Johnson in No. 12 spot in rain-delayed Gatornationals

Posted on March 12th, 2010 • by Bill Cawthon

A bad run left NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series driver Allen Johnson in the No. 12 spot after the first day of qualifying at the 41st Annual Tire Kingdom NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway. Johnson recorded a pass of 6.670/207.62 in in his Pro Stock Mopar Dodge Avenger during the only qualifying session held today due to rainy weather. The Team Mopar driver from Greeneville, Tennessee hopes to improve his slot in the final two qualifying sessions tomorrow.

“We didn’t make a very good run at all. We’re still trying to find out why,” said Johnson. “The car was just way off in the 60-foot mark. Hopefully, that’s all it is, and we can fix it and jump right back up there.”

Tomorrow’s qualifying sessions will also mark the rain-delayed elimination rounds of the NHRA Arizona Nationals. Johnson faces Jason Line in the quarterfinals as he attempts to win the Arizona event and claim the Gatornationals No. 1 Qualifier spot.

“We’ve got to correct what happened today, or we won’t be doing that,” said Johnson, who earned a runner-up finish in the 2009 Gatornationals. “I’ve got faith in everybody on my J&J Racing team. We’ll fix it. We’ll go out there tomorrow and run a 6.62, or close to it, in the Mopar Dodge Avenger, move up towards the top and win some rounds.”

Vinnie Deceglie and his Mopar-powered Stratus did better, taking the No. 4 position with a pass of 6.631/207.53. V. Gaines came in at No. 21 and hopes to make Top 16 tomorrow in his Dodge Avenger.

Wet weather also postponed the highly anticipated debut of 2004 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series champion Kurt Busch in NHRA Super Gas competition. Busch will have to wait until at least Sunday to debut his Mopar HEMI-powered 1970 Dodge Challenger.