1995- 1999

Contributors names in brackets after the entries where applicable. All other material researched by myself - Chris. Click on pictures to see a larger view. Text links will open in a new window, close it when you're done.

1995
March 25th/26th SPR. SPRC Divisional Championship Event. For all class results click here.
April 15th-17th SPR. The Thunderball. Rain put an end to the proceedings before any of the eliminations could be finished. In Top Alcohol Barry Sheavills had qualified at number 1 with a 6.02 followed by Bob Feeler at 6.11, Mikael Kagered at 6.15 and Alan Jackson at 6.36. In Super Gas Tony Rose was running his former 6 second Pro Mod Oldsmobile for the first time. His first run clocked an 8.774/131, slightly under the 9.90 index! Nick Davis qualified at number one with a 9.908. In Top Fuel Bike Jules Boag qualified at number one with a 7.82 while in Pro Stock Bike Nigel Dowding ran a new personal best of 8.2 seconds.
April  29th/30th SPR. SPRC Divisional Championship Event. For all class results click here.
13th/14th May York. IHRA UK Open Nationals.In the Torco Oils Super Gas Championship, Brian Pateman earned top qualifying spot with a 9.905 from his Pontiac Firebird. Alex Nicol qualified in third spot and then defeated Terry Gibbs, Ray White and Brian Pateman to earn a trip to the final. In the other side of the ladder, Phil Drewitt drove his Escort XR3i past Dave Pearce, Paul Watson and Paul Letchford. In the final, Nicol took the win light with a 9.98 to Drewitt's red lighting 9.95. (Clive Rooms)
May 27th-29th SPR. Main Event. There were 6 entries in Top Fuel including rookies Andy Carter and Jens Nybo. Europe's quickest ever time was set in qualifying by Viveca Averstedt with a 5.05 blast at just 249 mph. Jens Nybo ran a great 5.33 to qualify in second spot while Andy Carter made an easy 6.95/140 to qualify sixth. In the first round of eliminations, Averstedt took out Carter 5.46 to 7.71. Jens Nybo then did the same to Tommi Haapanen 5.20 to 5.50. Rico Anthes took an easy 6.67 win as Risto Poutiainen couldn't get oil pressure. In the semis, Averstedt was due to have a bye run in to the finals, but Haapenen was brought back in as fastest loser and took the win as Averstedt fireballed the motor at half track. Anthes also had an easy win as Nybo couldn't select reverse after the burnout. In the final, there was another fireball as Anthes' motor let go handing the win to Haapenen in 8.60. Top Alcohol qualifying was headed by Barry Sheavills 6.32/213. There were only 7 entries which meant Sheavills had a bye run in the first round but he still nailed it to a 6.23/219. Craig Lowes had an easy win as Dave Wilson was shut off with a fuel leak. Lex Joon disqualified himself by running outside his lane which meant that Ken McCormack went through. Alan Jackson ran 6.83/200 as Frank Bennett's altered could only manage 7.71. The first semi was eventful as Sheavills crossed the outer boundary allowing Lowes to take the win with an engine blowing 7.43. Alan Jackson ran 6.45 in the other semi to beat McCormack's 7.53. The final was anti-climatic as Lowe was a no-show after breaking his motor and Jackson ran an out of shape 9.31 solo. Top Fuel Bike winner was Phil Baimbridge as his 7.06/190 was too hot for Steve Woollatt's 7.36/175. (Clive Rooms)
May 27th/28th York. Ultimate Street Bike. This was pretty much a non-event as only 3 bikes entered in the class! The only saviour of the meeting was the turnout of the Supertwins for a round of their series. Top Gas was dominated by Jerry Collier as he won the final in 10.07 at 129. (Clive Rooms)
June 10th-11th Avon Park. Goodguys Shootout #6. The second round of the Custom Car Pro Modified series featured a 6 car turnout which was unfortunately reduced to 5 when Jerry Clayton destroyed his Ford Sierra in a top end crash. As he went through the speed traps at 157, the car suddenly went hard right and bounced end-over-end. Jerry sustained broken bones. In the first round, Dave Mingay had a bye run in his Calibra but still set the fastest and quickest times for the meeting with 7.31/190. Gordon Appleton then drove past Nick Cavey's Nissan. Neil Taylor then ran a slow 8.27 to beat Bert Englefield's Toyota. Rain prevented anymore rounds being run. (Clive Rooms)
June 10th/11th SPR. Saturday Night Special. SPRC Divisional Championship Event. This was billed as the European Super Gas Shootout but last minute changes to European event schedules, ie a meeting in Finland on the same weekend, meant that all the interested overseas teams couldn't make it. However, 18 Super Gas cars were in attendance. In the first round, Phil Drewitt put away Frank Mason and then Paul Watson did the same to Simon Oxberry. Al O'Connor was too strong for Paul Letchford and then Dave Clarkson beat Peter Lane who clicked it off a tad too early. Ray White then eased past Rolf Burgert's Cuda which broke out. Terry Gibbs beat an off-form Jim McGhee. Alex Nicol then took out number one qualifier Brian Pateman. Trevor Graves was too strong for Billy McDermid and Tim Adam defeated Nick Davies. In round 2, there was a bye win for Alex Nicol and then Paul Watson was too good on the lights for Trevor Graves. Al O'Connor then took a close win over Tim Adams. Phil Drewitt was too consistent for Terry Gibbs and Dave Clarkson pulled a cherry against Ray White. In round 3, five cars meant a bye for Watson whilst Nicol forced Drewitt in to breaking out, and then the same happened again as O'Connor was the victor against White. In the semis, Al's Gasser drew the bye and poodled up the quarter. Nicol drilled Watson on the line and took the win. There was drama before the final as the track lighting generator failed but was eventually restarted. Al's Gasser got loose at 60 feet and crossed the outside line handing the win to Alex Nicol. There was supposed to be another Super Gas Shootout contest on the Sunday but this was rained off from mid-morning. (Clive Rooms)
June24th/25th York. IHRA Street Machine UK Midsummer Nationals.In the Street Racer championship, Bill Sherratt driving his son's Vauxhall Firenza won the final as his opponent Ian Armitage broke out. In the ET classes, Derek Annable won the final over a red lighting Colin Catlin. In the Super ET class, the Chevy Monza of Stuart Cree was the winner. Al Cook's Dodge won the final of Modified ET over the RED of Paul Harvey. The winner of the final of Pro ET was Rob Emmett as Steve Warner had problems. (Clive Rooms)
June 25th Steve Read became Europes first four second Top Fuel driver when he ran 4.966/280.72 at Eastern Creek Raceway, NSW Australia. This added to Steves record as being the first European Alcohol driver into the fives (1992) (Mark Coles)
June 30th-July 2nd.

