7:25 p.m. – Comments from Top Fuel driver Del Worsham, who earned his 32nd career victory and seventh of the season Sunday at the Big O Tires NHRA Nationals:

“Like Reading (two races ago), I’m out there running the fastest car again and the best team … so I didn’t want to let anybody down. (Spencer Massey) got me a little bit out of the gate there – I will never deny that he is very good. All the Top Fuel guys have really taught me something here about competition and having to dig deep. It was so close down there (in the final). You can’t see the other guy but when someone stares at you, when someone’s next to you and you know they’re there, that’s what it felt like. I just knew (Massey) was lurking. And he told me he never saw me, either. When my big ol’ win light flashed up down there, I was pretty proud.”

(Talk about the battle for the championship. You’re two points behind Massey with one race to go) “This is 21 years in building here. My whole career here, as far as drag racing goes, has come down, basically, to one race right now and I’m looking forward to it. I’ve got some confidence built up now and I’ve had a lot of success through the years but I’ve never personally been at this level and for (team owner) Sheik Khalid to give me this opportunity and for (team manager) Alan Johnson and (crew chief) Brian Husen to build this kind of car with this team, I’m a lucky guy. Coming off a win and going in (to the final race) with momentum is probably the biggest advantage I have right now.”

(Do you feel like you’ve got the car to beat in the season finale?) “I feel like I’m in the car to beat every day. I believe the car is going to be there, it’s going to run well and it’s going to come down to – mark my words – the final round and the two cars in the final; whoever wins is going to be the Top Fuel world champion.”

7:05 p.m. – Comments from Funny Car driver Ron Capps, who earned his second win of the season and the 33rd of his career Sunday at the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals:

“It’s so gratifying for the guys and Tim Richards, my crew chief. I go up there every time, literally, to make him proud when I drive. It’s a tough car to drive and keep in the groove – I’m not going to lie to you.

 I’ve really have to dig down and I haven’t had this much of a challenge in a long time to drive a car and keep it in the groove. It’s a lot of fun to drive but it’s a challenge. It’s going to be fun to go to Pomona because Tim now has got enough data that if we see the (right) conditions, he can throw down and go for a record and go for a backup; he’s got that kind of mentality. But when it’s hot out and we need it, he can slide that thing down there.

“A 4.10 in the final – I couldn’t even believe it. I was in the trunk again like I was the other night (in qualifying) and I couldn’t believe the car was staying hooked up. It was nice to see that little win light on the guardrail. That second-round matchup with (Jack) Beckman was emotionally draining. They’re fighting for (the championship) and we’re fighting just to show off in front of our sponsors and get back into it. You hate to take a guy out like that but you really have to commend (team owner) Don Schumacher … he makes sure we race straight up and you saw that again today. To have seven cars like he does and to go up there, no matter what the points are, no matter who is fighting, and to let it all hang out and have no (team) orders, I commend him for that.”

6:50 p.m. – Comments from Pro Stock driver Mike Edwards, who earned his 32nd career victory and the fourth of the season Sunday at the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals:

“To win the race, to come out here and run really well, to qualify number one and today to put four rounds together – we’ve been struggling to do that for the past six or seven races, for sure.

It feels good to come out and finally win a race. I want to say congratulations to Jason Line (for winning the championship). They did a fantastic job, the whole team.

“We seem to run well at altitude tracks. We won Denver this year and then we came here and ran really, really well the (spring) race this year. It seems like when it’s hot out, we run better for some reason. We just need to figure out the rest of the conditions so maybe we can run a little bit better. It’s fun to come here and race. There’s so much to do here and I really, really, really enjoy coming here and we’ve had some success here, that’s for sure.”

6:40 p.m. – Comments from Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Eddie Krawiec, who earned his 11th career victory and the fourth of the season Sunday at the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals:

“The most important thing here was consistency – rounds wins, round wins, round wins and I’ve been saying that all year. I’ve been leading the points pretty much the whole year and I definitely didn’t want to give it up or come into the Countdown and fumble. I’ve just been trying to work on my riding and be consistent – that’s the one thing that shows.

“This (championship) race, by no means, is over yet. I mean, 69 points is definitely a three-round lead. Our Harley-Davidson got four win lights today and I couldn’t be any more excited. It definitely takes the weight off my shoulders going into Pomona but it’s still in the back of my head. I don’t look at it like I won the championship yet.”

5:30 p.m. – Final results from the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:

Top Fuel: Del Worsham (3.823 at 318.77) def. Spencer Massey (3.834 at 323.74).
Funny Car: Ron Capps (4.109 at 311.34) def. Johnny Gray (4.203 at 295.08).
Pro Stock: Mike Edwards (6.641 at 208.30) def. Allen Johnson (6.668 at 208.01).
Pro Stock Motorcycle: Eddie Krawiec (6.936 at 194.30) def. Andrew Hines (6.995 at 192.96). 

Check back shortly for comments from the winning racers.

4:35 p.m. – Jason Line committed a red-light foul in his semifinal matchup with Allen Johnson but still clinched his second NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series world championship in Pro Stock when his closest pursuer, teammate Greg Anderson, lost to Mike Edwards in the other semifinal. 

“It feels unbelievable,” Line said. “It’s a great day. It’s unfortunate that we couldn’t have finished it in true championship style but it is what it is and I’m not giving the (championship) jacket back or the trophy.”

The Pro Stock championship was the sixth for team owner Ken Black, a Las Vegas businessman. Line said it was important for him to clinch the title in Black’s hometown, with his team owner looking on.

“It’s more important to clinch here in front of (Black’s) whole family,” Line said. “It’s a big deal because without them and Summit, this doesn’t happen and we’re not out here racing so we owe everything to them. I personally feel very indebted to them for everything they’ve done for me.”

Line won his first Pro Stock championship in 2006. Anderson has won four world championships, including three in a row from 2003-2005.

4:10 p.m. – Semifinals results and final-round matchup in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

Semifinals: Andrew Hines (6.977 at 192.85) def. Angie Smith (7.053 at 189.47); Eddie Krawiec (6.989 at 193.45) def. Hank Arana Sr. (7.157 at 191.48).

Final: Hines vs. Krawiec. 

4:05 p.m. – Semifinals results and final-round matchup in Pro Stock:

Semifinals: Allen Johnson (6.674 at 207.53) def. Jason Line (foul); Mike Edwards (6.663 at 208.17) def. Greg Anderson (6.646 at 207.78).

Final: Edwards vs. A. Johnson.

3:57 p.m. – Semifinals results and final-round matchup in Funny Car:

Semifinals: Ron Capps (4.125 at 309.20) def. Cruz Pedregon (4.196 at 304.05); Johnny Gray (4.123 at 311.56) def. Bob Tasca III (10.799 at 86.69).

Final: Capps vs. Gray.

3:51 p.m. – Semifinals results and final-round matchup in Top Fuel:

Spencer Massey (3.890 at 318.62) def. Brandon Bernstein (foul); Del Worsham def. Antron Brown (foul).

Final: Massey vs. Worsham.

2:46 p.m. – Second-round results and semifinals matchups in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

Eddie Krawiec def. LE Tonglet; Angie Smith def. Hank Arana Jr.; Hank Arana Sr. def. Jerry Savoie; Andrew Hines def. Jim Underdahl.

Semifinals: A. Smith vs. Hines; Krawiec vs. Arana Sr.

2:38 p.m. – Second-round results and semifinals matchups in Pro Stock:

Allen Johnson def. Larry Morgan; Greg Anderson def. Kurt Johnson; Jason Line def. Ron Krisher; Mike Edwards def. Ronnie Humphrey.

Semifinals: Edwards vs. Anderson; Line vs. A. Johnson.

2:28 p.m. – Second-round results and semifinals matchups in Funny Car:

Johnny Gray def. Paul Lee; Ron Capps def. Jack Beckman; Cruz Pedregon def. Matt Hagan; Bob Tasca III def. Tony Pedregon.

Semifinals: Capps vs. C. Pedregon; Gray vs. Tasca III.

2:10 p.m. – Second-round results and semifinals matchups in Top Fuel:

Del Worsham def. David Grubnic; Brandon Bernstein def. Larry Dixon; Antron Brown def. Bob Vandergriff; Spencer Massey def. Rod Fuller.

Semifinals: Worsham vs. Brown; Massey vs. Bernstein.

12:53 p.m. – First-round results and second-round matchups in Pro Stock:

Ronnie Humphrey def. Erica Enders; Ron Krisher def. Shane Gray; Larry Morgan def. Vincent Nobile; Greg Anderson def. Steve Kent; Kurt Johnson def. Rodger Brogdon; Mike Edwards def. Mark Wolfe; Jason Line def. V. Gaines; Allen Johnson def. Greg Stanfield.

Second round: Edwards vs. Humphrey; K. Johnson vs. Anderson; Line vs. Krisher; A. Johnson vs. Morgan.

12:30 p.m. – First-round results and second-round matchups in Funny Car:

Johnny Gray def. Melanie Troxel; Tony Pedregon def. Robert Hight; Ron Capps def. Todd Lesenko; Paul Lee def. Mike Neff; Cruz Pedregon def. Jeff Arend; Matt Hagan def. Tim Wilkerson; Bob Tasca III def. Alexis DeJoria; Jack Beckman def. John Force. 

Second round: Capps vs. Beckman; C. Pedregon vs. Hagan; Lee vs. Gray; T. Pedregon vs. Tasca III.

11:58 a.m. – Las Vegas resident Rod Fuller, who won the Top Fuel category at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in the fall of 2007, earned an opening-round victory over Doug Kalitta on Sunday with a 3.849-second pass at 325.53 mph – the fastest run of the first round. 

“It’s always good to be home,” Fuller said. “This is my place. This is my track and I think all those fans in the stands today are going to get to see some great drag racing. I’m excited about this next round. I think that we have a great shot of beating Spencer (Massey).”

11:35 a.m. – First-round results and second-round matchups in Top Fuel:

David Grubnic def. Steve Torrence; Larry Dixon def. T.J. Zizzo; Antron Brown def. Tony Schumacher; Bob Vandergriff def. Clay Millican; Del Worsham def. Shawn Langdon; Spencer Massey def. Ron August Jr.; Brandon Bernstein def. Dominick Lagana; Rod Fuller def. Doug Kalitta. 

Second round:  Worsham vs. Grubnic; Vandergriff vs. Brown; Massey vs. Fuller; Bernstein vs. Dixon.

9:40 a.m. – Here are the first-round pairings for today’s professional eliminations:

TOP FUEL: 1. Del Worsham vs. 16. Shawn Langdon; 2. Spencer Massey vs. 15. Ron August; 3. Brandon Bernstein vs. 14. Dom Lagana; 4. Bob Vandergriff vs. 13. Clay Millican; 5. Antron Brown vs. 12. Tony Schumacher; 6. Larry Dixon vs. 11. T.J. Zizzo; 7. Rod Fuller vs. 10. Doug Kalitta; 8. Steve Torrence vs. 9. David Grubnic. 

FUNNY CAR: 1. Ron Capps vs. 16. Todd Lesenko; 2. Mike Neff vs. 15. Paul Lee; 3. Robert Hight vs. 14. Tony Pedregon; 4. Cruz Pedregon vs. 13. Jeff Arend; 5. Matt Hagan vs. 12. Tim Wilkerson; 6. Bob Tasca III vs. 11. Alexis DeJoria; 7. Melanie Troxel vs. 10. Johnny Gray; 8. Jack Beckman vs. 9. John Force.

PRO STOCK: 1. Mike Edwards vs. 16. Mark Wolfe; 2. Jason Line vs. 15. V. Gaines; 3. Allen Johnson vs. 14. Greg Stanfield; 4. Rodger Brogdon vs. 13. Kurt Johnson; 5. Greg Anderson vs. 12. Steve Kent; 6. Larry Morgan vs. 11. Vincent Nobile; 7. Ron Krisher vs. 10. Shane Gray; 8. Ronnie Humphrey vs. 9. Erica Enders.

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE: 1. Hector Arana Jr. vs. 16. Matt Guidera; 2. Eddie Krawiec vs. 15. David Hope; 3. Hector Arana Sr. vs. 14. Shawn Gann; 4. Andrew Hines vs. 13. Bailey Whitaker; 5. Matt Smith vs. 12. Jim Underdahl; 6. Jerry Savoie vs. 11. Michael Ray; 7. Steve Johnson vs. 10. LE Tonglet; 8. Mike Berry vs. 9. Angie Smith.

9:20 a.m. – Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and final eliminations for the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals. Fans are in for a spectacular fall day as the forecast calls for sunny skies and a high of 81 degrees. 

Pre-race ceremonies for the Big O Tires NHRA Nationals are scheduled to start at 10 a.m. (PDT) and pro eliminations will begin at 11 a.m.

Make sure to check back here throughout the day for the latest news, results and driver interviews.

 7 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 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals begin at 10 a.m. and final eliminations in the four pro categories start at 11 a.m.

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

6:50 p.m. – Comments from Ron Capps, the top qualifier in Funny Car:

(How does this feel after not qualifying for the most recent race?) “Zero to hero? It’s pretty cool. I’m so proud of Tim (Richards, crew chief) and the guys because, obviously, we didn’t qualify in Phoenix and then the guys packed up Saturday night and I went to the track on Sunday and had to stand around and do my business with NAPA and all of the people.

 It had been four years since I didn’t qualify so it was tough. The dedication for the NAPA guys to pack up, come here and spend (last Monday) testing a brand-new car when they could have gone home … that was what they needed; that was the spark the guys needed.”

(How aggravated were you after Phoenix?) “I wasn’t aggravated … yeah, maybe a little bit. You’re like, OK, this could have happened at any point in the season but now? It’s got to happen now, in the Countdown? It just seems like sometimes we can’t catch a break. You don’t want to cry about not winning a championship and the different ways that we’ve not won it and come close, but it’s just making us earn it. It’s making us work for it.”

(After four years, do you just expect to qualify?) “That streak kept going on and on and you hear the announcers talking about it. You’re like, ‘Gosh, four years, that just doesn’t seem right.’ And you take it for granted. I’m always bragging to the NASCAR guys that in our sport, John Force has won 15 championships but he still has to qualify for Sunday. We don’t have provisionals like these NASCAR guys and it’s not a given that we’re going to be there. It sucks that that rule is there, sometimes, when you have a big sponsor, for that very reason. We had 180 people show up (in Phoenix) from NAPA and I wasn’t there racing. But I think it’s the coolest part of our sport – that you’ve got to earn it every time, I don’t care who you are. That’s the part that reminds you … that you can’t take it for granted.”

6:38 p.m. – Comments from Del Worsham, the top qualifier in Top Fuel:

“It feels amazing. We were on a great run last night and kind of let one get away.

When it cooled down today and Alan (Johnson, team manager) walked in the trailer and said to Brian (Husen, crew chief) and myself, ‘How about if we just go 3.80 and take the one spot.’ I said, ‘Sounds good to me if you can do it.’ He lied – we went 3.79. But what a great run. The car went straight, it’s been running great all weekend and it’s a brand-new chassis this weekend. For the record, I’m not driving (Larry) Dixon’s car and it’s still running well.”

(How do you feel about tomorrow?) “We’re trying to make up these little points and there are 20 points around. It’s pretty big; we need to maintain that through Pomona now so that … if you’re 41 points out and you win two rounds more than the other guy, he still wins by one. But if you’re 39 points out and you win two rounds, you’re number one by one point. These little points are going to be very, very important here as the last two races shake down. We did all we could do this weekend, I believe. I thought we did very well in qualifying and now we’ve just got to race well tomorrow.”

(On losing the points lead four races ago) “We’ve run pretty well, we just haven’t won and when you don’t win, people think that you can’t. We’ve won a lot of races this year and the competition is tough. We’ve made some mistakes and I’ve made some mistakes and we just haven’t run as good as what everybody’s seen. Alan made the call to come into this race with a brand-new car and I believe in him 100 percent and he’s shown me, at least to this point, that that’s the right call.”

6:27 p.m. – Comments from Mike Edwards, the top qualifier in Pro Stock:

“It just feels to make a good run and we just did it at the right time.

  The conditions were definitely the best all weekend this morning. We just made an outstanding run, really. It’s the fastest corrected run we’ve ever made so I’m pretty happy about that. Tomorrow is another day but the track has really been good all weekend for us. For where we came from the last race, it’s tremendously better.

“I feel good about the track tomorrow. The sun’s going to be a little bit hotter tomorrow and we’re going to be challenged by the track conditions but we’re like that every race we go to. Hopefully, tomorrow, we can make the right adjustments and go some rounds. We’ll try to go back to what we did this morning and adjust from there.”

5:59 p.m. – Comments from Hector Arana Jr., the top qualifier in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

(On taking the pole from his father) “I tell you what, he didn’t make it easy;

I had to take it from, he didn’t let me have it. It’s just a dream come true to come out here and race in NHRA. It’s a tough class – any of the racing divisions over here are tough. Everybody’s on their top game so in order to be good, you have to be 100 percent. We’re just having fun out here.”

(On the pressure of the championship race) “It feels good to know that I’m riding a consistent Lucas Oil Buell. This bike is amazing. It’s proved it numerous times that it goes right down the track and it repeats itself so it’s not just a one-hit wonder; it’s consistent. It’s a really good feeling. I like being the predator. I feel like Eddie (Krawiec) probably feels like the prey right now because I’m coming after it. Right now, I feel like a lion, getting ready to take that championship.”

5:37 p.m. – Here are the top 16 qualifiers in Funny Car for the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals:

1. Ron Capps; 2. Mike Neff; 3. Robert Hight; 4. Cruz Pedregon; 5. Matt Hagan; 6. Bob Tasca III; 7. Melanie Troxel; 8. Jack Beckman; 9. John Force; 10. Johnny Gray; 11. Alexis DeJoria; 12. Tim Wilkerson; 13. Jeff Arend; 14. Tony Pedregon; 15. Bob Bode; 16. Todd Lesenko.

4:45 p.m. – Here are the top 16 qualifiers in Top Fuel for the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals:

1. Del Worsham; 2. Spencer Massey; 3. Brandon Bernstein; 4. Bob Vandergriff; 5. Antron Brown; 6, Larry Dixon; 7. Rod Fuller; 8. Steve Torrence; 9. David Grubnic; 10. Doug Kalitta; 11. TJ Zizzo; 12. Tony Schumacher; 13. Clay Millican; 14. Dominick Lagana; 15. Ron August Jr.; 16. Shawn Langdon.

3:44 p.m. – Here are the top 16 qualifiers in Pro Stock for the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals:

1. Mike Edwards; 2. Jason Line; 3. Allen Johnson; 4. Rodger Brogdon; 5. Greg Anderson; 6. Larry Morgan; 7. Ron Krisher; 8. Ronnie Humphrey; 9. Erica Enders; 10. Shane Gray; 11. Vincent Nobile; 12. Steve Kent; 13. Kurt Johnson; 14. Greg Stanfield; 15. V Gaines; 16. Mark Wolfe.

3:18 p.m. – Here are the top 16 qualifiers in Pro Stock Motorcycle for the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals:

1. Hector Arana Jr.; 2. Eddie Krawiec; 3. Hector Arana Sr.; 4. Andrew Hines; 5. Matt Smith; 6. Gerald Savoie; 7. Steve Johnson; 8. Mike Berry; 9. Angie Smith; 10. LE Tonglet; 11. Michael Ray; 12. Jim Underdahl; 13. Bailey Whitaker; 14. Shawn Green; 15. David Hope; 16. Matt Guidera.

3:05 p.m. – Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Joe DeSantis took a spill off his bike as it was nearing the finish line during his fourth-round qualifying run. According to NHRA, DeSantis, 69, was conscious and alert and talking to the medical crew. DeSantis was transported to a local hospital for further evaluation. 

2:15 p.m. – It should come as no surprise that Alexis DeJoria is among the top five in the Funny Car field through three rounds of qualifying for the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 

Although she is attempting to make only her third Funny Car race, DeJoria, 34, said she has been looking forward to this event for quite some time.

“This is one of my favorite tracks,” DeJoria said of The Strip. “It’s a great facility, the fans are awesome and there’s always a big turnout. My family has a home in Vegas, so I consider that town my second home, which really makes a difference. Plus, my sponsor, Tequila Patron, is headquartered in Vegas, so I’m excited for the Patron team to come out to the track and see us competing in this new class.”

DeJoria, who is driving a car prepared by Kalitta Motorsports, is the daughter of John Paul DeJoria, the co-founder of John Paul Mitchell Systems and owner of Tequila Patron. She had a successful career in the Top Alcohol Funny Car category, where she co-owned and operated her team.

2 p.m. – Johnny Gray posted the quickest time (4.118) in the third round of Funny Car qualifying and moves up one spot to No. 4. Robert Hight, Matt Hagan and Melanie Troxel hold the top three spots and Alexis DeJoria is fifth.

The final round of pro qualifying is scheduled to begin shortly.

1:19 p.m. – Just a reminder for fans who are thinking about attending Sunday’s final eliminations for the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals: A very limited number of reserved seats remain for the event. Call the LVMS ticket office at 702-644-4444 or visit www.lvms.com/tickets/ .

