By: Evan J. Smith
The Red Line Synthetic Oil NMCA Drag Racing Series wrapped up a successful 2023 campaign with the crowning of world champions during the 22nd annual NMCA World Street Finals presented by Chevrolet Performance. Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park has been the site of many historic drag racing moments, and that now includes both the event winners and series champions that were crowned on Sunday evening.
Ty Tutterow, of Mocksville, N.C. has been in command of the championship battle in VP Racing Lubricants Pro Mod for most of the season and he put a tidy bow on his season by winning his third event. Tutterow, a winner in Orlando and Norwalk, stopped Mike DiDomenico, Chagrin Falls, Ohio, 3.661 to a slowing 5.568. Tutterow, the son of Pro Mod legend Todd Tutterow, defeated Bob Glenn, Ed Marx, and low qualifier David Monday on his way to the final round.
In Holley EFI Factory Super Car A.J. Berge of Bayshore, N.Y., drove his ’21 Dodge Challenger to a 7.680 in the final round to stop Jonathan Allegrucci, Scott Township, Pa., who trailed with a 7.732 in his Cobra Jet Mustang. In addition to the FSC purse, Berge takes home an addition $10,000 thanks to the Dodge bonus! Allegrucci may have lost the final, but he scored enough points to pass Tony Scott for the season championship. The Factory Super Car class features a modern twist on classic muscle cars with intense competition between supercharged Chevy, Dodge, and Ford entries.
Dwight Ausmus, LaFollette, Tenn., picked up his first win of the season in Dart N/A 10.5 by beating Ft. Wayne, Ind., Chad Neuenschwander in the final round. Ausmus recorded a 7.931 on his ’72 Firebird to take the title over Neuenschwander’s 8.114 run. Earlier in the day, Joe Clemente was crowned the Dart N/A 10.5 class champion.
David Fallon Jr. was able to successfully defend his championship in ARP Nitrous Pro Street, but his streak of five-straight final rounds was broken in Indianapolis. Fallon Jr. went out early, opening the door for Tim Barton, Bohemia, N.Y., to drive to a 4.352 to 4.378 win over Joe Bucaro, Addison, Ill., in the final round. Barton and Bucaro came into the event ranked fifth and sixth, respectively in the ARP Nitrous Pro Street standings.
Martin Connelly of Salyersville, Ky., lost just two rounds of eliminations during the season on his way to a Edelbrock Xtreme Street championship but he did not win in Indianapolis. Connelly went to the final round where he lost a tough race against Stephen Barnett, Rose City, Texas, 4.585 to 4.639. Connelly reached the final round with wins against Kent Nine, Nick McGrath, low qualifier Bill Trovato, and Ray Cox.
Kevin Lumsden of Rose City, Texas came into the final event of the season with the championship clinched in SDPC Chevrolet Performance Stock after winning three events earlier this season. Lumsden qualified No. 1 in Indy and reached the final round where he lost a close 9.797 to 9.836 battle against Ronnie Hackelton of Hazen, Ark.
Mark Nowicki of Gaylord, Mich., successfully defended his 2022 championship in Micro Strategies Super Stock, but he came up one round short of a win at the season finale. Brody Daugherty, of Shepherdsville, Ky., came from behind to drive his Cobra Jet Mustang past Nowicki’s ’98 Dodge Avenger. Nowicki did not win a race this season but claimed the championship on the strength of three runner-up finishes.
Dave Swanson, DePere, Wis., had the quickest car in the Micro Strategies Stock class and used that to his advantage to earn a victory over Clarence Harding, of Lowell, Ind. Swanson, the low qualifier, won automatically when Harding red-lighted at the start and put a punctuation mark on the win with a 7.993 on his 7.96 dial. The championship went to Bruce Boyle, who lost early, but accumulated enough points early on to secure the title.
There was a huge field of 65 entries in Quick Fuel Technologies Nostalgia Super Stock, which meant that eventual winner Dennis Breeden, Washington, Ind., had to win 7 rounds in order to secure the title. Breeden did just that in his classic ’65 Plymouth with a double breakout win against Bruce Lang, Marathon, Wis. Both drivers were racing on a 9.50 index and Breeden won with a 9.499 to Lang’s 9.493.
Susan Roush-McClenagan, of Livonia, Mich., made a dramatic comeback to claim the win in Magnafuel Open Comp. McClenaghan earned the victory in her ’10 Mustang with a 9.435 against her 9.39 dial after a red-light start by final round opponent David Ricky, Tipp City, Ohio, who entered eliminations as the low qualifier. The Michigan-based driver also took home the 2023 NMCA OC championship, winning by just one round of racing over Steve Satchell.
David Simpson, Danville, Ind., climbed a tall mountain on his way to the win in Erson Cams Nostalgia Muscle as he defeated reigning and multi-time champ Danny Towe of Westminster, S.C. in the final round. Simpson drove his ’71 Nova to a 10.542 on his 10.50 index to upset Towe, who slowed to an 11.926 from his 11.75 index. Despite the loss, Towe has wrapped up the title, and is also in line to win a championship the NMRA Ford Muscle class.
Cody Poston of Roundhill, Ky., wrapped up a dominant season in LME Street King with his second victory of the season. Poston was able to defend his 2022 title by driving his ’10 Camaro past Kurt Anderson’s ’01 Camaro. Poston left first with a nearly perfect .006 reaction time and finished the job with a 9.034 against his 9.00 dial.
Taylor Lumsden of Royse City, Texas ran just two events in the Proform Rumble class but made the most of them with a runner-up in St. Louis and a win to finish the season in Indianapolis. Lumsden ran a perfect 10.000 on his 10.00 dial in the final and needed it as opponent Nicholas Massengale had an early lead with a .002 reaction time. Masengale broke out at the finish line with a 14.233 on his 14.25 prediction, allowing Lumsden to take the victory.
In the final round of the HHP Hemi Quick 8, Bryce Rohrs of Hicksville, Ohio ran a 9.517 on his 9.51 dial-in to defeat John Johnson, who gained an advantage off the starting line, but came up short at the finish line with an 8.566 on his 8.50 dial. Rohrs also won a handful of Hemi races in 2023 and he also competes in Micro Strategies Stock with a COPO Camaro.
The Indianapolis event also featured an appearance by the popular NPD F.A.S.T. and Factory Stock muscle car series. The FAST class, more correctly known as NPD Factory Appearing Stock Tire, went to Julie Pennington of Mishawaka, Ind over Don Giannone of Langdale, Pa. Pennington drove her ’69 Corvette to a 9.524 to beat Giannone, who drove his ’66 Chevelle to a 10.426.
The Factory Stock title was won by Ryan Vandusen of Osceola, Ind., who drove his ’69 Corvette past the ’67 Dodge Coronet of Jim Keyes, Durand, Mich.
Sydnie Turner of Indianapolis won the Innovative Performance Technologies Jr. Street class, which is open to new drivers aged 13-16. Turner won the all-truck battle over Parker Wheeler, who red-lighted in the final.
The Bracket Open class featured a large field of entries with Bill Howell of Morgantown, Ind., driving his classic ’41 Coupe to a final round win against Tim Russell, who red-lighted at the start.
Originally posted on nmcadigital.com