Grindstaff Tallies First T.B.F.A.
Win at Texas Raceway
Event #6 – Texas Raceway – Kennedale, Texas – September 9th, 2011
Report: Chris Graves - Photos: Toyse Woody

The Texas Blown Fuel Association held their sixth event of the 2011 season at Texas Raceway in Kennedale, Texas on September 9th, on a steamy Friday night under the lights. Nine cars were in attendance to put on a show as Chris Stouffer came in leading the points standings. Stouffer won the last event, the B.H.R.A. Nationals also held at Texas Raceway, and hoped to repeat his effort and notch a third straight TBFA win.

The teams warmed up their blown power plants and soon after the call went out for the first qualifying session. Steve Matthews wheeled his front engine dragster to a nice 4.73 at 147 mph to take the preliminary pole in the first session. Matthews was followed closely by Don Holley who laid down a 4.76 at 146 mph in the “Rattlebone” slingshot and Chris Stouffer held the third spot with a 4.78 at 149 mph in the “Defiant” rail.

(Don Holley)

(Eddie Taylor)

Eddie Taylor tripped the clocks with a 4.98 in the “Faded Memories” entry and Wes posted a 5.05 in the “Bad O’Man” blown altered. Leonard Ament got no time as he left before the tree was activated but the defending series Champion would have another shot in session number two. Rick Grindstaff, Kenneth Rierson and Mike Wheeler missed the combination in the opening session and hoped to set the mark in the next round as the teams returned to the pits to prepare for the final qualifying session.

(Wes Breiten)

Steve Matthews picked up a few hundredths of a second with a nice 4.70 at 147 mph to secure the number one qualifying position. Leonard Ament jumped up to the number two spot in the “Black Magic” blown Fiat with a 4.75 at 145 mph. Rick Grindstaff stepped up to a 5.07 at 138 mph to earn the number seven qualifying position and Mike Wheeler clicked off a 4.62 pass, just a few hundredths under the index, but proved he had the ponies to play in eliminations.

(Leonard Ament)

(Rick Grindstaff)

Kenneth Rierson was behind the wheel of Frances & L.H. Newlin’s “Cantankerous” blown altered and his 7.38 kept him in the number eight spot. Eddie Taylor blew a head gasket in his final qualifying pass which put him out early along with Wes Breiten who broke an axle in his final qualifying pass. Steve Matthews led the field into the first round of eliminations and in doing so earned the JamWorks Chassis & Competition Sales of Dallas #1 Qualifier Bonuses.

Final Qualifying Order:

1. Steve Matthews (Ardmore, Oklahoma) – 4.70 @ 147
2. Leonard Ament (Denton, Texas) – 4.75 @ 145
3. Don Holley (Denton, Texas) – 4.76 @ 146
4. Chris Stouffer (Cleburne, Texas) – 4.78 @ 149
5. Eddie Taylor (Arlington, Texas) – 4.98 @ 136
6. Wes Breiten (Wolfe City, Texas) – 5.05 @ 107
7. Rick Grindstaff (Dickinson, Texas) – 5.07 @ 138
8. Kenneth Rierson (Tolar, Texas) – 7.38 @ 56
9. Mike Wheeler (Paradise, Texas) – 10.53 @ 44

Opening the first round action, number one qualifier Steve Matthews drew a date with points leader Chris Stouffer. This was a powerhouse match-up as the two silver blown front engine dragsters crept into the beams. Stouffer got a slight jump off the line as the cars blasted side by side down the eighth mile. Stouffer was out in front and lifted just before the finish line attempting to make sure he didn’t break out, but threw up a 4.62 elapsed time just three hundredths too quick and Matthews’ advanced with a 4.84 at 144 mph. A definite disappointment for team “Defiant” as their winning streak ended yet Stouffer and company will remain the points leaders heading into the next event at Tulsa Raceway Park.

(Chris Stouffer)

Rick Grindstaff rolled out next along side Mike Wheeler’s “Rapture” blown altered. Wheeler went too quick in the final qualifying session and did everything he could to not break out as he had the opening round in the bag, with Grindstaff spinning the tires at the hit. Wheeler got out of it before the stripe but incredibly still went quicker, with a 4.57 at 131 mph, which broke him out, advancing Grindstaff to the semi-finals.

(Mike Wheeler)

Leonard Ament and Kenneth Rierson wheeled their blown machines to the line as eliminations continued. Ament was off the line first and never looked back, clicking off a 5.17 at 119 mph to take the nod over Rierson’s 5.64 at 129 mph. This advanced Ament to the semi-finals as and team “Black Magic” hoped to earn their first win of the season after posting a runner-up finish at Texas Raceway last month.

