RAHAIM RACES TO TOP QUALIFYING POSITION; LOSES IN FIRST ROUND OF ELIMINATIONS FOR THE NHRA J&A SERVICE PRO MOD DRAG RACING SERIES EVENT AT THE MENARDS NHRA HEARTLAND NATIONALS PRESENTED BY MINTIES
TOPEKA, Kan. – Bob Rahaim raced to the qualifying lead for the NHRA J&A Service Pro Mod Drag Racing Series portion of the Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals presented by Minties at Heartland Park Topeka. His pass of 5.7460-seconds at 251.49 mph in the second qualifying session secured his first No. 1 qualifying position of the season.
He later failed to capitalize on his success in eliminations which began Saturday afternoon.
Rahaim faced Larry Morgan in the first round and gave away the win at the start of the run when he red-lit. Morgan went on to run a pass of 5.868 at 250.55. Morgan will face Steve Jackson, who defeated Jonathan Gray, when racing resumes Sunday.
Kahlid Al Balooshi, the No. 2 qualifier, also suffered an early defeat to Steven Whiteley in the opening round. Al Balooshi lost on a holeshot as Whiteley posted a .028 reaction time and run of 5.819 at 244.83 to the losing run of 5.811 at 249.67 with a .057 reaction time. Whiteley will be pitted against Steve Matusek in the second round.
Shane Molinari moved into the second after defeating Michael Biehle II with a winning time of 5.795 at 244.03 after qualifying third initially. Molinari and his team will be challenged on Sunday due to issues suffered in the first round matchup.
"Hopefully we’ll make it on Sunday,” Molinari said. “We broke a motor, so we’ll see what happens.”
He will face points leader Mike Castellana who moves onto second round after defeating Shannon Jenkins.
In other racing action Sidnei Frigo will face Harry Hruska in the second round.
Eliminations will resume at approximately 12:15 p.m. for the fifth of 12 events this season and this weekend’s Pro Mod racing is presented by the Real Pro Mod Association.
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TOPEKA, Kan. — First round results from the 29th annual Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals presented Minties at Heartland Park Topeka, the fifth of 12 events in the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.
PRO MODIFIED:
ROUND ONE — Steve Jackson, Chevy Camaro, 5.819, 247.70 def. Jonathan Gray, Camaro, 5.859, 247.93; Steve Matusek, Camaro, 5.831, 249.53 def. Mike Janis, Camaro, 5.839, 245.36; Mike Castellana, Camaro, 5.698, 252.85 def. Shannon Jenkins, Ford Mustang, 6.221, 180.79; Harry Hruska, Camaro, 5.722, 254.14 def. Danny Rowe, Chevy Corvette, 5.807, 250.13; Sidnei Frigo, Corvette, 5.773, 254.71 def. Troy Coughlin, Corvette, 5.764, 257.58; Shane Molinari, Pontiac Firebird, 5.795, 244.03 def. Michael Biehle, Mustang, 9.082, 99.52; Steven Whiteley, Cadillac CTS-V, 5.819, 244.83 def. Khalid alBalooshi, Camaro, 5.811, 249.67; Larry Morgan, Camaro, 5.868, 250.55 def. Bob Rahaim, Corvette, DQ;
Final order after 2 rounds of qualifying in Pro Modified at the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, 29th annual Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals presented Minties. The fifth of 12 events in the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.
1 3 Bob Rahaim, Grosse Pointe MI, ’15 Corvette 5.746 251.49 251.49
2 7 Khalid alBalooshi, Ajman UA, ’17 Camaro 5.755 250.27 250.27
3 6718 Shane Molinari, Battle Ground WA, ’68 Firebird 5.759 258.32 258.32
4 288 Sidnei Frigo, Sao Paulo BZ, ’16 Corvette 5.759 256.31 256.31
5 325 Harry Hruska, Hebron IN, ’14 Camaro 5.768 255.58 255.58
6 44 Mike Castellana, Oyster Bay NY, ’17 Camaro 5.781 251.49 251.49
7 5 Steve Matusek, Olathe KS, ’68 Camaro 5.808 250.55 250.55
8 280 Steve Jackson, Evans GA, ’17 Camaro 5.818 247.43 247.43
9 13 Jonathan Gray, Artesia NM, ’17 Camaro 5.829 248.75 248.75
10 1456 Mike Janis, Lancaster NY, ’16 Camaro 5.829 242.71 242.71
11 77 Shannon Jenkins, Tuscaloosa AL, ’16 Mustang 5.834 244.69 244.69
12 8 Danny Rowe, Laguna Hills CA, ’15 Corvette 5.835 248.61 248.61
13 2 Troy Coughlin, Delaware OH, ’15 Corvette 5.836 255.92 255.92
14 4 Michael Biehle, North Vernon IN, ’67 Mustang 5.843 254.18 254.18
15 5200 Steven Whiteley, Grand Junction CO, ’14 CTS-V 5.855 247.34 247.34
16 357 Larry Morgan, Newark OH, ’17 Camaro 5.918 250.27 250.27
