NHRA Las Vegas Nationals - Sunday

7:25 p.m. - Comments from Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Andrew Hines, who earned his third victory of the season and the 18th of his career Sunday at the NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

"I felt really good today. For some reason, I get into these races and I get all caught up in the points and the battles and the rivalries and everything but today I really had nothing to lose. I came into this race fifth in points and I knew I had a good motorcycle underneath me. I just knew I needed to get to the final round and if Eddie (Krawiec) was going to be in the final round; that would have been great to get a win against a teammate. But I looked past that today - I didn't really care. I just wanted to go out there and ride and have fun. I looked at it with no pressure today."

(On racing in Las Vegas, where you have three victories in the past four years) "When I first started coming here in 2002, I didn't really care for Vegas. It was probably because I wasn't 21 at the time, but I've grown fond of this place. It's a great facility, great track surface, we get to go out and have fun and blow off steam at night. We didn't kill ourselves to drive the 2,000 miles from Indy; we all flew out. That makes a big difference on Sunday because you're not all worn out come the fourth round. I felt really good today and it's worked the last four years."

7:10 p.m. - Comments from Pro Stock driver Larry Morgan, who earned his first victory of the season and the 10th of his career Sunday at the NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

(This is your first win since 2002. Is this the sweetest win of your career?) "I do have to say that because, for one, my family was here. My two boys, they were here along with my wife. It's not very often I can do that because one boy is still in school and my other boy has to work. My guys have worked so hard to get where we're at ... I have to say it's probably my best win for the longest time. The best win I ever had was Indy, when I won the Shootout in Indy in 1989 and my oldest boy was born the week before but this ranks right up there. It was just a great win for us."

(On taking back an engine he had loaned to final opponent Rickey Jones before their showdown in the final.) "The guys who work for me get a percentage of my car and they thought that I shouldn't give the guy an engine to beat me up with ... and we agreed if we got to the final, he's have to run his own engine. I don't feel bad about it; I'm glad that I could help him (during qualifying and in the first three rounds of eliminations) because they are good people ... but I surely wasn't (going) to help him beat me up, either."

6:50 p.m. - Comments from Funny Car driver Robert Hight, who earned his third victory of the season and the 14th of his career Sunday at the NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

"We've come into Vegas here quite a few times and left with a lot on the table. We've run good, qualified well, but we just did bad in first rounds. This place is tough ... and then when I drew my teammate (Ashley Force Hood) first round, that kind of just knocked the (wind) out of me. They have honestly been the best car for over a year and they just don't struggle - this is so unlike them. (My crew chief) Jimmy Prock has done such a great job since the Countdown started - and even at Indy. Three wins in the Countdown and we've only been to five races. That is stout and that's all been on performance; we have not gotten lucky, I have not had to peddle the racecar. We have just outmuscled these guys and that's what Cruz Pedregon did last year. To have a 105-point lead going into Pomona gives you a lot of confidence but it's still not over. I think the only person that really has a chance is Ashley and I still believe if she had beaten me first round, she would be in here (doing the winner's interview) today. That was a close race in the final (against Jack Beckman). I think ours fell off a little bit, it hurt itself, so we probably got a little lucky in the final but all the rest of the runs this weekend was on performance."

6:40 p.m. - Comments from Top Fuel driver Spencer Massey, who earned his second victory of the season and the second of his career Sunday at the NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

"It's unbelievable just to get to the final round. Every racecar out here is capable of winning races - the competition is so tight out here now that we went to 1,000 feet where every little thing counts. Every round was unbelievable, having to race Shawn Langdon ... Steve Torrence ... Brandon Bernstein and then Larry Dixon. Every round was a key round - it all meant something because the points, we're down to the wire, and not only for points but we're going for the Wally (trophy) at the end of the day and we're in Vegas. It means a whole lot to me personally and for Snake (team owner Don Prudhomme) and for everybody because we've been struggling a lot here in the Countdown ... and we just haven't been on our game. It's nice to come in here and throw down these good numbers and make it from A to B and not beat ourselves because that's what we're been doing all year long. Now we've got some momentum and we can possibly go into Pomona and carry on this momentum and try to get back into the top five."

5:18 p.m. -

Final results from the ninth annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:   Top Fuel: Spencer Massey (3.827 at 314.53) def. Larry Dixon (5.503 at 174.87).   Funny Car: Robert Hight (4.125 at 304.46) def. Jack Beckman (4.154 at 303.16).   Pro Stock: Larry Morgan (6.720 at 205.69) def. Rickie Jones (6.794 at 203.16).   Pro Stock Motorcycle: Andrew Hines (6.998 at 190.70) def. Hector Arana (foul).  Check back shortly for comments from the winning racers.

3:38 p.m. -

Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

Semifinals: Hector Arana (7.039 at 190.89) def. Eddie Krawiec (7.028 at 190.86); Andrew Hines (6.992 at 191.62) def. Matt Smith (7.044 at 189.90).

Final: Arana vs. Hines.

3:35 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Pro Stock:

Semifinals: Larry Morgan (6.729 at 205.17) def. Greg Stanfield (6.801 at 195.42); Rickie Jones (6.716 at 205.82) def. Ron Krisher (foul).

Final: Morgan vs. Jones.

3:30 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Funny Car:

Semifinals: Jack Beckman (4.359 at 262.90) def. Del Worsham (8.613 at 77.85); Robert Hight (4.080 at 312.57) def. Tim Wilkerson (4.233 at 285.41).

Final: Beckman vs. Hight.

3:20 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Top Fuel:

Semifinals: Spencer Massey (3.898 at 311.41) def. Brandon Bernstein (3.849 at 315.31); Larry Dixon (3.845 at 314.61) def. Cory McClenathan (3.844 at 316.38).

Final:  Dixon vs. Massey.

2:50 p.m. - Sisters Courtney and Brittany Force, daughters of drag racing legend John Force, met in the second round of eliminations in Top Alcohol Dragster on Sunday at The Strip. Courtney, 21, had a huge advantage off the starting line and ran 5.364 seconds at 261.27 mph and beat Brittany, 23, who ran a 5.478 at 251.91.

2:11 p.m. - Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Pro Stock Motorcycle:   Second round: Andrew Hines def. Douglas Horne; Matt Smith def. Shawn Gann; Hector Arana def. David Hope; Eddie Krawiec def. Karen Stoffer.   Semifinals: Arana vs. Krawiec; Hines vs. Smith.

2:05 p.m. - Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Pro Stock:   Second round: Rickie Jones def. Rodger Brogdon; Greg Stanfield def. Greg Anderson; Ron Krisher def. Jeg Coughlin; Larry Morgan def. Mike Edwards.   Semifinals: Morgan vs. Stanfield; Jones vs. Krisher.

 1:55 p.m. - Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Funny Car:

Second round: Jack Beckman def. Matt Hagan; Tim Wilkerson def. Ron Capps; Robert Hight def. John Force; Del Worsham def. Tony Pedregon.

Semifinals: Beckman vs. Worsham; Wilkerson vs. Hight.

1:30 p.m. - Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Top Fuel:   Second round: Brandon Bernstein def. Antron Brown; Cory McClenathan def. Tony Schumacher; Spencer Massey def. Steve Torrence; Larry Dixon def. Doug Kalitta.   Semifinals: Dixon vs. McClenathan; Massey vs. Bernstein.

12:40 p.m. -- First-round winners and second-round matchups in Pro Stock Motorcycle:   First round: David Hope def. Craig Treble; Douglas Horne def. Michael Phillips (foul); Shawn Gann def. Junior Pippin; Karen Stoffer def. Steve Johnson; Eddie Krawiec defs. Jim Underdahl (foul); Matt Smith def. Larry Cook (foul); Hector Arana def. Mike Berry; Andrew Hines def. Freddie Camarena.   Second round: Arana vs. Hope; Krawiec vs. Stoffer; Hines vs. Horne; Smith vs. Gann.

 12:29 p.m. -- First-round winners and second-round matchups in Pro Stock:   First round: Larry Morgan def. Jason Line; Rodger Brogdon def. Warren Johnson; 6. Jeg Coughlin def. Allen Johnson; Greg Stanfield def. Johnny Gray; Greg Anderson def. Ronnie Humphrey (foul); Rickie Jones def. Vinnie Deceglie; Mike Edwards def. Kurt Johnson; Ron Krisher def. Ryan Ondrejko.   Second round: Edwards vs. Morgan; Anderson vs. Stanfield; Jones vs. Brogdon; Krisher vs. Coughlin.

12:10 p.m. -- First-round winners and second-round matchups in Funny Car:   First round: Tim Wilkerson def. Jim Head; Del Worsham def. Bob Tasca III; Matt Hagan def. Grant Downing; Ron Capps def. Gary Densham; Robert Hight def. Ashley Force Hood; Tony Pedregon def Jeff Arend; John Force def. Cruz Pedregon; Jack Beckman def. Mike Neff.   Second round: Hagan vs. Beckman; T. Pedregon vs. Worsham; Capps vs. Wilkerson; Hight vs. Force.

 11:33 a.m. -- First-round winners and second-round matchups in Top Fuel:   First round: Doug Kalitta def. Thomas Nataas; Spencer Massey def. Shawn Langdon; Brandon Bernstein def. Bob Vandergriff; Cory McClenathan def. David Grubnic; Larry Dixon def. Morgan Lucas; Steve Torrence def. Terry McMillen; Antron Brown def. Stig Neergaard; Tony Schumacher def. Urs Erbacher.   Second round: Dixon vs. Kalitta; Schumacher vs. McClenathan; Torrence vs. Massey; Brown vs. Bernstein.

10:45 a.m. -- Here are the first-round pairings for today's professional eliminations:

Top Fuel: 1. Larry Dixon vs. 16. Morgan Lucas; 2. Steve Torrence vs. 15. Terry McMillen; 3. Antron Brown vs. 14. Stig Neergaard; 4. Tony Schumacher vs. 13. Urs Erbacher; 5. Cory McClenathan vs. 12. David Grubnic; 6. Brandon Bernstein vs. 11. Bob Vandergriff; 7. Shawn Langdon vs. 10. Spencer Massey; 8. Thomas Nataas vs. 9. Doug Kalitta.

Funny Car: 1. Matt Hagan  vs. 16. Grant Downing; 2. Ron Capps vs. 15. Gary Densham; 3. Robert Hight vs. 14. Ashley Force Hood; 4. Tony Pedregon vs. 13. Jeff Arend; 5. Bob Tasca III vs. 12. Del Worsham; 6. Cruz Pedregon vs. 11. John Force; 7. Tim Wilkerson vs. 10. Jim Head; 8. Jack Beckman vs. 9. Mike Neff.

Pro Stock: 1. Mike Edwards vs. 16. Kurt Johnson; 2. Vinnie Deceglie vs. 15. Rickie Jones; 3. Ron Krisher vs. 14. Ryan Ondrejko; 4. Greg Anderson vs. 13. Ronnie Humphrey; 5. Johnny Gray vs. 12. Greg Stanfield; 6. Allen Johnson vs. 11. Jeg Coughlin; 7. Rodger Brogdon vs. 10. Warren Johnson; 8. Larry Morgan vs. 9. Jason Line.

Pro Stock Motorcylce: 1. Hector Arana vs. 16. Mike Berry; 2. Andrew Hines vs. 15. Freddie Camarena; 3. Matt Smith vs. 14. Larry Cook; 4. Eddie Krawiec vs. 13. Jim Underdahl; 5. Karen Stoffer vs. 12. Steve Johnson; 6. Junior Pippin vs. 11. Shawn Gann; 7. Michael Phillips vs. 10. Douglas Horne; 8. David Hope vs. 9. Craig Treble.

10:35 a.m. - Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where another beautiful day is on tap for the final day of the ninth annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals. It's 68 degrees, the skies are clear and there is only a slight breeze as track officials prepare for final eliminations in four pro categories.

The pre-race ceremonies, scheduled to start at 10 a.m., are being delayed as a result of an oil-down during Top Alcohol Dragster eliminations. Driver introductions will begin soon and will be followed immediately by the first round of eliminations in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle.

Check back here throughout the day, as we'll be updating this blog with news, results and driver interviews.

NHRA Las Vegas Nationals - Saturday

 7:30 p.m. -- Comments from Larry Dixon, the top qualifier in Top Fuel:

(On trimming Tony Schumacher's lead from 47 points to 41 points) "You can pick up the nickels and pennies and all those kind of points in qualifying but when you get to 20 points a round on race day, that's what makes up big chunks. At this point, I'm not looking any further than (first-round opponent) Morgan Lucas. He's got a great car, he's a Countdown car, so you've just go in there and race your race and don't ever get ahead of yourself. One round at a time."

(On The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where he has won four times) "It's a great racetrack. You get to see some great numbers go up on the board whether the sun's out or it's nighttime. And the fans, there are just tons of people here. I signed so many autographs for people from Hawaii, New Zealand, Australia and Europe - you don't get that at Richmond, you get it in Las Vegas so as far as the marketing group that puts on this race, it's great. We obviously love what we do but when you roll up to the starting line and you're sitting in the water and you look off to the side and you see the stands full, it makes you proud of what you do for a living. The credit goes to the Vegas track for promoting it and getting them in there. It's a good feeling."

7:45 p.m. -- Comments from Matt Hagan, the top qualifier in Funny Car:  

"We've had a great weekend so far and the only way we can top this off is with a win tomorrow. We've had a good team, a good car, and we've shown that we can run down there even in the heat this morning. We had a good tune-up and I think that's what (crew chief Tommy DeLago) is going to do tomorrow; he's going to go right back to what we did this morning ... and go right down the track. Hopefully, our plan will come together and work for us. Hopefully, we just go out there and get the win light to turn on - that's my main goal. That's really what our focus is this weekend, is to go some rounds and hopefully get to the final and win this thing."

7:15 p.m. -- Comments from Mike Edwards, the top qualifier in Pro Stock:

(On his chance to clinch his first world championship on Sunday) "It's gonna be a huge day for us. We're all excited about it. We look forward to it and hope we can do it. It's been a long, precious season, I can say that for sure, no matter what the outcome this weekend. We worked really hard and we're in a position now to do something we've never been able to do.