1:08 p.m. – Brandon Bernstein retained the No. 1 qualifying position after three rounds of Top Fuel qualifying. Del Worsham set the low time of the session at 3.838 seconds at 321.81 mph and is No. 2. Spencer Massey posted a 3.849 at 321.42 and is third, former Las Vegas resident Rod Fuller jumped from 10th to fourth with a third-round pass of 3.854 at 325.85 and Steve Torrence is fifth.

11:58 a.m. – Mike Edwards laid down a blistering pass in the third round of Pro Stock qualifying and established track records for both low elapsed time and fast speed.

Edwards claimed the provisional No. 1 qualifying spot with a record pass of 6.594 second at 208.81 mph. Jason Line (6.624) is second quickest, Allen Johnson (6.630) moves up to third, Rodger Brogdon (6.632) is fourth and Greg Anderson, who did not make a third-round pass because of a mechanical failure, is fifth.

11:45 a.m. – Hector Arana Jr. turned in the quickest pass of the weekend in the third round of Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying and bumped his father, Hector Arana Sr., off the provisional pole he held after the second round of qualifying.

 Arana Jr.’s track-record pass of 6.879 seconds at 194.46 mph came on the final run of the session and with his father in the lane beside him.

Eddie Krawiec holds the No. 2 spot with a third-round pass of 6.894 seconds at 196.56 mph. Hector Arana Sr. is third, Andrew Hines fourth and Gerald Savoie fifth.

10:55 a.m. – Antron Brown has a 20-point lead over Larry Dixon and a 25-point edge over Spencer Massey in the Top Fuel standings going into the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals, but the six-time winner this season is not taking anything for granted as he pursues his first NHRA world championship. 

“To be in the position we are, we are very blessed but there is still a lot of racing left,” Brown said. “There are two races … there are eight more rounds – plus the fact that you have to qualify because you have everybody and their momma coming out for these last few races trying to qualify and get in the show.

“We’re going to go out there and try to stay poised and give our best shot because right now it’s anybody’s race for this championship. We’re definitely going to put a good fight on for it.”

Brown, who drives for team owner Don Schumacher, said his Matco Tools team is not going to change the way it is approaching this weekend’s race or the season finale in Pomona.

“We’ve been an aggressive team throughout the season,” he said. “We go after it every race, never letting up on ourselves or the competition. Obviously, this approach has served us well and we think it’s the way to the best results. We’ve got the points lead, but we won’t go the rest of the way in a defensive mode. We’re going to play to win rather than play not to lose.”

10:25 a.m. – Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the second day of professional qualifying for the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals.

It’s sunny with an ambient temperature of 63 degrees and a slight breeze (2 mph) out of the south. The forecast calls for a high of 79 degrees. The track temperature is 84 degrees as the professional classes prepare for qualifying later this morning. The third round of Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying is set to begin at 11 a.m. (PDT) and the Funny Cars and Top Fuel Dragsters are slated to hit the track at 11:45 a.m. The fourth and final round of pro qualifying is slated to begin at 1:45 p.m. Be sure to check back here often as we’ll be updating this blog throughout the weekend with news, results and driver interviews.

7:15 p.m. – Good night from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Spectator gates will open Saturday morning at 7:30 and racing will resume at 8 a.m. with Sportsman eliminations. Professional qualifying sessions will be held at 11 a.m. and 1:45 p.m.

Be sure to check back here throughout the weekend for continual updates from the third and fourth rounds of pro qualifying for the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals.

7:10 p.m. – Comments from Brandon Bernstein, the provisional No. 1 qualifier in Top Fuel following the second round of qualifying:

“It felt great. The car really seemed like it didn’t move – it was really a straight run. At 321, with that kind of speed, you always know that it’s a great run when you run that kind of speed and the finish line comes so much quicker. We’ve been really trying to focus on making four good qualifying runs and just trying to get some round wins on Sunday. This is a good start for our team to get number one so far. That morning session tomorrow is going to be critical because you can be able to swing for the fences on that one, so hopefully it stands up.

“Coming into this race, we knew that there was no way we can win the championship but we’re one of those cars that can definitely run with these guys and hopefully we come out on Sunday and do some damage. I don’t like the word spoiler; we’re just out here trying to win. We’re one of those teams right now that needs a win and that’s what we’re out here trying to get.”

7 p.m. – Comments from Robert Hight, the provisional No. 1 qualifier in Funny Car following the second round of qualifying:

“I think the conditions are going to be good tomorrow. We’re in Vegas and that’s why I never gamble because I would have bet anything that we wouldn’t have been number one – especially being the first car out. The track cooled down a lot since we ran but (crew chief) Jimmy Prock just goes up there with a lot of confidence and he makes this Auto Club Ford thunder. We love racing here in Vegas – we won it earlier this year but this is exactly what we need to do to get back in the hunt.

“This track is going to come around and you’re going to see good conditions. I’ll be honest: I don’t believe that 4.08 is going to stick but looking at the data, we can probably run a little quicker but we need to do that four times on race day and that gives us a shot to get back in this (championship race).”

6:50 p.m. – Comments from Jason Line, the provisional No. 1 qualifier in Pro Stock following the second round of qualifying:

“This is definitely a good way to start. We haven’t traditionally been strong the last few years here. The goal is to make a big rebound from Phoenix -- we kind of stunk up the joint there and we’re not going to do that two weeks in a row. We’re off to a good start. We were terrible here in the spring race and I tend to remember the bad races. We’re certainly not going to do anything differently than we have the rest of the year. We want to keep doing those things and finish it off.”

(What would it mean to clinch the championship here in Las Vegas, the hometown of team owner Ken Black?) “It would be a big deal. (Teammate Greg Anderson) tends to do a better job showing off than I do. He did it last year but I’d like to do it once, too, and maybe that can happen. We’ll see about that.”

6:35 p.m. – Comments from Hector Arana, the provisional No. 1 qualifier in Pro Stock Motorcycle following the second round of qualifying:

“It feels good to me. We’ve been working hard and finally it seems like everything is lining up and going to my favor, my side.”

 (On winning the provisional pole while his son, Hector Arana III, is in a battle with Ed Krawiec for the points championship) “Definitely, I’m playing defense. I know he has it, the power is there, but he’s struggling a little bit off the starting line. I told him, ‘I’m going to be right behind you – either you take first or I’m going to take it away from you.’ I know he wants it and we’ve seen a couple little mistakes and if he concentrates for tomorrow, he should have the number one (qualifying position).”

(On racing at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where he could earn his third consecutive No. 1 qualifying spot in the fall event here) “This is one of my favorite tracks. It’s good, it’s smooth. Now that you say that it (could be) three years in a row, I definitely would like to keep the number one. It’s a pleasure to come here. The fans are awesome. They receive us very well so it makes us feel at home.”

6:20 p.m. – Brandon Bernstein took advantage of a cooler track early in the evening and grabbed the provisional pole in Top Fuel with a pass of 3.833 seconds at 321.27 mph during the second round of qualifying.

 Spencer Massey was second quickest in the session at 3.856 at 319.67 and Steve Torrence improved to third at 3.856 at 317.49. Bob Vandergriff (3.858 at 321.88) is fourth and Antron Brown (3.863 at 318.54) fifth going into Saturday’s third round of qualifying.

Stay tuned for comments from the top qualifiers.

5:30 p.m. – Robert Hight grabbed the provisional pole in Funny Car with a 4.085-second pass on the first run of the second round of qualifying.

 Matt Hagan (4.093 at 310.05) was second quickest and Melanie Troxel (4.103 at 310.20) was third. Alexis DeJoria, making only her third attempt at a race, was fourth with a 4.121-second pass at 305.15 and Johnny Gray (4.126 at 311.99) was fifth.

4:38 p.m. – Jason Line and Mike Edwards remained the top two qualifiers in Pro Stock following the second round of qualifying.

Greg Anderson, a seven-time winner in Las Vegas, moved up one spot to third with a 6.633-second pass at 208.14 mph. Ron Krisher is fourth and Ronnie Humphrey is fifth going into Saturday’s third round of qualifying.

4:10 p.m. – Hector Arana vaulted to the No. 1 qualifying spot with a 6.924-second pass at 190.86 mph in the second round of Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying.

Andrew Hines turned in a 6.940-second pass at 191.84 mph and moved up two spots to No. 2. Eddie Krawiec slipped from first to third despite improving his speed (6.948 at 192.74) from the first round. Hector Arana III is fourth after two rounds of qualifying and Gerald Savoie is fifth.

3 p.m. – Fans attending the 11th annual Big O Tires NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway this weekend will have the opportunity to meet two of the legendary drivers of the NHRA: Don “The Snake” Prudhomme and Tom “Mongoose” McEwen. 

Both Prudhomme and McEwen will be available throughout the weekend and will be participating in meet-and-greets and autograph sessions from 10-11 a.m. and 1:45-2:30 on Saturday and 12:30-1 p.m. on Sunday. Both drivers also will take part in the “Track Walk with a Legend” at 9:30 Sunday morning at The Strip.

In addition, both drivers’ cars and haulers from the 1970s will be displayed all weekend in the pits.

2:42 p.m. – Del Worsham was the top qualifier in the opening round of Top Fuel qualifying with a 3.879-second pass at 316.97 mph.

 TJ Zizzo was second quickest at 3.899 at 310.13 mph and Tony Schumacher was third at 3.902 at 318.24. Larry Dixon (3.903 at 317.57) and Spencer Massey (3.903 at 316.01) were fourth and fifth, respectively. Antron Brown, who led Dixon by 20 points in the Top Fuel standings coming into Las Vegas, was the 12th qualifier at 3.941 (315.56 mph).

The second round of pro qualifying is scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m.

1:55 p.m. – Matt Hagan is on the provisional pole after a 4.142-second pass at 301.40 mph in the first round of Funny Car qualifying.

 Mike Neff (4.145 at 309.98) was second quickest and Alexis DeJoria (4.145 at 302.96) was third quickest. Jack Beckman (4.149 at 303.64) was fourth and Tim Wilkerson (4.154 at 286.86) fifth after one round of qualifying.

1:15 p.m. – Jason Line grabbed the provisional pole with a 6.624-second pass at 207.66 mph in the first round of Pro Stock qualifying. Mike Edwards was second quickest (6.627 at 208.33) and Ron Krisher was third quickest (6.638 at 208.33). Greg Anderson (6.650 at 207.94) and Ronnie Humphrey (6.650 at 206.76) rounded out the top five.

12:48 p.m. – Eddie Krawiec, a three-time winner this season and the Pro Stock Motorcycle points leader, holds the No. 1 qualifying position after the first round of Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifying with a pass of 6.952 seconds. Gerald Savoie is second quickest at 6.970 seconds and Hector Arana third at 6.980. Andrew Hines (6.996) and Hector Arana III (7.006) round out the top five after one round.

5:05 p.m. – Ron Hornaday raced himself into contention for a fifth NASCAR Camping World Truck Series championship by leading 107 of 146 laps and winning Saturday’s Smith’s 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 

On Sunday, the championship in the IndyCar Series WILL be decided when 34 cars take to the 1.5-mile oval for the IZOD IndyCar World Championships. Dario Franchitti holds an 18-point lead over Will Power in the battle for the IndyCar Series championship. 

As if that weren’t enough excitement, reigning Indianapolis 500 champion Dan Wheldon will attempt to share a $5 million bonus with a lucky fan if he can win Sunday’s race from the back of the field. 

Ticket gates open at 8 a.m. Sunday. The developmental Firestone Indy Lights Series will contest a 67-lap race at 9:45 a.m. and the IZOD IndyCar World Championships is scheduled to take the green flag at 12:45 p.m.

4:50 p.m. – Comments from Ron Hornaday, who won Saturday’s Smith’s 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway: 

“I know I stunk up the show for the fans but I wanted this win really, really bad. I finally won in Vegas. This is just a dream come true. You don’t get trucks like that very often and I’ve got it two races in a row so that’s pretty awesome. Kevin and Delana (Harvick, the truck owners), I owe them a lot. They give me a championship truck with the owner points and still believing in me. They put Bruce Cook (crew chief) with me and we go out and win another one. This is fun. 

“Bruce made great calls all day. We went out there and those guys pitted and we stayed out a little bit and then we put gas in it. When we all came out, there were only a couple of trucks that could have gone to the end. I don’t know how he figures out pit strategy and all that stuff but it’s unbelievable. 

“The only one who gave me a real fit was Timothy Peters. I thought he was going to be the guy to beat today. He ran with me for three, four laps on the bottom and he finally got a little loose. But it was fun. When you’ve got a truck like that, it’s fun.”

4:40 p.m. – Comments from Matt Crafton, who finished second in the Smith’s 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway: 

“I think all of the races (at LVMS) should be during the day. That was, I think, was some of the best racing we’ve had here because the track was so hot and slick and you couldn’t just run around here wide open like we do a lot of times at night. You have to lift to make the truck do something and handle well. I think that’s huge.”

4:35 p.m. – Comments from Timothy Peters, who finished third in the Smith’s 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway: 

“I had a great GearWrench Tundra all day long. There towards the end, I was just trying to trick Hornaday and I got schooled. I spun my tires and when I did, Johnny (Sauter) was there and got into us a little bit. We brought it home third and I’m not going to complain one bit because the team has worked really hard … and everyone here made great adjustments. Everybody else, with the trouble that they had, it kind of puts us right back in the thick of things (in the points race).”

3:15 p.m. – Ron Hornaday held off a late challenge by Matt Crafton on Saturday and earned his second victory in a row and the 51st of his career in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Smith’s 350 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Hornaday, 53, led 107 of the 146 laps and notched his first victory in 11 starts in Las Vegas. Crafton was second, Timothy Peters was third, Johnny Sauter finished fourth and Todd Bodine rounded out the top five. 

Stay tuned for comments from the top finishers.

2:25 p.m. – The top 5 in the Smith’s 350 after 100 of 146 laps: 1. Ron Hornaday; 2. Timothy Peters; 3. Johnny Sauter; 4. Matt Crafton; 5. Nelson Piquet Jr.

1:56 p.m. – The top 5 in the Smith’s 350 after 50 of 146 laps: 1. Johnny Sauter; 2. Jason White; 3. Todd Bodine; 4. David Starr; 5. Joey Coulter. 

Both Austin Dillon and James Buescher, the top two drivers in the series points standings, have had their trucks damaged due to contact and are running 26th and 23rd, respectively.

1:21 p.m. – NASCAR officials have displayed the red flag after a multi-truck crash in the first turn on lap 30. The incident involved Ricky Carmichael, Brian Ickler, Miguel Paludo and Ryan Sieg. Ron Hornaday continues to lead after 30 laps.

1:05 p.m. – Series points leader Austin Dillon crashed coming out of the fourth turn on the second lap and suffered damage to the right front of his truck. Dillon came into the Smith’s 350 with a 3-point lead over James Buescher and a 19-point edge over Johnny Sauter. Dillon is now running in 29th, five laps behind race leader Ron Hornaday.

12:50 p.m. – The field has taken the green flag for the 15th running of the Smith’s 350. Pole-sitter Ron Hornaday opted to start on the outside of the front row to take advantage of the track’s high line. One truck, the No. 66 of Max Gresham, started at the back of the field after an engine change.

11:15 a.m. – Some quick facts regarding today’s Smith’s 350 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race...

• Defending race winner Austin Dillon is the youngest driver to win a Smith’s 350 (20 years, 4 months, 29 days in 2010). 
• Joe Ruttman is the oldest winning driver in race history (53 years, 12 days in 1997). 
• Six Smith’s 350 races have been won from the pole – most recently last year by Austin Dillon. 
• David Starr set the race record of 135.394 mph in 2002. 
• The record for most caution periods is 12 in 2008. 
• The record for fewest cautions periods is two in 2002. 
• The record for lead changes in a race is 15. 
• Mike Skinner holds the record for most laps led (114 in 2006). 
• Ron Hornaday has seven top-10 finishes in 10 truck races at LVMS.

10:55 a.m. – Buddy Rice’s qualifying run from Friday’s IZOD IndyCar Series qualifying session was disallowed after IndyCar officials determined Rice had driven below the white line on the bottom of the track – a violation of league rules – during his run. Rice, who had qualified 19th, will now start the race 33rd out of 34 drivers.

10 a.m. – Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the 15th running of the Smith’s 350 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race. It’s sunny and 66 degrees and the forecast calls for sunny skies and a high temperature of 88 degrees. 

Driver introductions are scheduled to begin at noon and Ron Hornaday will lead the field of 34 trucks to the green flag at approximately 12:49 p.m. Hornaday, who is searching for his first Truck Series victory in 11 starts here, won the pole on Friday with a 176.056-mph lap. 

There are four past Smith’s 350 winners in the field today: Austin Dillon (2010); Johnny Sauter (2009); Todd Bodine (2005); and Brendan Gaughan (2003). Jack Sprague and Mike Skinner are the only two-time winners of this race but neither is in the field today. 

There will be no on-track activity today for the IZOD IndyCar Series, which will stage its season-ending IZOD IndyCar World Championships on Sunday, or the Firestone Indy Lights Series. 

Be sure to check back here throughout the day, as we’ll be updating this blog with news, results and driver interviews.

6:30 p.m. – Ron Hornaday won the pole for Saturday’s Smith’s 350 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and said he wasn’t the least bit shocked. 

Tony Kanaan, on the other hand, said he was surprised that he claimed the pole for Sunday’s IZOD IndyCar World Championships. 

Both drivers agreed that their respective race this weekend will be no-holds-barred affairs. 

“As good as this truck is handling, I can about put it anywhere,” Hornaday said. “There are three or four lanes out there and you’re going to see everybody use them tomorrow. It’s going to be probably the most exciting race we’ve had here in Las Vegas in a long time.” 

Kanaan predicted much the same for the IndyCar Series season finale. 

“I didn’t think I had a car to be on the pole, to be honest with you, but I knew I had a good race car so this is a little surprise for me as well but I’ll take it,” he said. “I think (the race) is going to be quite crazy but I think I have a strong car.” 

The 146-lap Smith’s 350 will take the green flag Saturday at 12:30 p.m. and the 200-lap IZOD IndyCar World Championships will begin at 12:45 p.m. Sunday. 

Be sure to check back here often for results, news and driver interviews following both races.

6:10 p.m. – Comments from Ron Hornaday, who won the pole for Saturday’s Smith’s 350 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway: 

“The truck has been flawless since we unloaded. This is such an honor to drive the No. 2 truck for (Kevin Harvick Inc.) with Champion on board. It’s been pretty cool. This thing has been a lot of fun to drive. The lap, I guess the weather cooled down just enough for us. Goodyear brought a tire that has got a lot of grip and we found the air pressure that we needed in practice. It’s going to be a good race tomorrow.” 

(You’ve never won at LVMS; do you have the truck to win on Saturday?) “I really feel it now but the way this racing goes any more, anybody in the top 15 can win this thing, it’s so close. With these young kids, I don’t know how to race them yet so hopefully we can just stay out front. The key is the pit stops – getting in and out of the pits good and try to get out in front of these guys. Clean air is also going to be the key thing tomorrow. 

“We’ve got the truck driving so well over the bumps and everything. As good as this truck is handling, I can about put it anywhere. There are three or four lanes out there and you’re going to see everybody use them tomorrow. It’s going to be probably the most exciting race we’ve had here in Las Vegas in a long time.”

6:05 p.m. – Comments from Austin Dillon, who qualified second for Saturday’s Smith’s 350 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

“The qualifying lap was great. It felt like it was perfect. The only thing it lacked was I hit a little bit in turns 1 and 2 on the bumps … that’s the only place I can figure out where we lost some speed. Other than that, it was wide open here in qualifying. It’s fun out here. I love Las Vegas so I can’t wait for tomorrow. The sun will be out and it’ll be a little tougher than the night race because you won’t have the grip that you gain during the night. I think we set up our truck well for tomorrow and I’m looking forward to the race.”

5:55 p.m. – Comments from Parker Kligerman, who qualified third for Saturday’s Smith’s 350 NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway

“Lap-wise, it was pretty easy. This qualifying for us, with a lot of grip that’s out there, is very easy to go flat out when your truck is set up right. For us, it was kind of minimizing the amount of track we use in terms of trying to make the track the shortest distance possible. Myself, there’s not a lot I can do – it’s a lot on the team and getting the setup as close as we can to go fast in qualifying. Overall, it was a pretty solid lap. I’m, pretty happy with third – that’s tying our best qualifying of the year.

5:30 p.m. – Ron Hornaday, the winningest driver in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, knocked defending race winner and series points leader Austin Dillon off the pole for Saturday’s Smith’s 350 truck race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 

Hornaday’s lap at 176.056 mph pushed Dillon (175.793) to the outside of the front row. Parker Kligerman will start third and Johnny Sauter fourth. James Buescher, who trails Dillon by three points in the standings, will start sixth. Las Vegas native Brendan Gaughan will start 21st. 

Stay tuned for comments from the top qualifiers.

