Sean Bellemeur and the Tony Bartone owned Top Alcohol Funny Car Team sailed to win number 3 with power and consistency. The Power has always been there but the consistency has been lacking at times during the 2023 season. At the Charlotte NHRA Betway Nationals both were on display.
A strong crop of Top Alcohol Funny Cars were on display for the 18th National Event of the NHRA season. After 3 sessions Ulf Leanders from Viksjofors Sweden led qualifying going in to eliminations with a 5.439 second 267.53 mph run. Bellemeur would slide into the number 2 spot in qualifying and take on Melinda Green-King in the first round. At the green Bellemeur was away first and cruised to a 5.439 267.96 mph win over Green-King’s 5.70 254.81 mph effort.
Next up, in round 2 Bellemeur would face off with Central Region Standout Bob McCosh who had defeated a rejuvenated and strong running Andy Bohl in the first round. Bellemeur would defeat McCosh in the closest race of the weekend, Bellemeur getting to the stripe first by just .009 of a second.
It didn’t get any easier for Bellemeur and the “Killer B’s” Team in the Semi-finals, facing off against Maple Grove winner and 2022 championship contender DJ Cox. Bellemeur was up for the challenge getting away from the starting line first and powering to a 5.453 268.06 mph win over Cox. Cox who managed a 5.543 265.80 mph run was off-pace from his 5.444 run he used to beat Kris Hool in round 2.
Heading in to the final Bellemeur would take on current class points leading Shane Westerfield. Westerfield dispatched Matt Gill in round one, Ulf Leanders in round two, and had a laddered bye run in the semi-finals on his way to the final.
In the final an uncharacteristic .086 red-light foul by Westerfield handed Bellemeur the win. Westerfield made his quickest run of the event in the losing effort – posting a 5.475 with a speed on 266.42 mph. Bellemeur shut his car off early and aborted the run upon seeing the red-light by Westerfield.
Bellemeur would later comment on Social Media: “It’s special when you win… it’s really, really special when you win with family. Special weekend in Charlotte with a really special group of people. Thanks to all of our sponsors and fans”.
This is the Bellemeur’s third win of the season and tightens up the NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car Championship even further. Four teams are still in the hunt. Shane Westerfield still holds the lead but Gordon, Cox, and Bellemeur are all right there striving for wins and hoping Westerfield stumbles in his bid to hold on to the championship points lead.
Race Notes:
- In the past two or 3 races many teams have a renewed focus on performance and consistency and it really is showing dividends on the track. Many teams have really stepped up their games. These TAFC teams are producing strong consistent runs with great reaction times by drivers.
- The NHRA TAFC Championship could reasonably come down to the last 2 races of the season. This is exciting and we all hope it gets the media and scheduling attention it deserves.
- Andy Bohl deserves a mention here. His performance has really taken a nice direction of late and he seems to be back to the Andy Bohl of a few years ago. This is nice to see after what he has been through. To get his program back to this performance level after all the bad luck he has experienced is great to see. Andy has always had one of the fastest MPH cars on the planet and it is back in a big way!
TAFC Eliminations:
Round 1:
Kris Hool, Evansville WY, ’16 Camaro, Right lane, (0.074) 5.531 266.64 def. Tony Bogolo, Hamilton OH, ’19 Camaro, (0.019) 5.648 262.08
Ulf Leanders, Viksjofors SW, ’18 Camaro, Left lane, (0.104) 5.479 266.37 def. Bill Naves, Salisbury NC, ’14 Mustang, NT-No Show
Sean Bellemeur, Placentia CA, ’22 Camaro, Left lane, (0.050) 5.439 267.96 def. Melinda Green-King, Norfolk VA, ’21 Camaro, (0.124) 5.702 254.81
DJ Cox Jr., Whiteford MD, ’19 Camaro, Left lane, (0.053) 6.008 256.02 def. Brian Gawlik, Allentown PA, ’17 Camaro, (0.091) 6.724 230.45
Bob McCosh, Columbia MO, ’22 Camaro, Left lane, (0.067) 5.481 260.97 def. Andy Bohl, Racine WI, ’22 Camaro, (0.037) 5.548 270.16
Shane Westerfield, Fullerton CA, ’18 Camaro, Left lane, (0.054) 5.909 264.75 def. Matt Gill, West Bridgewater MA, ’16 Camaro, (0.047) 12.017 112.10
Round 2:
S Westerfield, Right lane, (0.026) 5.490 266.85 def. U Leanders, (0.077) 5.458 266.69
DJ Cox Jr., Left lane, (0.035) 5.444 266.58 def. K Hool, (-0.026 foul) 5.540 264.75
S Bellemeur, Left lane, (0.053) 5.463 265.38 def. B McCosh, (0.054) 5.471 268.33
Round 3:
S Bellemeur, Right lane, (0.024) 5.453 268.06 def. DJ Cox Jr., (0.041) 5.543 265.80
S Westerfield, Left lane, (-0.090) 5.694 210.87 was unopposed
Round 4:
S Bellemeur, Left lane, (0.015) 8.302 109.29 def. S Westerfield, (-0.086 foul) 5.475 266.42
Low ET: Ulf Leanders 5.439 seconds
Top Speed: Andy Bohl 272.17 MPH
TAFC Qualifying – Final Order
1 800 Ulf Leanders, Viksjofors SW, ’18 Camaro 5.439 267.53 268.60
2 1 Sean Bellemeur, Placentia CA, ’22 Camaro 5.452 268.38 268.38
3 4 DJ Cox Jr., Whiteford MD, ’19 Camaro 5.458 268.97 268.97
4 5 Kris Hool, Evansville WY, ’16 Camaro 5.462 268.12 268.12
5 3 Bob McCosh, Columbia MO, ’22 Camaro 5.482 269.35 269.35
6 9 Shane Westerfield, Fullerton CA, ’18 Camaro 5.487 267.85 268.65
7 14 Matt Gill, West Bridgewater MA, ’16 Camaro 5.496 261.98 261.98
8 313 Andy Bohl, Racine WI, ’22 Camaro 5.511 272.17 272.17
9 34 Tony Bogolo, Hamilton OH, ’19 Camaro 5.557 262.28 263.46
10 10 Brian Gawlik, Allentown PA, ’17 Camaro 5.561 261.83 262.69
11 226 Melinda Green-King, Norfolk VA, ’21 Camaro 5.714 254.52 254.52
12 196 Bill Naves, Salisbury NC, ’14 Mustang 6.132 222.33 222.33
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