Lucas Oil NHRA Summernationals at Indianapolis
Event 4 of 18
Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis, July 18-19, 2020
Leah Pruett pulled ‘double duty’ for the first time in 2020, campaigning a pair of Mopar machines in Top Fuel and Factory Stock Showdown competition.
Top Fuel Qualifying:
No. 2 (3.850 E.T. at 314.31 MPH)
Top Fuel Results:
E1: 3.820 E.T. at 316.97 MPH defeated Lex Joon 4.104 E.T. at 242.71 MPh
E2: 3.818 E.T. at 314.46 MPH defeated Billy Torrence 3.793 E.T. at 320.36 MPH
E3: 4.530 E.T. at 171.62 MPH defeated by Justin Ashley 4.049 E.T. at 237.09 MPH
Top Fuel Race Recap:
Leah Pruett and her red-hot Mopar Dodge SRT Hellcat Redeye dragster looked solid throughout qualifying. Pruett earned bonus points during both sessions for making a ‘top three’ run each time and started her race day from the No. 2 spot on the Top Fuel ladder.
In round one of eliminations, Pruett picked off opponent Lex Joon with a winning 3.820 E.T. to his 4.104-second effort. The second round found Pruett squaring off against last week’s race winner, Billy Torrence. Against Torrence, Pruett used her ultra-quick reflexes to secure the holeshot victory, setting off the win light with her 3.818 versus Torrence’s 3.793. In the semifinals, dropped cylinders caused Pruett to slow to a 4.530 E.T., and her opponent Justin Ashley was able to claim the round win. By advancing to the semifinals, Pruett moved into the No. 2 spot in the Top Fuel point standings.
From Leah:
“I do feel that we have the best horse on the property between qualifying well and going rounds on Sunday. Unfortunately, we had a couple of holes (cylinders) out early against Justin (Ashley) in the semis and we kicked the belt off. They had issues too, so that makes it a bit tougher. What works best is when the crew chiefs, team and me are on the same page and I felt we were today. I will say this is the best-looking Top Fuel car on the property. I’m excited for the Hellcat Redeye colors to run again, and we’ll keep picking up momentum and building on what we’ve learned the last two weekends and be ready to go in three weeks.”
Factory Stock Qualifying:
No. 16 (8.146 E.T. at 168.32 MPH)
Factory Stock Results:
E1: 8.200 E.T. at 168.07 MPH defeated by Chris Holbrook 7.980 E.T. at 174.55 MPH
Factory Stock Race Recap:
Leah qualified her Mopar Dodge Challenger Drag Pak sixteenth with her second qualifying effort and faced the No. 1 qualifier in round one of eliminations. Against Chris Holbrook, Pruett clocked a 8.200 E.T. and was outpaced by her opponent who ran the second-quickest E.T. of the session.
From Leah:
“No matter what category you’re in, one day of qualifying with just two hits is a challenge. We got our two Drag Paks qualified and we had to race the No. 1 qualifier (Chris) Holbrook. We tuned for the changing air and weather conditions. The package that we currently have is making it challenging to turn on win lights. We’re working very hard to change that, but in the interim, we’re doing the best job with what we can. The result is that win lights will be hard to find. This is a very different class than Top Fuel where we can see the progression from run to run. This particular class, progression happens on the dyno, at the shop, in making laps and with rule changes. We know that we don’t have an upper hand and it speaks a lot for Dodge and Mopar and our team to be fighting this fight and it’s a difficult run. We do see the light at the end of the tunnel and we know we can achieve what we have in the past with these Drag Paks.”
Source: Don Schumacher Racing
Photos: Mark J. Rebilas Photography