5:17 p.m. – Comments from Oriol Servia, who will start on the outside of the front row in Sunday’s IZOD IndyCar World Championships: 

“Qualifying was amazing. Front row is the best place to start for the race as crazy as this one is going to be. I’m happy – very happy – with our position and I think we have a great chance for Sunday. It usually was a Ganassi or a Penske pole position for the mile-and-a-half (tracks) because they were the ones spending the most money in the wind tunnel, to be honest, and it pays off in places like this where it’s all about the little details. But, eventually, when you have the same car for all those years, either we all learn or the word goes around … so it’s harder for the teams with the bigger budget to keep their advantage after 10 years with the same car. I just think finally we have caught up.” 

(Are you expecting three-wide racing on Sunday?) “No, I expect four-wide – and I’m not joking. I think there’s going to be a lot of four-wide action. And it’s not just going to be one row like that – it’s going to many, many rows two and three wide. I expect it to be really hairy and dangerous and, in a way, exciting for the fans. Hopefully, everybody will be safe at the end and have a clean, safe race.”

5:06 p.m. – Comments from Tony Kanaan, who won the pole for Sunday’s IZOD IndyCar World Championships: 

(Talk about your pole-winning lap) “Well, I didn’t do nothing – I just kept it full throttle and turned left four times and that was it. The car was good from the get-go. Obviously, on this type of track, you’re relying a lot more on your engineer than actually on yourself. When it comes to Sunday, that’s when we come to play. I didn’t think I had a car to be on the pole, to be honest with you, but I knew I had a good race car so this is a little surprise for me as well but I’ll take it.” 

(Is your car strong enough to go out front and hide from the pack?) “I don’t think anybody’s going to hide from the pack but it’s plenty good that we can manage the advantage and just stay with the leaders and stay out of trouble. I think (the race) is going to be quite crazy but I think I have a strong car.”

4:28 p.m. – Tony Kanaan, the second-to-last IndyCar Series driver to qualify Friday afternoon, grabbed the pole from Oriol Servia with a two-lap qualifying effort of 222.078 mph. Servia (222.041) will start on the outside of the front row for Sunday’s IZOD IndyCar World Championships at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 

Ed Carpenter (221.509 mph) and Alex Tagliani (221.330) will occupy the second row. Series points leader Dario Franchitti will start on the outside of row 9 and Will Power, who trails Franchitti by 18 points going into the season finale, will start on the inside of the same row. 

Danica Patrick, who will be starting her final race as a full-time driver in the series, will start on the inside of row 5. 

Stay tuned for comments from the top qualifiers.

3:15 p.m. – Victor Carbone of Sam Schmidt Motorsports captured the pole for Sunday’s Firestone Indy Lights race with a two-lap average of 191.773 mph during today’s qualifying session. Stefan Wilson of Andretti Autosport will start on the outside of the front row after posting a to-lap average 191.734. Esteban Guerrieri (Sam Schmidt Motorsports) and Rusty Mitchell (Team E) will start third and fourth, respectively.

2:45 p.m. – Tony Kanaan topped the speed chart for Group Two this afternoon with a fast lap of 224.196 mph. Oriol Servia was second at 223.974 and Scott Dixon was third at 223.738. 

Qualifying for Sunday’s IZOD IndyCar World Championships will start at 3 p.m.

2:35 p.m. – Las Vegas Motor Speedway President Chris Powell and IZOD IndyCar Series CEO Randy Bernard announced today that the IndyCar World Championships would return to LVMS in 2012. 

“Randy Bernard has done a phenomenal job with the IndyCar Series and I think he has breathed a tremendous breath of fresh air into the series,” Powell said. “We think our city is a great host for all major motorsports events and certainly our speedway enjoys having the IndyCar Series here.” 

Bernard said Las Vegas Motor Speedway is the ideal venue for the IndyCar season finale. 

“We think that Las Vegas is the perfect place for the culmination of the IZOD IndyCar Series,” Bernard said. “The (2011) race hasn’t happened yet but we’ve been able to create a lot of excitement and a lot of buzz. We think the off-track entertainment as well as the competition (on the track) is fantastic.” 

The 2012 race weekend will be held Oct. 12-14 and again will include the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series, Powell said. 

Bernard said he expected the remainder of the 2012 IZOD IndyCar Series schedule to be announced within next two weeks.

1:50 p.m. – Ryan Hunter-Reay led today’s IndyCar Series practice session for Group One with a fast lap of 223.932 mph. Mike Conway (222.727) was second fastest and Alex Tagliani (222.708) was third. Danica Patrick, who led practice yesterday with a lap of 224.719, was ninth fastest at 221.802. 

Group Two is on the track now and IndyCar Series qualifying is set to begin at 3 p.m.

1:20 p.m. – Chevrolet, which will be rejoining the IZOD IndyCar Series as an engine supplier in 2012, gave an update today on the progress of the engine’s development. Three teams – Team Penske, Andretti Autosport and Panther Racing – already have signed on to run with Chevy power in 2012 and Penske’s Will Power tested last week with the new turbocharged V6 engine.

“It was awesome driving out of that pit, feeling a turbo engine – I haven’t felt that for a few years,” Power said. That was really cool. The test went flawlessly as far as the engine went. We did 190 laps (and) it already shows the job that Ilmore and GM have done with the first time on the track and no reliability problems.

“It was a successful test … and I’m proud to be a part of this. It’s pretty cool to be able to develop an engine and a new car with GM and Ilmore. I think it’s going to be a great year next year to have turbos back in the series.”

1:05 p.m. – Brendan Gaughan has eight career victories in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series but he said none tops the win in front of 70,000 fans at his hometown track, Las Vegas Motor Speedway, in September 2003. 

“The night in 2003 was one of the greatest memories of my entire life,” Gaughan, a Las Vegas native, said. “Having a son born has got to be the top of it, but that (race) was the most unbelievable night of my life, seeing everybody in the stands with the Orleans (Racing) shirts and hats. I felt like Dale Earnhardt Jr. up there. I got the pole that night and won the race. 

“I’d give just about anything in life to be able to get back to that and do it in Vegas. This is now one of our best-attended races of the year.” 

Although he still loves the 1.5-mive LVMS oval, Gaughan said he was less than thrilled when track owner Bruton Smith reconfigured the racing surface by adding progressive banking in 2006. 

“The progressive banking really kind of makes me mad because it puts everybody into my groove,” Gaughan said. “Everybody used to always just be pinned on the bottom and I’d be outside. Now, it’s moved everybody up a little bit. The bumps have made the track really where you can’t just find that groove and run; you have to work your way around where your truck is going to work the best through the bumps. If you can get your truck to work through the bumps, you’re better up in the top to the middle. It’s made for some strategy differences.”

12:40 p.m. – IZOD IndyCar Series rookie James Jakes walked away from a crash that destroyed his car early in today’s practice session. It appeared as if something failed in the rear suspension of Jakes’ car and it slid up the track and into the outside wall between turns 1 and 2. Jakes was able to walk away from the car, which suffered heavy contact and fire damage.

12:28 p.m. – Johnny Sauter led the second and final NASCAR Camping World Truck Series practice today with a fast lap of 176.448 mph. Austin Dillon was second fastest at 175.695 and Ron Hornaday was third at 175.473. Las Vegas native Brendan Gaughan improved from the morning practice to 15th fastest at 173.661 mph. 

The trucks will return to the track at 4:30 p.m. for qualifying.

10:40 a.m. – Rusty Mitchell (Team E) posted the fastest lap during this morning’s final practice for the Firestone Indy Lights series. Mitchell topped the speed chart with a lap of 194.856 mph. Duarte Ferreira (Bryan Herta Autosport) was second fastest at 194.499 mph and Victor Carbone of Sam Schmidt Motorsports was third at 194.424 mph. 

Qualifying for the 67-lap Indy Lights Series race, which will begin at 9:45 a.m. Sunday, will be at 2:15 today.

10:25 a.m. – There is just one thing missing from Ron Hornaday’s impressive NASCAR Camping World Truck Series resume. Hornaday, the most successful driver in Truck Series history with 50 career victories, four series championships and nearly $9 million in earnings, still is looking for win No. 1 on one of his favorite tracks – Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 

Despite making 10 starts here and winning a pole here, Hornaday has yet to pull his truck into Victory Lane in Las Vegas. The 53-year-old from Palmdale, Calif., is hoping to change that Saturday afternoon in the Smith’s 350. And he plans to take a page from Las Vegas native Brendan Gaughan’s playbook in an attempt to do it. 

“We won a championship here…but it takes a lot to win a truck race,” Hornaday said. “It takes your ‘A’ game, you’ve got to bring the right people and you’ve got to run Brendan’s line here – all the way up against the fence. We realize this is Brendan’s home track and he used to sneak out here and run when their shop was right across the street for many years. 

“You’re running your butt off and here’s Brendan up on the high side so I’ve got to learn that high side because it’s definitely going to be slippery. The track has got some age on it and that’s what so great about this track; it’s just a lot of run to race at and I don’t have a win here so I guess it’s my turn. I’m looking forward to it – I always have fun here. I’m looking forward to it and hopefully we can get our 51st win.”

9:42 a.m. – Matt Crafton and Ron Hornaday led the first NASCAR Camping World Truck Series practice this morning with identical speeds of 176.154 mph. Austin Dillon, the defending Smith’s 350 race winner and series points leader, was third fastest at 175.776. Las Vegas native Brendan Gaughan, who won the 2003 truck race at LVMS, was 19th fastest at 172.254 mph.

Final practice for the trucks will be from 10:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. and qualifying is scheduled for 4:30 p.m.

8:45 a.m. – Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the second day of on-track activity for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Smith’s 350 and IZOD IndyCar World Championships Presented by Honda. It’s sunny and 60 degrees and the forecast calls for a high temperature of 90 degrees and abundant sunshine. 

The NASCAR Camping World Truck Series drivers are on the track for the first of two practice sessions today. The trucks will qualify for Saturday’s Smith’s 350 at 4:30 this afternoon; the Firestone Indy Lights Series will qualify at 2:15 p.m. and the IZOD IndyCar Series will qualify at 3 p.m. 

Be sure to check back here throughout the day, as we’ll be updating this blog with news, stats and driver interviews.

4:20 p.m. – The focus of attention was supposed to be on Dario Franchitti and Will Power and their battle for the IZOD IndyCar Series season championship but Danica Patrick stole the show Thursday by leading practice with an eye-popping 224.719 mph lap around the 1.5-mile Las Vegas Motor Speedway. 

“It’s friggin’ fast here!” Patrick exclaimed as she prepared for her final start in the IndyCar Series as a full-time driver – Sunday’s 200-lap IZOD IndyCar World Championship Presented by Honda. “It’s going to be crazy out there Sunday.” 

Fellow IndyCar Series driver Oriol Servia, who was second fastest in practice, agreed.

“It’s so fast and you’re so close to each other, it’s exciting,” Servia said. “There’s really no room for error and it’s exciting and the fans here are going to have a great, great show.” 

The field of 34 IndyCars will return to LVMS Friday and will be joined by the Firestone Indy Lights and NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. A full schedule of on-track events includes practice and qualifying for all three series, beginning at 8:30 a.m. Ticket gates also open at 8:30 a.m.

Visit http://www.lvms.com/tickets/truck_indycar_weekend/ for a complete schedule of events for the weekend. 

Good night from Las Vegas Motor Speedway and be sure to check back here throughout the weekend for the latest results and driver interviews

4:06 p.m. – Gustavo Yacaman (Team Moore Racing) led the second practice session for the Firestone Indy Lights Series with a lap of 194.118 mph. Esteban Guerrieri (Sam Schmidt Motorsports) was second fastest at 193.665 mph and Stefan Wilson (Andretti Autosport) was third at 193.552.

3 p.m. – Ann Babenco of High Bridge, N.J., is the winner of the GoDaddy IndyCar Challenge sweepstakes and is in line to win $2.5 million should IndyCar Series driver Dan Wheldon win Sunday’s IZOD IndyCar World Championships at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Babenco was chosen in a drawing to split the $5 million GoDaddy IndyCar Challenge payday with Wheldon, the 2011 Indianapolis 500 winner, if he can win the race. 

“I wouldn’t be sitting here if I didn’t think I could (win) it,” Wheldon said of going for $5 million despite starting Sunday’s race from the back of the 34-car field. “But I’m not going to underestimate the talents of people like Will (Power) and Dario (Franchitti). 

“This happened to be a track that suits my style – the one-and-a-half-mile tracks, I like a lot. I’ll be doing everything I can but it’s going to be tough. It’s going to be a strong 33 cars in front of me, there’s no doubt about it, but I feel that we have the ability to do it.” 

Wheldon will be driving the No. 77 entry for Sam Schmidt Motorsports and Bryan Herta Autosport with Curb-Agajanian.

2:20 p.m. – Former racer Michael Shank announced today that he is expanding his racing operation to include a full-time IZOD IndyCar Series team in 2012 under the MSR Indy banner. 

Shank said that he has taken on Columbus, Ohio, businessman Brian Bailey and NASCAR driver A.J. Allmendinger at principal partners. Allmendinger, who drives in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, will not drive the MSR Indy entry, but Shank has not yet announced his driver for next season.

2:10 p.m. – Comments from Oriol Servia, who was second fastest (224.026 mph) in practice today for Sunday’s IZOD IndyCar World Championships:

“It’s so fast and you’re so close to each other, it’s exciting. The fans are going to get a good show, I’ll tell you. It’s kind of crazy. It’s great that the track is smooth because at least you can be consistent trying to keep your car in line and follow the guy in front when you’re three wide. Because it’s smooth, it allows everybody to be really close and we’re talking three wide – and I’m sure some moments we’re going to be four wide – and it’s not just one row, it’s going to be like five rows three wide and five more rows three wide. There’s really no room for error and it’s exciting and the fans here are going to have a great, great show.”

2 p.m. – Comments from Danica Patrick, who set the top speed (224.719 mph) in practice today for Sunday’s IZOD IndyCar World Championships: 

“It’s friggin’ fast here! That was almost a 225(-mph) lap and that’s fast – and I’m not surprised. I got a big draft – I think any speeds up there are big drafts. I think even I’m surprised that I’m almost 225. The track is just nice and smooth and the cars go around here really quickly, we’re three-wide out there and it’s going to be exciting. The race is going to be crazy and the crashes will be spectacular. 

“I think it’s sad that this is probably the first time I’ve been the quickest at any point (this season). I’d just like to finish this right and I’d like to finish it off on a good note and nothing would sort of let me turn the page to the next chapter better than winning here.”

1:20 p.m. – Danica Patrick remained atop the speed chart after an abbreviated Group Two practice session with a fast lap of 224.719 mph. Oriol Servia was second fastest and the only other driver to top 224 mph at 224.026. Ryan Hunter-Reay was third-fastest at 223.888 mph, Scott Dixon was fourth (223.689) and Mike Conway was fifth (223.558). 

The drivers of the IndyCar Series are done for the day with practice but all 34 will head to the Strip this evening for a parade lap on the world-famous street beginning at 8 p.m. 

The Firestone Indy Lights drivers will return to the 1.5-mile oval this afternoon at 3 for a one-hour practice session.

12:55 p.m. – Danica Patrick jumped to the top of the speed chart during IndyCar Series practice for Group Two with a lap at 224.719 mph. Patrick, driving the No. 7 GoDaddy car for Andretti Autosport, will be making her final IndyCar Series start Sunday as a full-time driver in the series. Graham Rahal is second fastest (222.869) and Scott Dixon is third (222.770).

12:25 p.m. – Today’s first IndyCar Series practice session ended after a lengthy delay due to track cleanup because of oil on the track. Charlie Kimball (222.854), Ed Carpenter (222.375) and Simona De Silvestro (221.847) were the three fastest in the first session.

The 17 drivers taking part in Group Two are on the track for their practice session. Series points leader Dario Franchitti and second-place Will Power, who are battling for the series championship, are among the drivers in Group Two.

11:30 a.m. – Midway through the first practice session, Ed Carpenter still sits atop the speed chart but he increased his fastest lap to 222.375 mph. Wade Cunningham was second at 221.648 mph and Charlie Kimball was third at 221.172. 

Dan Wheldon, the reigning Indianapolis 500 champion and the only driver eligible for the $5 million GoDaddy IndyCar Challenge, was fourth fastest at 221.051. Wheldon, who will start Sunday’s IndyCar World Championships from the back of the field, will split a $5 million prize with a fan if he can win Sunday’s race

11:10 a.m. – Ten minutes into today’s first IndyCar Series practice session, Ed Carpenter (Sarah Fisher Racing) has posted the fastest lap among the 17 cars in Group One with a lap at 220.335 mph. Wade Cunningham (Sam Schmidt Motorsports) also topped the 220-mph mark with a lap at 220.053. The two hour-long sessions split the 34-car field into groups of 17 cars. 

The LVMS track record for Indy-style cars is 226.491 mph – set in 1996 by Arie Luyendyk. Luyendyk sat on the pole for the inaugural race at LVMS but hometown favorite Richie Hearn went on to win the race.

10:55 a.m. – Stefan Wilson of Andretti Autosport posted the fastest lap during this morning’s practice session for the Firestone Indy Lights series. Wilson topped the speed chart with a lap of 193.552 mph. Gustavo Yacaman (Team Moore Racing) was second fastest at 193.289 mph and Esteban Guerrieri of Sam Schmidt Motorsports was third at 192.971 mph. 

The 67-lap Firestone Indy Lights Series race will take the green flag at 9:45 a.m. Sunday.

10:30 a.m. – IZOD IndyCar Series star Danica Patrick finished fourth in the NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in March – the best finish by a female driver in a NASCAR national series race. On Sunday, Patrick will conclude her career as a full-time IndyCar Series driver in the IndyCar World Championships and will turn her attention to running a full Nationwide Series schedule in 2012. 

Patrick, who has one career IndyCar victory and a pair of top-five finishes in the Indianapolis 500 (third in 2009 and fourth in 2005), said she is looking forward to racing here again and is hoping her Nationwide experience at LVMS will help her in Sunday’s race.

“I think this is a great track and I think we’ll put on a really close race here this weekend,” Patrick said this morning. “Even in a stock car, there’s a lot of grip here so I’m sure that means we will be three and four wide, four and five rows deep for a lot of the race. I think it’s going to be exciting and I think it’s going to be a great way to finish the season off.

“Having that little bit of experience here in a stock car, I think, will help – it definitely can’t hurt. It’s nice to end it on an oval. I still believe that our most exciting races are put on at mile-and-a-half (tracks) and we always have our closest finishes and our most side-by-side racing and our most spectacular crashes on them. 

“To end (my IndyCar career) at a cool place like Vegas, as well, and also having that little bit of experience and history of being the highest-finishing female in NASCAR here earlier this year is a nice little come-around story. I’m looking forward to the weekend and I’m excited for this last race.”

9:50 a.m. – Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the opening day of on-track activity for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Smith’s 350 and IZOD IndyCar World Championships Presented by Honda.

Today’ abbreviated schedule will have the Firestone Indy Lights cars on the track for practice from 9:45-10:45 a.m. and again from 3-4 p.m. The cars of the IZOD IndyCar Series will be on the track, in two groups, for practice from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.

Be sure to check back here often, as we’ll be updating this blog throughout the day with news, stats and driver interviews.

5:55 p.m. – Comments from Top Fuel driver Antron Brown, who earned his 26th career NHRA victory (10 in Top Fuel and 16 in Pro Stock Motorcycle) Sunday in the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

“It feels incredible (to win) – especially here at Vegas. I’ve been to the final I don’t know how many times here and came up short. I always get to the final and roll the dice and I had snake-eyes come up on me. This weekend here, everything just fell right into our groove. Our team just stepped up. When the track was out there – we knew it was going to be a little cooler (today) – the guys just stepped this Aaron’s car up this weekend and it really showed through. We had to give it all we got and we duplicated it and kept it throughout eliminations and it got us in the winner’s circle. This race right here, it always tries to kick you down because so much is riding on it but we got it done. It was just an incredible weekend and I give it all up just by being blessed with the team that I’m on right now.”

(How eager were you to get back to the track after ending last season with a win?) “We were definitely ready because we learned a lot last year. It was a transition year because we basically were starting to run a car totally different than we ever ran before. We started running (Don Schumacher Racing) stuff – the chassis, their clutch program, their engine program – and their stuff made quite a bit more power than we were used to running and it took a little bit to (get used to). Once we started getting our bearings together like probably halfway through the year, and in the last four races we did good, we just got beat by better cars. That’s how tough our class is. In the offseason, the guys worked harder on our dragster and it just turned around when we got out there testing and we were running with the other DSR cars. We were gung-ho to get to Pomona so it was carrying out but we put it all together this weekend.”

5:28 p.m. – Comments from Funny Car driver Robert Hight, who earned his second win of the season and the 29th of his career Sunday in the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

“It’s not getting any easier. It’s a lot of hard work – that’s really what’s doing it and what’s paying off. You let your guard down just one little bit and you’re going to get beat. I had close, side-by-side races in every round. Johnny Gray stepped up in the final and made his best run of the weekend against us. If you looked at it on paper, you’d say ‘back it off a little, be safe, go down the track and get the win.’ We would not have been up here right now (if we had done that). That even makes it feel better when you can get a win like this and it be the third of the year for (John Force Racing). In this day and age and with this competition, it’s awesome.

