“Showtime” Scores in Shreveport
Royal Purple Outlaw Fuel Altered Series
Story & Photos – Chris Graves

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Round two of the Royal Purple Outlaw Fuel Altered Series got underway May 3rd at Red River Raceway in Shreveport, Louisiana. The Gambler Nationals saw a field of thirteen blown fuel altereds take the stage with the Inside Drag Racing TV cameras rolling for the first time this year. Bret Kepner and Inside Drag Racing TV will film the seven remaining events on the tour which will be broadcast on the ION Network. A cold front made its way through the night before and conditions were favorable and expected to improve as the cars paired together in the lanes.

The pace was set in the first pair down the track. Donnie Massey’s “Showtime” went a career best 3.96 at 184 mph along side J.T. Heslink’s “Punisher” who also set a career mark running 4.12 at 163 mph. What a way to start the show. Bobby Marriott got his new look “Shockwave” machine up on three wheels on his first run. The car made a hard move to the centerline and started hazing the tires then got mixed up as he corrected. Marriott had his hands full and will rarely lift off the throttle. His 4.28 at 136 mph got him in the show but his 3.99 at 185 in second session bumped him to the top. And yes, he was hazing the tires wide open through the lights, awesome! Marriott was number one qualifier and event winner here last year. Points leader Nick Poloson and crew chief Tom Wood are looking very sharp this season and made two strong runs in qualifying with a 4.13 and a 4.10, good enough for the four spot. J.T. Heslink also made two quality runs backing up his 4.12 pass with a 4.16 at 169 mph in second session, good for fifth.

“Outlaw” Jack Hodgson and company had the most consistent car in qualifying with a 4.10 and 4.11 which would start them in third heading into eliminations. John Broussard, on familiar turf in his native state of Louisiana, nibbled on his career best mark with a 4.21 at 166 mph securing him a spot in the quick ten. Brad Rigler’s “Toxic” went 4.22 which was only good for eighth in this very stout field. Donny McSwain’s “II N’Tense” is proudly pounding the ground again and running stronger than ever. His 4.17 at 170 mph put him in sixth and David Purifoy in Herb Whisnant’s “Thrill Factor” got in on the bump with a 4.68 at 154 mph just behind Larry Reep’s 4.56.

Chris White piloted the ex. Bob Voirin “All American” nitro burner for the first time in competition and unfortunately missed the field but impressed the fans with some nice header flames. DoDad Burton left before the tree was activated on his last qualifying attempt and also missed the cut. Eight of the ten qualified cars ran under a 4.23 elapsed time and the first round would provide some great action as the teams battle to be one of the two quickest winners and advance to the final. A gambling man had no chance of picking a winner as everyone was on their game in Shreveport.

The cackle of fuel altereds broke through the air as the national anthem concluded and racing got underway under superb conditions. Donnie Massey rolled out lined up against John Broussard. A clutch gremlin caused Massey to miss the second session of qualifying and the change in conditions did not shake the “Showdown” as Massey took the win with a 4.00 at 182 mph. Although Broussard had a starting line advantage of almost two and a half tenths his 4.44 in “Purple Haze” was no match. J.T. Heslink lined up next to Roy Sanchez who subbed in for the broken David Purifoy. Sanchez was making his second consecutive start in as many races since his debut this year. Heslink got the jump at the start and took the win with a 4.15 at only 149 mph. The “Sundown” crew of Nick Poloson fired up along side Austin’s Larry Reep in the “Grim Reeper.” Reep has fallen off pace of late from his usually heavy hitting numbers while Team Reep irons out some bugs in a new combination. To say a 4.20 pace is falling off shows how hard this car has run in recent past. Poloson kept his perfect elimination record alive taking out Reep with a 4.14 at 172 mph in a close race. Brad Rigler stepped up large and earned a temporary spot in the final against Massey with a winning 4.12 at 171 mph defeating the red lighting Jack Hodgson. McSwain and Marriott cranked their machines to wrap-up first round. If the winner runs quicker than Rigler’s 4.12 they advance to the final and gain a minimum of ten points. It was time to go hard or go home. McSwain cut the best reaction time of the round with a .038 and took the win and advanced to the final with a career best 4.11 at 168 mph, wow! All five first round winners ran under a 4.16 elapsed time, undoubtedly a series record. An impressive first round indeed and expect nothing but the same in the future because these teams are hard after those precious Royal Purple points. DoDad Burton hung the rods on a solo test pass but went a nice 4.25 doing so, but it was McSwain and Massey who would square off to decide a winner.

The Outlaw Fuel Altered final followed the Smiley’s Racing Products Southwest Junior Fuel Association final which saw last year’s series champ Keith Breazeal take the win over Steve Dunkin. So the final pair pulled into the waterbox. Donnie Massey vs. Donny McSwain, nitro vs. blown alcohol, “Showtime” vs. “II N’Tense.” Massey had an edge performance wise but McSwain could make the difference up at the starting line. The remaining racers and fans crowded the starting line for the last altered pair of the night. McSwain’s last final round appearance at Prescott, Arkansas last spring resulted in a horrific crash and that may have shook him at the startling line as he left before the tree counted down and Massey thundered to a solid 3.99 at 179 mph to take the win, his first since August of 2004. I’d say the team from Little Elm, Texas has a handle on their racecar and took a well earned win that came very overdue.

Final Round Results:
(W) Donnie Massey (.399 rt, 3.99 @ 179 mph) vs. (L) Donny McSwain (Red light, No Time)

“We went into the show guessing with our tune up and the first run went surprisingly well. We had a small issue with the clutch in second session but got the win in first round and lucked out in the final with McSwain’s red light. I want to thank my crew Paul, Les and Clinton and my wife Judy. We are here to race and have fun but when it all goes right a win is even better,” says Massey.

Massey even had icing for his cake as he won the P&M Speed and Machine Shop $250 bonus from Mike McClendon for low elapsed time of the event. Massey also took home the Smiley’s Racing Products “Progressive Qualifying Bonus” for qualifying second at the second event and Brad Rigler won the Disciple Cycles “Luck of the Draw” bonus.

Low Elapsed Time – Donnie Massey (3.96) Top Speed – Bobby Marriott (185.87 mph)

Bonus Winners:
P&M Speed and Machine Low E.T. – Donnie Massey
Smiley’s Racing Products Progressive – Donnie Massey
Disciple Cycles Luck of the Draw – Brad Rigler
MaxCacklePhotos.com Best Burnout – J.T. Heslink