{"id":90228,"date":"2023-11-03T21:18:53","date_gmt":"2023-11-03T21:18:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/drag-racing\/uncategorized\/the-ongoing-disqualified-passes-in-the-nhra-a-breakdown-on-failed-tech-inspections-and-reactions-to-the-lack-of-communication\/"},"modified":"2024-01-20T23:51:40","modified_gmt":"2024-01-20T23:51:40","slug":"the-ongoing-disqualified-passes-in-the-nhra-a-breakdown-on-failed-tech-inspections-and-reactions-to-the-lack-of-communication","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/drag-racing\/uncategorized\/the-ongoing-disqualified-passes-in-the-nhra-a-breakdown-on-failed-tech-inspections-and-reactions-to-the-lack-of-communication\/","title":{"rendered":"The Ongoing Disqualified Passes in the NHRA: A Breakdown on Failed Tech Inspections and Reactions to the Lack of Communication"},"content":{"rendered":"

The NHRA Nevada Nationals proved to be an event that got people talking. However, the chatter isn\u2019t about which driver won the race, personal bests at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway or who\u2019s going to win the season-ending championships.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The talk is about the series of disqualified runs that took place during the span of the event and has created a cloud over the end of the 2023 season. What\u2019s more, the talk isn\u2019t only about the DQ\u2019d passes but the lack of communication from the National Hot Rod Association.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The disqualifying of runs at the Nevada Nationals started on Friday after round two of qualifying. Four Pro Stock cars were disqualified due to a technical violation involving the bypassing of the Leahy safety device.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The disqualified runs were all from Elite Performance cars, including the no. 1 qualifier Erica Enders, Jeg Coughlin Jr., Aaron Stanfield, and Jerry Don Tucker. The issue stemmed from a check on a safety system, not a performance-related matter, and should have been addressed earlier in the race, according to team owner Richard Freeman.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The NHRA\u2019s decision to disqualify the cars was not seen as a targeted act but rather a situation that could have been avoided, saving the drivers from embarrassment.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If this was truly about the safety of the drivers, wouldn\u2019t the check have been performed beforehand?\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fast forward to Saturday after qualifying had been completed. Post-race inspections were done, ladders were set, yellow hats were handed out, interviews completed and press releases were distributed. However, two to three hours later, we are getting revised press releases sent to our inboxes, and Bob Tasca III, the no. 1 qualifier in Funny Car, has had his best run revoked due to a technical violation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

We assumed the issue was due to the ongoing rumors that some Funny Car headers did not comply with the rules. But it was just rumors \u2013 so naturally, we looked to the NHRA for information, and none was to be found. We were all going on word of mouth and the \u201crevised\u201d press release only stated that Robert Hight was now taking the no. 1 spot in Funny Car heading into Sunday. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Back to that word of mouth \u2013 we received news from one of the teams that with Tasca\u2019s disqualified run on Saturday, J.R. Todd and Jeff Diehl\u2019s runs were also thrown out. There was nothing that said why, and so we lumped them in with the assumption about using illegal headers.<\/p>\n

Then, following this news, Tim Fabrisi, John Force co-crew chief, made a post on Facebook Saturday night of the NHRA Nevada Nationals, stating, \u201cHmm.. [three] DQs in Q4. Sounds like illegal headers. Let it be heard NHRA. Don\u2019t sugarcoat it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Inquiring minds wanted to know, and with the lack of communication, Fabrisi offered to explain his reasoning behind the post.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat made me want to post it is, it seems in the past that NHRA just covers up and doesn\u2019t shed a lot of light on what\u2019s actually happening to the fans themselves,\u201d said Fabrisi. \u201cYou know, three cars were disqualified, and I didn\u2019t hear about it until later that night, and it was word of mouth. There wasn\u2019t a memo put out on the teams app that we use. It was written in pen very small [in a revised post on the app] but it wasn\u2019t said exactly what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/p>

He personally felt that anytime John Force Racing was penalized or disqualified in the past, it was put on blast by other competing teams saying, \u201cThey\u2019re cheaters.\u201d \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI wasn\u2019t saying that, hey, they\u2019re specifically cheating, and I didn\u2019t say any names, but if NHRA\u2019s gonna cover it up, they need to make it fair,\u201d continued Fabrisi. \u201cEven other racing teams came to me at the starting line the next day and said, \u2018You know, we\u2019re actually happy that you posted that, and there\u2019s a voice out there on our side because we\u2019re mad that NHRA doesn\u2019t wanna talk about it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

As the night and following day played out, Tasca\u2019s DQ revolved around the width of his headers, which were found to be slightly outside the specified bounds.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But how did we find this information out other than just assuming it was header-related? It was from Tasca himself when he addressed the situation during the drivers\u2019 introduction ceremony.<\/p>\n

