Burford Banks First SWJFA Win at Ardmore Dragway
The Southwest Junior Fuel Association landed at Ardmore Dragway on Saturday, September 3rd for their second event of the season. Entering the event, Mike Millsap was leading the points after his win at the season opener in Wichita, Kansas. Tough competition was in the house at Ardmore Dragway including former multi-time series Champion Odie Coker as the qualifying got underway.
(Mike Millsap)
After two sessions, Coker's 4.69 at 147 sat atop the pack followed by Millsap's 4.80 at 143. SWJFA rookie Rusty Burford qualified third with a 4.83 at 142 while Mike Buchanan and Bill Tumlinson rounded out the field heading into eliminations. The pairs were set and teams made their final adjustments back in the pit area before returning to the staging lanes to play for keeps.
Final Qualifying Order:
Final Qualifying Order:
1. Odie Coker (Dallas, TX) - 4.69 @ 147
2. Mike Millsap (Sachse, TX) - 4.80 @ 143
3. Rusty Burford (Combine, TX) - 4.83 @ 142
4. Mike Buchanan (Goddard, KS) 4.92 @ 142
5. Bill Tumlinson (Victoria, TX) - 5.03 @ 134
(Odie Coker)
Eliminations:
In round one, points leader Millsap went -.011 red against Burford and Burford took the win with a 4.82 at 142 mph to Millsap's quicker 4.81 at 143 mph. Coker blasted off the line first against Buchanan and Coker's 4.69 at 146 mph moved into the semi-finals over Buchanan's 4.88 at 142 mph. Tumlinson drew the bye run and posted a 5.16 at 133 mph to advance to the semi-finals.
(Mike Buchanan)
(Rusty Burford)
First Round Results
(W) Rusty Burford (.025 rt) 4.82 @ 142 vs. (L) Mike Millsap (-.011) 4.81 @ 143
(W) Odie Coker (.060 rt) 4.69 @ 146 vs. (L) Mike Buchanan (.022 rt) 4.88 @ 142
(W) Bill Tumlinson (-.024 rt) 5.16 @ 133 vs. (L) Bye Run
Semi-final action got underway with Coker and Tumlinson coming to the line. Tumlinson was off the line first but Coker quickly closed the gap and pulled ahead with a 4.70 at 144 mph to take the win over Tumlinson's 5.06 at 133 mph. Burford drew the bye run and posted a 4.82 at 142 mph to move into the his first career SWJFA final round in his rookie season to take on the veteran Coker for the Ardmore title.
(Bill Tumlinson)
Semi-Final Results
(W) Odie Coker (.087 rt) 4.70 @ 144 vs. (L) Bill Tumlinson (.051 rt) 5.06 @ 133
(W) Rusty Burford (-.058 rt) 4.82 @ 142 vs. (L) Bye Run
The final round came to the line under the lights as Coker and Burford did their burnouts and crept into the stage beams. At the flash of amber, Burford was off the line first with a .009 reaction time while Coker's car shot to the centerline forcing him to pedal the throttle. Burford was hooked up and charging hard with his best pass of the night, a winning 4.80 at 143 mph to Coker's aborted run of a 5.48 at 95 mph. Rusty Burford and company secured their first SWJFA event win in only their second appearance with the series, congratulations to the entire team!
Final Round Results
(W) Rusty Burford (.009 rt) 4.80 @ 143 vs. (L) Odie Coker (.042 rt) 5.48 @ 95
(Rusty Burford - Ardmore Winner)
The SWJFA series would like to thank Lubrication Engineers Inc, Hilborn Fuel Injection, Hayden Enterprises and Champion Spark Plugs for their support this season. The next event on tour will take the group to Tulsa Raceway Park on September 17th for the Nitro Nationals, before closing the season at Pine Valley Raceway in Lufkin, Texas on Saturday, October 22nd.
