Bakersfield, CA - March 07, 2018:

Coming into the 2018 Good Vibrations Motorsports March Meet Mendy Fry and the HSMS team were confident they could go back-to-back after handily winning the 2017 race. However, the weekend was plagued with cold and rainy weather that turned the schedule upside down and played a major roll in Fry's failure to repeat.

Thursday was dry and there were a lot of cars who took advantage of the open testing. That was the good news.

The race officially kicked off with Friday Qualifying. In the sole Top Fuel session that featured a host of off pace runs it was Mendy Fry who managed to put a good number up (5.736 at just 219.51) leaving her #1 and the class of the field by over two tenths. The 8 car bump spot was a dismal 7.515 at 215.27. With rain literally washing out the other two session meant that those racing on Sunday would be a crap shoot with their lack of data and uncertain conditions.

After calling it due to rain on Saturday afternoon, officials made the decision to run 8-car Top Fuel Eliminations on Sunday based on Friday qualifying session order. With last minute hopes of running the All-American Fuel Dragster Dirty Dozen 12-car Eliminations dashed, four weather-beaten racers like Tim Cullinan who came all the way from Des Plaines IL, towed back home.

Sunday was insane. With all the eliminations class cars that needed to get runs and several time consuming delays, the finals were run well after dark. By then the cold temps were colder and the track surface was far below optimal heat.

But to get to those chilly finals, we need to take care of the business of qualifying and eliminations. Hope you enjoy the coverage

For the first, and what would prove to be the only, Top Fuel qualifying session featured two NTF veterans Mendy Fry in the High Speed Motorsports fueler that finished #2 in the 2017 Top Fuel Championship points. And local favorite, Rick McGee in the Tedford & McGee "Overtime Special".

Fry clicked it at the 1000' mark and still carded a nice 5.736 at just 219.51 which showed everyone the track High Speed was there to win. The time put her #1 with a bullet, a full two tenths quicker than the #2 car. McGee was done early and had to coast to a 13.982 at 63.63 which left him on the outside looking in.

Saturday was a complete wash out which meant the top fuel ladder was made up of the times run on the solo session on Friday. Sunday was nice so the race was cobbled together hoping for the best.

Due to the lone qualifying session, two drivers who would normally be in the top half of the field pitted #1 Mendy Fry and #8 Adam Sorokin.

Sorokin was his usual self with a stellar 0.048 RT. However, the master was second best as Fry cut an even better 0.036 light. You will hardly ever see these kinds of reaction times in a Top Fuel race. Great job both.

Sorokin recovered and gave chase but it was way too late to cover Fry's monster 5.696 at 261.42 which was low ET for the round by a ton.

After routine maintenance, the car was ready for round two. Tom Shelar went out to evaluated the track and decide what lane they wanted.

Out of the waterbox came Mendy Fry and Jim Murphy, who finished one-two in the 2017 points race, to see who would go to the final.

Fry once again showed everyone that the High Speed car was by far the class of the field, carding a 5.600 at 250.97. Murphy coasted through.

After what seemed like an unreasonable wait, the nitro finals did not take place until after 7 p.m. on a very cold racing surface where finding traction was a major problem.

Looking for a repeat March Meet win was the 2017 champ Mendy Fry and TF sophomore Pete Wittenberg - the overwhelming underdog.

Before the tree Wittenberg went into tire smoke. Fry was long gone until she wasn't. The high horse power HSMS fueler rattled the tires, got out of the groove and the car went over the center line handing the win to the "Circuit Breaker".