He expressed frustration, emphasizing that his team had previously ensured the correct header angles. He argued that header width doesn\u2019t provide a performance advantage and claimed that his car was initially declared legal before the decision was reversed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s pretty crazy, actually,\u201d stated Tasca on Sunday morning. \u201c[It was] about an eighth of an inch over [max overall width being exceeded] for me and J.R. They tapped [the headers] with their little hammer, and there\u2019s absolutely no performance advantage at all. They gave me the number one qualifier hat and said go do the media, and then come hours later, they changed their mind. They own the basketball court here and the basketball \u2013 we just play here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite his disagreement with the ruling, Tasca stated that he was moving on and was going to focus on the upcoming race.<\/p>\n

Once race day was underway, there was still no explanation for the thrown-out runs. After tracking down Diehl and chatting with him about his disallowed run, he explained that it had nothing to do with the headers. In fact, it was because one of his crew members taped some part of the parachutes, which kept them from being deployed post-run.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Diehl stated that he would like to move past this \u201cdumb and embarrassing\u201d incident and \u201cforget\u201d about it. Furthermore, he didn\u2019t fault the NHRA for doing its job, and he\u2019s happy they\u2019re putting safety first. His headers were cleared by tech, but couldn\u2019t help but think it\u2019s political.<\/p>\n

Fabrisi shared the same sentiment that the NHRA needs to continue to focus on safety and, as a matter of fact, step up its tech inspections.<\/p>\n

\u201cTheir tech department is good, and they\u2019re learning along the way, but they don\u2019t necessarily always take the input from me and my fellow crew chiefs,\u201d he said. \u201cIf we say something or we suggest something, they obviously always think we\u2019re trying to get an angle on that. Well, sometimes they don\u2019t understand what they\u2019re talking about, and being a guy who\u2019s been around the nitro cars for 15-plus years, I can understand how everything on this car works. When [the header situation] was brought up, I said check our car too \u2013 obviously don\u2019t exclude anybody. If you see something wrong, I want to know I\u2019m doing wrong because I can get in trouble with sponsors. We don\u2019t want to be breaking the rules or cheating, right?\u201d<\/p>\n

As a matter of fact, Fabrisi raised another red flag that the header issue was brought to the NHRA tech department many months ago, and it was even backed up by other crew chiefs because they suspected it could be related to a performance advantage.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe weren\u2019t the only team shouting that there\u2019s something wrong. There were multiple teams shouting at NHRA, they need to be checking this stuff because it\u2019s not right,\u201d continued Fabrisi. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen it going to St. Louis. We\u2019re like, something\u2019s wrong. Brought it up, and I asked them, \u2018are you guys checking this stuff?\u2019 The guys told me at the top end that all the drivers jumped out and said, \u2018you need to be checking everybody\u2019s headers.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Four-time Funny Car world champion Ron Capps was deeply frustrated by the findings that were produced at the Nevada Nationals.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a team owner, I\u2019m not quite as in tune with what\u2019s going on with everything as far as mechanical, the track, and things like that, but what shocked me was how long it had been since NHRA had checked all the specs on their rules on Funny Car headers,\u201d stated Capps. \u201cWe were pulled aside, we as everybody in Funny Car, in Dallas, which I thought was great when they did it because there was a lot of money for grabs on Friday night at the Stampede of Speed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I didn\u2019t know was how long it had been since NHRA had checked Funny Cars in their \u2018chamber\u2019 or whatever you want to call it where you have to roll it through a chamber, and it\u2019ll tell them if the headers are too wide and then they have a tool to check the laid back angle to make sure everybody\u2019s in spec.\u201d<\/p>\n

The shock regarding the lack of inspection was also shared with Capps\u2019 crew chief, Dean \u201cGuido\u201d Antonelli and team, and even Richard \u201cSlugger\u201d\u00a0Labbe from Toyota Racing Development.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The exact date of when the Funny Car headers were last checked was unknown to Capps, but he did confirm that it was before the Countdown to the Championship.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhich is alarming to me,\u201d said Capps. \u201cWith that being said, you know, our livelihoods \u2013 my livelihood is wrapped up in everything we do on the racetrack. I would think that NHRA would work as hard as I do at my job, at what I have to do to represent my sponsors and what we do on the racetrack. I would hope that with everything on the line that we have as racers, that I would hope that we wouldn\u2019t have to worry about anybody outside the guidelines.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Dallas at the NHRA Texas FallNationals was when the tech department started checking Funny Car headers with the mandated \u201cfixture,\u201d according to Fabrisi.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were literally the first car to be pulled and checked. I said, \u2018Absolutely. How many sets do you want me to bring? Let\u2019s check everything because if something\u2019s wrong, I want to know, and I\u2019m gonna tear it apart right now.\u2019 It wasn\u2019t just us. There were many people that they were like, \u2018Okay, maybe we should start looking into this.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