“People always ask me, ‘Is it tough, a lot of pressure, with the team you’re on?’ I always say no, it makes it easier for me as a driver because you just go out there and you don’t have to worry about anything else. You know the car is right and the people are right. It just makes it easier for the driver so hat’s off to John (Force) and the team he’s put together.

“We’ve got to keep it going, though. We go to (Charlotte) next week. This was the 199th career win for John Force Racing and nothing would be better than getting 200 there in Charlotte. It’s another Bruton Smith track. We love their facilities; they’re top-notch, they’re the best. NHRA did such a great job with the track this weekend to get this live TV deal off.”

5:10 p.m. – Comments from Pro Stock driver Mike Edwards, who earned his 29th career victory Sunday and his second in a row at the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

“It really is (the start to the season I’ve wanted). We started off pretty slow for us – actually pretty bad for us, really. We regrouped and came in here with a new car that had a few runs on it and just made some tremendous runs, starting right off with Friday and just continued on through today. It’s just a total team effort. My guys just did an awesome job all weekend – all of them. It’s a great win (and) we just want to try to build on this and try to improve as much as we can and keep trying to run good and make good decisions.”

(What’s made you so good here at The Strip?) “I think it’s the conditions. We run better when it gets hot in the middle of the summer. We just came here and we started off so well and we just kind of build on it. This place is pretty special. John Kite, I used to work for him years and years ago and he used to live here. We teamed up together years ago and he basically gave me my start a long, long time ago so it’s a pretty special place for me.”

(Were you concerned about the weather cooling off today?) “I was. I thought we actually slipped up a little bit on Saturday and then today, especially there in the middle of the day, we ran really, really well. We were real fortunate to get a win there in the final because we made our worst run in the final. We spun up real hard … so we were real fortunate to come away with the win.”

4 p.m. – Final results from the 12th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:

Top Fuel: Antron Brown (3.887 at 318.84) def. Brandon Bernstein (3.947 at 311.13).

Funny Car: Robert Hight (4.149 at 307.79) def. Johnny Gray (4.169 at 301.81).

Pro Stock: Mike Edwards (6.695 at 205.98) def. Vincent Nobile (6.713 at 205.69).

Check back shortly for comments from the winning drivers.

2:46 p.m. – Semifinals results and final-round matchup in Pro Stock:

Vincent Nobile (6.697 at 205.88) def. Greg Stanfield (foul); Mike Edwards (6.662 at 206.95) def. V Gaines (6.704 at 205.41).

Final: Edwards vs. Nobile.

2:39 p.m. – Semifinals results and final-round matchup in Funny Car:

Johnny Gray (4.210 at 300.33) def. Tony Pedregon (no show); Robert Hight (4.155 at 309.13) def Cruz Pedregon (4.152 at 304.80).

Final: Gray vs. Hight.

2:33 p.m. – Semifinals results and final-round matchup in Top Fuel:

Brandon Bernstein (3.937 at 306.81) def. Del Worsham (4.025 at 269.03); Antron Brown (3.843 at 320.51) def. Doug Kalitta (3.940 at 314.46).

Final: Brown vs. Bernstein.

2 p.m. – Mike Edwards, in Pro Stock, is the lone defending SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals winner with a chance to repeat. Larry Dixon, the reigning event champion in Top Fuel, was knocked out in the second round by Doug Kalitta and John Force, the 2010 Funny Car winner here, was eliminated in the second round by Tony Pedregon.

Dixon, the top qualifier in Top Fuel, has five career victories at The Strip while Force, the No. 1 qualifier in Funny Car, has won three times in Las Vegas – including twice last year.

1:38 p.m. – Second-round results and semifinals matchups in Pro Stock:

V Gaines def. Shane Gray; Greg Stanfield def. Jason Line; Vincent Nobile def. Allen Johnson; Mike Edwards def. Erica Enders.

Semifinals: Edwards vs. Gaines; Stanfield vs. Nobile.

1:25 p.m. – Second-round results and semifinals matchups in Funny Car:

Cruz Pedregon def. Ron Capps; Tony Pedregon def. John Force; Robert Hight def. Jack Beckman; Johnny Gray vs. Jeff Arend.

Semifinals: T. Pedregon vs. Gray; C. Pedregon vs. Hight.

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

Brandon Bernstein def. David Grubnic; Doug Kalitta def. Larry Dixon; Del Worsham def. Spencer Massey; Antron Brown def. Tony Schumacher.

Semifinals: Kalitta vs. Brown; Bernstein vs. Worsham.

12:30 p.m. – First-round results and second-round matchups in Pro Stock:

Mike Edwards def. Richard Freeman; Jason Line def. Larry Morgan; Allen Johnson def. Kurt Johnson; V. Gaines def. Ron Krisher; Shane Gray def. Ronnie Humphrey; Vincent Nobile def. Warren Johnson; Greg Stanfield def. Greg Anderson; Erica Enders def. Rodger Brogdon.

Second round: Edwards vs. Enders; Gaines vs. Gray; Line vs. Stanfield; A. Johnson vs. Nobile.

12:08 p.m. – First-round results and second-round matchups in Funny Car:

John Force def. Bob Bode; Cruz Pedregon def. Gary Densham; Robert Hight def. Jim Head; Johnny Gray def. Mike Neff; Jeff Arend def. Matt Hagan; Jack Beckman def. Paul Lee; Ron Capps def. Tim Wilkerson (foul); Tony Pedregon def. Bob Tasca III.

Second round: Force vs. T. Pedregon; Gray vs. Arend; C. Pedregon vs. Capps; Hight vs. Beckman.

11:40 a.m. – Tony Schumacher posted the quickest and fastest Top Fuel pass of the weekend with his first-round victory over Troy Buff. Schumacher ran 3.879 seconds at 318.17 mph and advanced to a second-round matchup against Antron Brown.

“It’s Vegas – this is the place to win,” Schumacher said after his run. “We’re early in the season and you’ve got to get the momentum now, carry it all year and be a dominant team. This Army car is as good as any car I’ve ever driven. I always talk about surrounding yourself with good guys and these nine (crew) guys are as great as any team – and I’ve worked with the best.”

11:25 a.m. – First-round results and second-round matchups in Top Fuel:

Larry Dixon def. Steve Torrence; Brandon Bernstein def. Steve Faria; Del Worsham def. Steve Chrisman; Tony Schumacher def. Troy Buff; Antron Brown def. Morgan Lucas; Spencer Massey def. Shawn Langdon; David Grubnic def. Terry McMillen; Doug Kalitta def. Bob Vandergriff.

Second round:  Dixon vs. Kalitta; Schumacher vs. Brown; Bernstein vs. Grubnic; Worsham vs. Massey.

9:40 a.m. – Here are the first-round pairings for today’s professional eliminations:

TOP FUEL: 1. Larry Dixon vs. 16. Steve Torrence; 2. Brandon Bernstein vs. 15. Steve Faria; 3. Del Worsham vs. 14. Steve Chrisman; 4. Tony Schumacher vs. 13. Troy Buff; 5. Antron Brown vs. 12. Morgan Lucas; 6. Spencer Massey vs. 11. Shawn Langdon; 7. David Grubnic vs. 10. Terry McMillen; 8. Bob Vandergriff  vs. 9. Doug Kalitta.

FUNNY CAR: 1. John Force vs. 16. Bob Bode; 2. Cruz Pedregon vs. 15. Gary Densham; 3. Robert Hight vs. 14. Jim Head; 4. Mike Neff  vs. 13. Johnny Gray; 5. Matt Hagan vs. 12. Jeff Arend; 6. Jack Beckman vs. 11. Paul Lee; 7. Tim Wilkerson vs. 10. Ron Capps; 8. Bob Tasca III vs. 9. Tony Pedregon.

PRO STOCK: 1. Mike Edwards vs. 16. Richard Freeman; 2. Jason Line vs. 15. Larry Morgan; 3. Allen Johnson vs. 14. Kurt Johnson;  4. Ron Krisher vs. 13. V. Gaines; 5. Ronnie Humphrey vs. 12. Shane Gray; 6. Vincent Nobile vs. 11. Warren Johnson; 7. Greg Stanfield vs. 10. Greg Anderson; 8. Rodger Brogdon vs. 9. Erica Enders.

9:25 a.m. – Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and final eliminations for the 12th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals.

The forecast calls for mostly sunny skies today and a high of 80 degrees. Pre-race ceremonies for the 12th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals are scheduled to start at 10:15 a.m. (PDT) and pro eliminations will begin at 11 a.m. Make sure to check back here throughout the day for the latest news, results and driver interviews.

5:35 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 12th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals begin at 10:15 a.m. and final eliminations in the three pro categories start at 11 a.m.

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

5:05 p.m. – Comments from John Force, the top qualifier in Funny Car:

“(Crew chiefs) Dean Antonelli, taught by Austin Coil, and Ron Douglas – those two kids run the car. Guido (Antonelli) wasn't trying to run low because he said there are too many guys behind us and they'll see us do it and they'll just step it up. He just tried to run what he thought the lane would hold and we got away with it. It makes me feel good for those kids. Let's not forget that's Ashley Force Hood, my daughter's car. More than anything, I want to do good for her because that car means a lot to her and those kids that she raced with for four years. One day, I'll get out at the other end, I'll get on that freeway and you'll never see me again. I'll just disappear and leave it to the kids when they're ready to run it because I won't have a final tour and I don't like good-byes.”

(On tomorrow’s predicted cooler temperatures:) “Without a doubt, we'll step up. It'll make the track better. Where people get confused, the minute all of your gauges show you what the car will do, then you've got to play the game that what if the track isn't there...and you think the conditions are good but underneath it's not. Like I said to Guido, if we can run low e.t. or the top two, three or four, then we get to watch what everybody can do and then you can see what they can do. Otherwise, the slowest car in the field can take you out. We're going to watch the ones ahead of us and then try to look at his numbers and try to put a number, just an edge, on them.”

4:35 p.m. – Comments from Larry Dixon, the top qualifier in Top Fuel:

“They weren’t great runs today but it’s still good information. The first run, it went out there and spun the tires and I clicked it off and the second run, it kind of felt like it was doing the same thing and it knocked the burst panels out. To be honest, I’m really surprised that a 3.90 stuck for pole; I really thought there would be some cars that would actually knock that off. I think we were really fortunate that it held.

(On tomorrow’s predicted cooler temperatures:) The track temperature is what it comes down to. If you get a 10-degree cooler track, you’ll probably see three-, four-hundredths quicker (elapsed times) but you’ve got to wait and see. Fortunately for me, my job is the same whether it’s 60 degrees or 160 – it’s the same thing. We’ve just got to go out there and try real hard and know that the Al-Anabi team is going to do their best to give me a great race horse. Whether we get in the winner’s circle or not, I don’t think that really has any bearing on confidence. With a great team and driving a great racecar, we’ll do our best to try – along with everybody else. It’s not our confidence; we’ve got a great car all year long but one reason or another has kept us from advancing any further in races but I wouldn’t trade my car for (anybody else’s).”

11:05 a.m. – Kenny Bernstein said his second retirement is feeling a whole lot more comfortable than his first.

Bernstein, a six-time NHRA world champion and the first drag racer to surpass the 300-mph barrier, returned for one season as a driver in 2007 after retiring in 2002. He said this week that he is content with his role as owner of the Kenny Bernstein Racing Copart Top Fuel Dragster, which is driven by his son Brandon.

“Yeah, I think so,” the elder Bernstein said when asked if his retirement from driving was final. “I learned a long time ago not to say ‘never’ because I goofed up on that and did (retire) and six months later, I was back in there (driving) and I was having fun again.

“I don’t plan on (driving again) right now; I don’t have anything pushing me. My feelings on that today are completely different than they were two years ago. Two years ago, I was still a little itchy; it was a little tough to get out of the Monster Funny Car, to be honest about it, but I thought it was the right thing to do. I have really, really calmed down and I understand now that this is where I need to be.”

Brandon Bernstein is qualified No. 8 in the Copart Dragster going into today’s final two rounds of qualifying for Sunday’s 12th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

10:25 a.m. – Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the final two rounds of professional qualifying for the 12th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals.

The weather has changed from yesterday’s summer-like conditions; it’s cloudy and 80 degrees this morning with winds coming out of the south at 17 mph. The forecast calls for partly sunny skies and a high of 89 degrees.

The third round of professional qualifying is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. with Pro Stock, followed immediately by the third round of Nitro qualifying. The fourth and final round of pro qualifying is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m.

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

6:30 p.m. – Good night from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Spectator gates will open Saturday morning at 7:30 and racing will resume at 8 a.m. with Sportsman eliminations. Professional qualifying sessions will be held at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Be sure to check back here throughout the day on Saturday for continual updates from the third and fourth rounds of pro qualifying for the 12th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals.

6:10 p.m. – Comments from provisional Top Fuel pole-sitter Larry Dixon following the second round of qualifying:

“To be honest, I was waiting for Del (Worsham) to take it away from me. We were just fortunate that it stuck. A 3.90 today, in those conditions, obviously I thought was a really good run (but) it might not even hold up. If it cools off tomorrow, it might not even stay in the show – that’s how much the guys can pick it up. For today, it was a great run by the team and got us qualified.”

(On having a two-car Top Fuel team this season:) “We obviously use the two cars for information – that’s the whole idea of it, to try and gather more data in every session. I’m sure that there are things that we learned and things that (Worsham’s team) learned. Between the two teams, you hope that they end up with a better package – better than everybody else, you hope. Today, yeah (it worked), but tomorrow’s a new day.”

6 p.m. – Comments from provisional Funny Car pole-sitter Cruz Pedregon following the second round of qualifying:

“It felt great. The Snap-On Wix Toyota was on a rail and my confidence meter was about a zero going into that session just because, first run, the car was acting weird and it sounded weird. We’re about 70 degrees track temperature warmer than when we ran No. 1 qualifier at Pomona about a month ago. We changed everything except for the chassis and the body as far as the setup on the car, just to negotiate the (conditions). It’s a great track but the heat really loosens it up and makes you have to pull on a few horses there. Happy would be an understatement. We’re just on cloud nine. It’s just qualifying but we were the best today.

“I wish the weatherman would keep the weather consistent because just as soon as we get our car (dialed in) – we’ve got a pretty good setup for a 130-degree track – it’s going to mess around and be 60-some degrees (on Sunday) and be a completely different setup. We’re going to enjoy this and, like everybody else, we’re going to have to put a whole new setup on the car from what the weatherman says. I just hope he’s wrong.”

5:38 p.m. – Comments from provisional Pro Stock pole-sitter Mike Edwards following the second round of qualifying:

“We made such a good run the first run; I think we were closer than everybody else, really. I think you’ll see it close way up tomorrow. The track is very hot and I was really impressed the way we kept up with the track tonight, to go out there and actually improve. I was really happy with all of the decisions the guys made. We’ve gotten off to a good start; we’ll just see what happens. The gap will definitely get closer tomorrow because everybody’s getting more runs so they’ll get it all figured out.

“If you look at my record over the years, we seem to run better in the summertime and when it gets kind of hot and nasty outside, we seem to do better. But it’s supposed to be really cool on Sunday so these conditions don’t look like they’re going to stick around all weekend. But you’ve got to race the conditions as well as the guy in the next lane on Sunday so we’ll see what happens. But we’re real pleased with what we did today.”

5:20 p.m. – Larry Dixon grabbed the provisional pole in Top Fuel with a pass of 3.904 seconds at 312.78 mph during Friday’s second round of qualifying. Del Worsham (3.938 at 299.40) is second, Antron Brown (3.939 at 311.34) is third, Spencer Massey (3.945 at 309.70) is fourth and David Grubnic (3.947 at 306.05) is fifth.

4:45 p.m. – Cruz Pedregon knocked John Force off the provisional pole with a 4.145-second pass at 306.19 mph in the second round of Funny Car qualifying. Force was second quickest, based on his second-round pass of 4.169 (304.25). Tim Wilkerson moved from 14th to third with a 4.196-second pass (295.21), Robert Hight jumped from 15th to fourth (4.197 at 304.87) and Bob Tasca III slipped from second to fifth despite a second-round pass of 4.202 at 294.63.

3:35 p.m. – Mike Edwards posted a blistering pass of 6.709 seconds (205.63 mph) in the second round of Pro Stock qualifying and retained the provisional pole in the category.

Edwards’ pass was the quickest and fastest in a session that was contested with a track temperature of 132 degrees. The top five qualifiers remained the same through two rounds of qualifying: Vincent Nobile was second, Rodger Brogdon third, Greg Anderson fourth and Erica Enders fifth.

2:45 p.m. – Mike Neff not only is the driver of the Castrol GTX Ford Mustang Funny Car for team owner John Force, he’s also his own crew chief. Neff assumed the dual role when driver Ashley Force Hood stepped out of the car this season to have her first child.

Despite what would seem to be a dizzying task of both tuning and driving the car, Neff has responded with a semifinal finish in the season opener and a victory three weeks ago at the Gatornationals. Neff, who comes into this weekend’s SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals as the Funny Car points leader, said his role as crew chief has not been a distraction when he gets behind the wheel.

“I think it’s almost helpful,” Neff said. “Before, when all I was doing was driving, you’d have all that time to sit around and think about it. I believe the worst thing a driver can do is start thinking. When you get up there and you think ‘I need to do this; I need to do that’ – the more you think, it seems like, the more trouble you get yourself into.

“The one positive thing is with all the stuff I have going, I don’t have to sit around and worry about the driving or my reaction times or anything like that. When it comes time to get in there, you just go and do it. It doesn’t seem like I’m playing all those mind games with myself like I used to.”

Neff’s first-round qualifying run on Friday was disallowed when he crossed the center line during his pass.

2:25 p.m. – Del Worsham is on the provisional pole after a pass of 3.938 seconds at 305.42 mph in the first round of Top Fuel qualifying. Tony Schumacher is second quickest at 3.962 at 305.98, Terry McMillen is third (3.982 at 302.75), Shawn Langdon fourth (3.989 at 297.81) and Spencer Massey fifth (4.027 at 273.05).

The track temperature rocketed to 131 degrees as the ambient temperature climbed to 86 degrees by the end of the Top Fuel qualifying session. The second round of professional qualifying is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m.

1:45 p.m. – John Force, who swept both races at The Strip last year, grabbed the provisional pole with a 4.187-second pass at 299.80 mph in the first round of Funny Car qualifying. Bob Tasca III (4.221 at 292.77) was second quickest and Tony Pedregon (4.260 at 286.80) third. Matt Hagan (4.275 at 283.73) and Jeff Arend (4.331 at 284.15) round out the top five.

1:25 p.m. – Bob Tasca III, driver of the Motorcraft/Quick Lane Ford Funny Car, has been invited to attend the April 19 launch of the Shuttle Endeavor at Kennedy Space Center in Florida as a guest of Endeavor Commander Mark Kelly. Kelly is the husband of Representative Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.), who is recovering after being shot in the head during a meeting with her constituents Jan. 8 at a shopping center in Tucson.

1 p.m. – Mike Edwards, who won this event last spring at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, holds the No. 1 qualifying position after the first round of Pro Stock qualifying. Edwards posted a run of 6.715 seconds at 206.26 mph. Vincent Nobile was second quickest at 6.736 seconds (205.44) and Rodger Brogdon was third quickest at 6.736 (205.32). Greg Anderson (6.736 at 204.35) and Erica Enders (6.738 at 204.85) rounded out the top five.

11:55 a.m. – Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where fans are basking under sunny skies for the first day of professional qualifying for the 12th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals. It’s sunny right now with an ambient temperature of 75 degrees and a slight breeze (3 mph) out of the north – but the forecast calls for a high of 91 degrees. The track temperature is 119 degrees as the Top Alcohol Dragsters and TA Funny Cars are wrapping up their first qualifying session. The first round of Pro Stock qualifying is set to begin at 12:30 p.m. (PDT) and the Funny Cars and Top Fuel Dragsters are slated to hit the track at 1 p.m. The second round of pro qualifying is slated to begin at 3 p.m.

Be sure to check back here often as we’ll be updating this blog throughout the weekend with news, results and driver interviews.

8:40 p.m. – Comments from Top Fuel driver Tony Schumacher, who earned his sixth victory of the season and the 67th of his career Sunday at the NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

“It was a fun car to drive this weekend. It almost brought a little pressure back. I was starting to feel a little bit of relaxation -- we're in Vegas and I'm not actually in the points lead and I'm not actually that close and all of a sudden we've got this fast car. The thing is amazing. We tested a couple of times this year and we've been working on a couple of different things and it was just an excellent combination.

“I'm looking forward to going to Pomona. (The championship) is kind of out of my hands. We had to go out and set the national record and win the race. It's one of those miraculous things but the most fun about it is that we're in this. We haven't been written off, we're a long way out and it's a super-big long shot but we're great at coming from behind, so it's our specialty. If I lose the championship, I'm still a seven-time champ...so it's OK.”

