Round one of Outlaw 10.5 had Wetherington, Jim Blair, Scarry, Bobby Hollingsworth, Brett Newell, Markiewicz, Matt Salminen and Anthony Russo victorious. Markiewicz defeated Newell, while Blair's perfect .000 light and 7.133/193.50 mph pass took care of Anthony Russo's 7.984/137.42. The 7.196 at 190.31 mph of Wetherington's ’67 Camaro was better than a 7.444 at 188.56 mph for Salminen's ’68 Camaro.
The facetious Cranmer "Who got the win?" award goes to Conrad Scarry's (shown) 7.320/196.63 over Bobby Hollingsworth's 7.370 with a .026 margin of victory. (Steve Gruenwald photo)
Wetherington then got the holeshot win with a .003 reaction time and a 7.187/193.34 mph over Markiewicz's 7.165/192.06. Blair's -.058 red light furnished a spot in the finals to Scarry and his ’04 Mustang. During the final pairing Scarry's holeshot wasn't enough to hold off Wetherington's victorious 7.159/193.46.
RADIAL TIRE
Radial Tire, requiring DOT approved drag radials with a maximum width of twelve inches, saw exactly sixteen cars attempting to qualify. Tony Ridenour, from Largo, FL, ranked number one with a 7.733 at 181.01 mph pass, while Richie Stine's Woodsboro, MD-based ’02 Camaro went a best of 7.859 at 172.77 mph for the number two position.
Corey Berry's 2003 Mustang from Pinellas Park, FL, ran a 7.865 at 183.18 mph, qualifying number three. (Adam Cranmer photo)
The number four spot went to Michael Saponara's Cape Coral, FL-based 1987 Mustang with a 7.922/178.67. Clearwater, FL-resident Walter Drakeford rounded out the field with 10.250 sec at 161.98 mph pass in his 1985 Thunderbird.
Radial Tire first round winners were Saponara, Stine, Matt Scranton, Brian Criste, Troy Perez, Berry, Donny Burton and Ridenour.
Richie Stine’s ’02 Camaro. (Adam Cranmer photo)
Stine's 7.869/182.00 run was too much for Burton in round two, while Berry broke, handing the round to Perez. Michael Saponara drove around Criste, while former import giant Scranton was defeated by Ridenour.
Tony Ridenour’s Camaro. (Steve Gruenwald photo)
In the semi-finals Perez broke, advancing Stine, while Ridenour drove around Saponara for his spot in the finals. In an anti-climactic finish, Stine broke, giving the win to Ridenour's 15.923/51.43 cruise. Seven pairings during the four rounds of Radial Tire eliminations were determined when one of the competitors broke, including the final round.