While we\u2019re on the topic of the FallNationals, there was another disqualification, but this time, it was from the entire event. During eliminations on Sunday, Clay Millican\u2019s Top Fuel dragster pulled a wheelie off the starting line, then slammed itself down on the track, causing it to lose the ballast. After the incident, the ballast was returned to Millican\u2019s pit, and nothing more was said or done.<\/p>\n

Fast forward six days<\/em> later, and there was a Statement of Action Against Participant listed on NHRARacer.com.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It reads, \u201cThe following action has been taken against Clay Millican for violating the rules pertaining to loose ballast during the NHRA FallNationals. Millican was disqualified from the event and fined $5,000.00.\u00a0The fine will be dedicated to enhancing the capabilities of the Safety Safari.\u00a0The fine is appealable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Millican cannot comment on the matter since he is appealing the decision, but why wait six days to rule on the matter? If there\u2019s a reason, why not submit a simple press release? Or when the weight was returned to Millican\u2019s pit, why not tell the team that there could be some repercussions for the incident?<\/p>\n

Now, back to Las Vegas.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Fabrisi was happy that something was finally being done by the tech department and continued on throughout the Nevada Nationals. However, he explained that though the NHRA is checking the headers, they\u2019re not doing anything to keep track of the parts that they\u2019ve cleared. He proposed that there should be some sort of serial number put on each header, just like there\u2019s a way to keep track of chassis, bodies, etc.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s safe to say that the frustration with the lack of communication and the delay of the tech department finally sitting up and taking notice is shared by others in the pits.<\/p>\n

Capps recounted his experience at the Nevada Nationals when he saw the tech department pulling Funny Car teams over for inspection.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was in the tow vehicle,\u201d explained Capps. \u201cI saw everybody get checked in Vegas. I saw some people pull over the side. I saw J.R.\u2019s [Todd] car get pulled over. I know that Jon O [Jon Oberhoffer] and those guys did it right away \u2013 there was no balking. They went back, and they made the change of their headers. I\u2019d already been back at a sponsor dinner in town when I heard everything that had happened [with the disqualifications]. Then, the next day, I heard a lot of people talking about how there was no performance advantage, which is complete BS.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe rules are there for a reason.\u00a0I\u2019m not saying anybody did anything intentional, but when I heard that those things hadn\u2019t been checked in that long, it makes me very nervous about competing for championships with as much money as we have on the line and with everything we have going on,\u201d continued Capps. \u201cI can only speak in the Funny Car division. Obviously, headers are a big deal because we\u2019re talking fractions of an inch could make a difference between half a tenth of an ET. It bothered me a lot. Guido, I know, works very hard on being as close as we can to pushing the limits and as close as we can without exceeding anything with NHRA.\u201d<\/p>\n

Capps continued to question why hadn\u2019t the headers been checked more frequently, adding to his frustration.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf we\u2019re short on staff for tech people, we need to make sure everything revolves around making sure that these cars are equal when they go to the starting line, and we\u2019re competing on equal ground because people\u2019s livelihoods are within a fraction of a second, which can be a win or loss and it could be whether or not somebody is successful,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n

One of the recurring themes is that all racers want an even playing field and for communication to be stepped up, not only to the teams but also to the public.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt is frustrating because we\u2019re all trying to play by the same rules, and obviously championships are on the line, and you\u2019re pushing as hard as you can, and when you don\u2019t know if every car is equal and on top of that you don\u2019t hear anything from NHRA, it makes you wonder,\u201d said Capps.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m part of PRO [Professional Racers\u00a0Owners\u00a0Organization], and I know that we, as PRO, addressed it with NHRA Sunday night, and it was definitely a hot topic and an issue that needed to be addressed. I hope things get better in that respect. I know just from sitting in a meeting with Richard Freeman that I don\u2019t know the details of what happened in Pro Stock, but tech inspections are so crucial that it can\u2019t be taken lightly, and if it\u2019s because we need to make sure there are more tech people or NHRA does, then that\u2019s got to be addressed.\u201d<\/p>\n

The post The Ongoing Disqualified Passes in the NHRA: A Breakdown on Failed Tech Inspections and Reactions to the Lack of Communication<\/a> first appeared on Drag Illustrated | Drag Racing News, Opinion, Interviews, Photos, Videos and More<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The NHRA Nevada Nationals proved to be an event that got people talking. However, the chatter isn\u2019t about which driver won the race, personal bests at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway or who\u2019s going to win the season-ending championships.\u00a0 The talk is about the series of disqualified runs that took place during the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,78117,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-90228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-drag-racing","category-race-pages","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=90228"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90228\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":91264,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/90228\/revisions\/91264"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=90228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=90228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=90228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}