POMONA, Calif. – Tony Schumacher raced to the Top Fuel qualifying lead Friday in the NHRA's season-opening Winternationals with a 3.758-second run at a top speed of 328.14 mph.
Schumacher's parachutes failed to deploy after the run and his car came to a stop in the sand trap at the end of the track. He wasn't injured.
"It was a great run," Schumacher said. "From half-track to the finish line it was extremely fast. It was just a dynamite run. The parachute came out and it dropped for whatever reason. It could be a million different things that was the problem. Every time I would start to bounce I'm on and off the brakes because you got to settle it down. I flipped the second parachute out and I don't think it opened quick enough."
Jack Beckman topped the Funny Car field, and Mike Edwards had the Pro Stock lead. Beckman had a pass of 4.045 at 316.67, and Edwards finished in 6.528 at 212.39.
The final two rounds of qualifying are set for Saturday.
Receive your weekly recap of all the happenings around the world of sports.