N.C. driver leads Top Fuel qualifying at Concord NHRA event

By Ron Green Jr. - The Charlotte Observer

CONCORD, N.C. -- Antron Brown might have run the fastest time in the first two rounds of top fuel qualifying for the NHRA Carolinas Nationals Friday night at zMax Dragway, but the day still belonged to Lincolnton's Doug Herbert.

In only his second race of the season, Herbert led first-round qualifying and wound up third behind Brown and Tony Schumacher, essentially assuring himself of a spot in Sunday's elimination finals.

For Herbert, it was a rewarding return to competition. Without sponsorship this year, Herbert had run only one race (Bristol in May) before Friday. It looked like he'd never left.

“To race good here, it's just neat,” Herbert said.

Herbert's story is sadly familiar. Last year, his sons, Jon and James, were killed in an auto accident. He won one race later in the season but eventually lost his sponsorship due to the economic downturn.

While concentrating on his other businesses, including a driving school directed at teenagers (B.R.A.K.E.S), Herbert hooked up with Todd Follmer, whose company (tiwi) produces an in-car computer designed to alert teenagers and their parents to dangerous driving. Follmer's teenaged son lost his girlfriend last year in an auto accident.

With a new sponsor and his old feel, Herbert thrust himself into a storyline focused on the start of the NHRA's ‘Countdown To 1' playoffs. Though Herbert is ineligible for the playoffs, which award points for each round of qualifying, he showed he can run with the best cars.

“We came out with the expectation that we needed to run well,” Herbert said. “We only have two full-time crew members. The rest of them are former crew members who work other places. I called them, they took Friday off and came over here. They just love racing.”

Brown captured the top spot Friday night with a 3.847-second run, clocking in at 317 miles per hour. It was 5/1000ths faster than Herbert, 3/1000ths faster than second-place Tony Schumacher.

“It was cool to see (Herbert) back,” said Brown, chasing his first world championship. “He kinda snuck it out there and went low on us.

“To me, he's one of the most phenomenal racers in our sport, and we're missing people like him race to race. To see him perform the way he did is phenomenal.”

For Brown, his two qualifying runs were worth five championship points (the top qualifier in each round earns three points, second gets two, third gets one). He'll have a chance to build on that with two more qualifying runs today.

The addition of qualifying points to the championship mix — a new addition this year — has altered the way the top teams view qualifying.

“This countdown puts a lot of pressure on a lot of people,” Brown said. “Five points, that's a healthy case. You just have to get as many as you can.”