Dixon Makes History at the Winternationals

Larry Dixon, the defending top fuel champion in the NHRA Powerade Drag Racing Series, and Tony Pedregon, a frustrated runner-up in the series’ funny car division, threw down the gauntlet on Sunday.

Dixon came from behind to defeat Cory McClenathan in the top fuel final of the K&N; Filters Winternationals before 45,000 at Pomona Raceway. The Van Nuys driver became the first back-to-back winner of the race in the Winternationals’ 43-year history.

Pedregon, who gave team owner John Force a run for the funny car series championship last season before finishing second to the 12-time champion, defeated Johnny Gray in the Winternationals final. It is the 20th career victory in a final for the Chino Hills driver, the only one in Force’s three-car entry to get past the first round.

“It does make a statement,” said Pedregon, who lost last season’s funny car series championship in the final event, the World finals at Pomona. “What we did at the end of last year [winning three of the series’ final six events] wasn’t a fluke, and all we wanted to do as a team was to repeat that performance.” Dixon, meanwhile, was ecstatic over his Winternationals repeat.

“I thought about the voodoo at this track. More than 40 years of racing and no repeat winners at the Winternationals?” said Dixon, 36, whose father, Larry Sr., won the top fuel final in the 1970 Winternationals. “This is a perfect way to start the season.”

Dixon reached the finals 14 times in 23 events last season, winning a record-tying nine times. Sunday’s victory was the 26th of his career.

In overtaking McClenathan in the Winternationals final, Dixon covered the quarter mile in 4.541 seconds, with a top-end speed of 322.04 mph. McClenathan was clocked in 4.597 seconds at 309.42 mph. Dixon earlier reeled off runs of 4.535 seconds to beat Robert Reehl, 4.533 to beat Tony Schumacher, and 4.514 to beat defending International Hot Rod Assn. champion Clay Millican in the semifinals.

“I don’t think the Powerade point chase will be over until we return here in November,” said McClenathan, the Anaheim driver who had won seven consecutive rounds going into the finals. “There are six to eight drivers capable of winning any given race.”

Two virtual NHRA newcomers could make the top fuel division even more competitive. One of Sunday’s semifinalists, Millican, has raced in only 16 NHRA events, while another, Melanie Troxel, was competing in only her 21st national.

Pedregon, meanwhile, had an impressive run to the funny car championship. His winning time against Gray in the final, 4.765, was slower than only his first-round 4.739 that eliminated Dean Skuza. That time was the fourth-quickest in funny car history.

Pedregon followed with victories over Del Worsham with a 4.788, and Tommy Johnson Jr., with 4.785.

“Tony Pedregon’s car is flying like it’s in a different league,” said Gray, who drives for the up-and-coming Worsham & Fink team and was in his first national final. “We’re learning a lot and these guys are studying hard to be good at this deal, but we haven’t taken that class yet where you learn how to run four 4.70s in a row.”

Don “The Snake” Prudhomme, owner of Dixon’s dragster and the Camaros of Johnson and Ron Capps, said this will be as competitive a season as ever.

“I’d say it’s going to be the toughest year yet,” Prudhomme said. “There’s a lot of good funny cars, and the same in top fuel. It’s not going to be a cakewalk.

“I don’t think you’ll see anybody just dominate the whole year.”

Gray reached the funny car final after eliminating Capps with a holeshot; both ran 4.897 seconds, but Gray’s 0.036-of-a-second reaction time was better than Capps’ 0.045.

McClenathan won last year’s World finals on a holeshot, his 27th career victory. This season, he replaced Andrew Cowin in the New York Yankees car for owner Darrell Gwynn.

Doug Kalitta, who set a track record with his last run in qualifying, blew up his engine in the first round and was beaten by Troxel. The other first-round upset came when No. 4 Brandon Bernstein smoked his tires and lost to McClenathan.

“The track just wouldn’t hold the power of our tune-up,” said Bernstein, who took over this season for his father, six-time NHRA champion Kenny. “We just overpowered the track about halfway.”

The most surprising result Sunday was the first-round elimination of Force, the winner of last year’s event.

Force was defeated by Johnson, who had won only four of 15 previous races between the drivers. It’s the first time in 10 years that Force is outside the top 10 in the points standings.

Force wasn’t the only series champion who lost in the first round. In the pro stock division, Jeg Coughlin Jr. was defeated by Randy Daniels.

Warren Johnson, meanwhile, set a national speed record in pro stock with a quarter-mile speed of 204.91 in an elimination-round run and went on to win his 89th championship in 139 final-round appearances.

Johnson had a near-perfect 0.003 reaction time and was clocked in 6.788 seconds at 204.01 mph in the final to defeated Allen Johnson, who was timed in 6.802 at 204.73 mph.