"We're going to go into tomorrow like it's another first round - like all season long. We just have to focus on that lane and hope for the best. It's just like any other race ... but there's a lot riding on it. We're definitely enjoying it. We're looking to seal the deal. It's been a great year and this is a great opportunity and we're just looking forward to it."

7:05 p.m. -- Comments from Hector Arana, the top qualifier in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

"It's awesome. Everything has happened so fast this year. It has been an awesome year. All I need to do is stay consistent and I should prevail (in the championship). I worked hard for a long time and struggled. After I got home, my kids always would say, 'hey dad, did you win ...dad, did you win?' After a while, they stopped asking. (Having success) was my biggest way to show my kids that if you work hard and sacrifice a lot (it pays off). Now they know if you believe, if you work at it and don't give up, it'll work out. That's what I want - I want respect from my kids."

6:45 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Funny Car for the ninth annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

1. Matt Hagan; 2. Ron Capps; 3. Robert Hight; 4. Tony Pedregon; 5. Bob Tasca III; 6. Cruz Pedregon; 7. Tim Wilkerson; 8. Jack Beckman; 9. Mike Neff; 10. Jim Head; 11. John Force; 12. Del Worsham; 13. Jeff Arend; 14. Ashley Force Hood; 15. Gary Densham; 16. Grant Downing.

6:20 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Top Fuel for the ninth annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

1. Larry Dixon; 2. Steve Torrence; 3. Antron Brown; 4. Tony Schumacher; 5. Cory McClenathan; 6. Brandon Bernstein; 7. Shawn Langdon; 8. Thomas Nataas; 9. Doug Kalitta; 10. Spencer Massey; 11. Bob Vandergriff; 12. David Grubnic; 13. Urs Erbacher; 14. Stig Neergaard; 15. Terry McMillen; 16. Morgan Lucas.

4:50 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Pro Stock for the ninth annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

1. Mike Edwards; 2. Vinnie Deceglie; 3. Ron Krisher; 4. Greg Anderson; 5. Johnny Gray; 6. Allen Johnson; 7. Rodger Brogdon; 8. Larry Morgan; 9. Jason Line; 10. Warren Johnson; 11. Jeg Coughlin; 12. Greg Stanfield; 13. Ronnie Humphrey; 14. Ryan Ondrejko; 15. Rickie Jones; 16. Kurt Johnson.

4:05 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Pro Stock Motorcycle for the ninth annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

1. Hector Arana; 2. Andrew Hines; 3. Matt Smith; 4. Eddie Krawiec; 5. Karen Stoffer; 6. Junior Pippin; 7. Michael Phillips; 8. David Hope; 9. Craig Treble; 10. Douglas Horne; 11. Shawn Gann; 12. Steve Johnson; 13. Jim Underdahl; 14. Larry Cook; 15. Freddie Camarena; 16. Mike Berry.

 3:20 p.m. - Rod Fuller, a Las Vegas resident and a seven-time winner on the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, is watching this weekend's NHRA Las Vegas Nationals from the sidelines. Fuller said he is optimistic that he will be able to secure sponsorship to return to the Top Fuel ranks to start the 2010 season. Fuller won at least one Top Fuel national event from 2005 to 2008.

2:30 p.m. - Provisional pole-sitter Larry Dixon recorded the fastest pass (3.837 seconds) in third-round Top Fuel qualifying. Brandon Bernstein turned in a run of 3.853 at 317.27 mph) and improved from eighth to fourth. Dixon, Steve Torrence and Tony Schumacher remained first through third going into the final session later this afternoon.

In third-round Funny Car qualifying, provisional pole-sitter Matt Hagan's 4.153-second pass was fastest of the session and was followed by Cruz Pedregon (4.161) and Jim Head (4.168). Ashley Force Hood, second in Funny Car points and previously unqualified, now sits 15^th with one round of qualifying remaining.

12:55 p.m. - Mike Edwards, Vinnie Deceglie and Ron Krisher remained atop the Pro Stock speed chart after three rounds of qualifying. Edwards posted the quickest run of the third round at 6.664 seconds.

12:30 p.m. - Hector Arena, Andrew Hines and Matt Smith retained the top three spots in Pro Stock Motorcycle after the third round of qualifying. Eddie Krawiec, the provisional fourth qualifier, posted the quickest third-round time at 7.023 seconds.

11:50 a.m. - Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where clear skies will greet racers today for the final two rounds of professional qualifying for the ninth annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals.

Once again, it's a beautiful day today; the temperature is 63 degrees and there isn't a cloud in the sky.   As soon as the Matco Tools Pro Mod Clash completes its first round, professional qualifying will get underway with Pro Stock Motorcycle and Pro Stock, followed immediately by the third round of Nitro qualifying.  

Check back here often, as we'll be updating this blog throughout the weekend with news, results and driver interviews.

NHRA Las Vegas Nationals - Friday

8:05 p.m. -- Just a reminder that racing will begin at 8 a.m. Saturday and another beautiful day is on tap with a projected high of 78 degrees. Pro Stock Motorcycle and Pro Stock qualifying sessions are scheduled for 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. and Nitro qualifying will be at 12:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.  

Good night from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and be sure to check here Saturday and Sunday for constant updates from the ninth annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals.

8 p.m. -- Comments from provisional Top Fuel pole-sitter Larry Dixon following two rounds of qualifying:   "It was obviously a far more outstanding run than our first run today. 

I just went out there and it was just a nice, nice lap. Track conditions were perfect. The air was cool and it held up. I didn't know it was going to run that good. When we spun the tires the first run today, I figured they might clam it down just to make sure we got down the track and got qualified. It was a great run for the Al-Anabi team. There's a lot on the line the next two weeks so we're out there trying to do our best."

7:40 p.m. - Second-round Nitro qualifying has been completed and Larry Dixon (Top Fuel) and Matt Hagan (Funny Car) are the provisional pole-sitters. Hagan's run of 4.030 seconds at 313.88 mph was the quickest and fastest ever at 1,000 feet. Dixon's run of 3.805 at 318.24 moved him from 24^th to the top of the speed chart.

7: 15 p.m. -- Comments from provisional Funny Car pole-sitter Matt Hagan following two rounds of qualifying:   "It is awesome. It was a great, smooth run - I didn't have to drive it around a whole lot. It just went out there and did what it was supposed to do; it went right down the track. I drove it a little bit hard but when it feels that good, it's hard to pull your foot out of it. Some of the fastest runs, I feel like, are some of your smoothest runs. These nice, fast runs are just so smooth. We've definitely got a fast hot rod."

 7:10 p.m. -- Comments from provisional Pro Stock pole-sitter Mike Edwards following two rounds of qualifying:   "This is unbelievable. It's been quite a season. To come out here and run like this - my hat's off to my guys. Ever since Richmond, my guys at the shop got fired up and they've been working non-stop. This thing is extremely fast and I'm just so proud of the team. I'm living my dream and it's close to coming true."

6:55 p.m. -- Comments from provisional Pro Stock Motorcycle pole-sitter Hector Arana following two rounds of qualifying:  

(On leading the points with two races remaining and eyeing his first NHRA world championship) "It's something that I've always, for 20 years, looked at. I've wanted to do this and wanted to do well and wanted the fans to love me and know who Hector is.

 I'm accomplishing all of these things so it's an awesome feeling. I don't want to worry about it too much because I don't want to lose my concentration. All I need to do is stay focused and keep racing."

6 p.m. - The lights are on and have taken effect at The Strip and second-round Nitro qualifying is underway.   Hector Arana (Pro Stock Motorcycle) and Mike Edwards (Pro Stock) are the top qualifiers after two rounds in their respective categories.

5 p.m. - Larry Dixon trails Tony Schumacher by 47 points in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series Top Fuel standings with two races remaining in the season. Although Dixon admits there is a sense of urgency in his quest to win a third world championship, he said he is not approaching this weekend any differently.

"I would say (it's) the same way that we've approached every weekend," Dixon said. "You just go out there and try to be low every session in qualifying and try to get as many qualifying bonus points as you can and, on race day, try and win four rounds. It's the same thing as everybody else is doing but you're running out of races to do it. It's becoming more important to do it.

"We've had four poles in a row so far for the Countdown. We've got that qualifying thing down; we just need to close the deal on race day. We've been able to make up over a round of racing just in those qualifying points. If we're going to be in contention at Pomona, the qualifying points are going to make the difference."

Dixon was last among the 22 Top Fuel drivers after the first round of qualifying as he failed to make a full run.

4:30 p.m. - Steve Torrence sits atop the speed chart after the first round of Top Fuel qualifying with a pass of 3.831 seconds at 314.17 mph. Shawn Langdon is second (3.855 at 313.29) and Cory McClenathan is third (3.860 at 315.86).

3:55 p.m. - Among the notable spectators taking in the first round of professional qualifying today at The Strip is longtime professional wrestling great Ric "The Nature Boy" Flair. Flair watched from behind the starting line as several Top Fuel dragsters made their qualifying passes.

3:40 p.m. - Funny Car points leader Robert Hight grabbed the provisional pole with a pass of 4.090 seconds at 305.42 mph. Jack Beckman was second fastest at 4.121 at 305.01 and Tony Pedregon was third at 4.133 at 304.74.

3:15 p.m. - John Force has a pair of streaks he would like to extend in the final two races of the 2009 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season. Force holds the NHRA record of 22 consecutive seasons with at least one victory, but is winless so far in 2009.

 He also has a streak of 24 consecutive seasons in which he has made at least one finals appearance but has yet to advance to a final this season.   Force said he is confident he can extend those streaks either here in Las Vegas or at the season finale in Pomona, Calif.

"That's what I've got to do," Force said. "We've really struggled, we've found a lot of things and we made a lot of changes. The car has started to show potential over the last couple of races and I think we're going to be okay. If nothing else, I would like to keep those records but, in the end, the championship is what it's all about. If I can get my car back in the game, that will get them a shot at the title in 2010."

2:50 p.m. - Mike Edwards grabbed the top qualifying spot in Pro Stock and Andrews Hines was fastest in Pro Stock Motorcycle after one round of qualifying.  

A series of delays throughout the morning and early afternoon has the first round of Nitro qualifying running behind schedule. The Funny Cars still are qualifying and the Top Fuel dragsters are on deck.

2:20 p.m. - Ron Capps, fourth in Funny Car points in the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, sees this weekend's NHRA Las Vegas Nationals as crucial in his quest for his first NHRA world championship.   Capps returns to The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after winning the spring event here.  

"I'm not sure it gives us an edge," Capps, a five-time winner this season in the NAPA Auto Parts Dodge, said, "but you always feel comfortable going to a place you've done well at. Right now, more than anything, we have to focus on just doing the best we can, and try to collect every point we can."   Robert Hight leads the category by 13 points over Ashley Force Hood. Tony Pedregon is third, 48 points behind Hight, and Capps is 63 points off the pace in fourth.  

"Having to do well at these last two races raises everybody's attention to detail, including the crew members, crew chiefs and drivers," Capps said. "The biggest thing that we're hoping for -- and it's ironic because we're (in) Vegas -- is that the odds of somebody dismissing the people in front of us in eliminations and our taking advantage of it will work in our favor. Going to the final round and facing somebody who is not in front of us in points is how we're going to gain ground.  

"We could focus on all the points and get excited but the bottom line is, if we don't go to the final round ourselves, we're not going to have a chance in Pomona (the final race). So, we have to do the best we can in situations that are in our control and hope that the odds are in our favor that somebody is able to beat either Robert, Ashley or Tony in front of us."

1:45 p.m. - Tony Schumacher is favored by Las Vegas oddsmakers to win the Top Fuel crown this weekend - and with good reason. In addition to winning five races this season and leading the Top Fuel category by 47 points over Larry Dixon, Schumacher is the most successful Top Fuel driver at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with five victories.  

Ron Capps and Tony Pedregon are tied with three victories here in Funny Car, Greg Anderson leads all Pro Stock drivers with six victories in Las Vegas and Chip Ellis, Andrew Hines and Angelle Sampey have two wins each at The Strip in Pro Stock Motorcycle.  

Other favorites to win this weekend, according to The Palms Resort & Casino and the South Point Hotel & Casino, are Robert Hight (Funny Car) and Mike Edwards (Pro Stock).

1:05 p.m. - Good afternoon from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where it's obvious that Mother Nature is a drag racing fan.

After two days of cold, blustery weather in Southern Nevada, it's a beautiful day today for the first round of professional qualifying for the ninth annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals. It's mostly sunny and 62 degrees with a slight breeze (6 mph) as the first professional runs are set to begin soon.  

Professional qualifying will begin with Pro Stock Motorcycle and Pro Stock, followed immediately by the first round of Nitro qualifying.  

Check back here often, as we'll be updating this blog throughout the weekend with news, results and driver interviews.

Race Day Updates: Sunday

Photo: David Allio

6:14 p.m. - Comments from Justin Lamb of Henderson, Nev., who was the runner-up to Ted Seipel of San Leandro, Calif., in the Super Gas category Sunday at the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

"I ran exactly what I needed in the final. We needed to go 10.05 and I ran 10.058 and (Seipel) was 10.07. He had a .003 (reaction time) and if I would have been .015 or .020 (instead of .055), I would have won. I just made a mistake and missed the tree. His son Kyle, when he races, races my car. His son has been racing for a really long time and when he does race, I always have an extra car so he drives my dragster, so it was actually very cool (to race Ted Seipel in the final). Obviously I wanted to win but if I didn't win, he'd be my next choice - it made losing not so bad. It's still a really good day - it's a great day. I now have a win and a runner-up in the first three national events so that's good for points."