SPR. The Cannonball. Eleven cars entered the Cannonball, with six of them being the nitro variety. Last years winner Harlan Thompson ran an early shut off 6.07/237 in Round One to secure second place behind John Spuffard, who, with a new engine in the Showtime car,  also shut off early with a 5.95/181. Micke Kagerad and Urs Erbacher ran 6.31/221 and 6.37 respectively to take third and fourth spots in their alcohol cars. Lex Joon ran a career best of 6.47 for fifth while Stefan Jonsson in his nitro FC clocked a 6.70/179 for sixth. Gary Page made a checkout pass in Rune Fjeld's car, but a fuel line came adrift and he coasted through at 8.00 seconds. In the second round Spuffard and Thompson both ran quicker, Spuffard with a 5.91/200 followed by Thompson pulling the chutes very early and still clocking a 5.81/190. Erbacher and Kagerad ran 6.24/222 and 6.19/220 to put them in joint third place with identical aggregate times of 12.56. Lex Joon ran a 7.98 to take fourth position. Gary Page followed with a 6.66/244. Tony Baker, who was making his Cannonball debut in the "Torque Of The Devil" car, ran his first ever seven second pass, a 7.98. In the third round Thompson secured his place in the final with a 5.79/206, but Spuffard, running alongside Page, suffered an engine explosion around half track and coasted over the line in 6.91 seconds at 149mph. Page recorded a 7.26/127. This meant that Kagerad could make the final if he ran 6.20 or quicker. Running alongside Erbacher he stopped the clocks at 6.20/219. Erbacher recorded 6.26/220. The final was set for a repeat of the previous year with Kagerad keen to avenge his defeat. Unfortunately he didn't get the chance as rain moved in and brought a premature end to the meeting. None of the final rounds were completed, many classes never got further than the first round. . In Top Alcohol Barry Sheavills had qualified at number one with a 6.39/218. He won his first round with a 6.26/223 against a 6.49/217 from Rob Turner. Dave Wilson had qualified at number two (6.56/206) and took a first round win with a 6.37/201 over a 7.60/177 from the Funny Car of Ken McCormack. Peter Beck scored a 6.32/205 win over the Altered of Frank Bennett and Bernie Hepworth beat Mick Gleadow 7.11/194 to 7.52/158. In the Semi Finals Sheavills took another win, 6.18/223 to a 7.14/174 from Hepworth, and Beck beat Wilson 6.46/210 to a 6.57/204. In the first round of Pro Modified number one qualifier Alan Packman beat Neil Taylor 7.10/197 to 7.76/178 with an engine he allegedly found covered in dust at the back of his workshop. Number two qualifier Dave Mingay took a 7/16/189 win over a 7.72/166 from Nick Cavey. Bert Englefield had qualified at three and won his first round against Henri Joosten 7.52/185 to 7.87/167. Gordon Appleton also made it through with a 7.20/187 win over an 11.70 from Mick Cheley. On two wheels FIM Competition bike round one saw a storming 7.02/196 pass from number one qualifier Steve Woolatt. Phil Bainbridge soloed to a 7.25/188 and Peter Svenssson took a 7.35/164 win over a 9.39/98 from Jon Morton. Augy Harrison pulled a massive holeshot to defeat the fuel bike of Roel Koedam 7.49/170 to a quicker and faster 7.45/190. In FIM Supertwins Lars Wahlberg had qualified at number one with a 7.57 and won his first round match with Willem Been 7.98/173 to 8.43/157. Adam Hewitt and Anders Karling had both qualified with 7.66 times. Hewitt progressed through the first round with a 7.66 win over Lothar Schmidt, but Karling had problems and shut off to a 10.39/74 while  Klas Hellgren took a 7.63/163 win. Meanwhile Ulf Nylen took a 8.08/158 win after Joachin Reimar broke. Also this meeting saw Sammy Miller back again with the Vanishing Point rocket funny car. He recorded a best time for the weekend with a 4.28/254 pass.
July 8th/9th SPR. Mopar Nationals. Lament Arnauld beat Rich Berry for the 'King Of  The Street' title, 11.74 tp 12.02. Rich took the title of 'Burnout King'. Gary Keep ran an 11.86 to win the 'Mopar Powered' class. 'Fastest Mopar' went to Chris Orthodoxou with a 9.54 win over a 9.67 from Alan Cook.
July 15th/16th SPR. Bug Jam. At short notice, the third round of the British Top Alcohol Championship was slipped in to this meeting. Qualifiers were as follows; Barry Sheavills 6.41/213, Rob Turner 6.64/210, Dave Wilson 7.04/203, Alan Jackson 7.09/166, Tony Baker 7.75/175, Ken McCormack 7.92/173, Craig Lowes 8.14/116. In the first round, Jackson took an easy win as Baker lost fire after the burnout due to fuel surge. Turner 6.44/217 easily beat Lowes who slowed to a mid eight as an oil line came loose. Wilson 6.66/203 also had an easy win over McCormack's 7.35/188. Sheavills dodged a bullet on a bye run as the diff let go. In the second round, Jackson took a 6.38/186 win over Sheavills who took the long way around to a 6.57/212. In the other match-up, both Wilson and Turner had traction problems. Wilson shaded it with 6.98/212 to 6.92/199. Unfortunately, the final wasn't run due to rain. (Clive Rooms)
July 22nd/23rd. Avon Park. The Goodguys Alkymania Alcohol Shootout.
July 29th/30th SPR. Saturday Nite Special #3. SPRC Divisional Championship. For all class results click here.
August 12th/13th Hockenheim, Germany. The Nitro Olympics.
August 12th/13th York dragway. North Star Nationals. IHRA/UK National Championship.There was a strong entry of 75+. Saturday qualifying was delayed when Kenny Coleman barrel rolled his Rover. In the final of Super Gas, Allen Flavell in the pink Fatal Attraction took the honours over Peter Lane with a 10.00/129. Rob Emmett threw away his chances in the Pro ET final by popping a cherry which allowed Steve Warner an easy 10.34/72 win. Modified winner was Chris Isaacs as Tony Guy pulled a red light. Derek Annable was the Street ET winner over Ian Armitage who broke out. Kevin Martin was the winner in Super Street ET against Andy Holmes. Cliff Pullum comfortably beat Leigh Morris in the final of Pro Euro. On two wheels, the ACU Street Bike went to Dean Williamson over Dave Buttery. Super Street winner was Jarrod Frost 8.96/144 to Mike Chislett's losing 9.24/149. Andy Hill made a 7.81/149 pass in his Top Alcohol dragster. (Clive Rooms)
August 26th-28th SPR. The Summernationals. John Spuffard took the 'Showtime' Pontiac Funny car to a new European record of 5.46 at only 242mph. (Bob Jarrett) Vivica Averstedt put in a couple of test launches in her Valvoline sponsored Top Fueller and many predicted she would be running Europes first four at the Finals in September. In Top Alcohol there was a run off between Barry Sheavills and Micke Kagered to decide the outcome of the meeting at Hockenheim which had been rained off. Both cars got crossed up but Sheavills came off worst, his dragster ending up wrecked against the armco. He vowed to try and have the car rebuilt for the finals. Anita Makela was #1 qualifier with a 5.986/224.90, the only five second runner in a 16 car field. Dave Wilson came closest to stopping Anita in round two when he ran a strong 6.195/221.69 to Makelas winning 6.111/225.81. She went on to beat Leif Helander in the semis with a 6.091/231.36, the fastest speed of the meet so far, and beat Micke Kagered in the final with new E.T. and speed marks for the weekend of 5.923/234.35 to 6.072/217.69, Kagered almost becoming the first alcohol Funny Car into the fives. Nine cars made up the Pro Mod field with Alan Packman leading the way with a #1 qualifying time of 6.93, the only six second runner of the weekend. Dave Mingay qualified at #2 with a 7.11 and ran 7.06 to take the first round after Mick Cheley dropped out. Gordon Appleton ran a new personal best of 7.09 in the first round to defeat a 7.19 from Neil Taylor. Appletons luck ran out however in the semis when his 7.30 was no match for a 7.00 from Mingay. Packman had a solo to the final when Phil Englefiled failed to show. Mingay took the final win with a 7.07/197 to Packmans 7.12/199. In the Pro Rover class the eight second barrier was broken by Ian Hampsteads escort with an 8.974/145.61 on a bye run in the first round. He went on to win the elimination with a 9.123/143.48 against a 9.313/144.24 from Patrick Lysionek. In Pro Euro John Tebenham put in a solo pass in round one in his Cosworth powered Ford Anglia and became the first into the nines with a 9.96. In doing so he damaged his cylinder head and gearshift and was unable to continue in competition. A four bike field in Top Fuel Bike saw Steve Woolatt qualify at #1 with a 7.147/190.18. He met Phil Baimbridge in the final, Baimbridge taking the win with a 6.88/192.83 to a 6.956/193.25. For all class results click here.
