The NHRA begins is third "playoff" season beginning today when qualifying starts for the NHRA Carolinas Nationals in Charlotte, N.C.
Here's who I like to be give championship speeches at the NHRA Awards Ceremony in November:

Top Fuel: Larry Dixon - Antron Brown has been the dominant competitor in the class, but I learned long ago never to bet against Alan Johnson, who is usually unbeatable in the fall. I don't see no reason to believe that will change.

Funny Car: Tony Pedregon - It's been a tight class, with Ron Capps scoring wins early, but Pedregon has come on in the summer, and despite losing his crew chief, Dickie Venables, has been very consistent the past few events and that may be the key to winning. But if you are looking for a dark horse, look no further than icon John Force, who has extra motivation now.

Pro Stock: Jeg Coughlin Jr. - Jeggie has been the one to beat all season, and he's shown the ability to step up the past two falls. No reason for that to change this year.

Funny Car racer John Force has been fined $10,000 by the NHRA for an incident involving physical contact with an NHRA official on Monday, Sept. 7 during the Mac Tools U.S. Nationals presented by Lucas Oil at O'Reilly Raceway Park at Indianapolis.

Videotape from the event showed Force making physical contact with an NHRA official at the top end of the race track during a confrontation with fellow Funny Car driver Tony Pedregon. Such physical contact violates the Participant Conduct policy as stated in the 2009 NHRA Rulebook. The fine, which can be appealed by Force, must be paid in full prior to participation at any future NHRA event.

Nothing like a little controversy to create some extra excitement at the Big Go.
Monday's U.S. Nationals seemed like a perfect ending for John Force Racing.
Daughter Ashley Force-Hood won her first Indy title and teammate and brother-in-law Robert High scored a final-round finish to steal away the 10th and final spot for the NHRA's upcoming post-season - the Countdown to the Championship.
And when something seems to good to be true, it usually is. It was no different Monday, which had some fireworks after John Force beat Cruz Pedregon, who was vying for the final playoff spot with Hight, in the quarterfinals, then suddenly followed it up with one of his worst reaction times of the year, losing to Hight in the semifinals, a race that clinched Hight's postseason bid.
Tony Pedregon, points leader and brother of Cruz, thought so. And its hard to argue the point.
"For a team owner to make a call and say I gotta allow my driver to win, I disagree with that. It's that simple," Tony Pedregon told NHRA Newswire reporter John Schwarb.
""I stand behind what I say. I'm trying to make a living, I'm a competitor," Pedregon said. "John and I are coming from two different places, he's got the money, he's got the cars, but outside of that I'm just trying to survive, I'm trying to be competitive, I've got sponsors over there. I know what goes on over there. Nobody's ever said it.
"John has been good to me, I love the man, but I think he should just accept it."
Force, who had a .209 reaction time, down from his season average .086, got out of the groove against Hight and smoked the tires, resulting in a sub-par 5.819. The video tape of the run show that the Pedregons might have a point as Force's car appears to veer right on the hit of the throttle before he spins the tires as Hight sails through for the win.
But the 14-time champion denied the charge.
"I can't help it that it came up that way, I don't set the field," Force said. "I do what I do. I've heard so many things like...'John was late on the line.' We both went up there, the only thing we said to each other was, 'OK, Robert, let's not screw this up and have some stupid red light and we both look like we did something stupid, let's put them in dead shallow and go.' That throws you off, I hate doing that, Robert said 'it screws me up,' but we did it, and it throws us both off.
"You ain't ever make the world happy, I know that and I'll go down the road and hope my sponsors understand that I'm doing what I do. But to have a guy (Tony Pedregon) call me a name and a cheat, like he thinks he knows, and say it in front of cameras and everybody, you've got no right. You can go to court over that stuff. That's that and I'll try to go the high road again."