Thank you and good night from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

5:58 p.m. - Comments from Pro Stock driver Jeg Coughlin, who earned his second victory of the season and the 43rd of his career Sunday at the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

(For the second time in your career, you had to go five rounds on race day) "I'm used to going multiple rounds from my days in bracket racing. For the team, we had kind of a hurry-up offense all day and really didn't catch our breaths until we got prepared for the final. The NHRA did a great job working with the situation and delaying the program just enough to get us prepared properly. We had to hustle. This is the second time we've had a re-run and today was Kurt Johnson - they don't get any tougher than him. We had a tough day. We're running for Full Throttle points here and for the dollars and for the Countdown to One and we'd love nothing more than to come out of Indy in first place in the Countdown with the extra bonus points that come with being number one. But there's a lot of racing between here and there."

5:20 p.m. - Comments from Funny Car driver Ron Capps, who earned his third victory of the season and the 28th of his career Sunday at the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

(It was a nice way to rebound from the last two races when you lost in the first round) "I was asked several times by the media what was wrong and I just never worried. You need to get in your comfort zone. You'll find a lot of teams that seem like they may be struggling here the last few races.

With four test dates for the whole year, there are a lot of teams testing things, including us, testing things that you have to try in qualifying once you get in the show and even on race day, believe it or not. It's tough to gauge how people are actually doing in their pit area. When we won that first round today and it was 4.21 and it wasn't that good, we got put over in the right lane and everybody thought we were doomed - and so did I - and it went right down there. It seems like when we don't have lane choice and Ace (McCulloch, crew chief) has got his back against the wall a little bit, he comes out swinging."

"As long as you know deep inside and your camp knows what you're doing, that's the thing. I got beat on a holeshot in Gainesville and there wasn't one thing said by anybody on the team - they know you're beating yourself up as it is. When you come back to the pit area and your guys, instead of saying, ‘Man, what happened?' they try to bring you back up right away and that's huge."

5 p.m. - Comments from Top Fuel driver Tony Schumacher, who earned his second victory of the season and the 58^th of his career Sunday at the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

"Really, the team won today; I didn't do a great, great job driving. Last week I had a pretty special week and this week it was the team. They did just a heck of a job. Yesterday, I was a little gun shy. I went up there and red-lighted and had to get all that stuff out at some point. But that's what a team is all about. We put a good group of guys together and some days it's their days to shine and some days it's my day but at the end of the day we all shine together. It was a perfect, perfect run; that final was outstanding."

(Two wins in a row, it seems like losing your crew chief and losing a crew didn't seem to matter) "Obviously it matters because we had an amazing team. But when they said they were going to leave and we knew the guys were moving on, we didn't get down. We didn't throw helmets and we get angry. The fact is, that was the situation and now it's our job to hire good people and surround yourself with people that can make your car go down the racetrack and compete against those guys. Most of the guys on my team haven't won two races in a row so that was so great for them and they did it today - they really did. I didn't drive flawlessly today ... I didn't do as good a job as I did last week. But that's what a team is all about."

4:20 p.m. - Notes from the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals finals:

Tony Schumacher earned his second victory of the season and 58^th of his career. Schumacher is 2-for-2 in final rounds this season. ... Ron Capps notched his third win of the season and 28^th of his career. This was his third final round of the season. ... Jeg Coughlin appeared in is third final round of 2009 and picked up his second victory of the season and 43^rd of his career. ... Schumacher took over the Top Fuel points lead with the win and holds an 18-point lead over Antron Brown. ... Capps retained the points lead in Funny Car while Coughlin took over the lead in Pro Stock points. Capps leads Matt Hagan by 106 points and Coughlin leads Jason line by 12 points.

3:50 p.m. - Final results from the 10th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:

Top Fuel: Tony Schumacher (3.874 at 311.77) def. Brandon Bernstein (4.003 at 295.66).

Funny Car: Ron Capps (4.182 at 297.81) def. Matt Hagan (4.335 at 248.89).

Pro Stock: Jeg Coughlin (6.715 at 205.15) def. Greg Stanfield (foul).

Check back shortly for comments from the winning drivers.

2:38 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Pro Stock:

Semifinals: Jeg Coughlin (6.708 at 204.60) def. Jason Line (6.738 at 205.79); Greg Stanfield (6.805 at 205.01) def. Greg Anderson (11.463 at 75.73).

Final: Stanfield vs. Coughlin.

2:32 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Funny Car:

Semifinals: Ron Capps (4.201 at 292.20) def. Robert Hight (4.304 at 258.17); Matt Hagan (4.200 at 302.41) def. Cruz Pedregon (6.510 at 103.50).

Final: Hagan vs. Capps.

2:27 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Top Fuel:

Semifinals: Tony Schumacher (3.932 at 308.43) def. Shawn Langdon (4.022 at 292.27); Brandon Bernstein (4.004 at 295.21) def. Antron Brown (4.149 at 216.51).

Final: Schumacher vs. Bernstein.

2:25 p.m. - Justin Lamb of Henderson won his fifth-round elimination race in Super Gas on Sunday and will get a bye into the final later this afternoon. Lamb turned in a 10.07-second pass in round five but his opponent, David Carroll, red-lighted. Lamb has four career national-event victories.

2 p.m. - Tony Pedregon appeared to have it over his brother Cruz in the second round of Funny Car eliminations after Cruz spun his tires about 200 feet into his run. But Tony dropped a cylinder three-quarters of the way through his run, drifted to the left and hit the timing cones at the finish line. As a result, Cruz advanced to the semifinals against Matt Hagan despite not taking a time in the round.

"I hate to see that happen; we like to go out here and put on a good show," Cruz said of the race. "The Pedregon brothers are about winning championships and doing a great job and I'm sure Tony would like to have that one back. Sometimes you need those breaks; we certainly got ours here last year."

1:46 p.m. - Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Pro Stock:

Second round: Jason Line def. Rickie Jones; Greg Stanfield def. Warren Johnson; Greg Anderson def. Larry Morgan; Jeg Coughlin def. Mike Edwards (foul).

Semifinals: Coughlin vs. Line; Anderson vs. Stanfield.

1:24 p.m. - Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Funny Car:

Second round: Cruz Pedregon def. Tony Pedregon (DQ - centerline violation); Matt Hagan def. Jack Beckman; Ron Capps def. Mike Neff; Robert Hight def. John Force.

Semifinals: C. Pedregon vs. Hagan; Hight vs. Capps.

1:10 p.m. - Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Top Fuel:

Second round: Shawn Langdon def. Joe Hartley; Antron Brown def. Doug Kalitta; Brandon Bernstein def. Larry Dixon; Tony Schumacher def. Cory McClenathan.

Semifinals: Langdon vs. McClenathan; Brown vs. Bernstein.

12:45 p.m. -- First-round winners and second-round matchups in Pro Stock:

First round: Mike Edwards def. Steve Spiess; Jeg Coughlin def. Kurt Johnson (foul); Jason Line def. Dave Connolly; Rickie Jones def. Allen Johnson; Greg Anderson def. V Gaines; Larry Morgan def. Tom Hammonds; Greg Stanfield def. David Beckley; Warren Johnson def. Johnny Gray.

Second round: Edwards vs. Coughlin; Line vs. Jones; Anderson vs. Morgan; Stanfield vs. W. Johnson.

12:15 p.m. - A timing light malfunction will force Jeg Coughlin and Kurt Johnson to re-run their first-round Pro Stock race. According to NHRA officials, a stray piece of rubber led to a staging light malfunction that improperly gave Johnson a red light. The race will be re-run at approximately 12:25 p.m.

11:50 a.m. -- First-round winners and second-round matchups in Funny Car:

First round: Ron Capps def. Brian Thiel; Jack Beckman def. Ashley Force Hood; Tony Pedregon def. Del Worsham; Robert Hight def. Jeff Arend; Mike Neff def. Gary Densham; Matt Hagan def. Bob Bode; John Force def. Tim Wilkerson; Cruz Pedregon def. Bob Tasca III.

Second round: T. Pedregon vs. C. Pedregon; Beckman vs. Hagan; Hight vs. Force; Neff vs. Capps.

11:24 a.m. -- First-round winners and second-round matchups in Top Fuel:

First round: Doug Kalitta def. David Baca; Brandon Bernstein def. Spencer Massey; Cory McClenathan def. Troy Buff; Shawn Langdon def. Steve Chrisman; Antron Brown def. Mike Strasburg; Larry Dixon def. Urs Erbacher; Tony Schumacher def. Terry Haddock; Joe Hartley def. Morgan Lucas.

Second round: Langdon vs. Hartley; Schumacher vs. McClenathan; Brown vs. Kalitta; Dixon vs. Bernstein.

10:30 a.m. -- Here are the first-round pairings for today's professional eliminations:

Top Fuel: 1. Shawn Langdon vs. 16. Steven Chrisman; 2. Antron Brown vs. 15. Mike Strasburg; 3. Larry Dixon vs. 14. Urs Erbacher; 4. Tony Schumacher vs. 13. Terry Haddock; 5. Cory McClenathan vs. 12. Troy Buff; 6. Spencer Massey vs. 11. Brandon Bernstein; 7. David Baca vs. 10. Doug Kalitta; 8. Morgan Lucas vs. 9. Joe Hartley.

Funny Car: 1. Tony Pedregon vs. 16. Del Worsham; 2. Robert Hight vs. 15. Jeff Arend; 3. Mike Neff vs. 14. Gary Densham; 4. Ashley Force Hood vs. 13. Jack Beckman; 5. Bob Bode vs. 12. Matt Hagan; 6. Ron Capps vs. 11. Brian Thiel; 7. John Force vs. 10. Tim Wilkerson; 8. Cruz Pedregon vs. 9. Bob Tasca III.

Pro Stock: 1. Mike Edwards vs. 16. Steve Spiess; 2. Greg Anderson vs. 15. V. Gaines; 3. Greg Stanfield vs. 14. David Beckley; 4. Jason Line vs. 13. Dave Connolly; 5. Allen Johnson vs. 12. Rickie Jones; 6. Warren Johnson vs. 11. Johnny Gray; 7. Tom Hammonds vs. 10. Larry Morgan; 8. Jeg Coughlin vs. 9. Kurt Johnson.

10:15 a.m. - Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway where final eliminations for the 10^th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals will be contested on an absolutely gorgeous day. As was the case yesterday, there isn't a cloud in the sky, there is no threat of rain and winds out of the north are nothing like the gale-force winds that wreaked havoc on the racing Friday afternoon.

Driver introductions will begin at 10 a.m. (PDT) and final eliminations for the three professional categories gets underway at 11 a.m. Check back here often, as we'll be updating this blog throughout the day with news, results and interviews from the winning driver.

Race Day Updates: Saturday

6:20 p.m. - Racing resumes at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway at 9 a.m. Sunday with Sportsman eliminations. Pre-race ceremonies for the 10^th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals begin at 10 a.m. and final eliminations start at 11 a.m.

Good evening from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and be sure to check back Sunday for updates throughout final eliminations.

6:10 p.m. - Comments from Tony Pedregon, the top qualifier in Funny Car:

"Just good conditions today. What a huge benefit when you're qualified; we were able to enjoy.  We really felt that the run we had yesterday was going to keep us in the show even if it bumped us to the second round, and that really set the stage for what we were able to do this last session. I'm surprised that some other cars didn't take advantage of the conditions. It was a good racetrack out there and the car did, finally, what we told it to do. We're getting guys on track and I feel pretty confident about the car. When Dickie's doing his thing and I feel confident, we're pretty tough to beat. We've got a very good history here in this town and I love it. This is a great track, no complaints about it, and I've got my family here. (Did it help you having one run yesterday?) No question. Even for the guys who didn't get down the track, they've got data. The Top Fuel cars, I don't envy them having to make the best of two qualifying runs. The conditions were a little bit different today and we really didn't have the big disruption with the wind like we did yesterday. I know it pushed my car around a little bit and I know watching some other car run in front of us, it looked like they were affected quite a bit more by the crosswind that we had yesterday. Two runs is pretty tough to deal with, three is better and four even better. (On The Strip at LVMS.) This is really one of the nicest facilities and it's without question the nicest racetrack we race at. There are not a lot of issues with this track and if the weatherman is right and we have the same conditions (Sunday), then I feel good."

5:45 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Funny Car for the 10^th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

1. Tony Pedregon; 2. Robert Hight; 3. Mike Neff; 4. Ashley Force Hood; 5. Bob Bode; 6. Ron Capps; 7. John Force; 8. Cruz Pedregon; 9. Bob Tasca III; 10. Tim Wilkerson; 11. Brian Thiel; 12. Matt Hagan; 13. Jack Beckman; 14. Gary Densham; 15. Jeff Arend; 16. Del Worsham.

5:30 p.m. - Comments from Shawn Langdon, the top qualifier in Top Fuel:

"It feels great. We've been working hard and I've been trying to do the best I can, being a rookie driver, and you don't want to hold the team back. We've got a great team and a great crew chief and great sponsors and I've just been trying my part and fortunately the guys put a good tune-up in it ... and I just kept it straight.

My first number-one, that's definitely a great feeling. (On yesterday's conditions) Going back to Houston, I was pretty nervous about the night run and yesterday, I was pretty nervous about the day run with all the wind because I'm still new to everything. I've been trying to adapt as quickly as I can, not to slow anybody down. It was definitely a little more of a comfort feeling for me to be able to run today - we had a little bit of a breeze but it wasn't as bad as yesterday. The guys were helping me out a bit. That's the great thing about the team; they've been really good about giving me pointers. (Did you feel this could be a number-one qualifier?) Yeah, the car has been running really good and we've had the potential (to be number one). We've run good and consistent in qualifying and we just struggled a little bit in eliminations. We've been kind of tickling around with the tune-up a little bit and I think Stew (crew chief John Stewart) is onto something; he showed a little bit today so hopefully we can get four good runs tomorrow."

5:10 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Top Fuel for the 10^th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

1. Shawn Langdon; 2. Antron Brown; 3. Larry Dixon; 4. Tony Schumacher; 5. Cory McClenathan; 6. Spencer Massey; 7. David Baca; 8. Morgan Lucas; 9. Joe Hartley; 10. Doug Kalitta; 11. Brandon Bernstein; 12. Troy Buff; 13. Terry Haddock; 14. Urs Erbacher; 15. Mike Strasburg; 16. Steve Chrisman.

