DINWIDDIE, Va. — The longstanding 3-second barrier in Extreme Pro Stock fell Friday night when Mountain Motor Pro Stock rookie Randi Lyn Butner recorded a 3.997-second, 176.37 mph pass in the second qualifying session at the PDRA Pro Line Racing Brian Olson Memorial World Finals.
Butner’s pass down the Virginia Motorsports Park eighth mile with husband Bo Butner in the opposite lane marked the first official 3-second pass in Liberty’s Gears Extreme Pro Stock presented by AED Competition.
Butner is also the provisional No. 1 qualifier at the last of eight races on the 2024 Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series tour.
The pro class provisional No. 1 qualifiers after two of three qualifying sessions are Tommy Franklin in Switzer Dynamics Pro Nitrous, Johnny Camp in WS Construction Pro Boost presented by P2 Contracting and Ty-Drive, Brian Weddle in Menscer Motorsports Pro Street presented by Afco Racing, Lexi Tanner in PDRA Pro 632, Brunson Grothus in Drag 965 Pro Extreme Motorcycle, and Derek Mota in Afco Racing Super Street presented by Menscer Motorsports.
The sportsman classes also completed two of three qualifying sessions, with provisional No. 1 spots going to Tim Molnar in MagnaFuel Elite Top Sportsman presented by PAR Racing Engines, Kyle Harris in Laris Motorsports Insurance Elite Top Dragster presented by Greenbrier Excavating & Paving, Scott Wasko in MagnaFuel Top Sportsman presented by Corbin’s RV, and Dave Petrofske in Laris Motorsports Insurance Top Dragster presented by Younce RV.
The PDRA’s Jr. Dragster classes wrapped up their second of three qualifying sessions at the end of the night. Carson Hoyle posted a 7.901 E.T. to lead the way in Coolshirt Systems Pro Jr. Dragster presented by Philadelphia Racing Products, which saw 51 drivers attempt to qualify for the 32-car field. Prince George, Virginia’s own Jason Geryes used a .003 reaction time to jump to the No. 1 spot in Classic Graphix Top Jr. Dragster presented by Philadelphia Racing Products.
Longtime NHRA sportsman standout Randi Lyn Butner arrived at Virginia Motorsports Park ahead of the 2024 season to practice doing burnouts in her new ride, the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Elite Motorsports ’20 Camaro Mountain Motor Pro Stock entry. Several months later, she made history at the same track by lighting up the scoreboard with a 3.997-second pass at 176.37 MPH, breaking the elusive 3-second barrier in Extreme Pro Stock and taking the provisional No. 1 spot in the process. It was the culmination of a seasons-long effort by crew chief and engine builder Frank Gugliotta to print that first official 3-second time slip.
“It really means a lot to do that for Frank,” said Butner, who backed up the record with her 4.012 in the first qualifying session. “This Mountain Motor racing was never my idea. I was perfectly happy in Stock Eliminator. This was all a big collaboration between Bo [Butner, husband], Richard [Freeman, Elite Motorsports team owner], Frank, and our sponsor. They totally thought I could do it and wanted to see what I was made of. I just kind of lucked into this position that so many racers would die to have.”
An impressive evening of Pro Boost qualifying ended with a 3.563-second, 209.65 MPH pass by Johnny Camp to take the provisional No. 1 spot after two qualifying sessions. Camp in his Brandon Stroud-tuned, ProCharged “Hells Bells” ’69 Camaro leads the quickest Pro Boost field in history with one qualifying session left before eliminations start on Saturday night. Eight drivers sit outside the 16-car field, including championship contender Kurt Steding, two-time world champion Todd Tutterow, and E.T. national record holder Derek Ward.
Reigning world champion and points leader Jason Harris, who’s also tuned by Stroud, missed the No. 1 spot by six thousandths of a second with his 3.569 at 210.44 in his ProCharged Southern Diamond Company “Party Time” ’69 Camaro. James Beadling, who was the provisional No. 1 qualifier after the first session with a 3.583, is now qualified third in his screw-blown ’20 Camaro with a 3.582 at 205.29. Joel Wensley sits on the bump spot with a 3.630 at 210.87.
Three-time and reigning Pro Nitrous world champion Tommy Franklin started the World Finals ranked third in the points standings less than one round behind points leader Fredy Scriba. Looking to accumulate as many points as possible to chip away at that deficit, Franklin fired off a 3.616 at 208.62 in his Musi-powered “Jungle Rat” ’69 Camaro in the final qualifying session to take the provisional No. 1 spot. The pass came around 24 hours after Franklin dropped a 3.599-second pass in Thursday’s pre-race testing.
