How Tasca won for the third time in last four events and Torrence finally got the 2022 monkey off his back.
Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway traditionally is just that last hurdle to clear before the U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis. And the Labor Day classic, where the Countdown to the Championship fields are finalized, is just a stepping stone to the six-race free-for-all with pre-pandemic purses at stake.
Tasca knew he had to break from his mid-pack mediocrity and make a move. And he got a little nudge from former Funny Car racer and current TV analyst Tony Pedregon, one of his dearest friends. They have been for Tasca. After winning last weekend at Topeka, Tasca said, “Four final rounds in the last five [races], two wins, two No. 1 qualifiers . . . I think we got our s--- in gear.” Make that five finals in the past six events and three triumphs for the Rhode Island-based third-generation auto dealer and drag racer. At Brainerd, he recorded low elapsed time or top speed on a finicky racing surface – and in the quarterfinals and the final, he clocked both.
He conceded that “‘terrible’ was a pretty strong word. That was probably an overstatement. But when you’ve had the success and the dominance that we’ve had, it’s difficult to not have that . But you’ve just got to dig through it. When we don’t win and everybody’s asking us, ‘What’s wrong?’ and ‘What’s happened?’ it’s difficult. We didn’t forget how to win, but dang, it sure felt like it. Maybe we’re getting our crap together at the right time, because we’re charging for that No. 5 .
The race awards points and a half, both for qualifying bonus points and eliminations results. At every other regular-season race, the winner earns 100 points, the runner-up 80, semifinal finisher 60, second-round finisher 40, and first-round finisher 20. At the U.S. Nationals, the structure is 150-120-90-60-30. So that could scramble the standings before the 10-point spacing takes place.
QUARTERFINALS -- Schumacher, 4.227, 201.16 def. Hart, 10.848, 78.57; Force, 4.394, 255.63 def. B. Torrence, 4.586, 213.40; S. Torrence, 4.945, 255.19 def. Brown, 5.335, 247.25; Ashley, 3.726, 330.63 def. Langdon, 3.807, 324.44;
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