5:05 p.m. - Comments from Mike Edwards, the top qualifier in Pro Stock:

"I didn't think we'd run that fast. We ran (6.)67 during testing earlier, before Pomona, but this was a really, really nice run. Vegas is kind of a special place for me; it's kind of where it all started for me. It's a good start for us. I've never really been real good on Sunday here but hopefully tomorrow I can turn that around. (On the track conditions Saturday as opposed to Friday.) Today was worth coming out here for. Yesterday was miserable for everybody. Tomorrow's another day and we'll see what happens. You just tried to forget about yesterday. We didn't really draw on anything we did yesterday because the conditions were so much different. The head wind was not there and the track was warmer so we just kind of made adjustments off what we did in testing here. Hopefully, we can keep the momentum building and keep the ball rolling tomorrow."

4:20 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Pro Stock for the 10^th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

1. Mike Edwards; 2. Greg Anderson; 3. Greg Stanfield; 4. Jason Line; 5. Allen Johnson; 6. Warren Johnson; 7. Tom Hammonds; 8. Jeg Coughlin; 9. Kurt Johnson; 10. Larry Morgan; 11. Johnny Gray; 12. Rickie Jones; 13. Dave Connolly; 14. David Beckley; 15. V Gaines; 16. Steve Spiess.

3:50 p.m. - In case you were wondering, Larry Dixon will become the seventh driver in NHRA history with at least 500 round wins when he reaches that milestone. John Force leads all drivers with 1,018 round wins and Warren Johnson (852), Kenny Bernstein (681), Bob Glidden (597), Joe Amato (527) and Kurt Johnson (508) all are members of the 500-round-win club.

3:30 p.m. - Two NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series drivers can reach significant career milestones Sunday during eliminations for the 10^th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA National at The Strip. Larry Dixon (Top Fuel) is two round wins away from 500 career round wins and can reach the milestone by advancing to the semifinals tomorrow. Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock) has 397 career round-wins and can notch his 400^th by advancing to the Pro Stock finals Sunday.

3:10 p.m. - Ron Capps, who is second in Funny Car qualifying after two rounds, has been a fan of The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway long before this weekend. Capps, a two-time winner at The Strip, said the facility is one of few tracks the racers look forward to visiting.

"The Vegas race is always the track all drivers talk about," Capps said. "You know the track surface is going to be good, the racing will be good, there'll be great side-by-side racing and that takes the pressure off (the driver). Coming here is always nice. Chris (Powell) and all his people always do a great job."

Capps said The Strip offers drivers and fans alike an atmosphere that isn't found anywhere else on the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.

"Vegas is kind of a larger-than-life deal," said Capps, who won the fall event here in 2001 and 2005. "The grandstands are different here than any other track - they're stadium sized. When you walk out there or you get towed out there in your car, there's an enormous scoreboard, they've got a beautiful shut-down area, you got the scenery, you've got I-15, you've got these stands here.

"When they do the driver intros, there's no other track that gives us this kind of bang out there. It's pretty exciting for us to come out here."

2:05 p.m. - Bob Bode, Ron Capps and John Force remained the three quickest qualifiers following the second round of Funny Car qualifying. Cruz Pedregon remained fourth, Tim Wilkerson moved up from seventh to fifth and Robert Hight is sixth heading into this afternoon's final round of qualifying.

1:30 p.m. - Tony Schumacher, Brandon Bernstein and Antron Brown were the top three qualifiers after the first round of Top Fuel qualifying. Schumacher turned in a pass of 3.933 seconds at 297.81 mph, Bernstein was clocked at 4.027 at 281.13 and Brown went 4.071 at 268.49. Schumacher has been the No. 1 qualifier for the past six national events at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Both of Friday's Top Fuel qualifying sessions were canceled due to inclement weather.

12:45 p.m. - Mike Edwards jumped from sixth to the top qualifying spot in Pro Stock with a track-record pass of 6.656 seconds (206.16 mph). Greg Anderson was second quickest at 6.668 and posted a track-record speed of 206.70 mph. Greg Stanfield was third quickest at 6.690 at 205.94. The top four qualifiers after two rounds all bettered the Pro Stock track record of 6.703 second and fifth-place Warren Johnson equaled the mark. The previous Pro Stock speed record at The Strip was 206.07 mph, set last spring by Warren Johnson.

12:05 p.m. -NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series drivers Jeg Coughlin Jr., Cory McClenathan, Doug Kalitta and Tommy Johnson Jr. will compete in a special Thunder Roadster exhibition race tonight at The Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Spectator gates open at 5 p.m. and the exhibition race is scheduled to start shortly after 7 p.m. Details can be found HERE.

11:25 a.m. - Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the second and final day of professional qualifying for the 10^th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals. Mercifully, the track is bathed in sunshine, there isn't a cloud in the sky and there is hardly a trace of the strong winds that whipped the track Friday. Pro Stock qualifying sessions are at noon and 3 p.m. and Nitro qualifying will be at 12:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. All times are Pacific Daylight Time.

Check back here often, as we'll be updating this blog throughout the day with news, results and driver interviews.

Race Day Updates: Friday

6:16 p.m. - Just a reminder that Saturday's professional qualifying sessions will take place as scheduled and the weather promises to be more fan and racer friendly. Sportsman eliminations begin at 8 a.m., Pro Stock qualifying sessions are at noon and 3 p.m. and Nitro qualifying will be at 12:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.

Good evening from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and be sure to check here Saturday and Sunday for constant updates from the 10th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals.

6:11 p.m. - Comments from provisional Pro Stock pole-sitter Greg Anderson following one round of qualifying:

"It was getting a little breezy out there but it really wasn't too bad when we ran. We got very lucky - to be quite honest with you, I probably got luckier than the rest of them because when I ran, I don't know why, but it seemed like the wind slowed down for me. This is a good start. I'm certainly not going to say that the number-one spot is in the books yet. If the wind goes down tomorrow, the cars will just get faster. If that happens, we're going to have to come back and run faster. Knock on wood; it has been a great run out here in Las Vegas since that first race. I love coming here and I love racing here - I love everything about this city. (On the decision to cancel the second round of qualifying.) It's pretty dangerous out there. You really don't want to be in a car going down that racetrack, to be honest with you."

5:45 p.m. - Comments from provisional Funny Car pole-sitter Bob Bode following one round of qualifying:

"When we came in here, we had a good number. We (qualified) 16^th at Houston but we had a good tune-up and we knew we could step it up a little. We didn't know we could step it up to where I'd be standing here. It was kind of a surprise. They were shooting for about a (4.)16 and then (4.)14 came up - everything worked the way it was supposed to. (Tuners) Richard Hogan and Walt Przybyl are the two guys who made this thing happen. It's amazing. We always had hopes ... coming in here, the dream was maybe to be in the top half after the first round or after all four rounds. Standing here, being the number-one qualifier after the first day ... all the stars lined up for us. But we worked hard at it - it's not like it fell in our laps."

5:30 p.m. - Due to strong winds and cold weather, NHRA officials canceled both rounds of qualifying today for Top Fuel and the second rounds for Funny Car and Pro Stock. The announcement came following three lengthy delays that put Friday's session more than three hours behind schedule.

According to an LVMS spokesman, those holding tickets for today's session can use their ticket as a credit towards the purchase of tickets for Saturday's qualifying sessions, for either the Friday or Saturday sessions at the fall event at LVMS or for the Friday or Saturday sessions next spring. Friday tickets may not be used for any Sunday session.

 Las Vegas Motor Speedway's NHRA SummitRacing.com Nationals Rain Policy

5:20 p.m. - It appears as if racing is over for the day. Arley Langlo made the first - and only - Top Fuel pass and his engine blew up, leaking fluid onto the track. After a lengthy clean up, the remaining Top Fuel dragsters were sent back to the pits. Stand by for additional information and comments from the top qualifiers in Funny Car and Pro Stock.

5 p.m. - Bob Bode claimed the provisional Funny Car pole after one round of qualifying with a pass of 4.145 seconds at 303.43 mph. Ron Capps was second at 4.148 at 297.94 and John Force was third at 4.149 at 300 mph.

4:25 p.m. - After a delay of more than an hour to replace the ‘Christmas Tree,' Nitro qualifying has begun and the first Funny Cars have made their first qualifying runs. Stay tuned for results.

3:35 p.m. - This is what you call "filler material" when there's nothing to write about because electricians are dismantling the ‘Christmas Tree:' Kurt Johnson is the winningest driver in NHRA history to have never won a championship. Johnson has 39 career victories but has never captured a World Championship. He has finished runner-up in points four times in his career.

3:20 p.m. - What next? After a delay for rain of more than 90 minutes earlier today, now the ‘Christmas Tree' at the starting line has malfunctioned and officials are attempting to repair it.

3 p.m. - Greg Anderson continued his success at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with the quickest pass during the first round of Pro Stock qualifying. Anderson's run of 6.718 second at 205.32 mph put him atop the speed chart Friday afternoon. Mike Edwards was second fastest at 6.721 at 205.19 and Jason Line was third at 6.725 at 204.88.

2:50 p.m. - Three-time NHRA Pro Stock World champion Greg Anderson is the most successful driver in the history of The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Anderson, who drives for Las Vegas businessman Ken Black, has six victories at The Strip, including sweeps of both the spring and fall events in 2003, 2004 and 2007. Anderson also has been the No. 1 qualifier five times in Las Vegas.

1:55 p.m. - The sun is peeking from behind the clouds, the track is dry and the last of the Sportsman cars are on the track. The first round of professional qualifying is expected to begin at 2:30 p.m.

1:25 p.m. - The folks from Goodyear Racing passed on this item from this morning's Sportsman eliminations at The Strip: Super Stock driver Shane Studley of Bellflower, Calif., won his class today in his first race on Goodyear tires. Studley won the Super Stock competition at the season opener in Pomona on a different brand of tires but switched to Goodyear before the Las Vegas event because he liked the tire manufacturer's service. "My dad used to race on Goodyears and the opportunity to race with Goodyear again was too good to pass up," Studley said.

12:55 p.m. - It has stopped raining and NHRA officials have a full arsenal of vehicles on the racing surface in an attempt to dry the track and get professional qualifying underway. No word at the moment when the track will be suitable for racing but it appears to be drying quickly.

12:25 p.m. - The first round of eliminations is on a temporary hold as a light drizzle has forced NHRA officials to suspend racing. Track officials expect the delay to brief a brief one. Stay tuned for updates.

11:45 a.m. - Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the first round of professional qualifying for the 10^th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals. It's cloudy and windy as Sportsman eliminations continue on the strip.

Professional runs begin at 12:30 p.m. (PDT), when the Pro Stock cars hit the track. The first of two Nitro qualifying sessions is scheduled to get underway at 1 p.m. & nbsp; Check back here often, as we'll be updating this blog throughout the weekend with news, results and driver interviews.

Race Day Updates: Sunday

7:30 p.m. - More comments from Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&M's Toyota, who won Sunday's Shelby 427:

(On whether he learned anything about himself after struggling last fall) " Not really. I think to probably take the bad days a little easier -- but I hate bad days. I'm still not gonna take ‘em as easy as some should, especially like yesterday.

We had a great car and we should have won that race, too. But, you know, Friday I could have thrown my helmet down and stomped away, told the guys ‘great job, look at what we did.' I just went in the hauler and let those guys go to work and do what they do best. I just kind of sat there and cooled off a little bit, watched the rest of practice. Let's see if I could learn anything from watching guys on TV about practice, watching some different lines of what guys were doing in qualifying trim. I went out there and ran a Mark Martin?type line and ended up getting the pole there. That was pretty awesome to be able to do that. These guys made some good calls on what to do to the car to change it.

"But from last fall, yeah, we had some bad races. It's unfortunate we weren' t able to capitalize on our great season into the Chase and run into the Chase the way we wanted to. Hopefully we can build that back up here. I feel we' ve done a great job of doing that since Daytona. We didn't let Daytona haunt us. We went to California, ran a smart race and finished third. We came here, ran a smart race and won the race. We weren't the best car at either place but we were the best car in Daytona, I felt like, and we missed out there. This could have been a 1?3?1 season (of finishes) thus far. It is what it is. All you do now is look ahead to Atlanta this weekend."

7:10 p.m. - Comments from Kyle Busch, driver of the No. 18 M&M's Toyota, who won Sunday's Shelby 427:

(On winning at your hometown track) "This is pretty awesome. It's very special. You never really know how special they can be until you actually get it done and so today was very, very cool. The last 25, 30 laps, I was just as nervous as could be. I wasn't really all that great at hitting my marks (but) I was hitting them good enough, I guess. Fortunately we ran that many caution laps there at the end. That helped, too."

(On how his race unfolded) "We started out, had to go to the back and just methodically thought our way through there and fought our way through there and just worked on everybody one car at a time. We had to work on our car a lot, too. It was really, really loose in the beginning and I wasn't sure if that was all me or if it was all car from getting loose yesterday and wrecking yesterday so I told myself, ‘You better man up and drive this thing or else we're not going to go anywhere.' Fortunately, we stayed on the lead lap the whole day and, again, just kept plugging away at it and kept working on it. There at the end, getting those guys caught on pit road sort of helped us and got them back behind us and got us further forward that we didn't have to race the great cars. I didn't think we were that great, but we were pretty good."

(On kissing the track's finish line during his post-race celebration) "I kissed the ground that this place was built on. Again, we watched it being built from the ground up. When we were racing out at the Bullring, this was nothing but a dirt lot -- this was actually part of the parking lot, I think, for that Bullring racetrack, so it's come a long ways. I remember sitting up in the grandstands when I was younger and when Kurt and my dad were racing, turning around and looking out there and watching it. They broke ground, I think, in '95 or '96 or something like that. I just kept turning around and watching it, watched the grandstands go up, the banking being put in, the outside retaining wall, the garages being built and stuff. Every weekend we were over at the Bullring and saw what was happening."

