Damien Harris (Cackling Pipes)
Amanda Cobb | NDRC
Day two of the Riverbend Nationals has seen Top Fuel headline an action-packed program for a bumper crowd at Dragway at The Bend today with plenty more action to come for race day tomorrow.
Multiple three-second and 500kph+ passes from the 11,000hp flame-throwing stars delighted as Top Fuel undertook qualifying alongside Top Doorslammer, Pro Stock, Pro Stock Motorcycle and the Aeroflow National Sportsman Championship.
And it wasn’t just qualifying action on-track today either, with the Pro Stock competitors who were in action at the rain-affected Australia Day Nationals enjoying their postponed round of racing today, with Robert Dekert taking out a strong A-Final victory over Rick Chilton (for more on this, see further in this report).
In Top Fuel, Damien Harris and Peter Xiberras immediately had the fans on their feet when, in what was the very first Top Fuel pairing of the day, they delivered an incredible side-by-side 3.822/516.55kph (Harris) 3.832/509.06kph (Xiberras) performance to be 1-2 respectively on the qualifying sheets out of the gate.
Harris was far from done, coming back out in the second and final qualifier for Top Fuel and sending the place into a frenzy with a 3.786/462.33kph pass – with this effort made even more amazing when you consider that the defending champion and the Rapisarda Autosport International team have had a frantic preparation coming back from massive damage to his regular dragster at the last round in Perth last month.
Q2 wasn’t without its controversy either, with Xiberras ‘timing out’ when Phil Read went into full stage, seeing the Supercars team owner not recording an official time – although the team notes that the data indicates it was close to the Q1 effort.
This saw Xiberras fall to third on the ladder behind Harris’ team-mate and current title leader, Wayne Newby, who also impressed with first a 3.952 second pass at 477.33kph in Q1 and then an eye-popping 3.823 at 520.75kph in Q2. Read was fourth quickest with his Q2 3.8409 at 317.51mph effort, while Phil Lamattina rounded out the field after struggling to get down the track in both qualifying runs.
For Harris, today’s qualifying efforts were all the more sweet considering he’s not in his usual dragster this weekend.
“Obviously, it is nice that the ‘loan car’ has performed the way it has,” Harris said.
“I think we all knew it would run pretty well as it has run well in Sydney for Larry (Dixon); it has just had a bit of finessing and been able to run very well.
“Obviously the effort that the whole Rapisarda family and the crew have put in to get the car ready for this event and all the extra love they have put into Larry’s car to make sure it is ready for this weekend has been phenomenal, and they have 12 more weeks ahead of a lot of work to try and get my car front-halfed and ready for Sydney.
“For tomorrow, I think the car has got all the potential in the world and we obviously have a lucky first round, being a solo, so we are already off to a good start!”
Amanda Cobb | NDRC