Desperate times call for desperate measures, and it's reached that point for the John Force Racing team.
Force, already comfortably in the Countdown to 1, along with daughter Ashley, announced Sunday a drastic attempt to get son-in-law Robert Hight in the top 10 for the NHRA's version of the postseason.
Hight, who has struggled with consistence all year, will drive Force's ride during the final two races of the regular season - this weekend's Toyo Tires Nationals near Reading, Pa, and the U.S. Nationals near Indianapolis.
Hight trails No. 10 Cruz Pedregon by 70 points, with No. 11 Matt Hagan 30 points behind Pedregon.
"I said I wouldn't shuffle my crew chiefs for three races," said Force on ESPN's telecast of the Lucas Oil Nationals in Brainerd, Minn. on Sunday. "But I am moving a driver. Today, [I think] I earned enough to get my Castrol Mustang into the Countdown. It's not secure, but it's close enough. To be safe, I should have gone one more round, but I didn't, [so] I'm going with what we've got.
"I have about a 100-point lead with two races to go. Somebody is going to really have to do some damage to catch me, but we've got to get Robert back in the hunt, so I'm going to move Robert over to my car, and I'm gonna drive the Auto Club Mustang."
Hight, who has finished in the top five the past two seasons, is up for the challenge.
"We caught a break when Tony (Pedregon) beat Cruz," Hight said. "That was big for us. We're only three rounds behind Cruz for the 10th spot. We have two races (remaining before the field is set) and I am up for the challenge. I've been in pressure situations before and I am confident in my abilities.
"We are not out of this Countdown by a long shot."

This could have been a tough weekend for veteran Funny Car driver Tony Pedregon.
But there's a reason he's a two-time NHRA champion.
He showed why, winning the Lucas Oil Nationals in Brainerd, Minn. just days after dropping a bombshell on the NHRA circuit, announcing Friday that he and long-time crew chief Dickie Venables had parted ways.
It sure didn't look like it Sunday after he marched to four round wins, including beating second-place Ron Capps in the finals with a 4.149-second pass.
"I've had a long and successful career," Pedregon told NHRA.com. "I've been very fortunate to be able to drive for guys like Larry Minor and John Force. I've learned a lot from them, and I really felt that I'd been through everything, and I really didn't anticipate this happening on such a short notice. Thursday I knew the reality and I didn't really feel like I was in a panic. I'm very optimistic and I really believed that I had a good foundation to work with. I addressed my team when I showed up, and I told them that I really need them.
"I had all the information in front of me, and it was just a matter of putting the right people in the right places. There was a little bit of uncertainty, the fear of losing and wanting to win. I started to put things in perspective and I thought there is no need to panic. The first goal was to get here, put things in place, and I wanted to qualify. Once we qualified, I thought, well maybe we can go a round or two."
Pedregon will bring a 28-point lead into next weekend's event in Reading, Pa.
Other winners Sunday were Morgan Lucas in Top Fuel and Greg Anderson in Pro Stock.

Antron Brown, two years removed from moving from the Pro Stock Motorcycle ranks to Top Fuel, has an enjoyed a banner year so far during the 2009 season.
But Sunday might have been his finest moment.
Brown, who has sat atop the Top Fuel points standings most of the season, joined a select group by winning all three races of the Western Swing, capping it with a victory at the Fram Autolite Nationals.
The veteran competitor now holds a 199-point advantage over six-time champion Tony Schumacher with three races to go before the points are reset for NHRA's Countdown to 1 playoff after the U.S. Nationals over Labor Day weekend.
But Sunday, Brown just wanted to soak of the glory of joining Joe Amato (1991), John Force (1994), Cory McClenathan (1997), Larry Dixon (2003), Greg Anderson (2004) and Schumacher (2008) as the only drivers to sweep the Western Swing.
"This just doesn't feel real right now,"said Brown, who scored his fifth event victory of the season, beating McClenathan in the final round with a stout 3.99. "With all the turmoil and changes we had in the off season with Mike Ashley coming in to own our team - Mike is a fantastic team owner - this is unreal. With all the ups-and-downs we went through and with Brian Corradi and Mark Oswald, two Funny Car tuners, coming in it's such an awesome feeling.
"Through everything, we just kept our heads down and kept digging and we're where we want to be. We wanted to be competitive and compete for the championship and we've proven we can do that this season. I told Mike (Ashley) before the season that we could win eight races and to do that you've got to win rounds. Our plan, all season long, has been to take things one round at a time and that's what we do here at MAR. This is just awesome."
Other winners Sunday included Tim Wilkerson in Funny Car and Jason Line in Pro Stock.
Wilkerson won his second consecutive final round over Chino Hills' Tony Pedregon, who took over the points lead.
"We had a great car (Sunday)," Wilkerson, said. "Heck, we had a good car in Denver but I made a really bad tuning call in the first round. To win Seattle and then come to the next race and back it up with another win is great. I try to be smart and not have the fastest car out there but to be consistent. I am a little afraid that our car is getting fatigued and I thought about bringing out a new one, but after winning Seattle I decided against it. I'm still thinking about racing last year's car because I think it's a little more forgiving but I can live with it."

