Englishtown: Tommy Johnson Jr final summary

TOMMY JOHNSON JR. CROWNED ENGLISHTOWN CHAMPION
- Skoal Racing Overcomes First Round Car Fire with Win #2 for Don Prudhomme -

Englishtown, NJ (June 25, 2007) -- In week two of a grueling six-week racing stretch, Tommy Johnson Jr. and SKOAL Racing captured the Funny Car Division trophy in the 38th Annual ProCare Rx NHRA Supernationals at the Old Bridge Township Raceway Park.

Johnson had his best weekend of the season by far, setting a track record in the first day of qualifiers, and heading into Sunday in the top qualifying position. He was victorious in defeating (in order) Gary Densham, Jack Beckman, Jeff Arend and Tony Pedregon. This is Johnson's first track victory as the number one qualifier heading to the elimination rounds.

"What an unbelievable day--this is a great feeling," said Johnson. "We've taken our lumps this season, so this win is even sweeter for all of us. It got a little scary in the first run, but our crew doesn't know the word quit. They came back ready after the fire and worked real hard to get the Impala up and running. I'm very honored to be driving for SKOAL Racing and for Don Prudhomme. Englishtown is a great track, and we're glad we could bring the trophy home for Snake."

Johnson and the SKOAL Racing Chevrolet had a chilling moment in their showdown against Densham, as the Impala caught fire towards the end of the run. Johnson escaped with no injuries--the same could not be said for the car's engine and body. However, both were quickly replaced and Johnson came back strong for his win over Beckman with the low E-Time of the elimination rounds with a 4.914.

The dramatics didn't end there. After capturing a clean victory over Arend, Johnson battled Pedregon in the Finals. Pedregon took the early lead at 60 feet, but Johnson claimed position and the trophy at the 330 marker, winning with a pass of 4.994 at 305.84 mph. This was Johnson's second finals win over Pedregon.

His impressive weekend began on Friday with a 2nd qualifying run of 4.729 seconds at 321.96 mph--a track record. He left Saturday still in the #1 slot with a run of 4.864 seconds at 315 mph.

Johnson now currently sits in 8th place in the 2007 NHRA POWERade Championship Point Standings, sitting right on the cut-off line for the Championship playoff format. Larry Dixon, Top Fuel dragster for Don Prudhomme/Snake Racing, took the victory in that division and currently sits second on the Top Fuel all-time wins list. This is Dixon's second Top Fuel victory in a row.

-credit: dpr