Ken Quartuccio followed up his runner-up finish at the Snowbird Outlaw Nationals presented by Motion Raceworks by grabbing the provisional No. 1 spot at the U.S. Street Nationals presented by M&M Transmission. Competing in the second of three races in the inaugural Drag Illustrated Winter Series presented by J&A Service, Quartuccio laid down a blistering 3.572-second pass at 211.36 mph in Friday’s first – and only – qualifying session.
Dropping temperatures forced the cancellation of Friday’s second qualifying session, making Quartuccio’s pass in M&M Transmission Pro Mod presented by FuelTech and PJS Racing
all that more important, as he leads a field of nearly 70 Pro Mods. Dmitry Samorukov sits on the 32-car bump spot with a 3.739.
In addition to the headlining Pro Mod class, the U.S. Street Nationals is also the second race of the 2024-25 FuelTech Radial Outlaws Racing Series. Provisional No. 1 qualifiers in the radial classes are Grantley Schloss in PST Driveshafts Pro 275 presented by Pro Line Racing, Matt Bell in Energy Manufacturing Limited Drag Radial presented by Callies Performance, Jeff Miller in Motion Raceworks X275 presented by Precision Turbo & Engine, Shawn Pevlor in TRZ Motorsports Ultra Street presented by Innovative Racecraft, and Jimmy Harris in SP Tools Limited 235 presented by ICE Ignition.
Walter Lannigan Jr. is currently qualified No. 1 in TBM Brakes Outlaw 632 presented by Rife Sensors.
PRO MOD
Ken Quartuccio continued his strong Winter Series performance at Bradenton Motorsports Park, with his 3.572-second pass narrowly edging out Jason Scruggs’ 3.579. Quartuccio, piloting a screw-blown ‘69 Camaro out of the Scott Tidwell Racing camp, is still fresh off a final-round appearance at the Snowbird Outlaw Nationals and second in points to Snowbirds winner Kye Kelley.
Upon returning home from the Snowbirds, the team found the issue that caused his car to drift toward the centerline in the final round and came into Bradenton confident they could pick up where they left off. Quartuccio and Kelley would face off again in Q1, with Quartuccio taking the win and getting a small measure of revenge.
“We took the car back after Snowbirds and found something bent in the rear suspension, so we fixed that,” said Quartuccio. “The part that was bent is what caused me to drive right in the final round. We decided today – we knew we’d be last pair – to leave the same tune-up in it from that final round. [Tuner] Steve Petty made some corrections for the air and stuff like that, but the basic idea was our final-round tune-up. To be honest, as cars ran, I was getting a little nervous and thinking with so many cars going down the track, what if we lose the track and it might not take it? But the team felt good about it, and the car did exactly what it should. It worked out nice.”
Despite weather preventing test sessions for the majority of the week, Quartuccio remained confident heading into Friday. That confidence is well-founded, as he has had an amazing amount of success at Bradenton Motorsports Park, most recently winning Pro Mod at the 2023 U.S Street Nationals, and runnering up at both the 2024 U.S. Street Nationals and Snowbird Outlaw Nationals.
“Historically, I run really good here,” Quartuccio said. “I’ve won a ton of races here. I came here for the first time in 1992 and ran Pro Mod off and on through the years, and won 6-7 times in a row in Outlaw 632, then we won in Pro275 and other classes…but this is like my home. Whenever I’m not doing good, I come here and run. And whenever I runner-up at Snowbirds, I usually win at U.S. Street.
“I was actually glad there was no testing,” Quartuccio continued. “I knew it would hurt some of the other teams more than it would hurt us. We weren’t really planning on testing anyway. It just really held everybody back a couple runs, and I think that’ll come to our advantage.”
With cool temperatures forecasted again for Saturday, Quartuccio believes there is zero chance his 3.57 will hold up throughout qualifying. And with 68 other drivers shooting for the top spot, there’s a good chance his prediction will come true.
“I would make a bet that the handcuffs are off now,” said Quartuccio. “The turbo cars know what they can do, and I believe that Mark Micke, as good as he is, I’d be surprised if he doesn’t go 3.55. And we plan on going faster in the morning, and I think that will dictate…I mean, none of it’s going to matter for Sunday, because it’s going to warm up and be a totally different track.”
Quartuccio has not only put himself in a great spot for this weekend, but also for the Winter Series points championship. Currently sitting in second place behind Kelley, Quartuccio is once again positioned to make a strong push towards the $25,000 awarded to the series winner, an accomplishment he desperately wants.