September 15th-17th SPR. World Finals. Frequent rain showers on Saturday and Sunday held up the proceedings. No classes were completed.
October 7th/8th Avon Park. Night Of Fire.
October 7th/8th SPR. Saturday Nite Special #4. SPRC Divisional Championship.Saturday night was rained off but the Sunday RWYB wasn't, so 60 racers stayed overnight and ran. (Clive Rooms)
November 4th/5th SPR. Fireworks Meeting. Saturday Nite Special #5. SPRC Divisional Championship Finals. The weather was cold but dry which allowed the qualifying and eliminations to be finally completed well after 10 pm. For all class results click here. (Clive Rooms)

 

1996
Santa Pod was purchased by Keith Bartletts consortium, Power Racing Communications.
April 5th-8th SPR. The Thunderball. In Top Alcohol the field consisted of the Funny Cars of Alan Jackson, Paul Mellon and Tony Baker, the Dragsters of Doug Bond and Andy Hill and the Altereds of Micky Moore and Frank Bennett. Alan Jackson qualified at #1 with a 6.668/206. Doug Bond was at #2 with a 6.991/186 and Tony Baker at #3 with a 7.03/179. Jackson went on to run low E.T. with a 6.33/214 in the semi finals where he beat Andy Hill. he took the final with a 6.44/202 against Doug Bond. Alan Packman took the win in Pro Mod with a 6.88/203 win over Gordon Appletons 7.19/184. Packman had qualified at #1 with a 6.920/202. Barry Giles won Super Pro with a 7.994/163over Alan Cooks 8.055/168.
May 4th-6th York. National Championship Round. In Supergas Zane Llewellyn suffered a multiple barrel roll after the finish line in his Bootsoop Mk1 Cortina at 142mph. Earlier drivers had voted to race at a meeting which had been callled with regard to concerns about the condition of the shutdown area. After Zane's crash drivers voted to continue racing over the eigth mile. This was the last time a round of any National Championship was held at York. (Zane Llewellyn)
May 25th-27th SPR. The Main Event. Rob turner set a new E.T. record for a British  Top Alcohol driver with a 6.055/227.85 which he backed up with a 6.102/226.88. Anita Mikaela ran a 5.88/234.43 and went on to beat Micke Kagered in the final, 5.904/236.51 to 6.045/228.88. Kagered had earlier run 6.009/230.65 which was the closest an alcohol Funny Car had come to breaking the six second barrier. (Andy Marrs)
May 31st After 22 years of service the track surface at SPR was ripped up and a new, specially developed, surface laid.
June 7th-9th The largest field of pro cars ever seen at Avon Park assembled for the Summer Internationals. All the top classes were represented plus a large field of supporting classes in an event jointly organised by SPRA and APIRA
July 5th-7th SPR. The Cannonball. Ten Funny Cars entered this years event. The two top qualifiers for the final were Gary Page and John Spuffard, both nitro cars. Spuffard had run the low ET in qualifying on the Saturday, a 5.57/250 in the first round alongside Page, who ran 5.76/208.  The pair repeated this on Sunday with Page running 5.63/ to Spuffard's 5.76/246. Spuffard destroyed his clutch on the third round of qualifying and so Lex Joon came in as first alternate in his Alcohol car. The final saw Page in trouble off the line with the car seeming to lack power, by the 1/8th mile he had pulled the chutes and Joon ran past for the win with a 7.00 second run. In Top Alcohol Barry Sheavills made the number one spot with a 6.21/216, followed by Rob Turner (6.40), Peter Beck (6.71), Tony Baker (6.84, a personal best), Mick Gleadow (6.91), Andy Hill (7.46) and Mickey Moore (8.89). Sheavills set low ET in round one with a 6.18/222 bye run. In the semis he was up against Tony Baker and, despite a popped burst plate, took the win with a 6.29/185 to a 6.94/195. Rob Turner won the final with a 6.32/218 after Sheavills blew another burst plate. Martin Jones took the Super Pro win with a 9.08/142 to a red lighting 8.77/165 from Barry Giles. The Pro ET win went to Ray Barrow who beat Ivan Birch 10.04/132 to 9.49/140. John Tebenham won the Pro Euro class with a 9.83/134 to Leigh Morris' 10.65/129. In Pro Mod the final win went to Bert Englefield, who ran a poor 7.70 after missing a gear change. His opponent, Nick Davis, had failed to stage properly, automatically handing the win to Englefield. The semi finals had seen the quickest Pro Mod race ever in the UK. Englefield ran his first six beating Al Packman 6.96/191 to 6.92/201 and making Packman the first Pro Mod competitor to run a six and loose. Other results; Mod ET, Simon Farmer beat Nigel Payne, Super ET Chris Garner beat Bob Doyle, Street ET Martin Lewis beat David Williams, Street Euro Greg Bateman beat Terri Rogers, Super Gas Frank Mason beat Tony Gransden.
August 10th/11th  York. North Star Nationals.