8:25 p.m. – Comments from Funny Car driver John Force, who earned his fifth victory of the season and the 131st of his career Sunday at the NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

“We had the lead all year and then at Reading we had a clutch pedal fall off and couldn't get the car in reverse and didn't get a chance to race and (Funny Car points leader Matt Hagan) took advantage of it. He's a great racer -- I really love the kid. It's a long shot but we did good and then we got him in the finals.

“I've been 25 years with (primary Sponsor) Castrol. I've got another year left and I'm trying to get a five-year extension. That'll put me over 65 ... but as long as my ol' race car will do the running, I'm not leaving as long as I can do the job. I love it too much. I'm holding my own the young kids. It's all about energy. I won for so many years and after a while, you take it for granted. Then you're lying in a hospital bed (after my crash) and they're telling you you're not going to walk, possibly, or with a cane. But two and a half years go by and I stunk...maybe I should have quit. But I stuck with it and I can race again. That's been my whole life.”

8:05 p.m. – Comments from Pro Stock driver Greg Anderson, who earned his fifth victory of the season and the 65th of his career Sunday at the NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

“That was pretty cool. We've got a lot of pride, Jason and I, and I think we’ve proved over many, many years now that we don't ever do any team orders or take any dives and we're not going to start now. If you're going to win, you've got to feel good about yourself and there just wasn't going to be any other way. It was a great race – a wonderful race – and I love racing Jason. He's a great competitor and he's a great teammate.”

(On winning the race in team owner Ken Black’s return to the track after a lengthy illness:) “I couldn't have drawn this weekend up on paper if I had asked the Lord for everything in the world. Every wish I could ever (ask for), they all came true today. It was a wonderful, wonderful day and I really hope this goes a long way to Ken's recovery; I can't think of a better medicine for the man. This is the best day I've ever had at a racetrack as far as the KB Racing goes – or any race team I've been with before. This is the coolest thing that's happened to me in a long, long time and what feels the best is that I know it's going to help Ken Black.”

7:50 p.m. – Comments from Pro Stock Motorcycle rider LE Tonglet, who earned his fifth victory of the season and the fifth of his career Sunday at the NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

“I don't want to wake up. It's just been an awesome year since after Brainerd. We came into the Countdown seventh and after Indy we were number two. We've really been on a roll since Indy and we've just got to keep this momentum going and see what happens. That Harley team (of Andrew Hines) is going to be tough to beat. Andrew's been in this position before. He's a really good rider and we just need to keep our heads straight and if it happens, it happens.

“The pressure is there, I just try not to think about it. We came out here and I had a couple horrible lights in the first couple of rounds but, thankfully, we got the round wins and I was able to step up each round on the tree. That (6.948-second pass) in the semi really came out of nowhere – it was just crazy to see that and it really brought our confidence up.”

6:14 p.m. – Final results from the 10^th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:

Top Fuel: Tony Schumacher (3.845 at 316.60) def. Dom Lagana (3.987 at 274.39).

Funny Car: John Force (4.232 at 281.36) def. Matt Hagan (6.925 at 110.96).

Pro Stock: Greg Anderson (6.654 at 207.43) def. Jason Line (6.656 at 207.46).

Pro Stock Motorcycle: LE Tonglet (6.957 at 188.86) def. Matt Smith (6.983 at 189.07).

Check back shortly for comments from the winning racers.

4:49 p.m. – Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

LE Tonglet (6.948 at 190.22) def. Jim Underdahl (6.988 at 190.78); Matt Smith (7.037 at 187.73) def. Andrew Hines (7.041 at 189.82).

Final: Tonglet vs. Smith.

4:46 p.m. – Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Pro Stock:

Greg Anderson (6.677 at 207.53) def. Shane Gray (foul); Jason Line (6.652 at 207.11) def. Greg Stanfield (6.664 at 206.32).

Final: Line vs. Anderson.

4:38 p.m. – Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Funny Car:

John Force (4.130 at 307.72) def. Bob Tasca III (5.962 at 122.71); Matt Hagan (4.097 at 304.80) def. Ashley Force Hood (9.160 at 74.91).

Final: Hagan vs. J. Force.

4:31 p.m. – Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Top Fuel:

Dom Lagana (3.892 at 312.06) def. Antron Brown (3.951 at 283.13); Tony Schumacher (3.808 at 323.12) def. David Grubnic (3.993 at 238.64).

Final: Schumacher vs. Lagana.

3:30 p.m. – Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

Jim Underdahl def. Shawn Gann; Matt Smith def. Karen Stoffer; LE Tonglet def. Hector Arana; Andrew Hines def. Eddie Krawiec (foul).

Semifinals: LE Tonglet vs. Underdahl; Hines vs. Smith.

3:23 p.m. – Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Pro Stock:

Greg Stanfield def. Allen Johnson; Shane Gray def. Bob Yonke (foul); Greg Anderson def. Jeg Coughlin; Jason Line def. Ronnie Humphrey (foul).

Semifinals: Stanfield vs. Line; S. Gray vs. Anderson.

3:10 p.m. – Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Funny Car:

Bob Tasca III def. Ron Capps; Ashley Force Hood def. Jack Beckman; Matt Hagan def. Jim Head; John Force def. Melanie Troxel.

Semifinals: Force Hood vs. Hagan; J. Force vs. Tasca III.

2:58 p.m. – Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Top Fuel:

Dom Lagana def. Larry Dixon; David Grubnic def. Steve Torrence; Antron Brown def. Mark Mariani; Tony Schumacher def. Shawn Langdon.

Semifinals: Schumacher vs. Grubnic; Brown vs. Lagana.

1:38 p.m. – First-round winners and second-round matchups in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

LE Tonglet  def. Bailey Whitaker;  Eddie Krawiec def. Matt Guidera; Andrew Hines def. Craig Treble; Matt Smith def. Michael Phillips; Jim Underdahl def. David Hope; Shawn Gann def. Angie Smith; Karen Stoffer def. Steve Johnson; Hector Arana def. Scotty Pollacheck.

Second round: Arana vs. Tonglet; Underdahl vs. Gann; Krawiec vs. Hines; Stoffer vs. Smith.

1:27 p.m. – First-round winners and second-round matchups in Pro Stock:

Greg Stanfield def. Mike Edwards; Shane Gray def. Kurt Johnson; Greg Anderson def. Rodger Brogdon; Bob Yonke def. V Gaines (foul); Jeg Coughlin def. Dave Connolly; Jason Line def. Larry Morgan; Allen Johnson def. Johnny Gray; Ronnie Humphrey def. Ron Krisher (foul).

Second round: A. Johnson vs. Stanfield; Humphrey vs. Line; Yonke vs. S. Gray; Coughlin vs. Anderson.

12:56 p.m. – First-round winners and second-round matchups in Funny Car:

Melanie Troxel def. Tim Wilkerson; Jim Head def. Cruz Pedregon; Ashley Force Hood def. Paul Lee; Ron Capps def. Del Worsham; John Force def. Jeff Arend; Matt Hagan def. Tony Pedregon; Bob Tasca III def. Gary Densham; Jack Beckman def. Bob Bode.

Second-round: Force Hood vs. Beckman; Head vs. Hagan; J. Force vs. Troxel; Capps vs. Tasca III.

11:38 a.m. – First-round winners and second-round matchups in Top Fuel:

Shawn Langdon def. Brandon Bernstein; Antron Brown def. T.J. Zizzo; Dom Lagana def. Clay Millican; Steve Torrence def. Chris Karamesines; David Grubnic def. Scott Palmer; Larry Dixon def. Troy Buff; Tony Schumacher def. Bob Vandergriff; Mark Mariani def. Cory McClenathan.

Second round:  Schumacher vs. Langdon; Grubnic vs. Torrence; Mariani vs. Brown; Dixon vs. Lagana.

9:55 a.m. – Here are the first-round pairings for today’s professional eliminations:

TOP FUEL: 1. Tony Schumacher  vs. 16. Bob Vandergriff; 2. Cory McClenathan vs. 15. Mark Mariani; 3. Larry Dixon vs. 14. Troy Buff; 4. David Grubnic vs. 13. Scott Palmer; 5. Steve Torrence vs. 12. Chris Karamesines; 6. Clay Millican vs. 11. Dom Lagana; 7. T.J. Zizzo vs. 10. Antron Brown; 8. Brandon Bernstein vs. 9. Shawn Langdon.

FUNNY CAR: 1. Ashley Force Hood vs. 16. Paul Lee; 2. John Force vs. 15. Jeff Arend;  3. Ron Capps vs. 14. Del Worsham; 4. Cruz Pedregon vs. 13. Jim Head; 5. Matt Hagan vs. 12. Tony Pedregon; 6. Bob Tasca III vs. 11. Gary Densham; 7. Tim Wilkerson vs. 10. Melanie Troxel; 8. Bob Bode vs. 9. Jack Beckman.

PRO STOCK: 1. Allen Johnson vs. 16. Johnny Gray; 2. V Gaines vs. 15. Bob Yonke; 3. Jeg Coughlin vs. 14. Dave Connolly; 4. Ron Krisher vs. 13. Ronnie Humphrey; 5. Jason Line vs. 12. Larry Morgan; 6. Rodger Brogdon vs. 11. Greg Anderson; 7. Shane Gray vs. 10. Kurt Johnson; 8. Greg Stanfield vs. 9. Mike Edwards.

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE: 1. Hector Arana vs. 16. Scotty Pollacheck; 2. Eddie Krawiec vs. 15. Matt Guidera; 3. Karen Stoffer vs. 14. Steve Johnson; 4. Jim Underdahl vs. 13. David Hope; 5. Shawn Gann vs. 12. Angie Smith; 6. Matt Smith vs. 11. Michael Phillips; 7. Andrew Hines vs. 10. Craig Treble; 8. Bailey Whitaker vs. 9. LE Tonglet.

9:35 a.m. – Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and final eliminations for the 10^th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals. After a blustery day yesterday, today’s forecast calls for mostly sunny skies, a high of 74 degrees and a light breeze not expected to exceed 5 mph.

Pre-race ceremonies for the 10^th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals get underway at 10 a.m. and pro eliminations begin at 11 a.m.

Make sure to check back here throughout the day for the latest news, results and driver interviews.

9:55 p.m. – Racing resumes at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway at 8 a.m. Sunday with Sportsman eliminations. Pre-race ceremonies for the 10^th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals begin at 10 a.m. and final pro eliminations begin at 11 a.m.

Good night from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and be sure to check back Sunday for updates throughout the day.

9:50 p.m. – Comments from Ashley Force Hood, the top qualifier in Funny Car:

“We’re really happy with the car and we’re really pumped for tomorrow. Of course, everybody wants to go for a (national record) but I’d rather take a good run any day than not get down the track. With the changing conditions here earlier, we were hoping to maybe get delayed a little to get to run in that cool temperature. Then we got really, really delayed and I worried, ‘is it getting too cold?’ You hate to wait all that time and go 10 feet on your run so I was really excited to know I was on a really good run. I’m surprised that more cars didn’t step up and run quicker. I was really proud of my team that despite all those distractions, we still managed to have a really good run.

“I’ve never been in this long of a session but you get past the point of being worried about it and it is what it is. I’m just glad we made a good pass, that it was worth it in the end to see a couple of good passes. It made it worth the wait for the handful of fans that stuck it out.”

9:30 p.m. – Here are the top 16 qualifiers in Funny Car for the 10^th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

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

8:25 p.m. – Comments from Tony Schumacher, the top qualifier in Top Fuel:

“(The delay) is not what you hope for but NHRA does the best they can do and I’m sure the guys that oil the track down, they’re not trying to do it. We’re supposed to be running at 3:30 and home having a nice dinner and watching the freaky people dress up in Vegas on Halloween … and here we are, it’s 8 o’clock at night and Funny Car has just started. Long day but tomorrow will be great.

“Now it’s cold. These guys in Funny Cars right now -- and most of us in Top Fuel -- the conditions are cold. The track is 68 degrees; it’s just a little bit too cold. I look forward to tomorrow. I wouldn’t want to race against my car tomorrow. I think we have an incredible car. We definitely have the tune-up for this racetrack in these conditions.”

8:15 p.m. – Jeff Diehl was involved in a serious crash early in the final round of Funny Car qualifying but he appears to have escaped injury.

Diehl’s car broke loose at half-track and slammed head-on into the right-hand wall. The body broke loose from the chassis as Diehl’s car burst into flames but Diehl climbed from the cockpit moments after it came to a stop beyond the finish line.

“It was a hit – it took my breath away,” a visibly shaken Diehl said several minutes after the incident. “It shook and I lifted the throttle but it hung wide open. I don’t know what it hung on. I just had to ride it out.

“I was scared I was going to hit Robert (Hight). What a mess. I’m just embarrassed – what can I say?”

7:50 p.m. – Here are the top 16 qualifiers in Top Fuel for the 10^th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

Tony Schumacher; 2. Cory McClenathan; 3. Larry Dixon; 4. David Grubnic; 5. Steve Torrence; 6. Clay Millican; 7. T.J. Zizzo; 8. Brandon Bernstein; 9. Shawn Langdon; 10. Antron Brown; 11. Dom Lagana; 12. Chris Karamesines; 13. Scott Palmer; 14. Troy Buff; 15. Mark Mariani; 16. Bob Vandergriff.

7 p.m. – Comments from Allen Johnson, the top qualifier in Pro Stock:

“We knew that this (last) run would be the best one (after the long delay earlier in the day). When the sun goes down, the track gets awesome here so we knew we had to get after it to keep (the pole) and that’s what we did – we stepped it up. This is the second race in a row where Dodges are one and two.”

6:54 p.m. – Comments from Hector Arana, the top qualifier in Pro Stock Motorcycle:

“As you can see, we’re going in the right direction. For me, it means everything to come back (after struggling this season). We had a problem, we fixed it and we came back. I’m going to try to relax so I can have a good night’s sleep and concentrate for tomorrow.”

6:15 p.m. – Here are the top 16 qualifiers in Pro Stock for the 10^th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

1. Allen Johnson; 2. V Gaines; 3. Jeg Coughlin; 4. Ron Krisher; 5. Jason Line; 6. Rodger Brogdon; 7. Shane Gray; 8. Greg Stanfield; 9. Mike Edwards; 10. Kurt Johnson; 11. Greg Anderson; 12. Larry Morgan; 13. Ronnie Humphrey; 14. Dave Connolly; 15. Bob Yonke; 16. Johnny Gray.

5:40 p.m. – Here are the top 16 qualifiers in Pro Stock Motorcycle for the 10^th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals:

1. Hector Arana; 2. Eddie Krawiec; 3. Karen Stoffer; 4. Jim Underdahl; 5. Shawn Gann; 6. Matt Smith; 7. Andrew Hines; 8. Bailey Whitaker; 9. LE Tonglet; 10. Craig Treble; 11. Michael Phillips; 12. Angie Smith; 13. David Hope; 14. Steve Johnson; 15. Matt Guidera; 16. Scotty Pollacheck.

4:05 p.m. – Among the notable spectators at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Saturday include Patrick Carpentier, a NASCAR driver and former open-wheel racer who lives in Las Vegas, and Rod Fuller, a seven-time winner in the NHRA Top Fuel category and a Las Vegas resident.

3:55 p.m. – Ashley Force Hood, John Force and Cruz Pedregon remained atop the Funny Car speed chart after three rounds of qualifying. Ron Capps posted the quickest run of the session at 4.092 seconds and moved up two spots to No. 6.

3:05 p.m. – After several lengthy delays for oil-downs and a track cleanup, the third round of Top Fuel qualifying has ended in spectacular fashion. Tony Schumacher backed up his national speed-record run from yesterday (325.14 mph) with a blistering pass of 3.816 seconds at 324.12 mph – within the 1 percent required to certify Friday’s run as the record. Schumacher remained the top qualifier, Cory McClenathan moved up to No. 2 and Larry Dixon is No. 3.

12:50 p.m. – Allen Johnson turned in the quickest and fastest pass of the weekend (6.651 seconds at 207.82 mph) and retained the No. 1 qualifying position in Pro Stock after three rounds. V Gaines moved up to No. 2 (6.665 at 206.39) and Mike Edwards is No. 3 (6.671 at 207.02).

12:30 p.m. – Hector Arana improved on his qualifying time in the third round with a 6.922-second pass (190.30 mph) and remained the top Pro Stock Motorcycle qualifier after three rounds. Karen Stoffer (6.956 at 192.22) improved to No. 2 and Jim Underdahl (6.961 at 193.24) moved up to No. 3.

12:20 p.m. – Matt Smith, commenting on his wild ride into the sand after his third-round qualifying run:

“I’m OK, but I hit my head pretty good. But I’m all right. I just got down there and I had no brakes whatsoever. There was nothing I could do but hold on.”

12:03 p.m. – Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Matt Smith had trouble stopping his bike at the end of his third-round qualifying run today and dumped his bike in the sand pit at the top end of the track. Smith walked away from his bike under his own power and appeared to have suffered no serious injuries, although he will be checked out by NHRA medical personnel.

11:30 a.m. – Jack Beckman knows he has his work cut out for him if he is to leapfrog John Force and Don Schumacher Racing teammate Matt Hagan and win the NHRA Funny Car world championship.

Beckman entered the weekend trailing Hagan by 93 points and second-place Force by 29 points and finds himself seventh in qualifying after two rounds. Force is the No. 2 qualifier and Hagan is No. 4 going into this morning’s action.

“It’s a tough situation to be in,” Beckman said. “We’re basically five rounds out of the points lead and the way that (Hagan) has been qualifying, we can’t let them out-qualify us because if they gain eight more points, that’s an extra round for us to have to make up and we’ve only got eight rounds left.

“We have to make the final round here and we have to hope they lose early – and that’s never the way that you want to win a championship. You don’t want to go in and rely on somebody else struggling; you want to do it off your performance. But that’s where we’re at. At the end of the day, we still have a realistic shot at the championship but to be able to say that going into (the season finale in) Pomona, we have to make a final round here.”

Beckman said he likes his chances this weekend because he counts Las Vegas as his favorite track on the NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series.

“Coming back to Vegas and Pomona to end the season are my two home tracks,” he said. “I taught at the drag-racing school (at Pomona) for 10 years and Vegas, of all the NHRA tracks, I definitely have the most amount of runs at Vegas because with my Sportsman car, I used to come out and race here all the time. It’s my favorite racetrack. It’s always safe, it’s always prepped well, it’s got an uphill shutdown area, it’s got paved pits, it’s got wonderful grandstands and it’s got great atmosphere with the town here. It’s my favorite place to race.”  

10:50 a.m. – Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the final two rounds of professional qualifying for the 10^th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals. It’s partly cloudy and 63 degrees with winds gusting to 20 mph out of the southwest. The forecast calls for partly cloudy skies, a high of 74 degrees and wind gusts to 25 mph.

The third round of professional qualifying is scheduled to begin at 11:45 a.m. with Pro Stock Motorcycle and Pro Stock, followed immediately by the third round of Nitro qualifying. The fourth and final round of pro qualifying is scheduled to begin at 2:45 p.m.

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

7:30 p.m. – Just a reminder that racing will begin at 8 a.m. Saturday with Sportsman Eliminations. Another beautiful day is on tap with a projected high of 75 degrees. Pro Stock Motorcycle and Pro Stock qualifying sessions are scheduled for 11:45 a.m. and 2:45 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 continual updates from the 10th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals.

7:10 p.m. – Comments from Tony Schumacher, the provisional pole-sitter in Top Fuel following two rounds of qualifying:

 (Schumacher turned in the fastest pass in NHRA history at 325.14 miles per hour.) “It’d be real good if it came with 20 points – or 40, that’d be even better. The car is fast and we know it’s fast and we know we have a great racecar. It’s funny, we’ve won six championships in a row and it doesn’t look like we’re going to win (this) one. Everyone is, ‘Oh, my God, what are you going to do?’ Well, I’m going to wake up and race. I love racing and I don’t get down on it. We’ve won five races this year. (Larry) Dixon has won 12 and that’s an amazing accomplishment but we’ve won the second most. We’re just going to go out and try to win the last two races and not let Larry get all the money. (Dixon’s team) is having one of those years and you’ve got to respect that. They’re running good and we’ve had those years where nothing can go wrong. I wish it wasn’t happening and I’d love to be out there and giving a better battle than maybe we have but, in reality, they have that good of a team ... they’re going to go out and win a lot of races.”

7 p.m. – Comments from Ashley Force Hood, the provisional pole-sitter in Funny Car following two rounds of qualifying:

“Sometimes you just have that magic and it runs maybe even a little better than you thought it would. I’m excited and our team’s excited. We’re really pumped because we got down both runs today and that’s a great way to start a weekend here in Vegas. It’s been fun so far. We’re approaching each round just trying to run the best possible run we can. We’re not thinking about records, we’re not thinking about other people in the field … we’re just going to take each run as it goes. We had a good run today and we’d really love to get two more good ones tomorrow because then you feel confident for Sunday and that’s going to be similar conditions.”