“To me, all the other series championships are great, but this is really what you judge yourself against,” Quartuccio said. “If you run good in the Winter Series, that means as a driver you’re on par with everyone you’re racing with. So as a driver, it helps the confidence level – I like where I’m at. But I also hope the other drivers know how good we run here, and that’ll help us a little bit. Going into the World Series of Pro Mod, I think we’ll be in a pretty good spot.”
Jason Scruggs sits in the No. 2 spot with a 3.579 at 211.49 mph in his screw-blown 2020 Camaro. Mark Micke, who won the 2024 U.S. Street Nationals, laid down a 3.599 at 219.36 mph, the fastest speed of the session, to end the day in the third spot. Travis Harvey is currently fourth with a 3.600 at 211.73, while Kelley rounds out the top five with a 3.601 at 209.49 in his third-gen Camaro named “Can’t Get Right.” Twenty-eight of the 32 cars currently qualified are in the 3.60’s, while Dmitry Samorukov sits on the bump spot at 3.739.
PRO 275
Brisbane, Australia’s Grantley Schloss was the only driver who made a representative run in the first Pro 275 qualifying session. He ripped off a 3.736 at 203.25 in his ProCharged ’67 Nova, while drag radial veteran Brad Edwards was the next closest with a 4.252 at 147.55 in his turbocharged ’97 Cobra. New York’s Paul Major went to the third spot in his turbocharged ’01 Corvette with a 4.823 at 106.87. Ten other drivers – plus more who didn’t light the boards in Q1 – will attempt to make strong passes on Saturday.
LIMITED DRAG RADIAL
Twenty-four Limited Drag Radial drivers took to the track for the first qualifying session. Matt Bell took the provisional No. 1 position when he fired off a 3.928 at 195.65 in his Bloomington, Illinois-based, turbocharged ’93 Mustang. Lyle Barnett, who’s pulling triple duty with entries in Pro Modified and Pro 275 as well, qualified second in the ProCharged Kohler Racing ’02 Camaro with a 3.953 at 185.31. Another Illinois-based racer, Mitch Mika, is third with a 3.956 at 183.79 in his ProCharged ’69 Camaro.
X275
Like Pro 275, the X275 class struggled to find traction in Friday’s cold conditions. In a field full of Mustangs and Camaros, Jeff Miller in the Paramount ’10 Jeep SRT turned heads when he ended up in the top spot after the first session. He posted a 5.101 at 165.38, leading Charles Hull and his turbocharged ’92 Mustang with a 5.423 at 100.34. Chris Taylor just missed the 5-second zone with a 6.003 at 122.61 in his turbocharged ’99 Mustang to qualify third out of 16 entries.
ULTRA STREET
A strong list of 33 Ultra Street drivers made an attempt in the first qualifying session, with heavy hitter Shawn Pevlor shooting up to the familiar No. 1 spot. The class record holder threw down a 4.382 at 162.88 in John Kolivas’ KBX Performance ’93 Mustang. Davey Hull rolled to the No. 2 spot with a 4.41 at 157.61 in his ’93 Mustang. Dave Fiscus, who drove his unique Buick-powered ’93 Mustang to victory at the Snowbirds in December, rounded out the top three with his 4.445 at 157.85.
LIMITED 235
Cincinnati’s Jimmy Harris prevented Florida domination at the top of the Limited 235 qualifying order, as he drove his BES-powered ’93 Mustang to a 4.857 at 141.65. Brad Schehr in his Ft. Myers-based, ProCharged ’89 Mustang slid into the No. 2 spot with a 4.901 at 141.77. Sanford’s Eddie Ramirez rolled to a 4.928 at 140.68 in his ’88 Mustang to sit third after Q1.
OUTLAW 632
Perennial Outlaw 632 contender Walter Lannigan Jr. claimed the early No. 1 spot in Outlaw 632 in the first qualifying session. Driving the same Nelson-powered Freedom Grow ’10 GTO that car owner Chris Holdorf drove to the Snowbird Outlaw Nationals win in December, Lannigan recorded a 4.109 at 171.29. Port Charlotte, Florida’s Kyle Salminen also dipped into the 4.10s with a 4.181 at 168.72 in his Nelson-powered ’03 Cavalier to qualify second. Mike Fiorelli, based in Hollywood, Florida, wheeled his Clayton Murphy-tuned ’68 Camaro to a 4.228 at 168.60 to sit third going into Saturday.
Tickets are available on TheFoat.com. Single-day admissions tickets are available online or at the gate for $35 on Saturday and $30 on Sunday. Active military and children 11 and under get in free. Fans can also watch the race through the official event livestream on www.FloRacing.com.
This story was originally published on January 24, 2025. 
The post Ken Quartuccio Takes Provisional No. 1 After Only Friday Pro Mod Qualifying Session at U.S. Street Nationals first appeared on Drag Illustrated.