Funny Car driver Ron Capps, who has come up short in his quest to win his first NHRA championship, officially gets another shot.
The veteran, after making a pass of 4.215 seconds during the first round of qualifying at the Fram Autolite Nationals in Somona today, clinched his spot in the NHRA's Countdown to 1 playoffs.
"Obviously, it feels great to have clinched a spot in the Countdown," said Capps, who sits atop the Funny Car points standings after winning a class-best five national events coming into this weekend's event. "We have a lot of unfinished business. We want to stay No. 1 going into the Countdown. But to know that you're already going to be involved in the Countdown takes a little bit of pressure off, for sure.
"And now we can sit back and watch everybody else battle."
Now the question is who will join him.

Summertime?
And the living is easy?
Not for the competitors of the NHRA, who are readying themselves for the series toughest stretch of the season. It includes the famed Western Swing, a three-race stretch to the altitude of Denver, the mixed weather conditions of Seattle and the scoring heat of Sonoma.
The stretch begins this weekend with the Mile High Nationals near Denver and ends on July 26 with the Fram Autolite Nationals.
Only seven drivers have accomplished the feat of sweeping the three-race stretch and Larry Dixon, who has won four events, including the past two, comes into the series with the best shot at bringing out the broom. But he says its not always easy as 1-2-3.
"The elevation changes, the track surface changes, you start out at Denver where you're a mile‑high in elevation and you finish off in Sonoma where you're right at sea level," Dixon said. "So it's definitely challenging for the teams and being fortunate enough to have won all three, I just feel lucky to be a part of that deal, and obviously we are going to go out there and try and do it again."

The upcoming western swing has often been the make or break period of the NHRA season. That will be true for Auto Club Funny Car driver Robert Hight, who will need do well in the three-race stretch, which begins next weekend near Denver and concludes on July 26 in Sonoma.
The stretch is crucial for Hight, who after competing for the Funny Car title the past few seasons is in danger of missing the Countdown to the Championship playoff. He is currently in 12th place and trails Matt Hagan and defending champion Cruz Pedregon, who are tied for the final spot, by 55 points with six races left before the playoff field is set with the top 10 drivers in each pro division.
"We moved up a little," said Hight, who advanced two rounds in last weekend's event in Norwalk, Ohio. "We are three rounds - 55 points - back now. We went down the track five out of six runs. We were real respectable.
"We are in a really good spot. (Crew chief) Jimmy (Prock) has a car that is tuneable. The key for us is to get a good solid run in that first session so we can run later in that second session. It worked that way for us in Norwalk. I miss not being able to walk the track before we run. I told Jimmy that. We were running so early in the sessions I didn't have time to check out the track and clear my head. It was great in Norwalk to be at the back in qualifying with (teammate Mike) Neff. We are both fighting to move up in the points."
My personal view is this team is just too good not to make the top 10, and once they do, could find itself hosting the 'gold' Wally at the end of the season.

