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8/19/2012
Carterville, IL
Strickland Leads BTE Power Rankings, Top Ten Separated by Just 17 Points!
Longtime successful sportsman competitor Jeff Strickland of Red Bay, AL is the current leader of the BTE Power Rankings on ThisIsBracketRacing.com as the 2012 season begins to wind into the home stretch. Now in its fourth season, the BTE Power Rankings is a unique system that ranks sportsman drag racers regardless of their class or sanction based upon final round appearances in major events. Each season, the BTE Power Rankings championship is awarded to the sportsman competitor who has the best season on the race track; whether that comes in NHRA, IHRA, big dollar bracket competition, or a combination of the three. As a result, the Power Rankings championship has become one of the most coveted prizes in all of sportsman drag racing.
In mid-August, Strickland is the leader in the clubhouse, but his lead is far from safe. Perennial top ten finisher Peter Biondo trails Strickland by a single point. Notable competitors including Bobby Johns, Jason Lynch, Al Kenny, Steve Furr, Brad Plourd, Joe Santangelo, Sherman Adcock, Jr., and Brad Burton make up the top ten in the standings, and only 17 BTE “Power Points” separate those drivers! Power points are earned based upon final round finishes at all major sportsman events: NHRA and IHRA national, divisional, and ET finals events, as well as any bracket-style event that boasts a winner’s purse of $5,000 or more. To see detailed information of how points are calculated, click here: http://www.thisisbracketracing.com/rankings_points.cfm
At season’s end, the BTE Power Rankings champion will be awarded a new BTE Top Dragster or Top Sportsman Powerglide transmission ($3,500+ value)! The runner-up in the standings will take home a new BTE torque converter. Additional prizes from supporting sponsors including Todd’s Extreme Paint, Auto Meter, Mickey Thompson Tires, and ThisIsBracketRacing.com will be awarded to the remaining top ten finishers. In order to be eligible for prizes at season’s end, racers must be registered annual subscribers to ThisIsBracketRacing.com by September 1, 2012.
Over 950 racers from throughout North America have earned BTE Power Points thus far in 2012, and the battle for the top spots is far from over. We’ll briefly highlight each of the current top ten performers and the accomplishments that have earned them their current standing. Each of these racers and more strive to join one of the most elite clubs in all of sportsman drag racing, as a BTE Power Rankings champion. Past champions include Dan Fletcher (2009), Gary Williams (2010) and Jody Lang (2011). Interestingly, none of the past champs are in the current top ten (although Fletcher lurks in 15th position, just 21 points behind the leader).
1.) Jeff Strickland: 56 Points
Strickland, who is well known for his success in NHRA and big dollar bracket competition has earned the majority of his 2012 BTE Power Points very quietly. In fact, he leads the rankings in mid-August despite not posting a major victory thus far in 2012. Strickland has, however, taken runner-up honors in three of the biggest events in bracket racing thus far this season. In May, he was runner-up on the final day of the K&N Spring Fling in Bristol, TN. Two months later, he took runner-up honors in the $50,000-to-win Iron Man Classic event in Memphis, TN. Just weeks ago, Strickland once again finished 2nd in the $50,000-to-win World Super Pro Challenge in Stanton, MI. Strickland, a multi-time NHRA Division 2 champion, also earned a runner-up in Super Stock at the LODRS event in Gainesville earlier this season to round out his current 56 point total.
2.) Peter Biondo: 55 Points
Arguably the greatest sportsman racer of his generation, Biondo is one of just two drivers who have finished in the top ten of the BTE Power Rankings on ThisIsBracketRacing.com in each of the three years of the program’s existence (John Labbous, Jr. is the other). This season Biondo, well respected as one of the most versatile drivers in the sportsman ranks, has predictably earned his points in a variety of categories and forms of competition. He joined Jeg Coughlin, Jr. as the second driver in history to win an NHRA national event in six different categories when he earned the Super Street crown in Englishtown. A few weeks later, he drove Phil Monteith’s Firebird to a Super Stock victory in Bristol. He’s also been a force on the bracket scene, earning two $10,000 triumphs and a $5,000 win along the Summer Shootout Series at Atco Dragway.
3.) Bobby Johns, Jason Lynch: 45 Points
Johns has earned each of his BTE Power Points behind the wheel of a dragster in big dollar bracket competition. The Florida-based ace earned a $10,000 victory at the Super Buck Blast in South Georgia, then backed it up with a $20,000 windfall at the JEGS U.S. Open Bracket Championships in Bowling Green. Just recently, Johns once again hit the jackpot with a victory in the Dragster shootout at the AA Auto Salvage Super Bucks event in Atco, Nj.