August 24th-26th SPR. Summer Nationals. Rain curtailed the meeting with none of the finals being run. In Top Methanol, Anita Makela was number 1 qualifier with 6.02 closely followed by Barry Sheavills 6.13. In the first round, Makela had an easy win as Mick Gleadow was too eager on the tree. Her time was 6.03 to a losing 6.81. Micke Kagered and Lex Joon left the line dead even but the Swede just got to the finish first in 6.15 to 6.23. Alan Jackson then took an easy 6.47 win over a troubled Sheavills who went 10.26. In the last pairing, Rob Turner ran 6.38 to defeat Urs Erbacher's 7.01. In the semis, an extremely close race went to Kagered with a slower 6.13 to Makela's quicker 6.09. Rob Turner took the other semi in 6.53 as Alan Jackson was a no show. Pro Mod qualifiers were Phil Englefield 7.02, Gordon Appleton 7.03, Neil Taylor 7.08, Andy Robinson 7.09, Nick Davies 7.13, Dave Mingay 7.68 and Mick Cheley 7.90. Only the first round was run. Englefield took a bye win in 7.05. Appleton had an easy win over Cheley, 7.14 to 11.16. Robinson ran 7.10 to take an easy win over Davies. Taylor then took a close win over a faster leaving Mingay, 7.12 to 7.22. Super Pro Et reached the semis before the rain fell. Martyn Jones beat Fay Fischer and Barry Giles did likewise to Steve Johnson. (Clive Rooms)
September 13th-15th SPR. World Finals. This was the last time Santa Pod would call this meeting the 'World Finals'. It would become the 'Euro Finals' in 1997. Rico Anthes took the number one qualifying spot in Top Fuel with a 5.10/278 pass on the Saturday evening. Second was Jens Nybo, who was waving to the crowds during his burnouts, with a 5.12/274. Tommi Haapanen took third with a 5.25/271. Gary Page led the UK challenge with a 5.35/245 to take fourth. they were followed by, 5. Peter Lantz (5.46/268) 6. Viveca Averstedt (5.63/203) 7. Andy Carter (5.93/194, Andy's first five and new personal best). Round One saw Anthes take the safe route, launching and shutting off on his bye run. Lantz left ahead of Page, taking the win with a 5.37/275 to a quicker 5.35. Averstedt beat Haapanen 5.15/251 to 5.33/266. In the semis Anthes stamped his authority on the proceedings with a 5.05/281 against Lantz's 5.36/264, and Nybo took a 5.14/275 after Averstedt shut off early. In the final it was Anthes again, this time with an even quicker 5.03/281 against a troubled Nybo who crossed the line in 14.73. This gave Anthes a new Europen record and, crucially, an extra 200 points, which took him ahead of championship leader Nybo and gave him the 1996 Top Fuel Crown. In Funny Car Alan Bates returned to drive the Mag American Daytona and a 6.27 pass saw a shower of sparks in the shutdown area when one set of headers came adrift. Gary Page and John Spuffard repeated their Cannonball performances earlier in the year by running side by side fives. This time a 5.75/254 winner from Page against a quicker 5.58/238 from Spuffard. There were 14 cars in a tough Top Alcohol field with less than two tenths of a second between the top eight qualifiers. Anita Makela took top spot with a 5.88/236. Peter Beck was second with a 5.94/218 just ahead of Barry Sheavills 5.95/226. They were followed by 4. Bob Feeler (6.01/227) 5. Lex Joon (6.01/222) 6. Peter Schofer (6.02/223) 7. Micke Kagered (6.05/228) 8. Urs Erbacher (6.07/230) 9. Rob Turner (6.10/226, a new personal best) 10. Dave Wilson (6.17/214, also a new personal best) 11.Alan Jackson (6.25/214) 12. Lief Helander (6.32/220) 13. Dan Larson 14. Stan Bochet. In Round One Makela and Beck both had byes, a 5.94 and a 5.91 respectively. Another new personal best of 6.05/227 wasn't enough for Turner as Erbacher took a 6.04/231 win. Feeler beat Larson, 6.28 to 6.70. Joon beat Helander 6.12/224 to 6.16/225, and another new personal best from Wilson of 6.08/225 was beaten by a 6.00/230 from Kagered. Sheavills had a convincing 6.11 win against a 7.11 from Bochet and Schofer ran a 6.00 to beat Jackson. Round Two saw Erbacher red light on 6.14 run against Makela, who clocked a 5.92/234. Feeler advanced with a 6.13/225 win over Joon's 6.25/222. Kagered took a 6.06 win over Beck who had problems and left too soon. Schofer also red lit giving Sheavills the win with a 6.29 to a 6.07. In the Semis Sheavills experienced a problem that befell many competitors, that being difficulty in seeing the tree in the setting sun. A slow reaction on a 6.17/212 not being enough against a 6.10/226 from Kagered. Makela set a new ET record of 5.88/234 with her win against a 6.30/226 from Feeler. She went on to win the final, and set a new speed record, with her 5.90/236 defeat of Kagered's 6.04. In Pro Mod championship leader Alan Packman needed to make the first round of eliminations to secure the season title. He made number one qualifier with a 6.83/200 on the Friday evening, but his chute snagged on the armco and almost caused Alan to lose control. On his next qualifier the car turned hard on the launch, putting him in the opposite lane. A bent rod in the four link from the previous night was found to be the fault. Bert Englefield made number two qualifier, setting a new class ET record with a 6.87/198 backed up with a 6.88. Third was Gordon Appleton with a 6.97/203. He was followed by, 4. Neil Taylor (7.06/195, 5. Nick Davies (7.25/190) Dave Mingay (7.41/197) 6. Henri Joosten (7.70/175 and Mick Cheley (8.74/174). In the first round Packman beat Cheley 7.01/198 to 9.16/124 to secure the championship title. Nick Davies advanced with a 7.04/198 after Taylor broke and Englefield ran 6.98/196 to beat Joosten who went up in smoke on his way to a 13.26 shut off. Appleton beat Mingay with a 6.95/196 to a 7.07/198 and then secured his place in the final with a holeshot 6.99/198 to a quicker 6.93/200 from Englefield. In the other semi, after a long startline burndown, Davies beat Packman with his first six second run, a 6.93/194, to a 7.43/166. In the final Davies red lit, having staged too deep, and Appleton took the win with a 6.91/198 and runner up place in the championship. In Super Gas Brian Pateman qualified at number one with a perfect 9.900. He need to progress further in the eliminations than nearest rival Frank Mason, who qualified sixth,  to win the championship, but lost in the first round to Pete White. Mason clinched the championship despite losing out to Dave Clarkson, a 10.09 to a winning 9.91. Jon Hogarth, running in the class for the first time, took the final win with a 9.99 against a 10.11 from defending champion Tony Gransden. In Super Pro Steve Johnson took the win with a 7.60/173 over a red lighting Robin Read. Pro ET was won by Ray Barrow with a win against Steve Warner. Tony Guy won Mod ET in a double red lighting final against Derek Annable. Super ET went to Jon Evans with a win over Scott Evison. Street ET saw a win for Phil Walker with a 14.08 to a 14.46 from Gareth Mogford. Street Euro went to Keith Ridley, who took his first event win with a 13.60/95 against a breakout 11.58/117 from Julian Davison. In Pro Euro John Tebenham took the final win with a 9.74/136 against a new personal best from Leigh Morris of 9.88/135.
September 28th/29th SPR. International Doorslammers Meeting.

 

1997
March 29th-31st SPR. Season Opener.