Scriba, who took over the points lead when he earned his first career points-earning Pro Nitrous win at the last race on tour, drove his Musi-powered “Sorcerer” ’69 Camaro to a 3.631 at 208.97 to sit behind Franklin in second. Marcus Butner in his Musi-powered “Heartbreaker” ’69 Camaro is third with a 3.644 at 206.32. Thirteen of the 16 qualifiers ran in the 3.60-second range.
Brian Weddle, who raced to the final round at the Mid-Atlantic Showdown at Virginia in his Pro Street debut earlier this spring, turned heads again when he dropped a 3.864 at 199.49 in Friday’s second qualifying session to take the provisional No. 1 position. The pass in his screw-blown JW Racing ’68 Camaro was also quicker than the current E.T. national record. If Weddle can back it up later in the weekend, he’ll pick up another 50 points towards his world championship pursuit. Points leader and fellow rookie Ethan Steding came into the weekend needing to qualify to clinch the title, but he’s currently outside the field with one session left to bump in.
Michigan-based young gun Joel Wensley Jr. laid down a 3.911 at 195.03 in his ProCharged ’14 Camaro to qualify second behind Weddle. Two-time world champion and current E.T. record holder Tim Essick went to the third spot with a 3.919 at 187.65 in his ProCharged “Brown Sugar” ’18 Mustang.
Steding is No. 17 with a 4.158, and he’ll need to run quicker than Ron Green’s 4.132 to bump into the field.
Past race winner Lexi Tanner is on the verge of a new accolade in Pro 632, as she’s the provisional No. 1 qualifier for the first time in her career. Driving her Musi-powered Tanner Motorsports ’18 Camaro, she posted a 4.144 at 170.36 in the second session.
Rookie Chevy Floyd took Jack Gaddy’s ’68 Camaro to the No. 2 spot with a 4.156 at 170.97. Chris Holdorf, who returned to the driver’s seat of his Nelson-powered Freedom Grow ’10 GTO previously driven by Walter Lannigan Jr. all season, is third with a 4.161 at 170.23.
As the No. 2 rider in Pro Extreme Motorcycle points, Brunson Grothus rolled into Virginia Motorsports Park seeking maximum points aboard Robert Varela’s turbocharged Dallas Flat Glass Distributors Hayabusa. He’s on his way to picking up 50 points for setting a new national E.T. record, as his 3.913 at 195.90 in the second session is quicker than the current record, 3.937. He’ll have one more qualifying session to lock in the No. 1 spot, while he can back up the record at any point during the rest of the event.
Motorcycle drag racing legend Paul Gast is second with a 3.988 at 177.91 on his Fast By Gast Hayabusa. Sophomore rider Brayden Davis ran a 4.035 at 172.65 to sit third on his David Motorsports/Timblin Chassis Hayabusa.
After struggling to diagnose a mechanical issue, 2023 Super Street championship runner-up Derek Mota returned to class-leading form Friday night, firing off a 4.500 at 166.25 in the second session. Considerably quicker than his own 4.561-second national E.T. record set at Virginia in the spring, the pass set up Mota and his turbocharged East Point Recovery Centers ’93 Mustang for another record and the 50 points that come with it.
Points leader Dan Whetstine also went quicker than the current record with his 4.54 at 162.49 in his ProCharged “Red Velvet” ’90 Mustang to qualify No. 2. Mota’s teammate, Tommy Thrasher, also dipped into the 4.50s in his turbocharged ’93 Mustang with a 4.574 at 166.15.
Defending event champion and past world champion Tim Molnar took the provisional No. 1 spot in Elite Top Sportsman with a 3.721 at 202.21 in his nitrous-fed ’68 Camaro. Cheyenne Stanley laid down a 3.759 at 207.98 in his turbocharged ’07 Mustang to qualify No. 2. Championship contender and local racer Randy Perkinson drove his ProCharged ’67 Mustang to a 3.763 at 193.71 to round out the top three.
Ohio’s Scott Wasko is just outside the 16-car Elite field with a 4.078 at 176.40 in his ’11 GXP, putting him in the provisional No. 1 spot in Top Sportsman 48.
Elite Top Dragster title contender Kyle Harris lowered his career-best E.T. two passes in a row to take the provisional No. 1 spot. He ended the day with a 3.689 at 196.22 in his supercharged ’15 Horton dragster. Young gun Frank Falter IV also dipped into the 3.60s with his 3.69 at 202.24 in his supercharged “Candy Man” ’22 Miller dragster to sit second. Michael White in his ProCharged ’15 Maddox dragster is third with a 3.724 at 196.27.
Dave Petrofske is the provisional No. 1 qualifier in Top Dragster 48, just outside the 16-car Elite field, with his 4.149 at 167.12.