6:55 p.m. - Comments from Clint Bowyer, who finished second in Sunday’s Shelby 427:

“It was a wild day. We went a lap down, got that back. I think (Juan Pablo) Montoya ran into me, knocked the right rear end and we got that fixed and got back up there. (Crew chief) Shane Wilson made a great call. Just a good way to bounce back: We had a bad weekend last week at California and I’m really proud of all the guys on the Cheerios/Hamburger Helper Chevrolet.

“Absolutely, second (place) is OK. Give credit where credit is due -- Shane Wilson, that is where he shines. He studies his pit strategy and things for these races really hard and it paid off for us. Shane got us a good call and a good finish.”

6:45 p.m. - Comments from Jeff Burton, driver of the No. 31 Caterpillar Chevrolet, who finished third in Sunday's Shelby 427:

(On his team's pit strategy) "I think it was no tires, actually (on the last pit stop). I don't know why we're always better on old tires. We took off there and led the race for a long time and came in and put on four and then went back to sixth or seventh and that's been a struggle. I'm real proud of all our guys. Hell of a rebound today to come back from where we ran last week and everybody just kept their head up and kept digging. I'm real proud of them for that. It's real easy to quit and give up when things are going badly. Our guys never do that."

6:20 p.m. - This marks the fifth consecutive season in which Kyle Busch has won a race in all three of NASCAR's national series. He won the Camping World Truck Series and Nationwide Series races on Feb. 21 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif.

5:55 p.m. - Kyle Busch earned his 13th career Sprint Cup Series victory by winning the Shelby 427 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Busch's wins have come at 13 different tracks.

5:35 p.m. - Kyle Busch on winning the Shelby 427 at his hometown track: "This is great. I didn't know exactly what it would mean but coming to the checkered flag, there were knots in my stomach. This is as big as the Daytona 500 - I said it wasn't going to be, but it is."

5:25 p.m. - Las Vegas native Kyle Busch wins the Shelby 427 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race after starting from the rear of the field. Clint Bowyer finished second and Jeff Burton was third. Stay tuned for more information and comments from the top drivers.

4:52 p.m. - The caution flag flies on lap 259 (of 285) for the 12th time today, establishing a record for this race. The race also set a record for most laps run under caution - breaking the record of 46 set in 2005.

4:50 p.m. - Shelby 427 running order after 250 laps: Kyle Busch; Bobby Labonte; Brian Vickers; David Reutimann; Jeff Burton; Carl Edwards; Jamie McMurray; Clint Bowyer; Joey Logano; Jeff Gordon.

4:17 p.m. - Shelby 427 running order after 200 laps: Jeff Burton; Jimmie Johnson; Bobby Labonte; Greg Biffle; Jeff Gordon; Carl Edwards; Brian Vickers; Kyle Busch; Dale Earnhardt Jr.; Tony Stewart.

3:54 p.m. - Comments from Mark Martin, driver of the No. 5 Pop-Tarts/Carquest Chevy, who dropped out with engine failure on lap 122:

"I hate it. I sure would have liked to have kept racing today. We had a good racecar and we were getting better. And we're learning each week. We'll have to get ‘em next week."

(Did you have a shot to win?) "Well, not yet; maybe with some adjustments and maybe with some track changes. We were within striking distance. We weren't quite good enough yet but we were within striking distance."

3:45 p.m. - Shelby 427 running order after 150 laps: Jeff Gordon; Jimmie Johnson; Greg Biffle; Tony Stewart; Kyle Busch; Jamie McMurray; Jeff Burton; Kevin Harvick; Carl Edwards; Denny Hamlin.

3:02 p.m. - Shelby 427 running order after 100 laps: Greg Biffle; Jeff Gordon; Kurt Busch; Jimmie Johnson; Mark Martin; Kevin Harvick; Jeff Burton; Kyle Busch; Sam Hornish Jr.; Jamie McMurray.

2:56 p.m. - Comments from David Ragan, driver of the No. 6 UPS Ford, who dropped out with an engine failure on lap 73:

"On the restart, it just started skipping and popping and we switched ignition boxes because I felt like it might just be something small but it kept getting worse and worse and just wouldn't go down the straightaway. I'm pretty proud of our UPS car so far today. It wasn't great but we picked it up some and seemed to be in decent shape to make some more adjustments, but it looks like something just let go in the engine."

(Is it the same thing as Matt Kenseth?) "I would suspect so. All of the engines come from one source and they al do a great job - knock on wood. In four years at Roush Fenway, this is the first time I've had an engine failure. Things like this happen when you're always trying to get the most out of things and I'm just disappointed it had to happen this early in the race. I wish we could have at least got to race some more."

2:30 p.m. - Comments from Matt Kenseth, who dropped out with an engine failure on lap 7:

"I think it had some kind of valvetrain issue. That's basically what it sounded like, so I don't know. Something busted in there. It's disappointing we didn't get to race today, but those guys do a great job on engines. Doug Yates and those guys, without their horsepower, we couldn't win races like last week so I can't really complain about those guys."

(Were you thinking about the history of winning three in a row?) "No. Winning the third race, seriously, was the farthest thing from my mind. We approach it one race at a time and I'm very, very thankful for the first two weeks of the season that we had and for the opportunity to drive this car. You're gonna break stuff once in a while. I think it's the first engine we broke in two years. The guys at Roush Yates engines do a great job. It's bound to happen sooner or late, it just didn't happen at a good time. It happened at the beginning of the race, so it's just one of those thing that happen."

2:18 p.m. - Shelby 427 running order after 50 laps: Jimmie Johnson, Carl Edwards; Kurt Busch; Kevin Harvick; David Stremme; Mark Martin; Greg Biffle; Tony Stewart; Sam Hornish Jr.; Jef

1:57 p.m. - The race already has had two caution periods in the first 10 laps. The Sprint Cup Series record for most cautions here is 11, set last year. Matt Kenseth, who blew an engine on lap 7, is the first todrop out of the race.

1 p.m. - This year's Sprint Cup race at LVMS, the Shelby 427, will be 18 laps - 27 miles - longer than the previous Cup races here due to Shelby Automobile's sponsorship of the event. Shelby Automobiles, founded by automotive legend Carroll Shelby, is using the event to market a Las Vegas Motor Speedway Limited Edition Shelby 427 package for the Ford Shelby GT500 Mustang. Shelby's manufacturing facility is the anchor tenant in the business park adjacent to the speedway.

11:30 a.m. - Some quick facts about the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series at LVMS: Five drivers have participated in all 11 Cup races at LVMS: Jeff Burton, Jeff Gordon, Dale Jarrett, Bobby Labonte and Mark Martin ... Only four of the 11 races have been won from a top-10 starting position ... The race has never been won from the pole ... The deepest in the field that a race winner has started was 25th, by Matt Kenseth in 2004 ... The first Cup race held in Las Vegas was in 1955 at Las Vegas Park Speedway, which sat on the site of whatis now the Las Vegas Hilton.

11 a.m. - Carl Edwards, who survived Saturday's caution-filled Sam's Town 300 and finished second to Roush Fenway Racing teammate Greg Biffle, said he doesn't expect today Shelby 427 to have as many incidents as the Nationwide Series race.

"I don't think so (because) I think the cars are so different," Edwards said. "They've got too much downforce, the Nationwide cars do, for the power that they have so they're like slot cars; you're riding around as freed up as you can be and if any one little thing happens, it's really hard to correct.

"The Cup cars aren't quite like that. They've got a little less downforce and a lot more power so you end up being able to drive them more and save them a little bit if they get loose. I hope that's the case -- that they're easier to handle and it won't be a big disaster."

Edwards is the defending champion of the Las Vegas Sprint Cup race. He also finished sixth here in 2007.

9: 50 a.m. - Jimmie Johnson has three Cup victories at LVMS but Matt Kenseth actually has a better overall track record here. In nine Cup races, Kenseth has a pair of victories, five top-10 finishes and an average finish of 9.0. Johnson, in seven races, has three wins, four top-10s and an average finish of 9.3. Kenseth has been running at the finish of all nine races and has been on the lead lap in eight of those races. 

"There are a lot of things I like about Vegas," Kenseth said in explaining his success here. "Obviously, the track is different than it was a few years back when we had all the success here, but it's fun, it's high-banked, it's real fast. It's actually got some pretty big bumps in it, which makes it challenging. It's just a fun place to come out to this time of year and it's a fun, competitive track."

9:20 a.m. - Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where a sellout crowd is expected for the Shelby 427 - the 12th NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race to be held at the 1.5-mile speedway. Forecasters are calling for a high of 75 degrees today with mostly sunny skies and - more important - zero chance of rain. The race is scheduled to take the green flag at 1:30 p.m. (PST). Check back here often throughout the day, as we'll be updating this blog with news, stats and driver interviews.

Race Day Updates: Friday

6:15 p.m. - Comments from Kyle and Kurt Busch, who qualified first and second, respectively, for Sunday's Shelby 427:

Kyle: "It's cool that we're both up there and qualified on the front row. Unfortunately, for myself, I won't be in the cool photo at the drop of the green flag next to my brother up there; we'll have to drop to the back of the field for the engine change. I've got to give great thanks to the team.

They did an awesome job here today with the M&M's Toyota to get a new TRD power plant in that car and get it prepared. It takes some guesstimation to what our teammates were doing and what the rest of the field was doing as far as qualifying and practice. We didn't get any laps in qualifying trim so we went out there and sailed a lap as fast as I thought I needed to go and fortunately it was fast enough so it's pretty cool."

Kurt: "For us, I feel like we're doing the same thing behind the scenes: just working hard and trying to find a good combination to make the car run through the bumps but yet still have the front end getting the grip that it needs. It felt like a solid run to me through (turns) 1 and 2. Looking at the lap tracker, he had a little bit better 1 and 2 and that enabled him to beat us just a little bit. I felt like Kyle did, where there were going to be plenty of other guys that were going to come up there and knock us off. It feels good to get the Miller Lite Dodge to be running good. We qualified fourth last week and second this week. It's been a long off-season of scratching our heads and trying to find a good direction and so far it's paid off."

Kyle: "I think the faster speeds here this year were through the Goodyear Tire Company. They came here and tested and brought a different tire here this time. They've got to be really conscious of a new racetrack. Last year the racetrack was brand new so we were really fighting the too much grip in the racetrack. They had to bring a hard tire ... and this year they could soften it up a little bit and bring back a better tire and hopefully it will (make) for better racing on Sunday. I feel like the biggest issue in why the speeds picked up was just through the tire. And we're getting smarter. Everybody now this year, it's been a full year since we've been here developing this new car and I feel like that has a lot to do with it probably, as well.

"I wish we were starting up front so maybe we could get five bonus points early but unfortunately that's not the case. We'll have to dial up through there and pass everybody if we can and get there eventually during the day and try and get five bonus points. We won't be able to take to try to win the most bonus points for leading the most laps. But the scenario is now different, we've just got to take what's been given to us and try to battle it out on Sunday. The big check (goes to) the leader after the last lap, not the first lap."

Kurt: (Is Las Vegas as big to you as Indy is to Tony Stewart?) "You could say that. This is our hometown. Kyle and I grew up watching this place being built, grew up watching races here. It helped jump-start our careers so this place will always hold a special spot in my heart. It's definitely just as prestigious for the Busch brothers here in Vegas as it would be for Tony in Indy, for sure."

5:07 p.m. - Las Vegas natives Kyle and Kurt Busch qualified 1-2 for Sunday's Shelby 427 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. However, the pair won't lead the field to the green flag Sunday because Kyle Busch's crew had to change the engine in his No. 18 Toyota prior to qualifying. He will start Sunday's race from the back of the field. 

Kyle took the pole with a track-record lap of 185.995 mph. Kurt was second at 185.707. Jimmie Johnson, David Reutimann and Marcos Ambrose rounded out the top five. Defending race winner Carl Edwards qualified 16th, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was 31st and Matt Kenseth, winner of the first two races this season, will start 41st.

Stay tuned for comments from today's top qualifiers.

4:35 p.m. - Elliott Sadler, who comes into Sunday's Shelby 427, talks about the approach his No. 19 Stanley Dodge Charger team took coming into Las Vegas: "We showed up today as (if it was) a test session. We really had to run through some front-end geometry stuff and tire stuff because we weren't able to come here and test in January. I'm not saying that the no testing deal is bad; I think it's still great for the sport. But when we struggled at the end of last season and at California (last week), we came (to the track) today not worried about how fast we're going to run or how we're going to qualify, we did a test session running through different things that my guys can run on the simulation stuff tonight back at the hotel and maybe get idea on how we start tomorrow. 

"It's hard for me to say where we're at compared to last year. We know we're not where we need to be to win a race on a mile-and-a-half yet as compared to California. We had to show up and test through some things today to try and get a direction. We might have to do it again during the first practice again tomorrow and maybe at Atlanta on Friday until we hit up on something that we feel is very comfortable, very fast and that we'll be competitive on Sunday."

4 p.m. - Speedway Motorsports Inc., which owns Las Vegas Motor Speedway and six other NASCAR tracks, is teaming with NASCAR drivers to bring fans closer to their favorite driver through a series of fan forums at each of the 13 Sprint Cup Series races at SMI tracks.

Beginning with this weekend's race at LVMS, Performance Racing Network's on-air personalities will emcee question-and-answer sessions with the sport's biggest personalities at the SPEED Stage at each SMI track. The new "PRN Up to Speed" program kicks off Sunday at 9:30 a.m. at the SPEED Stage in the LVMS midway. This weekend's lineup includes drivers Kyle Busch and Jeff Gordon and team owner Richard Childress.

"I thought it was awesome," Gordon said of the announcement, which was made Friday in the track's fan-friendly Neon Garage. "They do such a great job here at Las Vegas Motor Speedway of taking care of the fans. I think that we definitely have to do all that we can to show them how much we appreciate them.

"Las Vegas Motor Speedway is the first one to step up and really do something and what I'm really excited about is they worked with the drivers on how it's going to impact their schedule and how we can do it to where it's fun, exciting, doesn't impact our focus on race day and really allows the fans to have a great experience."

