The 2016 NHRA Mellow Yellow Drag Racing Series kicked off Friday afternoon at the Circle K NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, California, as the first two rounds of qualifying wrapped up. Robert Hight took the top spot in Funny Car, eight-time World Champion Tony Schumacher in Top Fuel, and Bo Butner in Pro Stock.

Hight, who has won the Winternationals three times in his career, powered his Auto Club Chevy to a 3.942 run at 322.19 mph in his first run to take the top spot of the Funny Car table.

“If you don’t get down the track on the first run you are usually behind the eight ball the whole weekend,” Hight said. “The whole Funny Car ballgame has changed in the last year. If you looked at Funny Car last year, this 94 I ran would’ve been a national record. As drivers, tuners and teams you have to adapt to that. You see all these teams running 80s last year. We weren’t competitive with the Beckmans and Worshams. At the end of the season last year we didn’t even have a chance to win the championship and that’s uncharted waters for us.”

Overall, it was a good first runs of the 2016 season for John Force Racing with Hight taking the top spot. Courtney Force took the number two spot with a 3.945 run at 326.87 mph on her second run and John Force came in the sixth spot running a 4.017 at 314.83 mph. Defending World Champion Del Worsham finished day one in the third spot after running a 3.750 run at 323.04 mph.

“When I walked into the track this morning it was exciting because this is my home track but I was so nervous because it felt like the first day of school. I was nervous but hoping for a lot of success at the end of the day. Getting back into these race cars is tough when you have been out of them all off season,” said C. Force. “I was eager to get back in to get that feeling of going over 300 mph. It was a great start for this Traxxas team when you look at how we ran two runs in the threes. We feel pretty confident about that. We have a pretty good race car and I have two new crew chiefs in Danny Hood and Ronnie Thompson that have tuned this Camaro to some great passes. I want to keep pushing this Chevy Camaro to better time tomorrow but we have some tough competition out there.”

Schumacher took the top of the Top Fuel table on his second run after running a 3.722 seconds at 323.66 mph on his second run to move to the top over Clay Millican. Millican had ran a 3.746 run at 324.36 mph just two pairs before Schumacher took to the track.

“The second run was a good run,” said Schumacher, a two-time winner of the tradition-rich Winternationals. “We got the number one spot and earned a few points and I am proud of the guys. It’s a good start. I am excited and my crew chief [Mike Green] is excited. Everything is looking great. I’ve been blessed to drive a race car for a living. I think we’ll go faster.”

Brittany Force, who led the field after her first run, fell to fifth overall even after improving four one-hundredths of a second from a 3.794 to a 3.753 at 319.52 mph. This showed that the Alan Johnson engine program is already showing improvements on the John Force Racing Top Fuel side of establishing consistency that J. Force talked about in our exclusive interview with him earlier this week.

“It feels so great to be out here. It is home out here in this Monster Energy Top Fuel dragster. When it is running good everything feels great. I am super pumped up with how today went. I have a great crew chief in Brian Husen and a great team behind me. We get two more runs tomorrow and then we will go into Sunday with some confidence,” said B. Force. “Going back to day one of testing in Phoenix this was a completely new car and everything felt different. I was worried I wouldn’t be caught up by the time we got here. I am still working on it but I feel a whole lot better now.”

Butner was quickest in the new rules Pro Stock category, powering his Camaro to a 6.606 run at 209.43 mph. This season NHRA mandated new rules for the Pro Stock category, which includes electronic fuel injection, 10,500 RPM rev limiters, no hood scoops, and shortened wheelie-bars.

“We kinda joked in the staging lanes earlier that the guy that will win this race is someone who can start the car, and stage every round,” Butner said with a smile. “Everybody will slowly get better. The guys at the shop make the best power. I’ve drove a lot of EFI cars and just when you think you have a handle on it, it will shut off. You have to calm down and not get frustrated. These guys are the smartest guys out here and they will figure it out.”

Defending back-to-back Champion Erica Enders started her season finishing in the bottom half of the field in the ninth position with a 6.669 run at 208.62 mph.

Friday's Results After The First Two Rounds Of Qualifying:

Top Fuel- 

1. Tony Schumacher, 3.722 seconds, 323.66 mph; 2. Clay Millican, 3.746, 324.36; 3. Richie Crampton, 3.748, 322.65; 4. Steve Torrence, 3.750, 326.24; 5. Brittany Force, 3.753, 319.98; 6. Antron Brown, 3.782, 315.05; 7. Dave Connolly, 3.791, 291.32; 8. Shawn Langdon, 3.798, 319.98; 9. Leah Pritchett, 3.804, 314.46; 10. Morgan Lucas, 3.806, 318.39; 11. Doug Kalitta, 3.817, 321.27; 12. Terry McMillen, 3.844, 313.00. 

Not Qualified: 13. Troy Buff, 3.921, 306.05; 14. J.R. Todd, 4.655, 163.29; 15. Steve Faria, 6.014, 104.54; 16. Scott Palmer, 8.001, 82.32.

Funny Car-

1. Robert Hight, 3.942, 322.19; 2. Courtney Force, 3.945, 326.87; 3. Del Worsham, 3.950, 323.04; 4. Jack Beckman, 3.959, 308.07; 5. Ron Capps, 3.971, 322.58; 6. John Force, 4.017, 314.83; 7. Matt Hagan, 4.028, 313.22; 8. Alexis DeJoria, 4.029, 316.97; 9. Tim Wilkerson, 4.041, 312.93; 10. Chad Head, 4.047, 310.34; 11. Gary Densham, 4.092, 307.79; 12. Cruz Pedregon, 4.124, 281.07. 

Not Qualified: 13. Bob Bode, 4.133, 283.37; 14. James Campbell, 4.348, 220.76; 15. Tommy Johnson Jr., 4.496, 187.96; 16. John Hale, 5.318, 155.79; 17. Terry Haddock, 9.317, 86.61.

Pro Stock-

1. Bo Butner, 6.606, 209.75; 2. Jason Line, 6.618, 209.95; 3. Chris McGaha, 6.641, 208.62; 4. Jeg Coughlin, 6.645, 208.55; 5. Greg Anderson, 6.647, 209.43; 6. Drew Skillman, 6.651, 208.68; 7. Allen Johnson, 6.653, 208.33; 8. Shane Gray, 6.660, 208.68; 9. Erica Enders, 6.669, 208.62; 10. Joey Grose, 6.684, 207.88; 11. Alex Laughlin, 6.684, 207.59; 12. Deric Kramer, 6.686, 207.75. 

Not Qualified: 13. V. Gaines, 6.689, 207.11; 14. Matt Hartford, 6.702, 206.61; 15. Aaron Strong, 6.721, 206.29; 16. Vincent Nobile, 16.748, 51.88.

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About the author
Brandon Farris
Brandon Farris is a Seattle Correspondent helping cover the Seattle Sounders and Portland Timbers as a staff photographer and reporter.