(Kenneth Rierson)

Don Holley had the lucky hand by drawing the bye run in an odd numbered field and struggled to a 6.57 but would advance to the semi-final where he would face number one qualifier Steve Matthews.

First Round Results:

(W) Steve Matthews (.137 rt) 4.84 @ 144 mph vs. (L) Chris Stouffer (.110 rt) 4.61 @ 147 mph
(W) Rick Grindstaff (.155 rt) 10.80 @ 35 mph vs. (L) Mike Wheeler (.201 rt) 4.57 @ 133 mph
(W) Leonard Ament (.148 rt) 5.17 @ 119 mph vs. (L) Kenneth Rierson (.269 rt) 5.64 @ 129 mph
(W) Don Holley (.325 rt) 6.57 @ 75 mph vs (L) Competition Bye Run

Rick Grindstaff and Leonard Ament started off the semi-final round in a dragster versus altered battle for a spot in the finals. Both cars were slightly off pace and pedaling to the stripe but Grindstaff had the better pass with a 5.19 at 136 mph to advance over Ament’s 5.56 at 136 mph. Grindstaff would advance to his first final round of the season in the “Quarterflash” slingshot as the next two cars rolled through the water box.

(Don Holley 'near lane' vs. Steve Matthews 'far lane')

Don Holley and Steve Matthews brought their blown front engine machines to the line. They left almost dead even but Holley ran into issues and fell back, Matthews taking the stripe with a 4.62 at 148 mph, just three hundredths under the index, advancing Holley to the final round on the break out to face Grindstaff. The T.B.F.A. was guaranteed a first time winner as both drivers were heading to their first series final round.

Semi-Final Results:

(W) Rick Grindstaff (.157 rt) 5.32 @ 139 mph vs. (L) Leonard Ament (.122 rt) 5.56 @ 136 mph
(W) Don Holley (.128 rt) 7.41 @ 61 mph vs. (L) Steve Matthews (.111 rt) 4.62 @ 148 mph

They weren’t the quickest, but they may have been the luckiest two teams on the property as Rick Grindstaff and Don Holley returned to the staging lanes for the final time of the night. As the burnout smoke cleared, the drivers crept their machines to the starting line, focused and intent on notching their first T.B.F.A. event win.

Grindstaff took a slight starting line advantage and both cars were off the throttle early and pedaling for traction. Grindstaff hooked up first and took the advantage to the stripe with a 5.32 at 139 mph to earn him and his team the win at Texas Raceway. Holley gave it his best with a 6.26 at 93 mph but came up short yet the team was thrilled with their runner-up finish.

(Final Round - Rick Grindstaff 'near lane' vs. Don Holley 'far lane')

Final Round Results:

(W) Rick Grindstaff (.164 rt) 5.32 @ 139 mph vs. (L) Don Holley (.180 rt) 6.26 @ 93 mph

“Most importantly we want to thank everyone for attending this event and we put on the best show we possibly could have for the fans. I also want to thank my whole crew that makes this possible, it’s truly a team effort, thanks to Don Davila, my son Matt, Keith and Cari Breazeal for their help at Kennedale. Without the team, we wouldn’t be able to race and we look forward to the next one at Tulsa,” said Grindstaff.

(Team "Quarterflash" - TXR Winners)

(Team "Rattlebone" - TXR Runner-Up)

Team “Quarterflash” jumped from seventh to fourth in the points standings and Leonard Ament claimed the number two spot over Willie Brainerd. The battle for positions in the top five at seasons end will be heated with just two events left in the 2011 T.B.F.A. racing season. Chris Stouffer has the lead by a safe margin but this is drag racing and nothing is certain, as Leonard Ament is in the best position to give Stouffer a run for the Championship.

The Texas Blown Fuel Association would like to thank Good Vibrations, Competition Sales of Dallas, JamWorks Chassis and Brodix Cylinder Heads for their support of the 2011 bonus programs. Round seven of the 2011 TBFA season takes the series to the Nitro Nationals at Tulsa Raceway Park, Saturday September 24th where they will share the stage with the Outlaw Fuel Altered and Southwest Junior Fuel Associations.

Click Here to see photos from this event!

Good Vibrations Quick Reaction Time Bonus - Chris Stouffer (.110)

JamWorks Chassis Top Qualifier Bonus - Chris Stouffer

Comp. Sales of Dallas Top Qualifier Bonus - Chris Stouffer