Just when it looked like new faces were taking over the Pro Street class, four-time champ Mike Slowe came alive on the Playthings Racing turbo GSXR-1000, driving from middle of the pack in qualifying to his first win of the season at the AMA Dragbike Spring Nationals.
Slowe turned in his trusty 'Busa to ride the low and light GSXR this season. Owned by Tim Ulmen, the freshly-painted and updated bike was run by Nicky Mazeika last season. Mazeika brought the team a championship in Super Street in 2008 but struggled on the Pro Street machine. Ulmen opted for a change and put Slowe-who he calls a "human computer"-on the bike to help crew chief Anthony Navarro sort it out. Slowe quickly brought the bike to performances in the 7.30's but it was still off-pace in the fast-changing class.
It all came together at a MIROCK event when Slowe became the first rider ever to win a Pro Street event on a GSX-R1000.
Slowe did not qualify well at Martin, running 7.44 for the sixth spot but came alive in eliminations, running low ET on race day with a 7.28 to win the event over Darren Burnett.
"Anthony and I are working well together and he has been making some good tuning decisions," said Slowe. "With the weight transfer of this bike we were able to get down the track when a lot of the other guys were spinning the tire. They were worried about the track and tuning it back and we were able to tune it up."
John Fernandez, who won the Super Street championship last season but was orphaned when the class was eliminated from the AMA Dragbike tour, found a new home in Real Street. Bike owner Chris Jones reconfigured the championship ZX-14 for Real Street racing and Fernandez was able to grab his first win of the year in the class. The win also gave him the Real Street points lead.
Jeremy Teasley is known as one of the best new-generation sportbike drag racers out there, but has inexplicably struggled in Super Sport. The two-time Real Street champ got it together this season with his second straight Super Sport win to grasp the points lead.
Mike Slowe, who dominated...
Mike Slowe, who dominated Pro Street on a Hayabusa, looks to win the championship on the Playthings Racing GSX-R1000 this season.
Darren Burnett went to the...
Darren Burnett went to the finals in both the Pro Street race and Saturday's Shootout competition.
Bud Yoder took his second-straight...
Bud Yoder took his second-straight Pro Street number one qualifying spot and followed it up with a Shootout win on Saturday on Ronnie Mitchell's fast Hayabusa. Yoder didn't make the call in the semifinals with a mysterious oiling problem.
Chip Ellis, who won the 600...
Chip Ellis, who won the 600 Super Sport championships in 2004, went to his first SS final in six years at Martin.
Last season's Super Street...
Last season's Super Street champ, John Fernandez, stepped up to form in Real Street, taking the points lead with his first win of the season.
Luis Sierra came out of nowhere...
Luis Sierra came out of nowhere to make the Real Street final but was disqualified when his front wheel was found to be over the legal weight limit.
Ryan Schnitz debuted the new...
Ryan Schnitz debuted the new BMW S1000RR for Brock's Performance in Super Sport competition. Schnitz qualified the bike fourth but crashed it during Sunday testing.
Jeff Kohler shows how it's...
Jeff Kohler shows how it's done old-school on his '81 GS1100.
Steve Smithers and Mike Claycomb...
Steve Smithers and Mike Claycomb had the first "tie" in AMA Dragbike history. In their first round Pro Street race, the timing computer was unable to pick a winner within a thousandth of a second. Track management asked to sign a copy of the time slip.