Drag Illustrated Issue 137, October 2018 | Page 46

THE DI
TOP 3
THE PDRA TOP 3 LIST IS THE LATEST ADDITION TO DRAG ILLUSTRATED’S COVERAGE OF THE
2018 PROFESSIONAL DRAG RACERS ASSOCIATION (PDRA) SEASON. THIS LIST, REPRESENTING
PERFORMANCES FROM PDRA DRAG WARS AT GALOT MOTORSPORTS PARK, DOES NOT REFLECT
THE CURRENT POINTS STANDINGS, THOUGH MOST OF THE DRIVERS WHO APPEAR ON THIS
LIST CAN ALSO BE FOUND NEAR THE TOP OF THE POINTS STANDINGS IN THEIR RESPECTIVE
CLASSES. AS DRIVERS BATTLE BACK AND FORTH FOR NO. 1 QUALIFYING SPOTS, EVENT WINS
AND NATIONAL RECORDS OVER THE COURSE OF THE 2018 SEASON, THIS LIST WILL CHANGE
TO REFLECT THOSE ACCOMPLISHMENTS.
PRO
NITROUS PRO
BOOST EXTREME
PRO STOCK PRO EXTREME
MOTORCYCLE PRO OUTLAW
632
1. TOMMY FRANKLIN
2. JASON HARRIS
3. LIZZY MUSI 1. TOMMY D’APRILE
2. MARC CARUSO
3. RIC FLECK 1. JEFF DOBBINS
2. STEVEN BOONE
3. JOHN PLUCHINO 1. RONNIE SMITH
2. CHRIS GARNER-JONES
3. BRUNSON GROTHUS 1. JOHNNY PLUCHINO
2. DILLON VOSS
3. JORDAN ENSSLIN
Two-time and defending
world champion Tommy
Franklin has been in the
process of phasing out his
title-winning “Jungle Rat”
’69 Camaro for a nearly
identical Musi-powered
entry. That new car really
flexed its muscles at Drag
Wars, carrying Franklin to
his first No. 1 qualifying
effort of the season and a
final-round win over Jason
Harris, who was appearing
in his third consecutive final
and fourth overall this
season. Harris maintained
his points lead with the run-
ner-up finish in his “Party
Time” ’69 Camaro. Rounding
out the trio of Musi-motored
drivers on the Top 3 List is
Lizzy Musi, who drove Frank
Brandao’s tried-and-true
“King Kong 6” Dodge Dart
to a No. 2 qualifying position
and semifinal finish at
GALOT. When points leader Chuck
Ulsch broke a wheel center
and tagged the wall in his
first-round loss at Drag
Wars, the door was wide
open for Tommy D’Aprile to
slip past the former Outlaw
10.5 star for the lead.
D’Aprile did just that, taking
his Al Billes-owned-and-
tuned ’69 Camaro to its
second winner’s circle cel-
ebration of the year. In the
other lane was Marc Caruso
in his Billes-blown ’69
Camaro, ap pearing in his
first Pro Boost final and
losing by just the slightest
margin on a holeshot. The
two drivers qualified No. 1
and 2, respectively. Virginia
winner Ric Fleck followed up
his first Pro Boost win with
a semifinal finish at GALOT,
keeping the “Dragon III” ’41
Willys on the Top 3 List. Jeff Dobbins came out
swinging at the season
opener at GALOT, qualifying
No. 1 and coming close to
recording the first 3-second
Extreme Pro Stock run. He’s
had an average season since
then, until his Bear’s Perfor-
mance Dodge Avenger came
alive again at Drag Wars.
Dobbins beat No. 1 qualifier
John DeFlorian in the
opening round, then went
quicker every round until
dispatching Steven Boone
in the final. Boone was con-
sistently quick all day,
coming up just a couple
numbers short in his second
2018 final round. John
Pluchino kept his points lead
going when he beat No. 2 in
points, Elijah Morton, in the
first round before losing to
Boone in the semis. Points leader Ronnie “Pro
Mod” Smith had done all but
qualify No. 1 and win a race
going into Drag Wars. That
much had changed by late
Saturday night, as Smith
rode his Innovative Perfor-
mance Suzuki to the No. 1
spot and low-4-second
passes in eliminations
before firing off a 3.997 in
the final round. He defeated
Chris Garner-Jones, who
moved up to second in
points – and on the Top 3
List – by appearing in his
first final round of the
season. While a pair of first-
round exits earlier in the
season have kept Brunson
Grothus back in the points,
his No. 3 qualifying effort
and semifinal finish at
GALOT indicate a potentially
strong late-season finish for
the young rider. Second-generation drag
racer Johnny Pluchino went
wire-to-wire at Drag Wars,
going undefeated at GALOT
Motorsports Park as the Pro
Outlaw 632 winner of the
season opener and now
Drag Wars. The points leader
defeated defending world
champion Dillon Voss in the
final round, holding off the
rival young gun’s bid for the
points lead as the series
heads to its last two races.
Finishing out this month’s
Top 3 List is Jordan Ensslin,
who enjoyed his best race
of the year at Drag Wars. He
qualified No. 3 and raced to
the semifinals, where he
matched Voss’s 4.272 to the
thousandth, but left the
starting line second.
46 PDRA660.com