3:30 p.m. - Las Vegas is Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s kind of town. The driver of the No. 88 Chevy for Hendrick Motorsports said he was impressed with the number of fans who turned out on Friday for practice and qualifying at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 

"Obviously we appreciate it a lot for anybody that comes out and watches either in person or on television," he said. "We've got a lot of people in the stands today. This is a good market and I feel like we can be successful here -not only for the people who are local but having a race in a town like Vegas brings in a lot of people from outside, too. 

"It makes for a great trip - you come to Vegas for three or four days and then you see a race, too. It's something Fontana and a couple other tracks on the circuit don't have. I don't think Vegas is going to have too hard a time selling tickets. I think this place is pretty popular." Earnhardt drew the 23rd position for qualifying, which began at 3:40 p.m.

1:45 p.m. - Mark Martin, who won the inaugural Cup race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 1998, was fastest in today's practice for Sunday's Shelby 427 Sprint Cup Series race. Martin's lap of 184.313 mph in the No. 5 Pop-Tarts/Carquest Chevy was considerably faster than last year's pole-winning lap of 182.352 by Kyle Busch. 

David Reutimann was second fastest at 184.181 in the No. 00 Aaron's Dream Machine Toyota and David Stremme was third at 183.849 in the No. 12 Penske Dodge. Jimmie Johnson and Kevin Harvick rounded out the top five. Kurt Busch was sixth fastest; Kyle Busch spent most of the time in the garage with his No. 18 Toyota and turned only four laps; defending race winner Carl Edwards was 13th on the speed chart; and Matt Kenseth, who won the first two races of the season, was 26th.

Qualifying for the Shelby 427 will begin at 3:40 p.m. (PST). Final practice for Saturday's Nationwide Series Sam's Town 300 is underway.

1:15 p.m. - Although his name has been brought up in conjunction with a new U.S. Formula One team that is being put together, Kyle Busch said he is not looking to jump from NASCAR to F1 with the startup team. But Busch, 23, didn't rule out the possibility of going overseas in the future to race if the circumstances were right.

"If I could win a championship here in the next two or three years, then I wouldn't mind going over there and doing that, trying it for a few years and coming back," Busch said Friday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. "I think I'd still be young enough that if I could win a championship by 25, go run Formula One for a few years, be back by 28 (and) I'd still have plenty of time left to run in NASCAR.

"But a lot of things would have to work out for that to happen and you'd have to be guaranteed a spot with a team to come back with. That's not always possible."

12:15 p.m. - Brendan Gaughan, a Las Vegas native who probably has turned more laps at Las Vegas Motor Speedway than any other driver, led the first Nationwide Series practice session with a lap of 177.497 mph. Kevin Harvick was second fastest at 177.247 and Greg Biffle was third at 176.869. The smoke coming from the car of Dale Earnhardt Jr. on the first lap of practice was the result of an oil leak as opposed to a blown engine. He got back on track late in the session and was 10th fastest in the session.

11:29 a.m. - The morning got off to a rough start for two Sprint Cup Series drivers who are competing in Saturday's Sam's Town 200 Nationwide Series race. Dale Earnhardt Jr. blew an engine in his No. 5 Go Daddy Chevrolet on his first lap of practice and Greg Biffle tagged the wall and damaged his No. 16 citifinancial Ford. With about half an hour left in the session, both drivers are back on the track and Biffle is atop the speed chart with a lap of 176.869 mph.

10:36 a.m. - Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway where the sun is shining and the temperature is about 64 degrees as the first NASCAR Nationwide Series cars hit the track for practice. Carl Edwards, Steve Wallace and Las Vegas native Brendan Gaughan were among the first cars on the track this morning.

No fewer than 15 Sprint Cup drivers are scheduled to come through the LVMS media center today for interview sessions, including Edwards, the defending Sprint Cup race winner at LVMS, and local favorites Kurt and Kyle Busch. Check back here often, as we'll be updating this blog throughout the day with news, stats and plenty of driver interviews.

NHRA ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals

Tony Schumacher Photo: David Allio

7:08 p.m. -- Comments from 2008 NHRA Top Fuel champion Tony Schumacher, who earned his 15th victory of the season and the 56^th of his career Sunday at the ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals:

(The big question is, what's left to accomplish in Pomona?) "It's Pomona, man. It's the end of the year; I can't wait. Every race we've won, it gets harder and harder to do because the bar is so high. I just want to go to Pomona and have fun. There were some times in the season where you've won a lot and our points were getting taken away because of the Countdown and then you go, ‘OK, we've absolutely got to close this thing.' To not capitalize on (a season) so good would have been devastating. I've said it many times, if we can't close the deal, we don't deserve it. We definitely have and I think we've proven to everybody that we deserve it."

(Going into the final round, Rod Fuller said that he wanted you in his house in the final round. Did that get you any more pumped up in the final?) It did, I guarantee it. At some point, you just call in sick if you're getting me, maybe. I get it because I would want to race us, too. When you win a race and you beat the guy that's the best at the time, that's what's great - it really is. He's just had some bad circumstances because we've beaten him so many times and it makes it look bad. He just keeps asking and we'll keep giving it to him, I guess. Right now, if I had to race against the Army car myself, I wouldn't be looking forward to it. I don't think he'd answer the same way if you asked him now."

Good night from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

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6:44 p.m. -- Comments from Funny Car driver Cruz Pedregon, who earned this second victory of the season and 25th of his career Sunday at the ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals:

(You said that first round with Jack Beckman was the most emotional and important win of your career, that final round had to even surpass that.) "It did, but not by much. I didn't hardly sleep last night. That car of Beckman's has been so good this year - as good as Wilkerson's - but they seem to be able to run fast when the track is fast. As good a season as Wilkerson has had, Wilkerson's strengths are more of a hot track and Beckman is dangerous because he can run good when the track is fast and this was a faster track today. After first round, things just kind of kept going from there and we got to the semis. I knew John Force was running good and I knew John was going to be up for me. John Force is absolutely like Dale Earnhardt and I'm sure all the Dale Earnhardt fans would welcome that comparison because John has meant a lot to this sport, he's done a lot. He's like a boxer that's hurt on the ropes - he's a little wobbly but that's when he's the most dangerous.

"Going into the final, Robert Hight ... that car scares the daylights out of me, too, because it seems to run good when the track's cooler and they're a fast-track racecar. I didn't want to get caught up in the championship points, I just went up there and just tried to maintain my emotions because it seemed like every round was like a championship round and I tried not to think too much about that. So I maintained my focus, which I'm pleased with and we got the win against Robert, which I'm pleased with."

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5:59 p.m. -- Comments from Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Chris Rivas, who earned this third victory of the season and third career win Sunday at the ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals:

(You trail Matt Smith by 39 points with one race remaining. How does it feel to be at that point after this win?) "It feels pretty incredible. I honestly didn't expect it. There were a few people said that we definitely had the possibility for this year. The team is so strong, with George Smith leading the way. It's been an incredible opportunity for me this year. I just feel so blessed to be on a team like this and get to show off some of the talent that God has given me."

(What do you have to do now to close the gap on the other two guys in front of you?) "The same thing we've always been doing. We don't have to do anything different, it's part of racing, it's circumstances that have to come together and come to you. That's kind of what this event worked out to be. We qualified fifth and we weren't really that strong ... fifth position, mathematically we shouldn't have won the race but it's just all the events fell into place the way it's supposed to and it's kind of out of my hands at that point. There was a very small part of me that was rooting for Eddie (Krawiec) because he needed his first win but, of course, I always want to win."

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4:55 p.m. - Tony Schumacher capped his championship weekend by defeating Las Vegas resident Rod Fuller in the Top Fuel final of the eighth annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals. Schumacher clinched the 2008 NHRA Top Fuel season championship on Saturday when he qualified for Sunday's eliminations.

Cruz Pedregon captured the Funny Car title by outrunning Robert Hight and took over the points lead in the category. Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock) and Chris Rivas (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won on Sunday.

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4:34 p.m. - Final results from the eighth annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:

Top Fuel: Tony Schumacher (3.806 at 314.53 mph) def. Rod Fuller (3.821 at 315.19)

Funny Car: Cruz Pedregon (4.100 at 304.67 mph) def. Robert Hight (4.111 at 304.67).

Pro Stock: Jeg Coughlin (6.708 at 205.07 mph) def. Greg Stanfield (foul).

Pro Stock Motorcycle: Chris Rivas (7.052 at 185.79 mph) def. Eddie Krawiec (7.307 at 152.31)

Check back shortly for comments from the winning drivers.

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3:22 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

Semifinals: Eddie Krawiec (7.042 at 189.34 mph) def. Matt Smith (7.039 at 186.41); Chris Rivas (7.095 at 183.12 mph) def. Andrew Hines (foul).

Final: Krawiec vs. Rivas.

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3:15 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Pro Stock:

Semifinals: Greg Stanfield (6.737 at 204.39 mph) def. Greg Anderson (24.669 at 26.11); Jeg Coughlin (6.719 at 204.51) def. Allen Johnson (6.744 at 204.01).

Final: Stanfield vs. Coughlin.

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3:09 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Funny Car:

Semifinals: Cruz Pedregon (4.092 at 305.36 mph) def. John Force (4.111 at 300.86); Robert Hight (4.115 at 298.80) def. Tony Pedregon (4.151 at 300.53).

Final: C. Pedregon vs. Hight.

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3:01 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Top Fuel:

Semifinals: Tony Schumacher (3.833 at 305.15 mph) def. Larry Dixon (3.899 at 305.56); Rod Fuller (3.821 at 314.46) def. Antron Brown (5.960 at 104.96).

Final: Schumacher vs. Fuller.

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2:40 p.m. - NAPA Auto Parts Funny Car driver Ron Capps had a chance to test the NHRA's newly mandated Electrimotion Safety Shutoff Controller during his first-round loss to Ashley Force.

The controller is designed to shut off fuel and ignition to the engine and deploy the parachutes as a result of a variety of engine or mechanical failures. The system deployed on Capps' car when his supercharger exploded toward the end of the run.

"We were actually ahead of Ashley, according to the time slip," Capps said, "and for some reason it struck the tires loose in a very weird spot, pretty far out during the run, which just doesn't seem to happen very often.

"It was so quick. It struck the tires and then exploded the supercharger right after that. If there is a bright side, we have the new shutoff controller on it, so when an explosion happens like that it shuts the fuel off and puts the parachute out.

"As soon as it blew up, I reached down to shut the fuel off, because you're trained to do that as a driver, and it was already off. So the chute was out and everything did its job. If something like that happens and you get knocked out or something goes very wrong with the car, having that system is a good thing. It worked."

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2:08 p.m. - A pair of interesting matchups will make the Funny Car semifinals a must-see event. It'll be the Pedregons vs. John Force Racing as Robert Hight will meet Tony Pedregon in one semifinal and John Force will face Cruz Pedregon in the other.

"All due respect to those guys, they're a tough team," Tony Pedregon said of John Force Racing. "They're like family and it's kind of like a love-hate relationship only because we're competitive. I know what's on the line ... and I'm excited."

Force, as expected, was revved up after knocking off Melanie Troxel and advancing to the semifinals against Cruz Pedregon.

"There's nothing I'd love better than to have a shot at this title," Force said. If I can do my job here and take out one of these Pedregons and Robert (Hight) can do it, we've got a shot at winning. What's cool is that the Pedregon boys, they're good, but so are we."

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1:55 p.m. -- Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

Second round: Andrew Hines def. Angelle Sampey (foul); Chris Rivas def. Chip Ellis; Eddie Krawiec def Mike Berry; Matt Smith def. Steve Johnson.

Semifinals: Hines vs. Rivas; Krawiec vs. Smith.

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1:45 p.m. -- Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Pro Stock:

Second round: Jeg Coughlin def. Dave Connolly; Allen Johnson def. Ron Krisher; Greg Anderson def. Mike Edwards (foul); Greg Stanfield def Kurt Johnson (foul).

Semifinals: Coughlin vs. A. Johnson; Anderson vs. Stanfield.

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1:35 p.m. -- Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Funny Car:

Second round: Robert Hight def. Mike Neff; Tony Pedregon def. Ashley Force; John Force def. Melanie Troxel; Cruz Pedregon def. Gary Densham (foul).

Semifinals: Hight vs. T. Pedregon; vs. J. Force vs. C. Pedregon.

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1:10 p.m. - Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Top Fuel:

Second round: Tony Schumacher def. Clary Millican; Larry Dixon def. Cory McClenathan; Antron Brown def. David Grubnic; Rod Fuller def. Hillary Will.

Semi-finals: Schumacher vs. Dixon; Brown vs. Fuller.

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12:51 p.m. -- First-round winners and second-round matchups in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

First round: Angelle Smpaey def. Junior Pippin; Andrew Hines def. Craig Treble; Chip Ellis def. Angie McBride; Chris Rivas def. Michael Phillips; Eddie Krawiec def. Shawn Gann; Mike Berry def. Karen Stoffer; Steve Johnson def. Hector Arana; Matt Smith def. Matt Guidera.

Second round: Sampey vs. Hines; Ellis vs. Rivas; Krawiec vs. Berry; Johnson vs. Smith.

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12:27 p.m. -- First-round winners and second-round matchups in Pro Stock:

First round: Jeg Coughlin def. Rickie Jones; Dave Connolly def. Warren Johnson; Allen Johnson def. Vinnie Deceglie; Ron Krisher def. V Gaines; Greg Anderson def. Justin Humphreys; Mike Edwards def. Jim Yates; Greg Stanfield def. Jason Line; Kurt Johnson def. Richie Stevens.

Second round: Coughlin vs. Connolly; A. Johnson vs. Krisher; Anderson vs. Edwards; Stanfield vs. K. Johnson.

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12:08 p.m. - Tim Wilkerson won't be joining Tony Schumacher in celebrating an NHRA World Championship in Las Vegas. Wilkerson, who held a 52-point lead in the Funny Car standings going into Sunday's eliminations, lost traction early in his first-round run against Mike Neff.

