Drag Illustrated Issue 132, May 2018 | Page 96

HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE Cox, Leggett, Ray, Morton and Williford Claim East Coast Spring Nationals Victories C ompetitors from the Tar Heel State nearly swept the Professional Drag Racers Association (PDRA) East Coast Spring Nationals as Jay Cox led a host of fellow North Carolinians into the winner’s circle at GALOT Motorsports Park in Benson, North Carolina. Cox, from nearby Smithfield, recorded a string of 3.6-second passes to secure the season-opening win in Switzer Dynamics Pro Nitrous presented by MoTeC over 2014 Pro Nitrous world cham- pion Jason Harris. Joining Cox in victory were Pinetown’s Terry Leggett in Bryant Industrial Pro Extreme presented by Pro Line Racing, Jackson- ville’s Elijah Morton in Liberty’s Gears Extreme Pro Stock and Bahama’s Rodney Williford in Drag 965 Pro Extreme Motorcycle. Lugoff, SC’s Jeremy Ray was the winner in Moroso Pro Boost. Second-generation drag racer Johnny Pluchi- no scored the event victory in East Side Auto Transport Pro Outlaw 632, while Canadian John Carinci earned the Atomizer Injectors Outlaw 96 PDRA660.com 10.5 win. The winners in the PDRA’s expansive offering of sportsman classes were Donny Urban in Mag- naFuel Elite Top Sportsman, John Prime in Top Sportsman 32, Kevin Brannon in Lucas Oil Top Dragster and Josh Duggins in Top Dragster 32. In Coolshirt Pro Jr. Dragster, Anthony Suppers used a superior reaction time and a 7.919 to de- feat No. 1 qualifier Noah Cornatzer’s 7.905, both on a 7.90 dial-in. The Gilbert Motorsports Top Jr. Dragster final round was also decided on the starting line, as Logan Westmoreland drove his Half Scale dragster to a 9.109 on a 9.05 dial-in to take down Chris Hancock and his 8.949 on an 8.83 dial. Smithfield’s Jason Stowe won the Edelbrock Bracket Bash competition in his ’92 Chevy S-10. PRO NITROUS Jay Cox and his Buck-powered “Pumpkin” ’69 Camaro made a strong opening statement in the Flatout Gaskets Nitrous Wars when the local favorite uncorked three of the quickest passes in Pro Nitrous history to win the East Coast Spring Nationals. In the final round against Jason Harris and the “Party Time” ’69 Camaro, Cox left the starting line first and maintained his lead through the finish line, posting a 3.696 at 201.31 mph to beat Harris’s 3.74 at 201.07. “We’ve got a really good motor right now,” Cox said. “Me and (engine builder) Charlie Buck worked really hard on this piece. He thrashed day and night last year to get it to me early so I could put a few passes on it. We made some changes over the winter, made some more changes after the Mad Mule race here in March, and today you see the results.” Cox’s trip to the winner’s circle started from the No. 2 spot. Through eliminations, he posted By Nate Van Wagnen