Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals
In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip
Pomona, CA
March 30 - April 02, 2023
Leah Pruett, driver of the Rinnai Top Fuel Dragster
- Earned No.11 provisional qualifying position in Q1 on Friday (4.722 ET at 156.57 mph)
- Earned No. 2 provisional qualifying position in Q2 on Saturday (3.725 ET at 331.04 mph). Q2 was also part of the NHRA’s Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, where Pruett faced Shawn Langdon. Pruett defeated Langdon’s 6.908 ET, 91.06 mph run.
- Scored three bonus point for quickest run of the session.
- Secured No. 3 qualifying position based off Saturday’s Q2 run. In Q3 on Saturday, Pruett ran a 3.732 ET at 326.48 mph. Q3 served as the NHRA’s Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge Finals, where Pruett faced Justin Ashley. Pruett got defeated by Ashley’s 3.707 ET, 330.15 mph run.
- Scored one bonus point for third-quickest run of the session.
- Ran a 4.208 ET at 231.60 mph in Round 1 of eliminations on Sunday, lost to Austin Prock (3.739 ET at 331.53 mph).
- Currently sixth in the championship standings, 73 points behind Top Fuel leader Justin Ashley.
April 02, 2023, Pomona, CA – Leaving the Pomona Winternationals without a win light on Sunday in our Rinnai dragster definitely does sting. However, our overall performance for the week is a projection of how offensive we have been racing as opposed to defensive in the previous year. That’s what it takes to continue momentum. Qualifying third, we were one spot away from what we call the ‘top tiers’ for first and second, especially when you have 14 cars on the property. We were trying to hit that in qualifying and were just shy of it by qualifying third. From there on out, it doesn’t matter who you are up against. Every single one of them is pretty much a marquee matchup. We went up to run a .68. We had very comparable notes to the Finals and other runs from this year. The shaft was fast yearly and it gathered more tire temperature outside of our parameters, which ultimately breaks the tires loose, which is what happened. I peddaled it and gained traction, but Austin (Prock) was on a very fierce run. We do not have our heads held low by any means. We are dedicated to this offensive mentality and maximizing what the track conditions have and to hold. It’s part of the learning curve and we know we have final rounds in us. We’re looking forward to the Code 3 Associates family joining us in Vegas running four-wide. We’re making a lot of power right now and Vegas is one of the places you need it, so we’ll be dialed-in.
