette had the starting line advantage, .019 to .033, and ran dead on his 6.95 dial-in with a 7 at 199 mph.
Jimmy Lewis and Florentino Martin were the semi-finalists.
An avid racer herself, Megan Strassweg, 28, sees her two worlds collide with DragChamp – journalism and drag racing. Megan resides in Evansville, IN, and she pilots a 2015 American Dragster in the NHRA North Central Division 3 Super Comp series, along with some local bracket racing on the side. Her passion for racing began early, having grown up at the racetrack, and she remains committed to the sport.
You can reach Megan on Facebook or email at megan@dragchamp.com
You can reach Megan on Facebook or email at megan@dragchamp.com
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