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Saturday Coverage Nitto Tire NMRA/NMCA Super Bowl of Street Legal Drag Racing Presented by HPJ Performance

Posted By: Steve Baur
While it's currently raining, we're expecting skies to clear by late morning or early afternoon over the Nitto Tire NMRA/NMCA Super Bowl of Street Legal Drag Racing presented by HPJ Performance at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois, and judging by the work that has been going on in the pit area, drivers and their crews are ready to put down some serious power. Awaiting those who go all the way is the Aerospace Components Winner's Circle and the storied Super Bowl portion of the event featuring the runoff between NMCA and NMRA winners. Winners of each round will earn cash, while winning team drivers will earn a very desirable Nitto Diamond Tree ring. We hope you can catch the action in person this weekend, but if not, you can check out a live feed offered by SpeedVideo right HERE Matt Fint searched high and low for his 1-of-564 Bright Atlantic Blue Mustang Cobra and he's loved it ever since. Fint started off competing with it in the NMRA's Exedy Racing Clutch Mod Muscle class, but after six years of the car being parked in the garage, Fint woke it up from its slumber by swapping in a Coyote 5.0-liter engine and TKO five-speed and entering the Richmond Gear Factory Stock class. During the Commerce race last month, he unfortunately broke that transmission, but with help from his father, as well as Coyote Stock racer Jacob Lamb, he was able to perform a G-Force G101A conversion in the pits. Another great mod was the addition of a Jr. dragster Kirkey seat so that his two daughters could go for short rides in the Cobra with him. The Harrodsburg, Kentucky, resident is hoping to get into the 10.60s before the season is done. When the JDM Engineering Limited Street class kicked off in 2018, Kelly Shotwell led the charge winning four events that season before bowing out with engine troubles and eventually contemplating selling his "Betty White" Mustang. We're happy to report that Shotwell and White have returned, putting the class on notice. His turbocharged 321ci small-block Ford was revived by Nye's Racing Engines and he event got a little testing in before the event. While Jason Spina is new to the NMRA, he kicked the 2020 season off with an Edelbrock Renegade win in Bradenton in March. At the following race in Commerce, he, along with many other racers, found the track surface to be tricky and exited in the quarter-final round. Since then, he changed out the stator in his torque converter to try and soften up the hit for the delicate racing surfaces he plans to encounter the summer. NMRA newcomer Steve Halprin owns and drives arguably the nicest looking car the property and his SN95, new-edge Mustang hauls the mail, too. While the car is plenty capable, Halprin is still learning how to drive it this year. Very wisely, he has surrounded himself with former VP Racing Lubricants Xtreme Pro Mod champion Donnie Walsh and his crew to give him the best education as they run for the NMRA VP Racing Madditives Street Outlaw championship. Local racer Tim Kirkpatrick is trying his hand in NMRA Street Outlaw this weekend behind the wheel of his 1993 Mustang. Kirkpatrick has owned the Fox Body since 1993 and the car has evolved over the years and now sports a 430ci Windsor-based engine with an 88mm turbocharger. The Dardenne Prairie, Missouri, native has always run the car on drag radials and his looking for it to run 4.80s this weekend. VP Racing Madditives Street Outlaw racer Dom DiDonato (middle) was helping Edelbrock Renegade racer Curtis Catalon button up his SN95 Mustang prior to qualifying today. Both drivers had to reduce power to get down the track in Commerce, and they will be looking to go A-B in today's truncated two rounds of qualifying before eliminations. Returning to the Super Bowl to defend his QA1 True Street crown is Eric Olson. His 1983 Ford Ranger received from front suspension upgrades and a new rack and pinion steering setup, which he says made the truck handle like it's on a guitar string on the big end. The little pickup packs a turbocharged small-block Ford and should once again be a contender for the top spot. ARP Open Comp driver Kevin Sanders of Louisville, Kentucky, has his pits looking quite festive here at World Wide Technology Raceway. Sanders recently added the bright green Plasti-Dip finish to go with his Boogey Lights sponsorship. Title sponsor of the NMRA /NMCA Super Bowl, Nitto Tire, has its big rig on the midway displaying many of the company's tires, including the new NT555RII drag radial. The Gen I version of the tire has been hugely successful, and somehow Nitto managed to improve nearly all of the tires performance aspects. The 2019 NMRA/NMCA Super Bowl was the site of QA1 True Street racer Mike Niehaus's first 8-second pass in his stick-shift-equipped, twin-turbocharged and small-block Ford-powered Mustang GT. This event is the first time Niehaus, and his better half, Abby Lundberg, have gotten to a racetrack and Niehaus is excited that he recently discovered why his car hasn't been leaving with more boost pressure. Could high 8s, or perhaps even mid 8s, could be in his future if the tires hook For the latest in qualifying results, CLICK HERE. Saturday night's schedule:  

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