"We sure weren't trying to do that," Wilkerson said after the first-round loss. "We got down the track about 300 feet and spun the tires. Hey, the drama continues, right?"

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Noon - First-round winners and second-round matchups in Funny Car: Robert Hight def. Tony Bartone; Mike Neff def. Tim Wilkerson; Ashley Force def. Ron Capps; Tony Pedregon def. Bob Tasca; John Force def. Jeff Arend; Melanie Troxel def. Gary Scelzi; Gary Densham def. Jerry Toliver; Cruz Pedregon def. Jack Beckman.

Second round: Hight vs. Neff; A. Force vs. T. Pedregon; J. Force vs. Troxel; Densham vs. C. Pedregon.

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11:27 a.m. -- First-round winners and second-round matchups in Top Fuel:

First round: Tony Schumacher def. Joe Hartley; Clay Millican def. Brandon Bernstein; Larry Dixon def. Terry McMillen; Cory McClenathan def. Morgan Lucas; Antron Brown def. Troy Buff; David Grubnic def. J.R. Todd; Rod Fuller def. Tim Boychuk; Hillary Will def. Doug Kalitta.

Second round: Schumacher vs Millican; Dixon vs. McClenathan; Brown vs. Grubnic; Fuller vs. Will.

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10:30 a.m. - Angelle Sampey, the three-time Pro Stock Motorcycle World Champion and the No. 1 qualifier this weekend, apparently has had enough of being dwarfed by the statuesque Las Vegas showgirls who flank the stage during driver introductions at The Strip.

Sampey, who stands an even 5 feet tall, brought her own milk crate to stand on this morning while she addressed the crowd from the stage. The added lift allowed Sampey to look the two showgirls in the eyes.

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10:20 a.m. - Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway where it's sunny and windy for final eliminations for the eighth annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals. Although there is only a slight chance (10 percent) of rain forecast for today, the wind is gusting to 33 mph out of the south. Pre-race ceremonies and driver introductions are under way and eliminations are scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. (PST).

Check back here often, as we'll be updating this blog throughout the day with news, results and driver interviews.

NHRA ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals - Saturday

Photo: David Allio

6:40 p.m. - Comments from Robert Hight, the top qualifier in Funny Car:  

"That was probably the most confusing run I've ever made, having to do the burnout, it's raining, I see the water on the side windows, I get back past the tree and then have to shut it off. That kind of scenario throws you all off and we can't have that - it can be dangerous.  

"Right now, for this Auto Club Ford team, we have to make every point count. We could be perfect from here on out and still not win this championship. Number-one qualifier here, win this race, go to Pomona and be number one and win the race and that still might not be enough. We've been number one here a lot and lost first round, too. We're still in this ballgame and we can do it."

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6:25 p.m. - Comments from Tony Schumacher, the 2008 Top Fuel World Champion and No. 1 qualifier for Sunday's eighth annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals:  

"It's very gratifying to end up number one because after the whole season being as great as it was ... we show up and it's like ‘all you have to do is qualify (to win the championship).' We've got to remember we won 14 races, we didn't just have to qualify - we had to do all that to get here. So to be on the number-one spot, at least it goes out there a little bit of an exclamation point that we've clearly earned it. I don't think there's a question anywhere in the country that we left anything on the table.  

"To be able to do it in Vegas, I think it was great. There's just something special about Las Vegas. It's an amazing racetrack, amazing fans, amazing crowd and it has been a fun weekend. There are so many things are happening out here and to put this right in the middle of it and to cap off such a great year is perfect.  

"We've got the championship done, it's over now, and we're going to show up tomorrow and dig just as deep as we've done since the beginning of the year and do it for pride right now. If we get beat, it's not going to be because we left something on the table."

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5:55 p.m. -- Here are the 16 qualifiers in Funny Car for the eighth annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals:   1. Robert Hight; 2. John Force; 3. Jerry Toliver; 4. Ashley Force; 5. Tony Pedregon; 6. Cruz Pedregon; 7. Melanie Troxel; 8. Tim Wilkerson; 9. Mike Neff; 10. Gary Scelzi; 11. Jack Beckman; 12. Bob Tasca III; 13. Ron Capps; 14. Gary Densham; 15. Jeff Arend; 16. Tony Bartone.

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5:09 p.m. -- Here are the 16 qualifiers in Top Fuel for the eighth annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals:   1. Tony Schumacher; 2. Antron Brown; 3. Rod Fuller; 4. Larry Dixon; 5. Cory McClenathan; 6. Hillary Will; 7. J.R. Todd; 8. Brandon Bernstein; 9. Clay Milllican; 10. David Grubnic; 11. Doug Kalitta; 12, Morgan Lucas; 13. Terry McMillen; 14. Tom Boychuk; 15. Troy Buff; 16. Joe Hartley.

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4:58 p.m. - Tony Schumacher clinched the 2008 Top Fuel World Championship with a spectacular run of 3.806 seconds at 318.92 mph on his final qualifying run today. Stand by for comments from the champ.

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4:15 p.m. - Comments from Jeg Coughlin, the top qualifier in Pro Stock:

"We've had a great start thus far. The first two shots Friday, we were the number-one qualifier, running 6.70s both times. We got a little aggressive in the left lane this morning. I really felt like we could maybe try and tickle a (6.60) out of this thing and we didn't get away with it and we had to abort the run. But we came back and ran a nice (6.73) and tied for low of the round with Jason Line.

"The momentum we were looking for, the consistency we were looking for, is exactly what we accomplished. We didn't plan on aborting that run this morning but we've got that behind us and I really feel confident going into race day."

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3:51 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Pro Stock for the eighth annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals:

1. Jeg Coughlin; 2. Greg Anderson; 3. Jason Line; 4. Allen Johnson; 5. V. Gaines; 6. Kurt Johnson; 7. Mike Edwards; 8. Warren Johnson; 9. Dave Connolly; 10. Jim Yates; 11. Richie Stevens; 12. Ron Krisher; 13. Vinnie Deceglie; 14. Greg Stanfield; 15. Justin Humphreys; 16. Rickie Jones.

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3:44 p.m. - Comments from Angelle Sampey, the top qualifier in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

"After the first round today, I was praying for a 20-mile-per-hour headwind because I really wanted to keep the number-one spot but I guess I didn't need it. The weather conditions worsened all day long ... so I thought I was pretty safe. I'm really excited - I haven't been number-one qualifier in so long I've forgotten what it feels like. I don't know what my chances are of finishing third, second or first - and it doesn't really matter at this point. What really matters at this point is that we get our first win for the season. That's what we'll be concentrating on tomorrow."

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3:26 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Pro Stock motorcycle for the eighth annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals:

1. Angelle Sampey; 2. Eddie Krawiec; 3. Hector Arana; 4. Chip Ellis; 5. Chris Rivas; 6. Matt Smith; 7. Karen Stoffer; 8. Andrew Hines; 9. Craig Treble; 10. Mike Berry; 11. Matt Guidera; 12. Michael Phillips; 13. Angie McBride; 14. Steve Johnson; 15. Shawn Gann; 16. Junior Pippin.

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2:21 p.m. - John Force and Cruz Pedregon held the top two spots in Funny Car qualifying and Force's teammate, Robert Hight, moved into third after today's third round. Hight made a 4.08-second, 303.23-mph pass and jumped four spots going into this afternoon's final round of qualifying.

Melanie Troxel, Ashley Force and points leader Tim Wilkerson were fourth, fifth and sixth after three rounds.

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1:45 p.m. - Tony Schumacher, who is on the cusp of clinching his fifth career World Championship, Antron Brown and Larry Dixon remained the three fastest qualifiers following today's third round. In fact, the top nine drivers after Friday's second round all held their positions. JR Todd, who was 14^th coming into the session, moved to 10 with one qualifying run remaining.

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12:45 p.m. - Jeg Coughlin and Greg Anderson remained 1 and 2 after the third round of Pro Stock qualifying but Anderson's teammate, Jason Line, moved up three spots to third with a run of 6.716 seconds at 205.13. Allen Johnson, who was third after two rounds, sits fourth going into the final round of qualifying.

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 12:28 p.m. - Tim Wilkerson Racing and Tasca Racing announced today that they would form a two-car Funny Car alliance for the 2009 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series season.

"It just seems you can't get enough data out here (as a single-car team)," Wilkerson said. "We know that the multi-car teams really have us with our backs against the wall in that aspect, so the discussions we've had through the year with Bob (Tasca) had us thinking it might be a possibility that we could get together for next season."

"I'm elated to be associated with Tim," Tasca said. "He's proven this year is one of the more remarkable championship runs and may go down as THE most remarkable championship runs as a single-car team in the day and age of these multi-car empires. Tim Wilkerson and I really feel that we're creating our own little mini empire here and it's going to be a force to be reckoned with next year."

Wilkerson holds a 51-point lead over Jack Beckman in the Funny Car standings with two races remaining on the schedule.

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12:10 p.m. - Angelle Sampey, who is looking for her first victory of the season, remained the top qualifier in Pro Stock Motorcycle after three rounds. Eddie Krawiec still is the No. 2 qualifier and Chip Ellis moved from seventh to third with a 7.042-second, 187.05-mph run. Class points leader Matt Smith is sixth going into this afternoon's final round of qualifying.

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11:35 a.m. - Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway where it looks as if another great day is on tap for the final two rounds of professional qualifying for the eighth annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals. It's partly cloudy and about 76 degrees with just a hint of a breeze. The forecast is for a high of 82 this afternoon. Professional qualifying is set to begin shortly, with Top Fuel and Funny Car qualifying sessions scheduled for 12:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. (PDT).

Check back here often, as we'll be updating this blog throughout the weekend with news, results and driver interviews.

NHRA ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals - Friday

7:29 p.m. -- Comments from provisional Pro Stock Motorcycle pole-sitter Angelle Sampey following the second round of qualifying:  

"This is actually my favorite race of the whole year because I love Las Vegas and I love Halloween - it's my favorite holiday, next to Christmas. We had a great run. We've had, I think, all of our bad luck in the beginning and the middle of the year and I'm really hoping these last couple of races has mercy on us and we get to do well for our sponsors who have been so wonderful. I've won a race -- at least one -- every season and it's really, really killing me that we haven't (won this year) because I know that I can and I know that my team can. We haven't shown what we're capable of."

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7:15 p.m. - Comments from provisional Pro Stock pole-sitter Jeg Coughlin following the second round of qualifying:  

"The conditions today are fantastic - Mother Nature really blessed us today. We got a little bit of heat out there but the cloud cover kept the track very, very tight. A lot of teams really weren't picking up in the second session and we picked up just a hair and got a track record."

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7:11 p.m. - Comments from provisional Funny Car pole-sitter John Force following the second round of qualifying:  

"The track, I thought, was excellent. It's good to be back and it's good (to be on the provisional pole); it's been a while. I'm not the person that I used to be (before the accident last year) because the doctors say I can't take another hit like that - I'm too old. I think that holds (crew chief Austin) Coil back when he really wants to go to crunch time. I said to him, ‘let's go for it or let's go home.'"

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7 p.m. -- Comments from provisional Top Fuel pole-sitter Tony Schumacher following the second round of qualifying:  

"We went out there and it shook at 60 feet. That's always uncomfortable because we have not had the most success on Friday nights, we just haven't. It shook and then it just went into warp speed. The circumstances where you've got to qualify to be the champ and you've won 14 races, you don't want it to be anticlimactic where you just squeeze in; you want to prove the point, I guess."

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6:51 p.m. - John Force took advantage of cooler track temperatures and powered his Ford Mustang Funny Car to the provisional pole under the lights at The Strip. 

 Force's pass of 4.062 at 307.37 mph gave him the top qualifying position after two rounds. Cruz Pedregon was second and Melanie Troxel was third. Ashley Force was fourth fastest and Funny Car points leader Tim Wilkerson was fifth.  

In Top Fuel, Tony Schumacher regained the provisional pole with a run of 3.781 at 316.60 on the final pass of the evening. Antron Brown, who had grabbed the provisional pole earlier in the session with a run of 3.812 at 315.49 mph, was second and Larry Dixon was third.

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 5:50 p.m. - Midway through the second round of pro qualifying, Angelle Sampey (Pro Stock Bike) and Jeg Coughlin (Pro Stock) are the top qualifiers and both have established track records.  

 Because an earlier oil-down stretched out the second round of qualifying until early evening, Coughlin had ideal conditions when he made his second run and improved to a track-record 6.703 at 205.47 mph.   Sampey's first-round run of 6.993 at 188.34 mph kept her on top of the speeds charts.

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4:55 p.m. - The two annual NHRA National events at The Strip always are the most important races of the season for Las Vegas resident Rod Fuller. But this weekend's ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals has taken on even more importance for Fuller now that Tony Schumacher has all but clinched the Top Fuel season championship.  

 "I kind of feel like we're a wounded animal backed in a corner right now and we've got nothing to lose," said Fuller, who was sixth after the first round of Top Fuel qualifying. "I'm at my home track, the championship is pretty much sealed up for Tony and we're just going to go out there and have some fun and be loose and go for it."   Fuller said he is taking a more active role in the tuneup of his David Powers-owned Caterpillar dragster this weekend.  

 "I'm going to have some decision on the tuneup this week with my crew chief, Fuller said. "That thing is either going to run low e.t. or nor e.t., I'll tell you that."

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3:55 p.m. - After a lengthy oil-down delay, the final pair of Top Fuelers finally got on the track and points leader Tony Schumacher laid down the fastest run and grabbed the provisional pole as the first round of pro qualifying concluded.

Schumacher's run of 3.847 at 317.19 mph was the quickest and fastest of the session. Clay Millican was next at 3.889 at 315.42 mph and Larry Dixon was third at 3.905 at 311.20. Schumacher can clinch his fifth consecutive World Championship on Saturday by qualifying for Sunday's final eliminations.

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2:40 p.m. - The Pro Stock cars driven by Greg Anderson and Jason Line have been considered the "hometown cars" at The Strip because Las Vegas businessman Ken Black owns them.