6:45 p.m. – Comments from Hector Arana, the provisional pole-sitter in Pro Stock Motorcycle following two rounds of qualifying:

“Earlier, we struggled with the performance of the bike; there was something going on and we’ve found it – it’s back. We made that awesome run and we thought that we could probably improve a little bit but I downloaded the run and it’s lost. It’s lost and I can’t find it in the computer. That’s how it goes sometime. Hopefully we can download this one so tomorrow we can repeat what we did earlier. I’m still happy. We were totally blind and we did some things to guess at it and we went the wrong way.

“I’ve not considered knocking anyone out, only the ones that I’m racing against on Sunday. I’ve worked hard and I would like to finish the season with a win and that’s my goal, to see if I could grab two.”

6:18 p.m. – Tony Schumacher saved the best for last, turning in a pass of 3.812 seconds at a track-record speed of 325.14 mph and reclaiming the provisional pole in Top Fuel. Larry Dixon, who held the provisional pole briefly after his 3.825-second pass, is No. 2 and Steve Torrence is No. 3 after two rounds of qualifying.

5:34 p.m. – Ashley Force Hood knocked her father, John Force, off the provisional pole with a blistering run of 4.032 seconds at 309.70 mph in the second round of Funny Car qualifying. John Force is in the No. 2 spot after a second-round run of 4.059 at 311.70. Cruz Pedregon is third based on his first-round run (4.087 at 304.67).

4:45 p.m. – Allen Johnson grabbed the provisional pole with a pass of 6.660 seconds at 207.46 mph in the second round of Pro Stock qualifying. Mike Edwards is second and Roger Brogdon is third after two rounds.

4:01 p.m. – Hector Arana held onto the top qualifying spot after two rounds in Pro Stock Motorcycle. Eddie Krawiec remained No. 2 and Karen Stoffer made the quickest pass of the session (7.001 seconds at 190.46) and moved up one spot to third.

3:55 p.m. – John Force has won 14 Funny Car world championships and knows what it will take to win a 15^th. Force, who has not won a season championship since 2006, said playing it safe is not the way to overcome his 64-point deficit to front-runner Matt Hagan.

“Our approach is very simple,” Force said. “I need to win these next two races. I need to eat up points in every round of qualifying and I’m hoping to get a shot at the national record. But if (Hagan) goes a couple rounds here and a couple rounds at Pomona, it’s over.

“We’re excited because we can’t go in and wait for him to fail; we have to go in and win every point that’s on the table or else it’s just his to grab. I’ve played this game for 33 years and you can’t go in this just hoping he’s going to get beat first round or he’s going to have a clutch pedal fall off like we did. It’s too good a team, too good a talent, too good a driver to make mistakes so we’re just going to outrun him. We’re going to go after him and hit him out of the box. We’ve got a big task but we’ve done our homework in the last two weeks and we’re ready.”

It is a lean Castrol GTX Ford Mustang that Force has brought to The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for this weekend’s NHRA Las Vegas Nationals.

“We’ve put our car on a diet – we’ve pulled everything but safety off of it and we’ve got it down 30 pounds and about 10 pounds with me,” he said.

3:30 p.m. – Six-time NHRA Top Fuel champion Tony Schumacher knows he has his work cut out for him if he is to win a seventh consecutive world championship.

Schumacher is third in points, 154 points behind Larry Dixon, with two races remaining, and isn’t hopeful that he’ll be able to pass second-place Cory McClenathan and Dixon in the final two races.

“I hope I have several more (championships) in me but we’re a long way back,” said Schumacher, who has five victories this season. “Unfortunately, we’re not going to pull this one off. It would take every miracle – and then some – and it’s just impossible.

“We’re still going to show up try to win the race (but) it doesn’t matter; the championship is too far away from me and that’s a fact. But the sixth win (of the season) is not. The sixth win comes from winning the next four rounds and that’s what we’re going to try to do.”

Although the local oddsmakers have installed Dixon as the favorite to win this weekend’s NHRA Las Vegas Nationals, it wouldn’t be smart to bet against Schumacher. The driver of the U.S. Army Top Fuel Dragster has won this event three times and has five career victories (as does Dixon) at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

3:08 p.m. – Tony Schumacher wrapped up the first round of pro qualifying by posting the quickest time in Top Fuel with a pass of 3.871 seconds at 321.73 mph. Cory McClenathan was second at 3.892 (316.01) and Clay Millican was third at 3.932 (301.20). Top Fuel points leader Larry Dixon did not make a full pass and was ninth.

1:52 p.m. – Cruz Pedregon snagged the provisional pole with a pass of 4.087 seconds at 304.67 mph in the first round of Funny Car qualifying. Bob Tasca III was second quickest at 4.092 (309.20) and Ashley Force Hood was third at 4.105 (306.40). Funny Car points leader Matt Hagan was No. 8 while John Force, who trails Hagan by 64 points going into the weekend, did not make a full pass and was 13^th.

1:20 p.m. – Mike Edwards, who trails points leader Greg Anderson by 36 points going into the weekend, grabbed the provisional pole after the first round of Pro Stock qualifying with a pass of 6.667 at 206.42 mph. Rodger Brogdon was second quickest at 6.670 (206.01) and Allen Johnson was third at 6.671 (207.08).

Nitro qualifying is underway.

12:43 p.m. – Hector Arana holds the provisional pole after the first round of qualifying in Pro Stock Motorcycle. Arana’s pass at 6.929 seconds (192.30 mph) put him atop the chart, ahead of No. 2 qualifier Eddie Krawiec (6.933 at 194.13) and No. 3 Andrew Hines (7.002 at 192.19).

11:55 a.m. – Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where it’s shaping up as a gorgeous day for the first two rounds of professional qualifying for the 10^th annual NHRA Las Vegas Nationals.

It’s sunny and 64 degrees with a slight breeze (3 mph) as the Pro Mod racers are beginning their first qualifying session.

Professional qualifying will begin shortly with Pro Stock Motorcycle and Pro Stock, followed immediately by the first round of Nitro qualifying. The second round of pro qualifying is scheduled to begin at 3:45 p.m.

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

10:33 p.m. – Post-race comments from race winner Austin Dillon:

“When you can come to a track and unload fast, that’s great. I’d never been here and we unloaded on top of the board – that just says how much (crew chief Danny Stockman) has been doing and the guys have been doing to make our trucks very good."

"We made mistakes at the beginning of the year and now we’re finally coming around to where we think we can run with the top guys and we’re showing it. It’s been an awesome year and I can’t thank everybody enough.

“All wins are awesome so I don’t know if there’s a sweeter one or not. This one was cool because I’d never seen the track before. We showed up here at the track this morning and I took a rental car ride around the track and that was all that we really needed. The truck was so good that I could go out there and run laps that were going to be good for the race run. It was awesome. I just had to go finish it off.”

(On his grandfather Richard Childress’ tough week with the penalties against Clint Bowyer’s No. 33 car in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.) “I talked to him earlier in the week ... and he said, ‘Man, you’ve got to go win this race for me out here.’ To come out here and do it is pretty awesome. You dream about stuff like this and when it comes true, it’s great. Now I hope the Cup guys can go out and finish off the weekend and prove to everybody that Clint Bowyer was legal.”

10:18 p.m. -- Post-race comments from second-place finisher Johnny Sauter:

“I don’t know about almost (winning back-to-back races at LVMS); that kid (Austin Dillon) was like three-tenths faster a lap. It was a good night for our FarmPaint.com/Curb Records Chevy. At the beginning of the race, we were tight and we just kept making air-pressure adjustments and got it pretty good and then came in and made a couple more air-pressure adjustments.

On that last pit stop, I got stuck in fourth gear and I couldn’t get it out of fourth gear so we had no choice but to jack it up and go underneath the truck. I lost a ton of track position, came out like 15th and I think we were up to second in pretty much no time. I went from eighth to third in one corner. It was a solid truck but just nothing for the 3 truck; he was lights out.”

10:08 p.m. -- Post-race comments from third-place finisher James Buescher:

“I don’t know about good restarts; our truck didn’t take off very good at all on the restarts – especially on the initial start. I think I lost six spots before I got to turn 1. The Wolf Pack Rentals Chevy was fast once I got through turn 1 and got up to speed. We were good through probably the middle part of the race. We took fuel only one time and that was probably the best our truck ever was. It didn’t work out where we could do that at the end because the tires were kind of falling off. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get back to that same point that we were at in the middle part of the race and we slowed down a little bit at the end. We were probably a second-place truck at the beginning and a third-place truck at the end so we finished third. That 3 truck (Austin Dillon) was fast – he was killing us all.”

8:42 p.m. – Austin Dillon grabbed the lead from James Buescher with 34 laps remaining and pulled away to post a commanding victory over Johnny Sauter in the 14th Smith’s 350 Saturday night at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Dillon’s 5.588-second margin of victory was the largest winning margin in 14 Truck Series races in Las Vegas.

Buescher finished third, series points leader Todd Bodine was fourth and Matt Crafton was fifth. Aric Almirola, Brian Ickler, Justin Lofton, Ricky Carmichael and Ken Schrader rounded out the top 10.

8:23 p.m. – Debris on the track brings out the seventh caution of the race on lap 116. Austin Dillon and James Buescher have swapped the lead several times since the last restart but Dillon continues to lead on lap 116. Buescher is second, Johnny Sauter is third, Aric Almirola is fourth and Matt Crafton is fifth with 30 laps remaining.

8:15 p.m. – The top 10 with 40 laps remaining: Austin Dillon, James Buescher, Todd Bodine, Aric Almirola, Ricky Carmichaal, Matt Crafton, Brian Ickler, Johnny Sauter, Tayler Malsam and Justin Lofton.

7:40 p.m. – The top 10 after 60 of 146 laps: James Buescher, Ron Hornaday Jr., Johnny Sauter, Austin Dillon, Matt Crafton, Brian Ickler, Aric Almirola, Tayler Malsam, Todd Bodine and Narain Karthikeyan.

7:25 p.m. – The race is under its third caution as a result of Mike Skinner’s run through the infield grass after contact with Johnny Sauter. The top 10 on lap 40: Ron Hornaday Jr., James Buescher, Timothy Peters, Austin Dillon, Johnny Sauter, Brian Ickler, Matt Crafton, Tayler Malsam, Todd Bodine and Narain Karthikeyan.

7p.m. – Greg Pursley brings out the first caution of the race on lap 12 when his engine blows between turns 3 and 4 and drops fluid onto the track. Pursley started the race 14th.

6:51 p.m. – Austin Dillon leads the 36-truck field to the green flag to start the Smith’s 350. Dillon is making his 22nd career start and is in search of his second victory of the season and second of his career.

6:41 p.m. – The drivers have been given the command to “start your engines.” The 14th NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Smith’s 350 will begin shortly.

4:01 p.m. – Austin Dillon saved the best for last. Dillon, the last driver to make a qualifying attempt, grabbed the pole for tonight’s Smith’s 350 with a lap of 174.509 mph. James Buescher was second fastest at 173.958 and Matt Crafton qualified third at 173.516. Johnny Sauter, who won last year’s Smith’s 350, also was clocked at 173.516 and will start fourth and Ken Schrader (173.033) will start fifth.

3:15 p.m. – Qualifying is under way and Norm Benning is the first truck on the track in the No. 57 Chevrolet. A total of 41 trucks are scheduled to make qualifying attempts this afternoon. – Qualifying is under way and Norm Benning is the first truck on the track in the No. 57 Chevrolet. A total of 41 trucks are scheduled to make qualifying attempts this afternoon.

2:45 p.m. – Some quick facts about the Smith’s 350: Johnny Sauter’s 2.474-second margin of victory in last year’s race was the largest MOV in the history of the Truck Series at LVMS. ... Last year’s race tied an event record for most lead changes (15) and set a record for most leaders (9). ... Although he never has won a Truck Series race at LVMS, Ron Hornaday Jr. has a series-best average finish of 7.667 in nine career races here.

The Smith’s 350 has been won from the pole five times and 12 of the 13 races have been won from a top-10 starting position. ... Ken Schrader, driving a Kevin Harvick Inc. Chevrolet, is making his first Truck Series start at LVMS in 13 years. Schrader finished eighth in the 1996 race and 18th in the 1997 event.

2:20 p.m. – Todd Bodine enters this evening’s Smith’s 350 with an admittedly comfortable 257-point lead over Aric Almirola in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series drivers’ standings and said he doesn’t intend to change the way he has raced all season.

“We go after wins every week and that’s what we’re going to do tonight,” said Bodine, who has four victories this year. “Our philosophy is if you can’t win the race, then you do the best with what you’ve got. If that’s fourth place, that’s what you take.”

With only six races remaining in the season and a 257-point edge, Bodine said he and the No. 30 Germain Racing team can afford to take some chances in order to win races.

“It does make the strategies a little easier to call because you can sometimes take a little gamble,” Bodine said of his points lead. “We try to run the races the same every week and do the things that we do that got us to this point. If we just finish every race in the top 10, we’re going to be fine. We’ve just got to make sure we don’t have any hiccups and get in trouble.”

1:30 p.m. – Las Vegas Motor Speedway has announced the introduction of the Mobile Fan Guide, a next-generation mobile application designed to enhance the entire racing event experience and grant fans unprecedented access to Speedway and race information directly on their mobile device.

The LVMS Mobile Fan Guide gives race-goers the ability to discover everything around them at the racetrack. From locating retail and refreshment areas to watching instant replays, the Mobile Fan Guide is the ultimate race companion. Users can download the application for free on their Apple iPhone or Google Android device and begin using it immediately.

For additional information or to download the application, visit http://t-sciences.com/ubiquity-lvms.

12:10 p.m. – James Buescher sat atop the speed chartat the end of the final practice for the Smith’s 350 with a lap of 174.701 mph. Austin Dillon was second fastest at 174.109 and Greg Pursley was third at 173.016. Brian Ickler (172.916) and Ricky Carmichael (172.673) rounded out the top five.

NASCAR has revised the qualifying procedure for the six remaining Camping World Truck Series races, beginning with tonight’s Smith’s 350 at LVMS. The order in which trucks will qualify for the 36 starting positions will be based on the fastest time recorded during practice sessions. Times will be inverted, allowing the slowest truck in practice to be the first out in qualifying and the fastest truck going out last. Qualifying begins at 3:15 p.m.

11:35 a.m. – Brian Ickler, who is driving the No. 18 M&M’s Toyota for Kyle Busch Motorsports in tonight’s Smith’s 350, is no stranger to racing in Las Vegas.

Ickler, a native of San Diego, spent several seasons racing in the SCORE Desert Series before turning his attention to stock cars. While winning the 2003 SCORE season championship in the SCORE Lite class, Ickler posted race victories in Laughlin and Primm – as well as winning the prestigious Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 in Mexico.

“I love desert racing,” Ickler said. “I did it my whole life, really. I raced a lot around here in Las Vegas in the SCORE series but now I don’t have the opportunity to come back and do any off-road racing. I miss it.

“I still have a buggy and Kyle (Busch) and I come out here once a year to the Dumont Dunes – but just to mess around, no racing. My best friend growing up, Andy McMillin, races off-road constantly and he invited me to go down and pre-run (for the Baja 1000 in November) with him this year and, schedule permitting, I might go do that.”

Ickler, 25, earned a ninth-place finish last year in his first Truck Series start at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and returns to the track today hoping to help team owner Kyle Busch in his quest to win the series owners’ championship. The No. 18 team trails the No. 30 Germain Racing team by 25 points in the owners’ standings.

Ickler will be making his seventh and final Truck Series start of the season this evening for Kyle Busch Motorsports. The team owner is in Dover, Del., this weekend for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.

10:49 a.m. – The second and final practice session has started and the No. 95 Dodge of J.C. Stout is the first truck on the track. A total of 37 trucks (of the 42 entered) made it onto the track during the first practice. The final practice will run until noon and qualifying for the Smith’s 350 will begin at 3:15 p.m.

10:20 a.m. – The first practice session for this evening’s Smith’s 350 has ended and Austin Dillon remained atop the speed chart with a lap of 174.984 mph in the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet. Greg Pursley was second fastest in the No. 62 Star Nursery.com Chevy at 174.740 and Ron Hornaday Jr. was third fastest at 174.447 in the No. 33 ShopEZGO.com Chevy. James Buescher was fourth (174.098) and Matt Crafton fifth (174.025) as Chevy swept the top six spots in the session. The second and final practice session is scheduled to begin at 10:45 a.m.

9:30 a.m. – Austin Dillon sits atop the speed chart 30 minutes into this morning’s first practice session. Dillon posted a lap of174.876 mph in the No. 3 Bass Pro Shops Chevrolet. Ron Hornaday Jr. is second fastest in the No. 33 ShopEZGO.com Chevrolet at 174.447 mph and James Buescher, in the No. 31 Wolf Pack Rentals Chevrolet, is third fastest at 173.935 mph.

9 a.m. – Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the 14th running of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Smith’s 350. It’s sunny and 75 degrees and the forecast calls for a high temperature of 99 degrees and “abundant sunshine.”

Practice for this evening’s 146-lap race has begun on the 1.5-mile tri-oval. Following this 75-minute practice session, the trucks will hit the track at 10:45 a.m. for the final practice. Qualifying is scheduled to begin at 3:15 p.m. and the Smith’s 350 will take the green flag at 6:30 p.m.

Be sure to check back here often, as we’ll be updating this blog throughout the day with news, stats and driver interviews.

6:35 p.m. - Comments from Super Stock driver Justin Lamb of Henderson, Nev., who earned his seventh national event victory at the 11th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:  

"It's definitely one of the better (victories). I don't think that it's ever as good as your first - none of them are - but this is probably right up there. I don't know if I put more pressure on myself (when I'm racing at home), but it definitely makes for a lot longer weekend because you're always busy and you never get a break. But I don't think it's more pressure. I think all of these races are so tough that they're all just a lot of pressure no matter where you are."

“My team, as the Interstate logo says, is outrageously dependable. These guys are awesome. To come here and run in conditions that were 180 degrees different than Houston ... where the altitude is over 4,000 feet and to make the adjustments to make this car do what it did here, those guys did an awesome job. If you look back at last year, when we got in these conditions and when summer came around, we felt like we could get back to our form (because) we really run good in the summertime. When the tracks get worse, we felt like we had a pretty good handle on those conditions, so hopefully we can stay hot.

“It feels good to come out here and win here in Vegas. I’ve been coming a long time and ran really, really well but just never could close the deal. But it feels good. Our performance was good, I drove good a couple runs and hopefully we can take this and build on it. It’s a long season ... but I sure like the way our team is jelling together and I really feel good about this year.”

6:10 p.m. – Comments from Funny Car driver John Force, who earned his third victory of the season and the 129th of his career Sunday at the 11th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

“The hardest thing I work for – we all want a championship in the end – but what I work for right now is to be able to compete and show my kids that I can still do it. My youngest daughter, Courtney, and naturally Ashley and Brittany all coming up, I want to show them all how much I love it and what it really means to me.

“Tony Pedregon is struggling with no budget, struggling to race – I saw (his car) burning up the run before (the final) and putting it back together, whatever it takes. When I got in the car he said, ‘Force, you know how I race; may not have money, may not have parts, but I’ll give you a race.’ And I told him, ‘that’s why I love you, Tony.’ But that group put that car back together and put on a show for the fans and ran. They didn’t get the win but they were still right in there so God bless that kid.

“My Mustang knows how to run at night. It knows how to hunt in the evening, that old dog does. It doesn’t like the heat. We started at Pomona and everywhere it ran good. We ran good at Houston and then the sun came out and we were toast. We came in here with the attitude of start slow; make it go A to B. We were just stumbling to get in the show and we got her in. At the end of the day, she learned to hunt in the heat.”

5:45 p.m. – Comments from Top Fuel driver Larry Dixon, who earned his third victory of the season and the 51st of his career Sunday at the 11th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:

“We got over the 50^th (victory) because that’s last week’s news and, for me, we just needed to work on today. We had a great car all weekend – the car was unbelievable all through qualifying, it was very strong. We made up a bunch of points in qualifying on Cory (McClenathan) and we knew if we could get to the final round, even if we raced him, if we beat him we would get the points lead. And we got both so it’s just a great weekend all the way around. To be able to race (McClenathan) and, hopefully, both of us fighting for a championship this year, it’s fun to be a part of that.

 “Whatever we had on the car today, they were Goodyears and they got four win lights so I was happy with them. The car went out there (in the final) and shook going by 60 feet; it rattled the tire. It’s one of those things where you’re not sure if it’s going to make it through it or not but you’re just so jacked up on adrenaline at that point, you give it a quick pedal and got it going back down the track. That’s a decent run for pedaling it. As you’re going down the track, you’re hoping you still win because you’ve made a judgment call on it and you’re hoping it’s the right move. It was nervous time at that point.”

4:25 p.m. - Final results from the 11th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway:  

 Top Fuel: Larry Dixon (4.016 at 313.37) def. Cory McClenathan (5.113 at 158.41).  

Funny Car: John Force (4.334 at 284.93) def. Tony Pedregon (5.630 at 138.34).  

