Reigning Top Alcohol Funny Car World Champion Sean Bellemeur won the Dodge Power Brokers NHRA U.S. Nationals. This is Bellemeur’s second US Nationals win in the Steve Boggs tuned Bartone Brothers Camaro. Bellemeur’s other Indy win came in 2018.
In what appeared to be a “must win” situation, the Killer B’s team delivered a win to stay alive in the NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car Championship. But this wasn’t just a win – this was a US Nationals win!
Throughout qualifying the torque converter equipped cars seemed to have the upper hand. But Steve Boggs and crew would have none of that. With wholesale changes to the tune-up Bellemeur came out swinging with consistent low-to-mid 5.40 second runs that seemed to daylight the field in eliminations.
“It’s no secret we’ve struggled this summer said Bellemeur. The converter cars are making big waves right now. They’re fast. Westerfield is tough. The fields are tight. Boggs called a little meeting and said “we have to stop worrying about what everyone else is doing and just start focusing on making us better. That’s the only part we can control” and he sure did that. I’m really proud of him and our guys for making a hell of a hot rod out of that Bartone Bros. funny car”.
The Tony Bartone owned team took on the always tough DJ Cox Team in the final frame. A consistent .051 reaction time and a blistering 5.467 second ET proved to be too much for the consistent running DJ Cox. and his .044 reaction and 5.568 second run.
Surprisingly, this is only the second National Event win for Bellemeur in the 2022 campaign. His earlier win came at the Charlotte 4-wide event in May.
“We’ve fallen behind in the points this year Bellemeur added. We’ve struggled for a few reasons. We have to start reeling off some wins here if we’re going to have a shot at the championship. Indy was a perfect example of what this team is capable of. They tend to rise to the occasion when we need it most. All of my guys are absolutely the best in the business and I’m proud to call them my teammates. As we went deeper into the rounds and the car was rattling off 40’s, the guys kept their heads down and just did their thing. Their professionalism, the fact that they can stay loose, they stick to the plan. It just awesome to see and it’s fun to be a part of”.
Sean and the Bartone Team are going to need more weekends like Indy for them to get back into the TAFC Championship fight controlled by Shane Westerfield at the moment.
Lurking just back of Westerfield is the Doug Gordon team. Gordon is finishing assembly on a new Jonnie Lindberg car after his accident in Brainerd. He is expected back on the NHRA tour in just a few weeks.
And, with a couple of races in DJ Cox’s back yard over the next few weeks, don’t count out the hard running Maryland native. He is no stranger to final rounds and wins at Reading and Charlotte – the next races on the NHRA National Tour.
This is going to get interesting….
Summary Of Bellemeurs’ US Nationals Eliminations:
Round 1:
Sean Bellemeur, Placentia CA, ’22 Camaro, Left lane, (0.017) 5.488 266.58
def.
Jim Whiteley, Grand Junction CO, ’22 Camaro, (0.051) 17.452 88.22
Round 2:
Sean Bellemeur, Left lane, (0.023) 5.438 267.22
def.
Andy Bohl, (0.076) 5.579 266.00
Round 3:
Sean Bellemeur, Left lane, (0.030) 5.470 266.48
def.
Shane Westerfield, (0.032) 12.162 96.71
Round 4 – Final:
S Bellemeur, Left lane, (0.051) 5.467 266.21
def.
DJ Cox Jr., (0.044) 5.568 262.39
Low ET: Sean Bellemeur 5.438 seconds
Top Speed: Sean Bellemeur 267.22 MPH
Pro Alcohol Drag Racing Media