April18th-21st SPR. The Thunderball. Top Alcohol saw Swiss driver Peter Beck qualify at #1 with a 5.953/219, and take the final win with a 5.968/201 against Rob Turner. In Pro Mod Nick Davies took #1 qualifying spot with a 6.878/196 ahead of Andy Robinsons 6.887/192. Davis failed to make the final when Dave Pollen beat him in the semis. In the other semi Andy Robinson went out to Gordon Appleton who ran 6.874/196. The final saw Appleton take the win with a 6.881/198 to Pollens 7.159/194. Fay Fischer took the win in Super Pro ET with a 8.816/129 to Mick Kemps 8.586/158.
April 20th North Weald. 1997 Streetbike Series Round One.
May 24th-26th SPR, Main Event. There were 5 qualifiers in Top Fuel, Viveca Averstedt 5.08, Tommi Haapanen 5.26, Andy Carter 6.08, Rico Anthes 6.86 and rookie Barry Sheavills 7.11. A four car elimination was run and Anthes put down the quickest pass in European history with a 5.01/287 (Backed up with a 5.05/286) to defeat Averstedt's off form 6.06. Haapanen also had an easy 5.24 win over Carter's 11.41. Anthes won the final in 5.05 to back up his earlier pass as Haapanen was a no show. In Top Methanol, there were first round wins for Peter Beck over Andy Hill, Micke Kagered over Rob Turner, Peter Schofer over Fay Fischer and Dave Wilson over Leif Helander. In the semis, Beck took a close win over Kagered, 5.98 to 6.04, and Schofer beat Wilson 6.26 to 6.54. In the final, Beck improved slightly with a 5.97 to defeat Schofer's game 6.18. In the first round of Pro Stock, there were wins for Jari Konola over Paul Brander, Tomi Laine over Arto Sandberg, Kjetil Hauge over Michael Malmgren and a bye win for Jan Muren. In the semis, Konola won a very close race over Muren 7.323 to 7.320. Laine then defeated Hauge 7.25 to 7.41. The final was very close as they both left virtually together but Konola just got there first with 7.28 to a losing 7.29 from Laine. In the Pro Mod final, Andy Robinson put down 6.87 to beat the 6.99 from Gordon Appleton. Steve Johnson was the winner of Super Pro ET as opponent Doug Bond couldn't make the call. (Clive Rooms)
John Spuffard set the official 0-60mph  world record for a non-street legal machine at 0.94seconds in the Showtime Pontiac Top Fuel funny car.
June 7th/8th SPR held its first bikes only meeting since 1969, the International Drag Bike Fest.
June 28th/29th SPR. The Cannonball. John Spuffard took the honours with a 5.64/265 to Gary Pages 5.70/232. Wayne saunders set a new record in the Pro Euro class, running 8.36/163 followed up by a 8.13/167 in his Cosworth powered Ford Probe. Wayne confidently predicted seven second runs in the near future.
July 12th/13th SPR. Sportsman Nationals. In the first round of Pro Mod, there were wins for Andy Robinson 7.24 over Mick Cheley 7.88, Gordon Appleton 7.00 over Danny Cockerill 7.93 and Dave Pollen 7.09 over Neil Taylor 7.43. In the semis, Andy Robinson had an easy bye win, as did Dave Pollen as Gordon Appleton didn't make it to the finish line. Dave Pollen took the win in a close final, 7.04 to Robinson's 7.06. In the first round of Super Pro ET, there were wins for John Menetrier over Pat Talbot, Barry Giles over Jim Seward, Martyn Jones over Steve Johnson and a bye for Fay Fischer. In the semis, Fischer took the win as Menetrier red lit by 4 thou, and Giles took a close win over Jones. Giles took the win in the final in 8.34 as Fischer slowed to a 12.28. (Clive Rooms)
August 8th-10th Summer Nationals. SPR. Andy Robinson set a new Pro Mod ET record running a 6.84/199 followed by a 6.787/205 in his 706ci, Eagle-powered Rover 800 Coupe. In Super Gas Paula Marshall, John Ellis and Pete Cresswell ran identical 9.904 ETs for the top qualifing position. There were just 4 entries in Top Methanol. In the semis, Rob Turner had an easy win over Fay Fischer, 6.13 to 7.09. Likewise, Doug Bond had an unopposed 9.44 win as Tony Baker didn't show. Rob Turner won the final in 6.15 to Doug Bond's 6.92. Fuel Funny Cars had 3 qualifiers; Alan Jackson 5.82, John Spuffard 5.83 and Gary Page 9.68. Jackson ran a bye 5.96 and then Spuffard took an unopposed win in 5.81 as Page didn't show. In the final, Spuffard ran a great 5.56 to Jackson's 5.72. Pro Mod had 8 entries and there were first round wins for Mick Cheley over Gordon Appleton, Neil Taylor over a red lighting Nick Davies, Dave Pollen over Alan Cook and Andy Robinson over Simon Payne. In the semis, Taylor ran 7.04 to beat Cheley's slowing 9.79, and Robinson's 6.78 was too strong for the 7.12 of Pollen. Taylor won the final in 7.29 as Robinson failed to start. In the final of Super Pro ET, Barry Giles put down 7.86 to beat Martyn Jones' close 7.95. (Clive Rooms)
August 23rd-25th Avon Park. Super Slam '97.
September 6th/7th Avon Park. Hot Rod Drags.
September 11th SPR European Finals Press day.Gordon Appleton set a new European record in his Pro Mod Camaro, running a 7.09/198 while carrying a passenger! The brave man alongside him was the editor of Performance Car magazine. 
September 12th-14th SPR, European Finals. Barry Sheavills became the quickest ever British Top Fuel driver with a 5.08/257. Jarmo Roivas set a European Top Alcohol record at 5.77/236. In the final of Pro Stock, Tomi Laine set a new European record at 7.06/194.10 against Jari Konolas losing 7.20/192.02. Gary Page, driving Rune Fjelds Mustang Funny Car ran a best ever 5.482/245 against Alan Jackson, very close to John Spuffards record 5.46. In his next race, which was the final against John Spuffard, he blew the motor  at 1000ft due to a rear axle failure and burnt the chutes off into the bargain. He got the win though with a 5.77/187. Spuffard himself came very close to the record with a 5.47/276, the terminal speed being the fastest recorded funny car speed in Europe. Andy Robinson set a new European Pro Mod record at 6.787/205 on his first qualifing run. Leif Andreasson became the first European Top Alcohol Funny Car driver to run under six seconds, he recorded a 5.964/229.45.(Andy Marrs)
September 27th/28th SPR. International Doorslammers. Dan Cockerill took his Pro Mod Ford Pop to a 180mph terminal speed, just 1mph off Andy Carters 1994 record ET speed for a Pop. Wayne Saunders, in his Cosworth powered Ford Probe runs a 7.95/170, At Avon Park the following weekend he runs 7.89/177, 7.81/175 and 7.77/175 to become the quickest 4-pot on the planet. Also Vivica Averstedt was present to test some new parts on her Top Fuel Dragster. At 4.15 on the Sunday afternoon she recorded her best ever 60ft time at 0.84 with a 3.21 1/8th mile ET. She backed off to record a 5.82 at only 153mph. The 60ft time was on a par with a good four second run.