Pro Stock: Mike Edwards (6.751 at 205.51) def. Greg Stanfield (6.813 at 203.12).   Check back shortly for comments from the winning drivers.

4:02 p.m. - Justin Lamb won the Super Stock title Sunday at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway when he nipped Brad Plourd at the line. Lamb turned in a pass of 9.210 seconds at 147.07 mph in his 2009 Chevy Cobalt and beat Plourd by .0053 seconds - a margin of approximately 14 inches. It was Lamb's seventh national event victory.

3:25 p.m. - Justin Lamb of Henderson, Nev., advanced to the final in Super Stock when his semifinal opponent, James Butler of Prescott, Ariz., red-lighted at the start. Lamb, who ran 9.379 seconds at 117.22 mph in the semi in his Chevy Cobalt, will face Brad Plourd of Maple Valley, Wash., in this afternoon's final.

3:06 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Pro Stock:   Semifinals: Greg Stanfield (6.796 at 203.61) def. Ron Krisher (13.361 at 63.79) vs.; Mike Edwards (6.735 at 205.16) vs. Greg Anderson (6.752 at 204.98).   Final: Edwards vs. Stanfield.

2:58 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Funny Car:   Semifinals: Tony Pedregon (4.413 at 267.96) def. Del Worsham (4.619 at 263.31); John Force (4.289 at 293.98) def. Ashley Force Hood (4.419 at 282.54).   Final: T. Pedregon vs. Force.

2:28 p.m. - Semifinals winners and final-round matchup in Top Fuel:   Semifinals: Cory McClenathan (3.986 at 302.39) def. Brandon Bernstein (4.062 at 303.30); Larry Dixon (3.910 at 313.88) def. Doug Kalitta (3.982 at 309.20).   Final: McClenathan vs. Dixon.

1:33 p.m. - Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Pro Stock:  

 Second round: Greg Stanfield def. Rodger Brogdon; Ron Krisher def. Jeg Coughlin; Greg Anderson def. Allen Johnson; Mike Edwards def. Warren Johnson.  Semifinals: Edwards vs. Anderson; Krisher vs. Stanfield.

1:20 p.m. - Second-round winners and semifinals matchups in Funny Car:  

 Second round: Ashley Force Hood def. Tim Wilkerson; Tony Pedregon def. Jack Beckman; John Force def. Matt Hagan; Del Worsham def. Melanie Troxel.   Semifinals: Worsham vs. T. Pedregon; Force Hood vs. Force.

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

Second round: Larry Dixon def. Shawn Langdon; Doug Kalitta def. Morgan Lucas; Brandon Bernstein def. Antron Brown; Cory McClenathan def. Tony Schumacher.   Semifinals: Bernstein vs. McClenathan; Dixon vs. Kalitta.

12:15 p.m. - First-round winners and second-round matchups in Pro Stock:

First round: Warren Johnson def. Jason Line; Jeg Coughlin def. Bob Yonke; Greg Stanfield def. Shane Gray; Greg Anderson def. Vinnie Deceglie; Allen Johnson def. Johnny Gray; Mike Edwards def. Rickie Jones; Ron Krisher def. Ronnie Humphrey; Rodger Brogdon def. V. Gaines.   Second round: Edwards vs. W. Johnson; A. Johnson vs. Anderson; Krisher vs. Coughlin; Brogdon vs. Stanfield.

11:55 a.m. - First-round winners and second-round matchups in Funny Car:  

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

Second round: Worsham vs. Troxel; T. Pedregon vs. Beckman; Force Hood vs. Wilkerson; Hagan vs. Force.

11:30 a.m. - First-round winners and second-round matchups in Top Fuel:  

First round: Brandon Bernstein def. Terry McMillen; Shawn Langdon def. Mike Strasburg; Morgan Lucas def. Troy Buff; Antron Brown def. Rob Passey; Larry Dixon def. Steve Faria; Doug Kalitta def. Steve Chrisman; Cory McClenathan def. Terry Haddock; Tony Schumacher def. David Grubnic.   Second round: Brown vs. Bernstein; McClenathan vs. Schumacher; Dixon vs. Langdon; Kalitta vs. Lucas.  

10:37 a.m. - Here are the first-round pairings for today's professional eliminations:  

Top Fuel: 1. Antron Brown vs. 16. Rob Passey; 2. Larry Dixon vs. 15. Steve Faria; 3. Doug Kalitta vs. 14. Steve Chrisman; 4. Cory McClenathan vs. 13. Terry Haddock; 5. Tony Schumacher vs. 12. David Grubnic; 6. Morgan Lucas vs. 11. Troy Buff; 7. Shawn Langdon vs. 10. Mike Strasburg; 8. Brandon Bernstein vs. 9. Terry McMillen.  

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

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

10:20 a.m. - Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and final eliminations for the 11th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals. Pre-race ceremonies are underway and pro eliminations will start at 11 a.m. (PDT). As was the case the previous two days, the weather is spectacular and a high of 89 degrees is in the forecast.   Be sure to check back here throughout the day, as we'll be updating this blog with news, results and interviews with the winning drivers.

6 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 11th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals begin at 10 a.m. and final eliminations in the three pro categories start at 11 a.m.

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

5:55 p.m. - Comments from Antron Brown, the top qualifier in Top Fuel:

(One his qualifying speed from Friday holding up.) "When I got up this morning, I thought it was going to be overcast today and when I saw all the sun coming out, I actually started smiling a little bit. The track actually held up good even though we had a lot of heat on it today. The track got a little cooler when we ran that last session so (the pole) was definitely up there in the air.

"We ran that new tire that last session and we were really impressed with it. It actually went all the way down the racetrack. It broke loose right after the 330-foot mark and the car was already tamed down and everything so we'll go back and check out that lane and see if maybe I drove off in the wrong spot in the lane and got it loose. We're happy with the whole effort this weekend. The car ran exactly where we wanted to. We're confident - we're looking forward to tomorrow. Tomorrow is going to be a tough day because it's going to be a little hotter, the sun's going to be out and we're going to race in the prime time of the day. It's definitely going to be catfight tomorrow down that racetrack. We're not going to be fighting the other person in the other lane, we're going to be fighting getting down the racetrack so it's going to make it really challenging for the crew chiefs but I like my odds with the guys I've got in my pit area."

5:30 p.m. - Comments from Del Worsham, the top qualifier in Funny Car:

"This has been a frustrating year, definitely, with tracks above 100 degrees - we've just had a heck of a time getting down the track. (Crew chief) Dickie Venables, based on past performance, has just been great in those conditions so he has been very frustrated himself ... to try to get this car to run. The (4.187 run today) is surprising that it was that good but it's not totally a shocker. Had you seen our runs yesterday, you wouldn't be quite as shocked.

"The confidence has definitely been building but I'm still a little bit worried that we have to go down the track four times tomorrow; we went down the track half the time today. We really need to work on making sure it's consistent. That Toyota Solara body seems to have great traction, so I'm glad we've got that on there. Our consistency has been our problem - especially on tracks above 100 (degrees) so hopefully after this weekend, with the data they have and all of Dickie's racing experience and years of knowledge will pay off and we can pull this off. As much as I don't want to tell the competition, we were on the new Goodyear tire here and it seems to be sticking and Larry (Dixon) is on it and his car is sticking well so whether that helps us or hurts us at this point, it definitely doesn't hurt us and if anything, possibly, it's as good or better (as the previous tire)."

4:50 p.m. - Comments from Mike Edwards, the top qualifier in Pro Stock:

"It was definitely better for several teams and we made an exceptionally nice run so I'm really proud of my guys. We changed some things there this afternoon and tried some things and it didn't look like we like what we saw. We felt like it was going to be a slower session so we thought it might be a time to do that. It's great to come up here and be able to qualify number one."

"If the sun's out (Sunday), we're going to see exactly what we saw today. It's going to be faster in the morning and as the day grows on, the track's going to get hotter and greasier so you just have to make adjustments. I look for more of the same."

4:48 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Funny Car for the 11th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:   1. Del Worsham; 2. Ashley Force Hood; 3. Matt Hagan; 4. Gary Densham; 5. Ron Capps; 6. Robert Hight; 7. Bob Bode; 8. Bob Tasca III; 9. Melanie Troxel; 10. Tim Wilkerson; 11. John Force; 12. Jack Beckman; 13. Tony Pedregon; 14. Jeff Arend; 15. Cruz Pedregon; 16. Jim Head.

4:14 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Top Fuel for the 11th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:   1. Antron Brown; 2. Larry Dixon; 3. Doug Kalitta; 4. Cory McClenathan; 5. Tony Schumacher; 6. Morgan Lucas; 7. Shawn Langdon; 8. Brandon Bernstein; 9. Terry McMillen; 10. Mike Strasburg; 11. Troy Buff; 12. David Grubnic; 13. Terry Haddock; 14. Steve Chrisman; 15. Steve Faria; 16. Rob Passey.

3:18 p.m. - Here are the 16 qualifiers in Pro Stock for the 11th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals:   1. Mike Edwards; 2. Ron Krisher; 3. Rodger Brogdon; 4. Allen Johnson; 5. Greg Anderson; 6. Shane Gray; 7. Bob Yonke; 8. Warren Johnson; 9. Jason Line; 10. Jeg Coughlin; 11. Greg Stanfield; 12. Vinnie Deceglie; 13. Johnny Gray; 14. V Gaines; 15. Ronnie Humphrey; 16. Rickie Jones.

2:47 - Jeg Coughlin, who is qualified 10^th in Pro Stock going into this afternoon's final qualifying session, can become the ninth driver in NHRA history to win 50 races if he should win on Sunday. Larry Dixon (Top Fuel) last weekend became the eighth driver to reach the 50-win plateau.

2:20 p.m. - The National Hot Rod Association announced today that the 2011 NHRA Four Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway near Charlotte, N.C., again would feature four-wide racing in all four professional categories. The spring race will be the only event on the 2011 NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series schedule to feature four-wide racing.

"To really understand how well four-lane (racing) is working, we really need to go back and do it again," NHRA president Tom Compton said. "I'm excited to go back because I think it has the potential of being very successful.   "We think there are a number of areas we can work on to make the experience better ... but I don't think we'll have a good read on how well it really can work until we go back."  

zMAX Dragway is owned by Speedway Motorsports Inc., which also owns The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

1:27 p.m.  - Ashley Force Hood, Matt Hagan and Gary Densham remained the top three qualifiers in Funny Car following the third round of qualifying. Ron Capps and Robert Hight remained fourth and fifth, respectively.

12:50 p.m. - Antron Brown remained the top qualifier in Top Fuel as there were no changes among the top six through today's third qualifying session.

 Larry Dixon, the No. 2 qualifier, had the quickest pass of the session (3.916 seconds). Doug Kalitta remained third, Cory McClenathan was fourth, Tony Schumacher stayed fifth and Morgan Lucas sixth. Shawn Langdon, Brandon Bernstein, Mike Strasburg, Terry McMillen, Troy Buff and David Grubnic rounded out the top 12.

12:15 p.m. - Mike Edwards held onto the provisional pole in Pro Stock with a third-round pass of 6.687 seconds (205.88 mph). Ron Krisher's time of 6.716 from Friday held up for second and Rodger Brogdon grabbed the third spot with a 6.725-second pass Saturday.

 Allen Johnson and Greg Anderson are fourth and fifth, respectively. Rounding out the top 12 are Shane Gray, Bob Yonke, Warren Johnson, Jason Line, Jeg Coughlin, Greg Stanfield and Vinnie Deceglie.

11:30 a.m. - Greg Anderson, who was the fourth-quickest Pro Stock qualifier going into this morning's third round, leads all pro racers with six NHRA titles at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

But Anderson is not the only multiple winner in Las Vegas and two other drivers can match Anderson's mark of six victories with a win this weekend.   Tony Schumacher has five victories here to lead all Top Fuel pilots and Jeg Coughlin also has five victories at The Strip in Pro Stock. Other racers with at least three victories in Las Vegas are Larry Dixon (4) and Kenny Bernstein (3) in Top Fuel; Ron Capps (3) and Tony Pedregon (3) in Funny Car; and Andrew Hines (3) in Pro Stock Motorcycle (which is not competing this weekend).

11:20 a.m. - Good morning from The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the final two rounds of professional qualifying for the 11th annual SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals. It's sunny and warm and a high of 88 is in the forecast today. The third round of professional qualifying is scheduled to begin at 11:30 a.m. (PDT). Pro Stock qualifying sessions will be at 11:30 and 2:30 and the Top Fuel Dragsters and Funny Cars will hit the track at noon and 3.  Be sure to check back here throughout the day, as we'll be updating this blog with news, results and driver interviews.

7:15 p.m. -- Comments from Kevin Harvick, who won the Sam's Town 300:

(Tell us about your run.) It was good in the beginning and good in the end. We had a couple of hiccups (on pit road) today and we were able to overcome them because our car was so good. Everything just played out right there at the end. It seemed like we were able to maneuver through traffic better than anybody and our car was really good the middle of (turns) one and two and there at the end I knew, unless something crazy happened, that I could run eight or ten laps wide open and it seemed they were having to lift on the restarts. We were able to get out there and just kind of conserve in case we had another caution or a restart or whatever the case may be there towards the end of the race.

(Why are you so good at Las Vegas Motor Speedway?) This has just been a good place for us, even when it was flat, and ever since they added the banking, the cars have just been incredible to drive. It's just one of those places that fits our cars, our engines, our driving styles -- everything that we've done from the old track to the new track. Everything works for us here and it's always fun to do well ... we have a lot of fans out here and family that comes to the racetrack and friends and a lot of supporters that have come for a long time. It's always fun to win close to home.

(How did the track change after the rain delay before the race?) We really hadn't changed a whole lot since we've been here. We made very small adjustments through practice. When the race started, we were a little bit tight and we adjusted on tight for the whole day. If I had just listened to what (crew chief Ernie Cope) wanted to do on the first pit stop, we probably would have only had to adjust it once. The restarts were really what were good for us. We just had a good balance on our car all weekend and I felt really comfortable driving it as hard as I needed to drive it on the restarts to be wide open. I knew that was going to be good after qualifying today because the car was so solid and it was easy to drive and that's what you have to get to be comfortable here to make time.

6:53 p.m. -- Comments from Denny Hamlin, who finished second in the Sam's Town 300:

We were pretty good at the beginning. I felt like we had the best car at the beginning. We would run down Kyle (Busch) and he was really hard to pass at the very beginning. I would run him down and he made it kind of difficult to pass. Kevin (Harvick) would fade after about 20, 25 laps or so but he had a ton of speed up until that point and that's what really helped him out there at the end. He just had so much speed at the beginning of a run and we didn't have enough to get him.

Those four tires got us there at the end. We were coming there to (Harvick) at the end but don't be mistaken ... congratulations to all this Interstate Batteries team for putting a good car under me. That's for sure. We didn't have the best car all day -- I felt like we had the best car at the beginning of the race but we didn't have the track position to go with it. Once we had the track position it took off, but then those new tires got us there at the end.

6:40 p.m. -- Comments from Carl Edwards, who finished third in the Sam's Town 300:

A lot happened during the race. It seemed like every time we stopped, you can get two tires or four tires and somebody else was fast and somebody wasn't. At one point, I thought we had a really good shot at it and in the last run I just couldn't get to these guys (Denny Hamlin and his team) -- they did a really good job. Our team did a great job, Drew (Blickensderfer, crew chief) did a really good job back on the box and he called a really good race but third is what we came home with.

6:08 p.m. -- Sam's Town 300 fast facts:

• The victory was Kevin Harvick's 35th in 239 NASCAR Nationwide Series races.
• This is Harvick's first victory and second top-10 finish in 2010.
• This is Harvick's second victory and seventh top-10 finish in 10 NNS races at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
• Denny Hamlin (second) posted his second top-10 finish in five NNS races at LVMS.
• Carl Edwards (third) earned his fifth top-10 finish in six NNS races at LVMS.
• Colin Braun (28th) was the highest finishing rookie.
• Carl Edwards leads the NNS points by 41 over Brad Keselowski.

5:45 p.m. -- Kevin Harvick overcame a bad pit stop early in the race and rallied to win today's Sam's Town 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Denny Hamlin was second, 1.361 seconds behind Harvick, and Carl Edwards was third. Brad Keselowski and Brian Vickers rounded out the top five.

5:09 p.m. -- The top 10 in the Sam's Town 300 after 150 of 200 laps: 1. Denny Hamlin; 2. Justin Allgaier; 3. Carl Edwards; 4. Trevor Bayne; 5. Kevin Harvick; 6. Kyle Busch; 7. Brad Keselowski; 8. Brian Vickers; 9. Colin Braun; 10. Paul Menard.

4:38 p.m. -- Danica Patrick, on the lap 85 accident with Michael McDowell that put Patrick out of the race:

"A car ahead of me was just going really slow and I caught him down the front straight. He was just going slow so I went to go underneath him as he drifted up to the wall and then he turned down in. I guess I probably should have seen all the tape on the left-rear bumper and said, 'I probably shouldn't be on the left-rear bumper.' But sure enough, he turned down and took us both out. What are you gonna do? It's a real bummer because I was really hooked up out there after we got tires on it and we were probably one of the quicker cars on the track because we had just stickered up and I felt good."

4:35 p.m. -- The top 10 in the Sam's Town 300 after 100 of 200 laps: 1. Kyle Busch; 2. Brian Vickers; 3. Denny Hamlin; 4. Carl Edwards; 5. Brad Keselowski; 6. Greg Biffle; 7. Justin Allgaier; 8. Kevin Harvick; 9. Steve Wallace; 10. Trevor Bayne.

3:55 p.m. -- The top 10 in the Sam's Town 300 after 50 of 200 laps: 1. Kevin Harvick; 2. Kyle Busch; 3. Denny Hamlin; 4. Brian Vickers; 5. Greg Biffle; 6. Justin Allgaier; 7. Brian Scott; 8. Brad Keselowski; 9. Michael Annett; 10. Steve Wallace.

3:05 p.m. -- The drivers have been given the command to start their engines for the Sam's Town 300. New UNLV head football coach Bobby Hauck, grand marshal for the Sam's Town 300, did the honors.

2 p.m. -- The start of the Sam's Town 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race is being delayed while workers with jet dryers dry the track from the earlier rain shower.

Some quick facts about the Sam's Town 300:

• Both Jeff Burton and Mark Martin have won this race three times.
• Greg Biffle has seven top-10 finishes in eight Sam's Town 300 races.
• The race record for most caution periods is 13 (2008).
• The race record for least caution periods is 3 (2000).
• Jeff Green (1997), Mark Martin (1999) and Jeff Burton (2002) have won this race from the pole.
• Kevin Harvick has been running at the finish of each of his nine Sam's Town 300 starts.
• Jeff Burton leads all drivers with 363 laps led in this race.
• Dick Trickle finished second in the inaugural Sam's Town 300 in 1997.

1: 25 p.m. -- It took a helicopter ride for Mark Martin to truly appreciate what he had accomplished when he won the inaugural Sprint Cup Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in 1998.

Martin said he was so busy with the Victory Lane celebration and post-race media obligations that he didn't have a chance to revel in his triumph.

"I remember after we won the race and did everything, it was late when I finished up with all the media and all the stuff and it had gotten dark," Martin said. "I took off in the helicopter to go to the airport and as it raised up to where I could see down and get a perspective from overhead, it hit me as to what we had accomplished. Before then, it could have been the quarter-mile dirt track back home because you were just doing one thing after another.

"I didn't really realize the magnitude of what it was that we had accomplished until I saw it from up in the air and looking down on it. I remember that moment and thinking, ‘Wow, we just won this race in Las Vegas.'"

Martin, who will start eighth in Sunday's Shelby American, said he and the other drivers look forward to coming to Las Vegas each year.

"It's a real racy racetrack," he said. "It's fast, it's competitive, it's fun, you can pass here and it's a great venue for us. Fans like coming out here and so do the competitors. It's better than going to a racetrack that's out in the sticks, it's the opposite of that. This (city) is very, very strong on service. They're here to serve you and that is a pleasure.

"When you come to Las Vegas, it is a whole different feeling than when you go a lot of other places where you feel like you're a burden on folks. When we come here, the people are here and they want to know what they can do. That's what it's all about. That's what Vegas does. I enjoy it here."

1 p.m. -- Saturday's final practice for the Shelby American was cut a few minutes when light rain began to fall on parts of the track. Clint Bowyer led the final session with a speed of 183.530 and was followed by Juan Pablo Montoya (183.318) and Mark Martin (183.299). Jimmie Johnson and Marcos Ambrose rounded out the top five.

Pole-sitter Kurt Busch was 16th fastest during Happy Hour, defending race winner Kyle Busch was 17th and Dale Earnhardt Jr. was 26th.

Driver introductions for today's Sam's Town 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race are under way and the race is scheduled to take the green flag at approximately 1:30.

11:30 a.m. -- Kyle Busch, a Las Vegas native and the defending champion of the Shelby American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, topped the speed chart after the first of two scheduled practice sessions today at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Busch, who will start fifth on Sunday, led all drivers with a lap at 184.037 mph.

