Photo copyright 2011 Roger Richards
TOPEKA, Kan. -- Independence Drags V
 Hamstra vs. Martin |
The confident American Drag Racing League (ADRL) Pro Extreme standout battled parts malfunctions all weekend Heartland Park Topeka (HPT), but he overcame those at the ideal time and then delivered a perfect performance in the finals of the Kansas National Guard Independence Drags V.
In a rematch of the finals at the ADRL race in April, Martin and his Lowmad again got the best of points leader Jason Hamstra, delivering a track record 3.652 at 205.98 miles per hour en route to his second straight win.
“We just had to get all the gremlins out of the way. The first two rounds we had to pedal it and it almost got away from us in the semis,” Martin said. “We got everything fixed up for the finals, and Jason and I were both here to win.”
Martin closed in on the points lead, but he wasn’t alone in winning his second straight race on a near-flawless day at HPT.
Mike Castellana outran his teammate Mahana Al-Naemi in the Pro Nitrous finals, going 3.839 for his second consecutive victory.
 Al-Naemi vs. Castellana |
Martin jumped to the No. 1 qualifying spot with an impressive 3.653 to start Saturday, but struggled before delivering in a semifinal race against Mick Snyder, who advanced to his fourth straight semifinal.
Snyder went 3.681, but Martin won with a 3.671, setting the stage for his win against Hamstra, who impressed with his third straight trip to the finals.
“We’re just touching the surface of this car,” Martin said. “It’s just a station wagon, but it’s a fast station wagon. To run two 3.65s today was pretty incredible. We knew we could go quick and we finally got it going from A to B.”
Castellana also came to life during the final two rounds on Saturday, putting together his best two performances of the weekend against Rickie Jones and his teammate, Al-Naemi.
By the time the final matchup rolled around, Castellana was as calm as could be.
“The team won before we even ran the race,” Castellana said. “It was the most relaxing race we ran all day. There was no pressure on me. I just went out there and had some fun. This has just been unbelievable for us this season.”
In a thrilling semifinal round, Al-Naemi beat Burton Auxier by just .004 and Castellana cut it even closer, ousting Jones by a mere .002.
Castellana went a track record 3.814 on that run and thanked crew chief Shannon Jenkins for saving him.
“I wasn’t really on my game (Saturday), but Shannon gave me a lot of power,” Castellana said.
“That just goes to show you the hard work this team has put in and how much it’s paid off.”
Millen ended 2010 with the Extreme 10.5 World Championship, but his first event win didn’t come until Saturday when his 3.953 at 196.50 mph was enough to beat Lamar Swindoll Jr. in a wild final round.
Millen was ahead of Swindoll Jr. the entire race when Swindoll’s car swerved and darted into Millen’s left lane, narrowly missing the back of Millen’s Mustang right as he crossed the finish line.
Millen said he never saw Swindoll, and instead was concentrating on the win light that came on after a challenging weekend.
“It’s really amazing,” Millen said. “With all the disasters that happened to us this weekend, it was just one thing after another. We really just went up there in the finals and rolled the dice. I’m just so happy to get the win.”
Schweigert was dynamite the entire weekend, running as quick as a 4.138, making him due for a fortunate pass.
That luck appeared in the finals when something on his bike broke, leading to a pass of 5.984, but only after Carlos Wilkerson went red by .002.
That led to a major celebration from a beaming Schweigert, who advanced to four finals in 2010 but came away with no wins until Saturday.
“I’ve wanted one of these (Minutemen) for so long. This is just an excellent feeling,” said Schweigert, who was also the No. 1 qualifier. “I felt like it was our time. We were fortunate in the finals, but we were ready to get this win.”
Hintz had no easy challenges in Extreme Pro Stock, beating 2010 World Champion John Montecalvo in the semifinals before going 4.14 in the finals against class standout Pete Berner.
It also made his first ADRL win even more significant.
“It means a lot to get this win competing with the guys we run against,” Hintz said. “That makes it even more special.”
Hintz qualified in the No. 5 position and ran an identical 4.181 against Trevor Eman in the quarterfinals, wining the round with a .038 reaction time.
That set the stage for the final two rounds, and Hintz was overcome with emotion after seeing the final win light.
“I didn’t believe it. We were all real excited,” Hintz said. “Pretty much everything went smooth and it’s nice when it works out like that.”
Billy Banks Jr. claimed the win in Top Sportsman, running a 4.709 at 155.51 mph in the finals against Tony Jackson.
In Pro Junior Dragster, Zac Barnett’s 9.063 carried him to the win against Wayne Gunneis.
The ADRL’s fifth stop on the 2011 ADRL Tour takes place on July 15-16 with the Ford Drive One Summer Drags VII from U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Mich.
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