October 4th/5th Avon park. Autumn Finals.
November 1st/2nd SPR. The Flame And Thunder Show.
December 30th The Showtime Team of Bob Jarrett and John Spuffard took delivery of a new Funny Car, the ex-Dean Skuza Dodge Avenger. Their previous car, the Pontiac Firebird was sold to Gordon Smith for the next season.
Also this year Simon Payne ran the quckest in the Pro Street Eliminator with a 7.79/177 in his 515ci Chevrolet-powered Camaro. He took the class title for '97. The mark to aim at this season was the 8 second bracket but Simon bypassed it completely. He dominated the class and, when there were insufficient entries to run the fourth round, he moved into Pro Mod, running a best of 7.40/186. Not bad for a road legal car!
The UK based Top Fuel teams of Vivica Averstedt and Andy Carter packed up and shipped off to race in the USA next year.
Barry Sheavills was given the 'Top Fuel Rookie of the year' award.

 

1998
Terry Gibbs signed up with Avon Park owner Anthony Hodges to run four Super series events at the Warwickshire track. Terry had sucessfully promoted the previous years Super Slam event at AP.
March 21st/22nd  SPR. Season Opener. For all class results click here. (Clive Rooms) 
April 10th-12th The Thunderball. SPR. While the rest of the UK enjoyed the traditional Easter Bank Holiday weather (torrential rain and record floods), Andy Robinson debuted his improved Pro Mod Rover, running  what is thought to be the quickest ever 'off the trailer'  Pro Mod run with a 6.85/202 on his first pass. Saturday and Sunday were rained off. Monday was virtually a full day. There were eight qualifiers in Top Methanol with Peter Beck top of the pile with 6.32, however, the eliminations were cancelled and demo runs took their place. In the first round of Pro Mod, there were wins for Gordon Appleton over Alan Cook who broke, Andy Robinson over Dave Pollen and Nick Davies over Neil Taylor. In the semis, Andy Robinson had the bye but he didn't hold back and ran 6.87. Nick Davies broke and handed the win to Gordon Appleton. The final was anti-climatic as Appleton broke but Robinson ran a great 6.82. Super Gas winner was Jon Webster as Paula Marshall broke out. In Super Comp, Tim Adam took the win in 8.89 as Paul Letchford fouled. Lee Huxley took the honours in Super Street defeating Philip Baker 11.15 to 11.12. Wayne Saunders had an easy win in Super Pro ET when Steve Johnson couldn't make the call. Chris Johnson was the winner in Pro ET beating Martin Curbishley. Sportsman ET winner was Wayne Hiscock beating Terrry Rogers-Valle. There was only one Top Fuel bike there, Roel Koedam made an easy 8.29 pass. Funny Bike winner was Chris Hall over Tim Blakemore. Paul King took the honours in Pro Stock bike with an easy 11.27 as Martin Bishop broke. Competition Bike winner was Stephen French 8.02, runner-up was Philippe Lemaire in 8.71. Tony Clark was the winner in Super Street Bike defeating Dave Holland 9.50 to 10.11. Paul Bembridge won 9.90 Bike beating Darren Winnard. 10.90 Bike winner was Lee Baxendale over Ian Warren. (Clive Rooms)
April 18th/19th Avon Park held the first of its Super Series events.
May 2nd-4th The second Super Series at Avon Park. For all class results click here.
May 23rd-25th SPR.The Main Event. Andy Robinson ran a 6.729/208.27 backed up with a 6.74/207 and a 6.75/205 running 172mph in the eighth mile for a new European Pro Mod record.  There were three terrible top-end crashes during the meeting. Leena Nystrom in Pro Stock qualifying, turned left in to the armco past the finish line and destroyed her car and 30 metres of armco which took several hours to replace and repair. Leena escaped with a broken pelvis. Roger Goring had a parachute mishap which caused his jet FC to overturn. Mirjana Dietrich suffered a broken arm when she crashed her Pro Stock Bike. Only a couple of Top Fuel dragsters were there, Barry Sheavills and Jens Nybo. They ran 4 or 5 side-by-side qualifiers culminating in 5.04 for Barry and 5.07 for Jens. In the big one, Barry threw it away by popping a cherry allowing Jens to take the win in 5.11/280. There were also just a couple of Fuel coupes running with John Spuffard qualifying in 5.66 and Alan Jackson in 5.96. Spuffard took the final with a 5.65 against Jackson's 7.83. In Top Methanol, there were first round wins for Peter Schofer over Dave Wilson, Peter Beck over Fay Fischer, Rob Turner over Doug Bond and a bye win for Jarmo Roivas. In the semis, Roivas was too strong for Schofer running 5.76 to 6.11. Turner took the other semi beating Beck 6.10 to 6.38. In the final, Roivas did a poor burnout and suffered for it as Turner took the win in 6.92/206 to 7.30/207. In the Pro Stock final, Nicklas Andersson was too hot for Jari Konola winning in 7.19/192 to 7.27/190. In the Pro Mod final, Simon Payne threw away his chances by turning on the red light to give Phil Englefield the win in 6.91/196. Super Comp winner was John Atkinson over Richard Kinsey. Super Pro winner was Steve Johnson who beat Barry Giles. In Pro Stock Bike, there were first round wins for Stefan Meijerwall over Herman van Driel, Paul Willis over Martin Bishop, Roger Petersson over Ray Debben, and Ian Burns over a broken Bernd Dietrich. In the semis, Meijerwall took the win ahead of Willis 7.991 to 7.992, and Petersson saw off Burns 7.88 to 9.51. Petersson ran another 7.88 in the final to defeat Meijerwall's 10.50. (Clive Rooms)
June 13th/14th SPR. Sportsman Nationals. Saturday was a complete washout. By 11 am Sunday, the track was dry except for the top end so they ran qualifiers over the eighth. Most classes put in a qualifier and then the heavens opened again. Two hours later, the track was dry again. More qualifiers took place before another downpour resulted in the meeting being called. (Clive Rooms)
June 20th/21st Avon Park. Super Series Round Three. For all class results click here. 
July 4th/5th SPR. Midsummer Nationals. For all class results click here. 
July 3rd-5th FIA European Top Fuel Championship, Round Two. At the Alastro track in Finland Britains Barry Sheavills set a new track ET record and top speed of the meeting with a 5.07/280.