Another Pro Stock entry figures to have some local rooting interest this weekend - but not because of the owner or driver. The ACDelco Cobalt, driven by Kurt Johnson, also has a strong tie to Las Vegas because one of the team's three full-time crew members lives in the Valley.  

Brian Strait of Las Vegas is in his first season as a member of Johnson's team after Strait came to Johnson's aid earlier this season after the unexpected departure of a junior crew member. While his role with the team was supposed to last only a few races while he trained a replacement, Strait became a more permanent fixture when the new hire didn't work out.  

Strait, who has known Johnson since the two were in high school in Minnesota, is in charge of the back half of Johnson's Cobalt and handles everything from the tires and rear suspension to repacking the parachutes after each run.   Strait truly is a "weekend warrior," who flies in to each race. While he's in Las Vegas, Strait serves as the general manager of the Las Vegas Ski and Snowboard Resort at Lee Canyon.

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2:10 p.m. - Robert Hight turned in a pass of 4.094 seconds at 301.60 mph and is the top Funny Car qualifier after the first round.   Gary Densham is second and Tony Pedregon third heading into the second round of qualifying ,which is slated to begin at 4 p.m. (PDT).

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1:45 p.m. - Among the notable spectators on hand today to watch pro qualifying are former NASCAR driver Geoffrey Bodine and current NASCAR team owner Ray Evernham

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 1:25 p.m. - The first round of qualifying in Pro Stock is complete and Jeg Coughlin finds himself atop the speed chart with a 6.706-second run at 205.29 mph.   Allen Johnson is the second-fastest qualifier and Greg Anderson, a six-time winner at The Strip, sits third.

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12:50 p.m. - Angelle Sampey got Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying off to a quick start by turning in the first sub-7-second pass in the category at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.   Sampey, a three-time World Champion, made a 6.993-second pass at 188.23 mph on her first qualifying run today and is the top qualifier after one round.

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12:29 p.m. - At the conclusion of racing this afternoon, fans are invited to stick around for a free post-race party on the general admission side of the track (the side closest to the right lane) featuring two sets by Danny Dean & The Rockin' Rebels. Concession stands will be open and food and drink specials will be available.
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11:45 a.m. - Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway where it's shaping up as a beautiful day for the first round of professional qualifying for the eighth annual ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals. It's partly cloudy and 80 degrees with a slight breeze (5 mph out of the east) as NHRA officials prepare The Strip for the first professional runs, which are set to begin at 12:30 (PDT). Check back here often, as we'll be updating this blog throughout the weekend with news, results and driver interviews.

Qwik Liner Las Vegas 350

10:05 p.m. -- Post-race comments from race winner Mike Skinner: “Wow. It’s just amazing. I’ve been beaten many, many times when I’ve had the fastest truck. Erik Darnell is going to be sitting up here one day saying the same thing because he had the fastest truck tonight. We were just able to really work him hard on the restarts and he was trying to stop and go on the restarts. 

He was doing everything he was supposed to do – he’s supposed to try to win the race. That’s all the kid was doing and he’s a good guy and a good driver. I knew I had to do something different from what I had been doing. I thought they were going to line up and freight-train me. I said, ‘Well, if they all think I’m going to the bottom, I’ve got to go to the top.’ I went to the top and (Darnell’s) truck was so strong, he came back and passed me on the outside. 

“We had what you call ‘something and elbows’ going off (Turn) four there. We just bounced off of him and killed his momentum a little bit. I wasn’t going to wreck him to win the race. I had plenty of opportunities to do that and I didn’t and I don’t think he’d wreck me to win a race, either. But ricocheting off each other, trying to slow the momentum down, I think that’s fair." (On the event-record 12 caution periods in the race:) “I didn’t like the cautions. I thought it was ridiculous how some of the folks were driving back there in the back. I sure wasn’t liking it and I knew that if it just stayed green, we were going to finish second so what I didn’t like about the race turned around and won the race for me so what can you say?”

Good night from Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

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9:45 p.m. -- Post-race comments from third-place finisher Matt Crafton: "It was very eventful. I started 14th and drove to third right off. We had a little bit of an issue on the (first) pit stop and lost some spots. And then on the second pit stop, when I was coming out on the racetrack, I hit a huge piece of debris with the right front and we were about 10th at that point.

We had to come back in and take on right sides (tires) because I ran over something and I went back to 28th at that point and drove it back to third. The truck was awesome - we rolled off the trailer tonight and it was awesome.

"That last run, that was by far the fastest we had been all race but we never did really show it because we'd run two laps and then a yellow, two laps and then a yellow. If we would have run 20 green-flag laps right there at the end, we definitely could have had something for them."

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9:30 p.m. -- Post-race comments from second-place finisher Erik Darnell: "We needed green-flag laps at the end. All those restarts at the end killed us. Mike (Skinner) was better for two or three laps and then I was able to drive away from him. 

He got a good run getting into (Turn) one and kind of got out there on my right-rear and got me just a little loose and he got the momentum he needed to get up on the high side and he got a push down the backstretch and got ahead of me. The last lap, going into (Turn) three, I said ‘I'm going to hold it wide open and I'm either going to pass him or I'm going to wreck it trying.' I got back out there and thought I was going to be able to win the drag race back to the start-finish line but, unfortunately, he got it.

"Mike has always run me clean and I do the same with him. I've probably had some of the best races out there on the track with Mike just because we can run each other like that. I knew he wasn't going to turn me."

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9:02 p.m. - Mike Skinner grabbed the lead from Erik Darnell on a green-white-checkered restart and beat Darnell to the checkered flag by less than half a truck length and won Saturday night's Qwik Liner Las Vegas 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

Darnell was second, Matt Crafton was third, John Andretti was fourth and Ron Hornaday Jr. was fifth. Hornaday assumed the points lead in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series as Johnny Benson, the previous points leader, crashed out of the race after 64 laps and finished 27th. The race was slowed by an event-record 12 caution periods. There also were a record 15 lead changes in the race.

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8:45 p.m. - Dennis Setzer and Shane Sieg get together on lap 131 and bring out the 10th caution period of the race - an event record. With 12 laps to go, Erik Darnell leads but Mike Skinner has been stalking in second. Rookie Colin Braun is third, Matt Crafton is fourth and Ron Hornaday is cruising around in fifth place.

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8:21 p.m. - We've completed 107 of 146 laps, we've had seven caution periods and 24 trucks still are running. Erik Darnell leads and is followed by John Andretti, Mike Skinner, Scott Speed and Dennis Setzer. Johnny Benson is out of the race, as are Jack Sprague, Stacy Compton, Justin Marks, Norm Benning and Chris Jones.

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8 p.m. - Here are the results for the 600 Racing events that were held on the quarter-mile track in the LVMS tri-oval this afternoon:

Legends Cars

1. Dusty Davis
2. Jeremiah Wagner
3 Dylan Kwasniewski
4. Brecken Snow
5. Bear Rzenoweicky

Bandoleros

1. Kyle Niquette
2. Nicholas Thigpen
3. JairoAvila Jr.
4. Brianna Holley
5. Micheal Morris

Thunder Roadsters

1. Justin Johnson
2. Jared Carpenter
3. Ron Duprau

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7:36 p.m. – Race leader (and series points leader) Johnny Benson wrecks hard into the Turn-2 outside wall after an apparent right-front tire failure on lap 64. Benson takes his mangled truck behind the wall, where his crew will attempt to make repairs and get him back in the race. Mike Skinner grabs the race lead after pit stops.

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6:52 p.m. - Sean Murphy spins coming out of Turn 4 on the fourth lap and brings out the first caution of the race. Murphy keeps the No. 07 Chevrolet off the wall but pits to change tires. Brendan Gaughan, who was running ninth, also pits to make adjustments to his No. 10 Ford. Mike Skinner leads.

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6:50 p.m. – Ron Hornaday Jr. leads the field of 31 trucks to the green flag to start the Qwik Liner Las Vegas 350. Hornaday is in search of his sixth victory of the season and his first at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The trucks of Chris Jones (No. 0) and Stacy Compton (No. 59) drop to the rear of the field because of adjustments made following qualifying.

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6:40 p.m. – Drivers are given the command to “start your engines” and begin three parade laps around the 1.5-mile speedway.

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4:35 p.m. – Ron Hornaday Jr., who trails NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series points leader Johnny Benson by 74 points, captured the pole for tonight’s Qwik Liner Las Vegas 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Hornaday’s lap of 170.428 mph late in the session bumped rookie Colin Braun from the top spot. Braun will start second after posting a qualifying lap at 170.304 mph. Mike Skinner, Chad McCumbee and Benson round out the top five for tonight’s race, which will take the green flag at 6:30 p.m. (PDT).

Jack Sprague, Erik Darnell, Todd Bodine, Dennis Setzer and Rick Crawford will start sixth through 10th. Local favorite Brendan Gaughan will start 12th.

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2:30 p.m. - Brendan Gaughan is looking forward to tonight's Qwik Liner Las Vegas 350 for more than the obvious reasons.

Yes, he's a Las Vegas native and, yes, LVMS was the site of his most memorable victory in racing, but there is another reason Gaughan is eagerly anticipating tonight's 146-lap race.

"I think we're going to be really good," Gaughan said. "I like the new surface because I like that progressive banking. For my style of racing, that progressive banking really works well for me.

"Everybody's afraid to go high. Everybody's way nervous to go out there and I'm not. Last year, I was three-wide right off the start. Based on how high I went a few times today-- even with the dust and everything up there -- I think I can go four-wide this year. I think it's that good."

Gaughan often has called his victory in the 2003 truck race at LVMS his most memorable victory. He's hoping he can duplicate that feat tonight because he said his Circle Bar Racing team could use the lift.

"There's nothing wrong with our team, there's nothing wrong with our guys," Gaughan said, "we've just hit a streak where everybody got down and when you get down, it compounds and compounds and this is the track to pull us all out. So a top-10 start (and a good finish) would do won ders for the mentality of this team."

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Mike Skinner apparently didn't get the memo that the Toyota Tundras are supposed to be down on horsepower following engine rules changes implemented recently by NASCAR.

Skinner led both of today's practice sessions for tonight's NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Qwik Liner Las Vegas 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Skinner, whose lap at 170.881 mph put him on top of the speed charts in the first practice, turned a lap at 170.455 mph in the No. 5 Toyota Tundra to lead the final practice.

Skinner clearly knows how to get around the 1.50-mile Las Vegas oval. In addition to winning this race in 2006, he sat on the pole here for three consecutive races from 2004 to 2006.

"It kind of felt like old times," Skinner said of the two practice sessions. "I love Vegas, man, and I love this place. I wish we raced four times a year out here. I loved it before they reconfigured it and I love it now.

"Our truck was pretty good - not perfect, but it's not bad. It'd be nice to start in the top five and get a good pit selection. We're definitely going to hold it wide open and see what happens."

Chad McCumbee was second fastest in the final practice at 169.769 in the No. 8 Malcolmson Construction Chevrolet and Bobby East was third (169.715) in the No. 09 Zaxby's Ford. Rick Crawford (169.252) was fourth in the No. 14 C ircle Bar/Powerstroke Diesel Ford and Jack Sprague (169.242) was fifth fastest in the No. 2 Camping World Chevrolet.

Qualifying for the Qwik Liner Las Vegas 350 begins at 3:30 p.m. (PDT).

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11:25 a.m. - Stacy Compton has replaced Ted Musgrave as driver of the No. 59 Team ASE/Harris Trucking Toyota and will pilot the truck in tonight's Qwik Liner Las Vegas 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the team announced this morning.

Musgrave, who wrecked the team's primary truck in this morning's first practice session, and team owner Jim Harris mutually agreed to part ways, according to team manager Donny Vaden.

"Stacy Compton will drive the No. 59 for tonight's race in Las Vegas," Vaden said. "We will evaluate our options once we get back home and make an announcement on our driver or drivers for the rest of the season then."

Compton was HT Motorsports' first driver in NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series competition, competing in four races in 2001 and three races in 2002. He scored top-10 finishes in his first five starts with the team, including a fourth-place finish after starting from the pole at Phoenix in October 2001.

Compton has started 16 NCTS races in 2008 for the BHR-VA team for which he is a co-owner. His best qualifying effort of the season was a second at Nashville in August and his best finish is a sixth in the season opener at Daytona. Overall, he has four top-10 finishes and stands 21st in the series championship standings despite missing the past two races.

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10:56 a.m. - Ted Musgrave, driver of the No. 59 Team ASE/Harris Trucking Toyota, on his crash in Turn 4 on the second lap of practice this morning:

"We were really loose. Just no rear grip and it got away from me. It was lap two, so it was out of control from lap one. We were about two seconds off the pace and we were trying to make it a little quicker."

The team is preparing its backup truck as the second (and final) practice session gets under way.

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10:44 a.m. – The first practice session is in the books and Mike Skinner (Toyota) sits atop the speed chart with a fast lap of 170.881 mph. Skinner won this race in 2006 and is a three-time pole winner (2004-06) at LVMS.

Erik Darnell (Ford) was second fastest at 170.100 mph and Jack Sprague (Chevrolet), a two-time race winner at LVMS, was third at 169.721. Ron Hornaday Jr., who has won the past two races this season, was fourth at 169.582 mph in a Chevy and Shane Sieg (Toyota) rounded out the top five at 169.428 mph.

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Five minutes into the first practice, Ted Musgrave contacted the outdside wall in turn 4 at LVMS

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9:07 a.m. - Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway where, by all indications, it should be a spectacular day for the 12th running of the Qwik Liner Las Vegas 350. It's sunny and 81 degrees with a slight breeze (6 mph out of the southeast) as the first trucks take to the track for the initial 75-minute practice session.

Among the first trucks on the 1.5-mile track are Johnny Benson, Mike Skinner and hometown favorite Brendan Gaughan. Matt Crafton has posted the fastest lap so far at 168.130 mph. Skinner holds the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series track record at 178.065 mph, set during qualifying in 2006.

Check back here often, as we'll be updating this blog throughout the day with news, stats and driver interviews.