Garlits Lifts Drag Speed Record to 268.11 m.p.h.
Don Garlits of Ocala, Fla., posted the fastest speed in drag racing history Thursday to highlight first-day qualifying at the National Hot Rod Assn.’s 21st annual World Finals at the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds in Pomona.
Garlits’ 5.50-second run at 268.11 m.p.h. bettered his own record of 266.11 m.p.h. set at the Keystone Nationals in Reading, Pa., Sept. 15.
Garlits, 53, has already clinched the 1985 NHRA-Winston Top Fuel world championship and hopes to become the first driver to reach 270 m.p.h.
Despite Garlits’ record run, Connie Kalitta of Ypsilanti, Mich., is the top fuel qualifying leader as the standings are computed by elapsed time. Kalitta ran the quarter-mile in 5.498 to edge Garlits. Kalitta’s sped was 258.17 m.p.h.
Kenny Bernstein of Dallas paced funny car drivers with an elapsed time of 5.73 seconds at 254.09 m.p.h.
Two more days of qualifying remained for the top professional drag racers before Sunday’s single-elimination finals.
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