Greg Biffle, who qualified seventh, was second fastest at 183.855 mph and pole-sitter Kurt Busch was third at 183.486. Dale Earnhardt Jr., who qualified fourth, was seventh fastest in the practice session.

11:25 a.m. -- Brendan Gaughan won eight NASCAR Camping World Truck Series races during his career, but he doesn't have to think twice when he is asked which was his most memorable. His victory at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, his hometown track, in 2003 before a crowd estimated at 70,000 was the highlight of his truck series career.

As thrilling as that night was for Gaughan, he said it would pale in comparison to winning today's Sam's Town 300.

"Whatever that (win) felt like, I promise you this would be 10 times more," Gaughan, a Las Vegas native, said this morning. "It would be a lot of fun to come to Victory Lane tonight and I do believe we have a Camry that can do it."

As the eighth driver to make a qualifying run, Gaughan said he was pleased with his qualifying lap of 179.892 mph -- but then watched as driver after driver posted faster speeds and knocked him down to the 26th starting position.

"I feel great about the car," he said of his No. 62 South Point Hotel & Casino Toyota. "This racecar today feels like it's going to be very good. We're a little on the snug side, which has me nervous, but it can really roll through a center hard. I'm excited for the race."

Gaughan said he is looking forward to racing on his hometown track.

"The track itself, we know everybody has heard about the bumps and this and that," he said. "It's a bumpy track but the place has character. This place is a fast racetrack and the parabolic banking makes it real fun. The only thing I don't like about the parabolic is it puts more people in my race line and I'd like them to get the hell out of it."

Gaughan finished seventh in last year's Sam's Town 300. He is 28th in Nationwide Series points after finishes of 30th at Daytona and 24th at California.

10:50 a.m. -- Brad Keselowski shattered the NASCAR Nationwide Series track record at Las Vegas Motor Speedway during qualifying and won the pole for today's Sam's Town 300 with a lap of 185.427 mph. Keselowski bettered the previous record of 182.451 mph, set last year by Scott Speed.

Kevin Harvick will start on the outside of the front row after posting a lap of 185.027 mph. A total of 10 drivers broke the track record during qualifying. Carl Edwards, Denny Hamlin and Kyle Busch rounded out the top five starting positions for today's 200-lap race.

Las Vegas native Brendan Gaughan will start 26th and Danica Patrick 38th in the 43-car field.

8:45 a.m. - Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway, where NASCAR Nationwide Series teams are rolling their cars onto pit road in anticipation of qualifying for this afternoon's Sam's Town 300. Qualifying begins at 9 a.m. (PST) and the 200-lap race is scheduled to start at 1:30.

It's 50 degrees, the winds are calm and an expected morning drizzle so far has avoided the speedway - but the forecast calls for a 60-percent chance of rain today.

The NASCAR Sprint Cup Series cars are scheduled to be on the track from 10:40 a.m. to 11:20 a.m. and again from 11:45 a.m. until 12:50 p.m. to practice for Sunday's Shelby American.

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

6:40 p.m. - Comments from Kyle Busch, who qualified fifth for Sunday's Shelby American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race:

(How was your car in qualifying?) I thought there was more in that lap than what it showed. That's all the M&M's Camry had in it. I was flat-out as hard as I could go -- didn't really mess up that much.

(How important is being on the pole here at Las Vegas?) You want to sit on the pole anywhere, but it seems like this is my best shot at getting it every year because I can't do it anywhere else except for here. We'd rather win the race -- the big prize is Sunday.

(What do you need to do to get better for Sunday?) We need to get over the bumps a little bit more. The bumps in (Turn) one seem to be throwing everybody for a loop, but ours isn't that bad. We'll see if we can't get it going.

6:35 p.m. - Comments from Dale Earnhardt Jr., who qualified fourth for Sunday's Shelby American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race:

That was a good lap. We worked really hard in practice to get the National Guard/Amp Energy Chevy as good as we could and it paid off. Lance (McGrew, crew chief) and the guys did a great job.

6:25 p.m. - Comments from Ryan Newman, who qualified third for Sunday's Shelby American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race:

(Why did so many drivers break the track record?) Mother Nature is following us in the form of rain andit seems like it's been cool for qualifying almost every time. If it had been sunny, it would have been a bigger difference depending on where you drew.

(Does this give you confidence going into Sunday's race after the start you've had this season ?) What happened to us was poor luck; we got crashed at Daytona and we lost an engine there at California. It's tough but we know where we were at at this time last year and it's about the same spot. We've run a lot better than we did last year. I'm very confident for Sunday's race. We only get to come to places like here and Kansas and Indy one time each year so you're gambling when you have nothing to go off of (like we did with a new team lastyear). To come here with the experience of qualifying good last year and then improving this year, I think that we've done some good things.

6:10 p.m. - Comments from Jeff Gordon, who qualified second for Sunday's Shelby American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race:

We're real happy. Obviously, we would have liked to have been on the pole but Kurt had a great lap there. I felt like we got a little bit free off of (Turn) four and that might have been the difference. But all in all, it was a great, great day for us and we look forward to Sunday's race.

(Eighteen drivers broke the track record today. Why was is so much faster?) Tires. There are some new tires. Goodyear brought a different tire ... and it's definitely the tire. The teams do a great job creating a little bit more power this year and we found ways to make the cars a little bit faster but the majority of what happened today was the tires.

We made two, maybe three short race runs (in practice), which is sort of what we're going to do this year and it certainly paid off today. The car felt real good. I felt like we were missing a little bit of speed at the beginning of the run, but it felt like it was really solid looking at the times on the fifth lap. But then we went into qualifying trim and made qualifying runs. But you've still got to qualify. You've got to qualify up front. Track position is important. We'll just wait and see what happens tomorrow.

5:50 p.m. - Comments from Kurt Busch, who won the pole for Sunday's Shelby American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race:

KURT BUSCH: It was really an unexpected lap. Looking back at some of the decisions that (crew chief) Steve Addington made, just looking at our notebook, I'm following his direction on some of the key things that maybe I've been missing with the COT. To get a pole with the COT - this is my first one, I think, with this new car. It's been that long. I'm stoked and to do it here in my hometown of Vegas is really exciting to me.

(On taking the track record held by younger brother Kyle.) It's just neat sitting on the pole. Over time, things sink in and get better with time. Kyle's had great success here in Vegas and I've now got the right guy in my camp. It seems like Steve Addington definitely has his game on here at this track. I just hope that bleeds over to Sunday. To have the track record, that's cool. Next year could be better conditions for qualifying and track records are meant to be broken but to sit on it for 365 more days, we'll take it.

(What was the difference between this year and last year, when you qualified second?) You never know howfast your car can go sometimes. You go off the confidence that you see around you, which is the other guys going just in front of you. You base it off track conditions and today, the track conditions were ideal and we had a good pill draw. Luck always has to be on your side when you have a pole or when you have things go your way.

(How confident are you for Sunday's race?) We just hope that we find the right combination to make our tires last, to make the handling right and to be there when it counts Sunday.

(How special would it be to win in your hometown?) You can't count your chickens before they hatch but this would be a special win. It's hard to talk about it and play ‘what if' in m ymind. It would be even much more special this time around because mom issitting at home - she couldn't make the trip out this year with the surgery she had, but I know she'll be rooting us on sitting at home and I know she's pushing for both the 18 (Kyle) and the 2. It's the people that make it special to me. You always remember the people that helped you get to where I've gotten i nracing and when I get to see them again coming back to Vegas, it's just fun seeing everybody and being busy.

It's good to be up front because you get the first pit-box position, as far as choice. I'm a bit giddy and celebrating right now but we've got our job to do, which is a full 400 miles and I hope I find myself in position towards the endof the race - which means elbows up, feeling nervous and racing my Miller Lite Dodge for all it's got at lap 267.

5:20 p.m. - Kurt Busch, a Las Vegas native, captured the pole for Sunday's Shelby American with a track-record lap of 188.719 mph. Jeff Gordon (188.646) will start on the outside of the front row. Ryan Newman, Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Kyle Busch rounded out the top five.

4:58 p.m. - Danica Patrick stopped by the media center this afternoon to talk about her progress as she prepares for her third NASCAR Nationwide Series start in Saturday's Sam's Town 300.

Patrick, who will be taking a break from NASCAR after this weekend to concentrate on IndyCar racing, said she is getting more comfortable in her No. 7 GoDaddy.com Chevrolet. Patrick was 23rd fastest in Friday's first practice and slipped to 25th in the final practice.

"We had a better day out there in the GoDaddy car than we did last weekend - it was a little bit of a struggle at Fontana," she said. "I think that (crew chief Tony Eury Jr.) is just starting to learn my style and the things that I need when I arrive at a track for the very first time to give me confidence and help me drive the car into the corner hard.

"We pretty much spent the first and second session just getting the car to rotate more and more and more and more all the time. I'm pleased. I wish we were a little quicker because until you're up at the top, you're not satisfied. We're inching up on it and I'm feeling much more comfortable in the car than I did last weekend."

As far as the media attention she has been receiving, Patrick called it "mildly superficial" and said she is not taking it too seriously.

"I'm grateful for it now," she said. "It's great for the sport, it's great for me and it's great for the sponsors. I am having fun while I'm doing it but you just can't get too addicted to it because there's the other side of it where it goes away."

4:05 p.m. - Jimmie Johnson says he has no resentment for the media and fan attention that has been showered upon Danica Patrick since she decided to try her hand at NASCAR racing. What Johnson would like to have seen, however, was Patrick get a little more experience in stock cars before attempting her first Nationwide Series race.

"As a community, she couldn't have been more welcomed in a better way," Johnson said. "Drivers, competitors - everyone - has been excited to see her come to NASCAR and to be apart of it.

"I think where a lot of fear comes in is that it would have been really good for her to run in a couple seasons of Late Models, more ARCA races, more truck races before (she) even gets to Nationwide. It is a very competitive sport and you hate to have this great opportunity, the spotlight that's on her, and then for her to not run well. That's been the big risk in my eyes all along."

Johnson said his concern was that Patrick's star power in NASCAR could fade is she fails in her attempt to make the move to stock-car racing. Patrick will be making her third career Nationwide Series start in Saturday's Sam's Town 300 at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

"She is going to draw a ton of media attention and we need to take advantage of this and ride that horse as far as we can," he said. "But if we beat the horse to death before it completes the first lap and she's up to speed and knows what she's doing, it's going to be bad for all of us.

"As she finishes -- I guess this is her final race for a while in a stock car - (if) she can find a way to go and drive ARCA races or test or practice - even go race Late Models ... I think that's what she needs to do to speed up the (learning) curve to take advantage of this great opportunity she has in our sport."

1:30 p.m. - Paul Menard posted the fastest lap in Friday's first NASCAR Nationwide Series practice session for Saturday's Sam's Town 300. Menard topped the speed chart with a lap at 179.868 mph and was followed by Greg Biffle (179.313) and Carl Edwards (178.772).

Danica Patrick, making her Las Vegas Motor Speedway debut, was 23rd fastest among the 50 drivers who took part in the session. Las Vegas natives Kyle Busch and Brendan Gaughan were fourth and 24th, respectively.

1:25 p.m. - With rain in the forecast for Saturday, which could jeopardize the two Sprint Cup Series practice sessions for Sunday's Shelby American race, most teams and drivers are altering their preparations for today's qualifying by concentrating on race setups rather than qualifying setups.

At least one driver, 2008 LVMS race winner Carl Edwards, said that change might turn out to be a benefit to the No. 99 team.

"It might help us," Edwards said Friday morning. "It seems like the harder we try, the slower we go. Right now, what we're focused on -- what Drew (Blickensderfer) has been working on and what Bob (Osborne) have been working on -- what everyone has been working on -- is trying to figure out what we're missing.

"The more time we can get to practice race stuff the better and I think that, in a way, not having to focus on qualifying is a little bit of a blessing. We can try some things we've been wanting to try because, let's face it, we've got to get better and we've got to get faster and this track is representative of a lot of the ones we'll be racing at this season that are going to make a difference."

Edwards opened the season with a ninth-place finish in the Daytona 500 and a 13th-place showing last weekend at California Speedway.

11:45 a.m. - Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway and the first of three days of on-track action leading up to the 13th running of the Shelby American NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race and the 14th annual Sam's Town 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series event.

The Nationwide Series drivers are on the track for their first practice and, 40 minutes into the session, Greg Biffle sits atop the speed chart with a fast lap of 179.313 mph.

The weather is pleasant with a temperature of 57 degrees under mostly sunny skies with little chance of rain predicted for this afternoon. Practice for the Shelby America is scheduled to begin at noon (PST) while qualifying will start at 3:40.

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

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.

 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

6:40 p.m. -- Comments from Brian Vickers, who finished third in Saturday's Sam's Town 300:

"It was pretty wild. I think I spent more time avoiding crashes myself than anything else. You're going to have that. These cars are fun to drive, but you have to drive them so hard. They are practically running wide open around here. You have to constantly loosen them up and loosen them up to try to run wide open and it's just going to happen.

"I'm really proud of the Dollar General guys; we had a great car. Unfortunately, we made a mistake on pit road, left a lug nut loose, otherwise I think we had a shot at the win. We had a really, really good car the last two runs. We were just fighting back for track position.

"All the fast cars were having problems and a lot of them were just crashing. It's tough with these cars. I don't think it's anyone's fault -- I'm not trying to say anything bad -- it just is what it is. You're out here at this track trying to run wide open and you constantly try to free it up and free it up so you can keep your momentum up so you can run wide open -- that's going to lead to problems. That's why you saw a lot of the crashes, I believe. When it comes to the pit road instances, like us missing a lug nut, I don't know what was going on there. It just seemed like everyone who got in the lead had a problem."

6:20 p.m. - Comments from Carl Edwards, who finished second in Saturday's Sam's Town 300:

"That was a wild day. We had a great racecar; the car was real fast. There were a lot of wrecks. The deal is, these cars have so much downforce and not a lot of power and the track's so fast it's like a slot car. You've got the throttle down and you're bound down in the corner and if anything happens, if someone gets you a little loose, it's really hard to correct. A lot of cars wreck because of that today.

"We had a tire go down, we got a speeding penalty and all sorts of things happened but we were really fortunate and luck was on our side and we had a chance to go out there and race for the win. I just didn't drive it in deep enough under Greg (on the last lap) because he could hang on the outside of me and he got me real loose there and I thought for a second it was going to be a disaster. It ended up we had to back up and we finished second. Man, I really didn't want to finish second but that's a great points day for us - that's the only consolation.

"For a win, we all race really hard. Greg would race me extremely hard and I do the same with him. You just want to race as hard as you can without causing a problem because right now, we're 1-2 and we could have been backed into the wall and that would be really bad. In a way, you race your teammate maybe a little differently but more than that, you're able to swallow it, if he beats you, a little more. It's not that you race him differently it's just that you can kind of accept it if he beats you."

6:05 p.m. - Comments from Greg Biffle, who won Saturday's Sam's Town 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race:

Greg Biffle: "It was certainly an eventful day. I'm feeling a little under the weather for starters. Then we got caught speeding on pit road. I thought I had the RPM pegged on what we thought pit-road speed was but obviously we were one mile an hour over. The car was just so fast, we were able to drive right back through the field and work our way back to the front.

"I had a little (fuel) pickup (problem) on a pit stop and lost a spot. And then we ran out of gas there, which was kind of unexpected. It was pretty much out of gas coming out of (turn) two so I shut the engine off and coasted around and got the thing running at pit road speed to coast into the pit box. It worked out perfectly - it just had barely enough fuel to get it going after they plugged the gas in.

"It was a great day. The guys did a good job getting the car prepared and Citifinancial has stuck with us through tough times and there were a lot of fans here today. I was pretty happy to see how many fans were in the grandstands. I think it was a pretty good success all the way around."

5:04 p.m. - Greg Biffle edges Carl Edwards and wins the Sam's Town 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race. Brian Vickers is third, Jason Leffler is fourth and Dale Earnhardt Jr. finishes fifth. Stay tuned for comments from the top drivers.

3:35 p.m. - At the halfway point of the Sam's Town 300, rookie Justin Allgaier is the leader in the No. 12 Verizon Wireless Dodge. The race is under caution, the eighth of the afternoon.

2:30 p.m.- Kyle Busch and Scott Speed talk about the incident on lap 22 that sent both drivers to the garage:

Kyle Busch: "It was a mistake on my part battling for the lead that early in the race. I just should have known, that as good as this Z-Line Designs Toyota was driving, to just ride. Trying to get on the inside of (Kevin) Harvick there and got all the air taken off my side and spun out. It was 100-percent my fault trying to race for the lead."

Scott Speed: "It was a racing thing, you know. I think the 18 (Busch) spun out, being pinched down by the 33 (Harvick) on the bottom. We were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. At least we were fast. The car was running good. We were really tight at the beginning just to stay in the lead but it was coming together and I think we were going to have a really good car today. But it happens."

2:10 p.m. - The race is halted under a red flag after Kyle Busch spins coming out of Turn 4 and slides up into pole-sitter Scott Speed. Several cars, including Brendan Gaughan, spin trying to avoid the wreck. Track workers are busy cleaning up the debris and fluid on the track. Busch was taken to the infield care center, evaluated and released.

1:52 p.m. - The first caution of the Sam's Town 300 comes out on lap 7 when Denny Hamlin spins coming out of Turn 4. As the cars check up, Mike Bliss makes contact with Brad Keselowski and Keselowski hits the outside wall. Keselowski has heavy front-end damage. Brendan Gaughan, who started at the rear of the field, has raced his way to 12th place.

1:20 p.m. – Some quick facts about the Sam’s Town 300 at LVMS: No driver has participated in all 12 Las Vegas races. Jason Keller has raced in 11 of the 12, the most of any driver. ... Eight of the 12 races have been won from a top-10 starting position. ... Three drivers, Jeff Green (1997), Mark Martin (1999) and Jeff Burton (2002) have won the race from the pole. ... The deepest in the field a race winner has started was 29th by Joe Nemechek in 2003. ... Jeff Burton and Mark Martin are tied with three Sam’s Town 300 victories each. Of the two, only Burton is racing today.

12:50 p.m. - Sprint Cup Series Happy Hour is over and Jimmie Johnson, a three-time winner of the Cup event at LVMS, was fastest with a top lap of 182.587 mph. Jeff Gordon, Sam Hornish Jr., Kurt Busch and Mark Martin rounded out the top five in the final practice before Sunday's Shelby 427. Pole-sitter Kyle Busch was sixth fastest; defending race winner Carl Edwards was ninth; Matt Kenseth, who has won the first two races of the season, was 20th; and Dale Earnhardt Jr., fastest in the first practice, was 19th.

11:23 a.m. – Dale Earnhardt Jr. (181.733 mph), Greg Biffle (181.561), Mark Martin (181.561), Kyle Busch (181.281) and Matt Kenseth (181.275) were the five fastest Cup drivers in today’s first practice for Sunday’s Shelby 427. Final practice will run from 11:45 a.m. to 12:50 p.m.

10:40 a.m. – Scott Speed won the pole for today’s Sam’ Town 300 with a track-record qualifying lap of 182.451 mph. Speed will be joined on the front row by Kevin Harvick, who also broke the track record with a lap of 182.377. NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice is underway right now and the Sam’s Town 300 will begin at 1:30 p.m. (PST).

10 a.m. – Brendan Gaughan will start at the rear of the field for today’s Sam’s Town 300, but the driver of the No. 62 South Point Hotel and Casino Chevrolet couldn’t have been happier as he reflected on the events of the past 20 hours. 

After leading the first practice session yesterday, Gaughan spun and hit the wall between Turns 1 and 2 during the second practice and his Rusty Wallace Racing crew was forced to pull out Gaughan’s backup car for this morning’s qualifying session. Despite having to race a car in which he was unable to practice, Gaughan is eagerly awaiting today’s 200-lap race. 

“The neatest thing about where I’m at right now is confidence in your team,”Gaughan said after his qualifying run. “I remember back in 2003 with our (Orleans Racing Truck Series) team, it didn’t matter what truck it was, we were strong. Our primary car here was the fastest thing on the track. We pulled the backup out, hadn’t had a lap on it, and it feels so good to know that when you pull a racecarout that you’re not scared of it. 

“All the guys worked late last night and early this morning getting this (backup) car ready. When you have something that’s that similar, it works. When I went out to qualify, for the first time in years I had the confidence to say I wasn’t worried.” 

Gaughan said his approach to today’s race is simple. 

“I’ve won from the back in Texas twice (in the Truck Series),” he said. “My thought is I’m in Vegas, I know I have a great racecar, Rusty Wallace and Chevy have given me great equipment ... let’s just pass people on the outside and go to the front.”

9 a.m. – Good morning from Las Vegas Motor Speedway where race fans are in store for another great day. Once again, the sun is shining and the temperature is expected to climb to 70 degrees for today’s Sam’s Town 300 NASCAR Nationwide Series race. Qualifying for today’s race is expected to begin shortly. Check back here often, as we’ll be updating this blog throughout the day with news, stats and driver interviews.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.