August 8th/9th SPR. New Summer Nationals. Alan Jackson headed Funny Car qualifying with a 5.76 run. Behind was Gary Page 5.82, Alan Bates 6.17 and John Spuffard in the new Showtime with 12.08. In the semi, Jackson took an easy 5.83/199 win over Spuffard as his blower belt let go. The other semi was closer with Page running 5.63 to Bates' 5.97. The final was even closer with Jackson heading it with 5.77 to Page's 5.79. In Top Methanol, Rob Turner beat Doug Bond 6.12 to 6.97, then Dave Wilson defeated Fay Fischer 6.64 to 9.89. The final was close with Turner taking a 6.12 win over Wilson's 6.15. Pro Mod had a 6 car field. In the first round, Andy Robinson beat Simon Payne 6.78 to 12.08, Phil Englefield defeated Michael Cheley 7.10 to 8.23 and Neil Taylor won ahead of Alan Cook 7.03 to 7.16. In the semis, there was a bye 6.84 win for Robinson. Englefield then beat Taylor 7.03 to 7.07. It was a solo final round win for Robinson in 6.83 as Englefield broke his engine. In the Super Comp final, Stephen Harrington beat John Atkinson 8.96 to 9.01. Super Gas winner was Shaun Saunders as Tim Adam broke. In the Super Pro ET semifinal, Pierre Pouyfourcat beat Des Taylor who fouled. In the other semi, Wayne Saunders had a bye but also fouled out leaving Pouyfourcat to take a bye win in the final. Super Street Bike winner was Dave Holland 8.84 who beat the 8.95 from Steve Dyer. Stephen French won the Comp Bike final beating Gary Jones 7.79 to 8.64. Pro Stock Bike had 9 bikes qualified and culminated with Dave Beck taking the win over Paul Willis 7.91 to 8.12. Top Fuel Bike had a field of just three. Steve Woollatt took a bye win in 6.71 and then Chris Hampson beat Phil Brachtvogel 7.66 to 8.21. Woollatt had an easy 6.90 win in the final as Hampson went 7.84. (Clive Rooms) Top Methanol driver Fay Fischer ran 6.33/214.28 in the Redstone and Gleadow Racing dragster to become the UKs quickest ever lady drag racer. The previous record of 6.42 was set by Roz Prior in her 'Maneater' Pro Fueler (Top Fuel) in November 1978.
August 21st-23rd Hockenheim. In Top Fuel, Jens Nybo ran 5.06 to defeat Tommi Haapanen's slowing 7.95 and then Anita Makela beat Barry Sheavills 5.06 to 5.13. The final was close with Nybo just edging it in 5.02 to Makela's 5.08. In Top Alcohol Funny Car, there were first round wins for Leif Andreasson over Stan Bochet, Dan Larsen over Lex Joon, Micke Kagerad over Urs Erbacher and Deszoe Krivan over Leif Helander. In the semis, Larsen took a 6.14 win over Andreasson's losing 6.42 and then Kagerad beat Krivan 6.16 to 6.24. Kagerad won the final. In Top Alcohol Dragster, Peter Beck beat Rob Turner 5.72 to 9.03 and Peter Schofer defeated Jarmo Roivas 6.13 to 12.10. Schofer took an easy 6.55 win in the final. The winner of FIM Comp Bike was Stephen French who beat John Ivarsson 7.51 to 7.53. Pro Stock Bike winner was Roger Petterson with a 7.65 run to Paul Willis' 8.00. (Clive Rooms)
August 29th-31st Avon Park Super Series '98 Finals.
September 11th-13th SPR European Finals. Barry Sheavills, the only Brit in the FIA Top Fuel Championship, ran the UKs first Top Fuel four second run in Saturdays qualifying session. He ran 4.972 at 297.19mph alongside Jens Nybo. This was also a new top speed record. (UKs first four came one year after Kent Persson ran the first in europe at 4.98 and ten years after the first in history, Eddie Hills 4.990 on April 9th 1988 at the Texas Motorplex.) In Sundays eliminations the first round saw Barry up against Jens in the race that would decide the championship. Barry did it again winning with a 4.954 at 297.11. In the Final Barry met Anita Makela, Anita lit the tyres and Barry ran another four, 4.942 at 294.10. This meeting also saw the quickest run in Europe by a Pro Mod, Ronnie Bergstrom with a 6.565 at 210.16mph. Bergstrom ran a troubled 8.02/124 in the final to a winning 6.80/201 from Hakan Nilsson. Tommi Laine won the Pro Stock final with a 7.10/195 to Niclas Anderssons 7.13/194. John Spuffard won the Funny car shootout with an early shut off 6.70/134 to Alan Jacksons 12.35. Super Comp was won by Steve Harrington with an 8.91/147 after Tim Adam failed to show. Adam did make the Super gas final where he beat Shaun Saunders 10.06/136 with a 10.03/133. Super Pro ET went to Wayne Saunders Ford Probe with a 7.95/155 over Steve johnsons 7.56/171. Ritchie Smith won Pro ET with a 9.86/134 beating Robin moores 10.94/123. Also Jan Honee ran the quickest time for an FIM Supertwin bike in the UK, 7.088/197.42, this speed also backed up his earlier 198.14mph run to set a new European speed record. Thanks to Ian King and Mathijis Bakker for confirming the details on this one.
October 3rd/4th  SPR. October Meeting. Qualifying was badly affected by a damp track on the Saturday and Sunday was completely rained out. (Clive Rooms)

 

1999
January A new national championship series for Pro Mod, Super Comp, Super Gas, Super Pro ET, Pro ET, Sportsman ET, 9.90 Bike and 10.90 bike,  jointly organised  by The Santa Pod Racers club and the Avon Park Intenational Racers Association, is announced at a joint meeting of the two groups. Five rounds to be held at Santa Pod and four at Avon Park. The British Top Alcohol Championship was also announced to consist of rounds at both tracks, two at Avon Park and two at Santa Pod.
February 28th ACU UK National Pro Stock Bike Champion Dave Beck qualified eighth in a field of twenty one in Pro Mod Bike in Gainesville, Florida, with a 7.059 at 189.75 mph. He then lost in the first round to Louis Grist of Minnesota who ran a 7.039/188.71 to Dave's 7.145/183.41.
March 7th The UK's Steve Read won Top Fuel eliminator at the third round of the Castrol New Year Series at Willowbank Raceway, Australia, beating Robin Kirby in the final with a 5.428/252.95 to a 5.475/190.04.
April  3rd-5th The Thunderball. SPR. Round one of the UK National and Top Alcohol Championships.In Top Alcohol Rob Turner ran a 5.782/241.83mph in qualifying, the 241 being a new European record and the time being a personal best for the team. Smax Smith suffered a burst oil line which sprayed oil under one of the slicks causing the car to roll a number of times before coming to rest in the shut down area. Smax was fine apart from a few bruises. The car was a write off. Bill Sherratt took over the driving duties in the Showtime Dodge Avenger from John Spuffard and ran a weekend best of 5.81/231. A new stand was erected in the week leading up to the event, replacing the rather ancient fixture on the left hand side of the strip.This meeting also saw the introduction of the Junior Dragster class to the UK. Click here to see all class results from this meeting.
April 24th/25th ACU Prostock Bike champion Dave Beck qualified 9th from 15 with a 7.199sec 183.11mph run at the Fast by Gast Nationals in Columbus Ohio. He went on to win the final against David Vantine of Hamilton, NY with a 7.048/182.92 to Vantine's 7.106/181.56.
