2015 NMCA Super Bowl Slugfest Results

NMCA Race Wrap for 10th Annual Nitto Tire NMCA/NMRA Super Bowl of Street Legal Drag Racing at Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, IL

Santa Ana, Calif. (August 5, 2015) – For the tenth year in a row, the NMCA Flowmaster Drag Racing series pulled into Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Illinois, for the Nitto Tire Super Bowl of Street Legal Drag Racing. The exciting event joins the NMCA and its sister series, the NMRA, for a weekend of hard-launching, high-horsepower action, and this year’s event attracted more than 600 cars of various elapsed-time levels in twenty-three categories.

NMCA and NMRA drivers focused on qualifying and racing in their respective categories until the final day of competition, when NMCA event winners and NMRA event winners squared off against each other to claim the Super Bowl championship. Each member of the winning team received a Nitto Tire Diamond Tree ring that features diamonds, rubies, and emeralds in the shape of a drag-racing Christmas tree, along with some money to fill their pockets. For the eighth time, the NMRA took the win over the NMCA, which has earned two wins in Super Bowl history.

In the fast and furious VP Racing Fuels Pro Mod class, Steve Summers lit up the track in his ’70 ½ Camaro with a 5.86 at 254 mph to oust Josh Green and his ’69 Camaro, who was no slouch with a 6.02 at 237 mph. In Mickey Thompson Radial Wars, DeWayne Mills and his ’68 Camaro had the track to themselves, as Keith Berry elected to keep his ’02 Corvette Z06 in the pit area after discovering that his cylinder heads were leaking a small amount of water. Mills trapped a solo 4.52 and 133 mph for the win and a trip to the Aerospace Components Winner’s Circle.

In ARP Nitrous Pro Street, veteran racer Don Baskin powered his ’10 Camaro to a 7.39 at 184 mph to grab the win over class stalwart, Joe Bucaro, whose ’04 Mustang muscled its way to a 8.83 at 99 mph. VP Racing Fuels/Stainless Works Street Outlaw action saw newcomer Rich Bruder power his ’88 Mustang to a 4.53 at 163 mph and the win. In the other lane, it was Eric Gustafson and his ’89 Mustang that limped to a 9.87 at 52 mph after an oil line on one of his valve covers vibrated loose when he released his transbrake.

Edelbrock Xtreme Street saw an exciting final between reigning class champion, David Hutnick, who blasted to a 7.75 at 179 mph in his ’02 Camaro to defeat Louie Filippides, whose equally stunning ’10 Camaro clocked 7.80 at 177 mph. With times like that in his first stab at Edelbrock Xtreme Street, it won’t be long before we see Filippides in the Aerospace Components Winner’s Circle.

In the high-revving Quick Lane of Downs Ford NA 10.5 class, Leonard Long stick-shifted his way to an 8.05 at 171 mph in his ’95 Mustang to win over Dwight Ausmus, who posted an 8.07 at 169 mph in his ’72 Firebird. Chevrolet Performance Stock presented by Scoggin-Dickey Parts Center saw Glenn Pushis keeping his momentum by motoring his ’13 Camaro to a 10.69 at 125 mph to best Ronnie Hackelton and his ’13 Camaro, which went through the traps at 10.58 and 124 mph.

In MagnaFuel Open Comp competition, David Hearn used his ’69 Camaro to cruise to a 10.68 at 126 mph and the win over Louie Raffetto, whose ’66 Chevy II blasted to a 9.58 at 141 mph for the runner-up spot. The E3 Spark Plugs Top Sportsman final pitted Matt Szymczak, who ran a 7.42 at 181 mph in his ’95 Cutlass Supreme, against Steve Jaeger whose ’96 Monte Carlo ran 7.21 at 188 mph-Szymczak came out on top.

Detroit TrueTrac Nostalgia Muscle Car saw Mike Clifford and his ’66 ‘Cuda run an 11.02 at 120 mph to advance over multi-time champion Andy Warren and his ’71 Caprice, which clocked a 10.49 at 124 mph. In ATI Performance Nostalgia Super Stock, Corky Bumpus and his ’67 ‘Cuda settled into the Aerospace Components Winner’s Circle with an 11.25 at 97 mph after dispatching longtime class runner D.W. Hopkins, whose ’64 Thunderbolt trapped a 10.93 at 106 mph.

With the Gear Vendors True Street having moved to Saturday in recent years, attendance is up and 28 competitors entered for the NMCA class. If it weren’t for the parachute hanging of the back, Chris Bishir’s S10 would look like any other grocery getter. The turbocharged LS engine under the hood propelled Bishir to an 8.62-second average to claim the top prize. Mike Duke was runner up with a 9.12 and Randy Thomas was third fastest of the day and claimed the 9-second prize with a 9.52. Tom Javan and his Nova took the 10-second slot with a 10.93 average while Kevin Rowland took the 11-second award with an 11.19 average. Ben Rosi ran his Camaro to a three-run average of 12.23 for the 12-second prize, Melissa Boose hauled her Chevy C10 pickup to the lowest 13-second average, and Tom Cumbey posted a 14.05 to claim the 14-second win. James Novak rounded out the True Street awards, claiming the 15-second prize with a 15.46 average in his Monte Carlo.

In Bracket 1, Jay Allen piloted his dragster to an 8.01 at 165 mph to beat out Fred Whitcomb and his ’88 Firebird, which stopped the clocks at 8.44 at 163 mph. Then in Bracket 2, John Singleton, Jr.’s ’68 Dart dove to a 9.76 at 137 mph to steal the win from series regular Kurt Anderson and his ’69 Camaro, which clocked 9.92 at 134 mph. Bracket 3 brought together Mike Baker, who drove to a 13.79 at 94 mph to defeat Shelby Wendel, whose ’16 Mustang settled in at 13.13 at 104 mph.

The next stop in the NMCA Flowmaster Drag Racing series is the 14th Annual NMCA World Street Finals featuring the Chevrolet Performance Challenge Series, August 27-30, 2015, at the always-fast Summit Motorsports Park. For information go to www.nmcadigital.com.