Who needs Alan Johnson?
Certainly not Tony Schumacher, who is proving his team's success over the last five seasons goes beyond the talents of Top Fuel tuning guru Alan Johnson.
Johnson has left and formed his own team, with two-time champ Larry Dixon has his pilot, and Schumacher's U.S. Army team has hardly missed a beat, winning the past two national events, including the SummitRacing.com Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday.
Schumacher was in old form, running a series of 3.9 and 3.8 runs to take over the points leading, including a stout 3.87 in a final-round victory over Brandon Bernstein.
"The team won today,"” said Schumacher, who scored his 58th career victory. "“I didn't do it with a great driving job like I did in Houston (last week). What a great tune-up we had. They carried me today. It went right down the track every time. That’'s what a team is all about. It'’s fantastic. That was a big (final) round. (Brandon) is an outstanding driver and they have a great team. You aren't just running an average guy. You've got to go up there and do your job. There are certain rounds that are just huge, and that was one of them.”"
The day was also good for Schumacher's Funny Car teammate Ron Capps, who won his third race of the season by beating another teammate, Matt Hagan, in the nitro coupe final. Jeg Coughlin Jr. was the winner in Pro Stock.
"I was asked several times by the media what was wrong the last two races, and I just never worried,” said Capps, who after scoring wins during the first two races of the season followed with back-to-back first round losses at the Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla. and O'Reilly Spring Nationals in Houston. "“Ace (crew chief Ed McCulloch) needed to get in his comfort zone. You’ll find a lot of teams seem like they may be struggling here the last couple of races, but with four test days for the whole year, there are a lot of teams, including us, testing stuff that you have to try in qualifying once you get in the show and even race day, believe it or not. So it’s tough to gage how people are really doing. ‘Ace’ was trying things.
"“We have found that just trying to approach the season like a NASCAR team and saying, ‘OK, as long as we’re in the Countdown and in the top 10,’ and try to focus and peak at the right time doesn’'t work. So we stepped it up, and 'Ace' is trying to rip their throats out every single run. You can’'t run these cars anymore and be halfway safe and just look to go down the track. You can’'t do it. You have to step all over these things with the tune-up, and the driver has to be on their game. It is days like this where it’'s fun. It sounds cliché, but we’re just focusing on one round at a time, one race at a time.”"

Robert Hight, driver of the AAA Ford Mustang for John Fore Racing, and Del Worsham, who pilots a first-year entry for Al-Anabi Racing, showed their talents are not limited to the dragstrip.
The two proved they are very solid on a different type of lane, pacing the way for NHRA competitors who took part in the USBC Open Bowling Championships at Cashman Center in Las Vegas on Thursday. The event was part of the advanced promotions for this weekend's Summitracing.com Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
The NHRA Floppers, led by Hight and Worsham, outdistanced the NHRA Holeshots, led by Pro Stock driver Jeg Coughlin Jr., and The NHRA Eliminators, paced by Top Fuel driver Shawn Langdon. The Floppers had a team score of 2,180 compared to 2,154 for the Holeshots with the Eliminators third at 1,972. Langdon led all competitors with a three-game total of 528. Hight was next at 525.
""Bowling is a lot like a race car when you consider you have to make a lot of minor adjustments as you go and the lanes change just like a track will change," said Hight, who posted game scores of 165, 178 and 182 to lead his team. "It was a fun experience. The other NHRA teams were really good too. It went right down to the tenth frame of the last game."

What a difference a year makes?
For Ron Capps a lot.
The Funny Car veteran, who failed to crack the top 10 last season, is now the guy to beat in Funny Car after scoring wins at Pomona and Phoenix. He now comes to South Florida and the Gatornationals, where he's had success in the past.
I like him this weekend, but here's some comments about the Cal native:
"When we won the Gators and went back to back and then won Houston I never would have thought that could have happened," Capps said. "So, anything is possible. What happens when you start running well is it puts pressure on other teams that race against you. And I've been in the other position where guys are hot and when it's your time to race them you definitely know it. So, you approach the race a little bit differently. You know you have to get after it, you know they're going to go down the track.
"I've been on both sides of the fence and I definitely like being on this side. It's great exposure for NAPA because that's what we should have done last year: given them at least a couple of wins. (Capps was winless in 2008, the first year NAPA AUTO PARTS came on board.) We feel like we're making up for lost ground and we are where we should be.
"One thing I've learned having won in Gainesville is that you take nothing for granted, especially the weather. More than likely, the conditions are not going to be mineshaft conditions unless you have a storm come in with cool weather because we're at the part of March where we have some sunshine, some humidity. If you look back at the elapsed times that won rounds when we won those two races there, they weren't stellar. We took what the track would give us and that's what I really love about racing with Ace (crew chief Ed McCullough). He knows when to race the race track and not your opponent."

As I was watching Matt Kenseth accepting the congratulations for winning the Daytona 380, I began wondering, 'Does the guy really want to win that way? Why can't they just comeback and complete the race Monday?'
You can bash the NHRA all you want for some of their decisions, but at least the winner in Top Fuel, Funny Car or Pro Stock still has to win four rounds to wind up in the victory circle, no matter how many days it takes. Can you imagine if the NHRA awarded a Wally after the semifinals, and said, 'Schumacher gets it based on his e.t. advantage in the semifinals.'
Just a thought.