TORRENCE LOSES A CLOSE ONE IN DALLAS (1 Viewer)

TORRENCE LOSES A CLOSE ONE IN DALLAS
World Champ Falls to Ashley by .005 of a Second at the Texas Motorplex​

DALLAS, Texas – Justin Ashley denied Steve Torrence his 50th victory on the NHRA Camping World pro tour Sunday, beating the three-time reigning Top Fuel World Champion by .005 of a second in a classic final round to win the 36th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex.
Both drivers had stellar .035 of a second reaction times, but Ashley got to the finish just ahead of the defending event champion, 3.759 seconds at a speed of 326.40 mph to 3.764 seconds at 321.81 mph for Torrence and his Capco Contractors entry.enn., for this week’s 20th Thunder Valley Nationals a little further ahead of second place Brittany Force in his bid to Despite the disappointing result, the 38-year-old Torrence will move on to Bristol, become just the seventh driver in NHRA history to win as many as four consecutive pro titles.

FINAL ROUND RESULTS
Top Fuel – Justin Ashley, Smart Sanitizer/Vita C-Shot dragster, 3.759, 326.40 mph, def. Steve Torrence, Capco Contractors dragster, 3.764, 321.81 mph.
Funny Car – Ron Capps, NAPA Dodge Charger SRT, 3.930, 326.87 mph, def. Matt Hagan, Western Technical College Dodge Charter SRT, 3.919, 328.78 mph.
Pro Stock – Greg Anderson, HendrickCars.com Chevy Camaro, 6.624 seconds, 206.32 mph, def. Chris McGaha, Harlow Sammons of Odessa Chevy Camaro, foul.
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The last to do so was Tony Schumacher, who captured six straight Top Fuel championships from 2004 through 2009.
When qualifying begins this Friday at Bristol Dragway in the fifth of seven races in this year’s expanded Countdown, Torrence will lead Force by 52 points, roughly three rounds of racing. Ashley, who beat Force in Sunday’s semifinal round, moved up to third place, 121 points behind the leader.
“Everybody’s been calling this a two-car race,” Torrence said, “but I guess they forgot to tell Justin. We’ve still got three races to run and there are a lot of points still out there. Having said that, I feel really good going forward. When you’ve won one race, been runner-up in another and had two semifinal finishes (in the first four Countdown events), that shows the talent of this team and these Capco Boys.
“We just have to follow our plan, not get ahead of ourselves and not lose focus. One round at a time; one race at a time.”
The No. 2 qualifier behind Force, who was No. 1 for the 11th time this season, Torrence took out Buddy Hull of Frisco, Texas in round one before easing past Doug Kalitta in round two and dispatching rookie-of-the-year front runner Josh Hart in the semifinals for his 400th round win as a pro.
Although he struggled in his first few pro appearances at the Motorplex, Torrence now has reached the finals in five of the last seven years with wins in 2018, when he swept the six races in the Countdown, and 2020, when he beat his dad, Billy, in the money round.
Billy Torrence, who lost to Ashley in the second round, slipped to fifth in points but will start the Thunder Valley Nationals just four points behind No. 4 Mike Salinas and 172 behind his son.

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NHRA CAMPING WORLD TOUR Championship Points​

TOP FUEL​

(After four of seven races in the 2021 Countdown to the Championship)​

• 1. Steve Torrence, Kilgore, Texas, Capco Contractors dragster 2473 ​
• 2. Brittany Force, Yorba Linda, Calif., FLAV-R-PAC/ Monster Energy dragster 2421​
• 3. Justin Ashley, Plainview, N.Y., Smart Sanitizer/Vita C-Shot dragster 2352​
• 4. Mike Salinas, San Jose, Calif., Scrappers Racing dragster 2305​
• 5. Billy Torrence, Kilgore, Texas, Capco Contractors dragster 2301 ​
• 6. Leah Pruett, Avon, Ind., Mopar/Pennzoil dragster 2255​
• 7. Antron Brown, Pittsboro, Ind., Matco Tools dragster 2221​
• 8. Clay Millican, Drummonds, Tenn., Parts Plus dragster 2212​
• 9. Shawn Langdon, Indianapolis, Ind., DHL/Kalitta Air dragster 2196​
• 10. Doug Kalitta, Ann Arbor, Mich., Mac Tools/Mobil 1 dragster 2148​

Next Scheduled CAMPING WORLD TOUR Event:
20th Thunder Valley NHRA Nationals
Oct. 24, 2021
Bristol Dragway
Bristol, Tenn.

CAPCO CONTRACTORS race summary
36th annual Texas Fall Nationals
Steve Torrence
Qualifying – Steve Torrence, No. 2 at 3.678 seconds, 326.48 miles per hour.
Qualifying bonus points – 1 for third quick time in Q1; 2 for second quick time in Q2.
Round 1 – S. Torrence, 3.720, 328.06 mph, def. Buddy Hull, 4.000, 300.26 mph.
Round 2 – S. Torrence, 3.752, 324.51 mph, def. Doug Kalitta, 5.093, 144.07 mph.
Semifinals – S. Torrence, 3.764, 326.40 mph, def. Josh Hart, 3.792, 321.19 mph.
FINAL – Steve Torrence, 3.764, 321.81 mph, lost to Justin Ashley, 3.759, 326.40 mph.
Billy Torrence
Qualifying – Billy Torrence, No. 5 at 4.715 seconds, 327.98 miles per hour.
Qualifying bonus points – None.
Round 1 – B. Torrence, 3.761, 327.66 mph, def. Alex Laughlin, 3.927, 290.63 mph.
Round 2 – B. Torrence, 3.749, 328.86 mph, lost to Justin Ashley, 3.755, 324.75 mph.