May 1st/3rd Avon Park. Super Series Round 1. UK National Drag Racing Championships Round 2. Rob Turner set a new track speed record for Top Alcohol Dragster at 236.84mph while Lex Joon set new track speed and E.T. records for Top Alcohol Funny Car at 6.120/226.13. In The Wild Bunch class Neil Townson took his alcohol burning altered to new class records of 8.058/173.08. For all class results click here
May 19th It was announced in Motoring News that US driver Gordie Bonin would be driving Barry Sheavills 1998 Top Fueller in the 1999 FIA European Championships with the financial assistance of US oil company Prolong. Barry Sheavills announced that he would be debuting an all new car for the '99 season.
May 29th-31st The Main Event. SPR. FIA  & FIM European Championships, Round One & UK National Championships, Round Three. The Top Alcohol classes are renamed as Top Methanol Dragster and Top Methanol Funny Car under the orders of the FIA who were unhappy about the use of the word 'Alcohol'. In his first ever European Top Fuel Championship event Gordie Bonin took the honours beating Alan Jackson in the final. In Top Methanol Funny Car qualifing Leif Andreasson ran a 5.943/236.49. In Pro Mod qualifing Andy Robinson ran 6.78/211 and went on to record a 6.62/210.95 and a 6.60/211.64 in eliminations.Steve Woollatt ran a 6.80/201 in FIM Competition bike.In Super Pro ET Wayne Saunders reset his own world record for a four cylinder car with a 7.695/176.96 in his Cosworth powered Ford Probe.Junior Dragster driver Paul Lindley-Allen set new European records for both E.T. and terminal speed. He ran 9.482 (backed up by a 9.530) and in a separate race clocked 68.08mph, backed up by 67.94mph. For the first time a new return road was used at the top end of the strip. The new road being sheilded from the shut down area by a bank to prevent out of control cars crossing the barriers into the path of returning vehicles. To see all class results from this meeting click here
June 19th/20th Avon Park. Super Series Round 2. Uk National Drag Racing Championships Round 4. In Pro Stock Bike Paul Willis broke both the British ET and terminal speed records. The new records now stood at 7.615 seconds and 175.10mph.  The Pro Mod Rover 800 of Andy Robinson was written off in a horrifying top end crash after crossing the line first in the final. Andy was OK. He had previously set new track records for the class at 6.657/210.27. Wayne Saunders ran a new personal best and I think a new world record for a 4-cylinder car with a 7.56 backed up by a 7.58 in his Cosworth powered Probe. In Top Fuel Bike Brian Johnson ran a new track record of 6.51. The Outlaw Anglia class saw Paul Henshaw set both ends of the track record at 8.970/152.03. The Top Fuel Bike final was held over after the crash. Due to strong winds a number of the bike classes were run over the 1/8th mile.For all class results click here
July 3rd/4th SPR. The Cannonball. UK National Drag racing Championships Round 5. Micke Kagerad took the Cannonball title for the second time, beating John Spuffard in the Showtime Dodge Avenger in the final. For all results click here
July 31st/August 1st Avon Park. Super series Round 3.UK National Drag Racing Championships Round 6.  Job Heezen ran a new European Top Gas Motorcycle record with an 8.416. Brian Johnson beat his own track Top Fuel Bike records, setting the new marks at 6.352/216.35. In Pro Stock Bike Paul Willis set new track records of 7.543/177.87. The 'Wheelie Stingray', which entertained crowds at Santa Pod in the seventies and eighties in the hands of Roy Phelps, returned in a new paint scheme and now re-named High Risk. The car had been restored by Ronnie Picardo and Allan Herridge Jnr. and was driven by Allan.Some of the finals were not run as rain stopped play. For finalists and results click here
August 20th-22nd Hockenheim, Germany. Nitro Olympics. The UKs Dave Hughes took the Super Gas  final with a holeshot over Michael Vogt. In Super Street an all UK final saw Bob Lees Mustang take the win over the Top Banana roadster of Lee Huxley. Barry Sheavills had a disappointing weekend, unable to get a five second run out of his Top Fueler.
August 28th-30th Avon Park. Super Series Round 4.UK National Drag Racing Championships Round 7. Top Fuel Dragsters made a welcome return to Avon Park for the first time since 1996 with the cars of Barry sheavills and Rico Anthes being present. Barry ran the quickest time of the weekend with a 5.48/183.67 to set a new track record for the class. Paul Willis set a new Pro Stock bike E.T. record with a 7.54.Brian Johnson ran a new record 6.35/216 on his Top Fuel Bike. Jerry Collier broke his own World Record for a normally aspirated two stroke motorcycle with a 9.66 backed up with a 9.71. Rob Turner took the British Top Alcohol points Championship on a wild out of shape qualifing run. Graham Dance ran a new E.T. record in Super Street Bike of 8.4seconds. For results click here
September 10th-12th SPR. The FIA European Finals.  UK National drag Racing Championships Round 8. Top Fuel Bike pilot Brian Johnson ran a new European ET record of  6.287 seconds.The run was backed up by an earlier, and quicker run, of 6.121. Gordie Bonin, already the championship winner for this season, ran an engine breaking 4.99 in qualifing, the only four second run in the UK this year. The Methanol funny cars of Leif Helander and Urs Erbacher made their first sub-six second runs with 5.97 & 5.96 respectively. The final of Top Methanol Funny Car produced what I think may be the first side by side five second race (see results)  Eero Kilpelainen took both ends of the European Top Methanol Dragster records with a 5.69/248. Hakan Nilsson ran the quickest Pro Mod time and speed ever in Europe with 6.51 and the fastest speed at 215mph. Michael Malmgren ran a new Europen Pro Stock E.T. record at 7.06 and Graham Dance set a new Super Street Bike E.T. record of 8.214 in the final round. For results click here
September 25th/26th Avon Park. Super series Finals. UK National Drag Racing Championships Round 9. The meeting was rained out before the first rounds could be completed but not before Smax Smith, in his Mainline Menace alcohol altered, set a new track record for the Supercharged Outlaw class of 6.921/203.62.
October 9th/10th SPR. October Meet. UK National Drag Racing Championships Round 10.For results click here.
November 6th/7th SPR. Flame & Thunder Meet. Alan Didwell won the car ET class while Phil Pratt won Bike ET.  The star of the evening was Barry Sheavills in the Top Fuel dragster who ran a great 5.5 second run with wing high header flames, and John Spuffard's hard launch in the Funny Car with a pedal job and then back on it again through the finish. (Clive Rooms)
November 14th Gainsville, Florida. The UKs Brian Johnson won Top Fuel Bike at the AMA/Prostar World Finals.  He won the final round with a 6.292/227 against Americas Tony Lang. the Uks Ian King also made the headlines when he beat the man tipped to win the meeting, Larry McBride. Two weeks earlier Larry had run the first ever five second ET on a bike. Other UK entries Ceri Visik and Ken Cooper both failed to make the field in Pro Stock Bike and Pro Mod Bike respectively while Dave Beck qualified 5th in Pro Mod Bike and went out in the second round. On the same weekend the UK Top Methanol team of Rob turner appeared at the NHRA Finals at Pomona but failed to qualify, running a best of 5.895/235.84 in their new Bob Meyer chassis car.
For all UK points championship winners click here

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