Lynch, a familiar figure in the BTE Power Rankings Top Ten, is currently tied with Johns for third with 45 points. Like Johns, all of Lynch’s 2012 Power Points have come on the big dollar bracket tour. Lynch earned a pair of wins at the JEGS U.S. Open Bracket Championships, one for $20,000, the other for a new dragster chassis. Two weeks later, he was at it again, with a pair of final round appearances at the Ultimate 64 Shootout. There, he drove to victory in a $5,000-to-win event, and took runner-up honors in a $10,000-to-win race.
5.) Al Kenny: 44 Points
Kenny, who is in contention for the NHRA World Championship in Super Comp has enjoyed an excellent start to the 2012 season. Along the NHRA divisional tour, Kenny has appeared in a pair of Super Comp final rounds, winning the Division 1 event in Maple Grove, and finishing runner-up at Lebanon Valley. He also scored at the national level, earning the Super Comp crown in Norwalk. As if that weren’t enough, Kenny added a $25,000 windfall on the bracket circuit, when he won the final day of the AA Auto Salvage Super Bucks event in Atco, NJ.
6.) Steve Furr: 43 Points
Furr is another familiar name atop the BTE Power Rankings on ThisIsBracketRacing.com. The multi-time IHRA World Champion has done damage on both the NHRA and IHRA tours thus far this season. On the NHRA side, he has a divisional victory (Atlanta ) and runner-up (Orlando), both in Super Gas, to go along with a Top Dragster victory at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, and a Super Gas runner-up at the Southern Nationals. In IHRA competition, Furr has a pair of runner-up Pro-Am finishes in Immokalee (Super Rod) and Farmington (Top Dragster). Additionally, he earned Super Rod victories at the IHRA Sportsman Spectacular event in Budds Creek, MD, and Tournament of Champions Qualifier at Farmington. Furr also has additional power points in waiting, as he has already advanced to the final round of Top Dragster at the Budds Creek event (that final will be contested at a future date).
7.) Brad Plourd, Joe Santangelo, Sherman Adcock, Jr: 40 Points
Plourd, Santangelo, and Adcock are tied for seventh position with 40 points each. Plourd has done all of his damage on the NHRA national event circuit, earning a rare double victory at his home event in Seattle with wins in Super Comp and Stock. He also took runner-up honors in Super Comp at the NHRA national events in Atlanta and Norwalk.
Defending NHRA Stock Eliminator World Champion Santangelo is enjoying another stellar season. He has a national event victory in Stock (Englishtown), to go along with a pair of Super Stock runner-up finishes (Charlotte and Chicago). He also scored a Super Stock victory at the LODRS event in Maple Grove, and was runner-up in the prestigious JEGS All-Stars competition. As if his success along the NHRA tour wasn’t enough, Santangelo added a Stock title at the IHRA Sportsman Spectacular event in Budds Creek, MD.
NHRA Super Comp and Super Gas world championship hopeful Sherman Adcock has rung up 40 BTE Power Rankings points in 2012 as well, all on the NHRA trail. He began his 2012 season with a double victory at the Gainesville LODRS event, and backed up the rare feat just weeks later with Super Comp and Super Gas wins at the Ultimate Sportsman Shootout contested prior to the LODRS event in South Georgia, an event that he also went on to win in Super Gas. He took a Super Gas win and Super Comp runner-up at the JEGS All-Stars Shootout, and won the NHRA Route 66 Nationals Super Gas title.
10.) Brad Burton: 39 Points
Burton, the runaway leader in the NHRA Stock Eliminator standings, has earned all of his points in that category. He has a pair of national event triumphs, at Pomona and Las Vegas, to go along with a trio of NHRA Division 6 LODRS titles. Those wins came at Firebird Raceway, Mission Raceway Park, and Woodburn Dragstrip.
To view the 2012 BTE Power Rankings in their entirety, visit www.ThisIsBracketRacing.com and click on the 2012 BTE Power Rankings icon within the “Site Resources” menu. Remember, in order to earn season-ending prizes, all drivers must be registered annual subscribers to ThisIsBracketRacing.com by September 1. The BTE Power Rankings on ThisIsBracketRacing.com is sponsored in part by BTE, Todd’s Extreme Paint, Mickey Thompson Tires, and Auto Meter Precision Instruments.
