Atlanta Warren Johnson Report

THE WARREN REPORT: ADVANCE AUTO PARTS SOUTHERN NATIONALS RACE RESULTS

W.J. Marches Through Atlanta, Scores 75th Career Victory

ATLANTA - Warren Johnson staged his own reenactment of General Sherman's Civil War march through Georgia, rolling to his third win of the season and his 75th career victory today in the Advance Auto Parts Southern Nationals at Atlanta Dragway. W.J.'s GM Goodwrench Service Plus Pontiac utterly dominated the seventh round of the 22-race NHRA Winston Drag Racing Series. Johnson qualified No. 1 for the sixth time this year, set the track elapsed time and top speed records, reeled off a handful of 200 mph runs, and ran the quickest e.t. in all four rounds of eliminations.

W.J.'s fourth career victory at Atlanta Dragway kept him on pace with Funny Car driver John Force in the race to break Bob Glidden's record of 85 career NHRA victories. Johnson is tied with Force, who also won in Atlanta, with 75 wins.

Johnson set the pace in qualifying, reclaiming the track e.t. record from Jim Yates and capturing the No. 1 spot for the 108th time in his career. He topped 200 mph twice in qualifying and three times on race day - no other Pro Stock driver exceeded 200 mph at Atlanta Dragway.

W.J. defeated Tom Martino, Mark Pawuk, and Jim Yates to advance to his 117th career final round. "Young gun" Richie Stevens fouled in the final against Johnson, who enjoyed a substantial performance advantage over his teenage rival.

"I have to give the kid credit," said Johnson. "He tried and he came up a little short. That's just the way it is.

"It was pretty hot out there today, and negotiating the track to make a quick run was the hard part," Warren reported. "We have to win these races first for our team, but it's a little extra special to win at our home track."

Johnson now trails his son Kurt by eight points in the championship race after K.J. lost in the first round; he has a 211-point lead over third-ranked Jim Yates. Warren is the No. 1 seed in next weekend's Holley Pro Stock Dominator Duel, a special bonus event for Pro Stock drivers held in conjunction with the NHRA Mopar Parts Nationals in Englishtown, N.J.

WARREN JOHNSON RACE RESULTS: Qualifying: Warren Johnson qualified No. 1 at 6.901/200.83 Eliminations: Round 1: Warren Johnson (6.906/201.01) defeated Tom Martino (8.439/114.30) Round 2: Warren Johnson (6.936/200.83) defeated Mark Pawuk (7.050/197.13) Semi-Final: Warren Johnson (6.946/200.71) defeated Jim Yates (7.016/197.65) Final Round: Warren Johnson 6.998/198.93) defeated Richie Stevens (7.023/196.93 - red light)

Low ET: Warren Johnson, 6.901 seconds (track record) Top Speed: Warren Johnson, 201.01 mph (track record)

POINTS RACE: (After 7 of 22 events) Driver Wins Points 1. Kurt Johnson 2 613 2. Warren Johnson 3 605 3. Jim Yates 0 394 4. Richie Stevens 0 369 5. Troy Coughlin 0 362

NEXT RACE: Mopar Parts Nationals, May 20-23, Englishtown, N.J. TV: ESPN2, May 23, 7:30-9:30 p.m. Eastern - check local listings.