Heeeee’s Back! “Two Hundred Tony” Franco Back To Toyota Dragstrip/Irwindale Thurs. June 17
Release Date: 6/16/2010
Irwindale. Calif. - - Tony Franco, the first (and only) driver to crack the 200 mile-per-hour barrier at Toyota Speedway and Dragstrip will be back at the ‘Strip at Irwindale on Thursday night, June 17, to light up the night once again with his 12,000 horsepower "Terminal Velocity" Pro Jet Dragster.
May 27 was an uncharacteristically cool night after a day that threatened (and delivered in some areas near the Speedway) rain all day long. A perfect night for a record pass, but not a great day for spectators. No one (even Franco if you ask him) expected to see the record books re-written that evening.
In what was the fastest-ever "warm up pass" ever seen on the Toyota Dragstrip, Pro Jet Dragster driver Tony Franco scorched the 660-foot distance in a record 4.54 seconds and flashing through the top speed traps at an astonishing 182.26 miles-per-hour!
Back at the pits, the Oxnard driver indicated that he was happy with the car, the strip, the set-up, and the wind, and was simply going to top off his aptly-named, 12,000 horsepower, "Terminal Velocity" with a couple of gallons of fuel and go for "2 Bills" on his next pass down the strip.
The timing slip told the tale, but anyone watching along the spectator fence got the idea long before the announcer could yell out the incredible litany of numbers that read: .843 (reaction time), 1.002 (0-60 feet), 2.617 (1/2-way 330 feet) and 3.827 (the1/8-mile). And then came the top speed: Two Hundred and Seven (.) Sixty-one Miles Per Hour (207.61)!
"Needless to say we were all astonished with Tony’s record-setting first run at 182 and change," said track GM Bob DeFazio. "And, quite honestly, until last night 200 was just the number that comes after 199, we’re please that Tony could come back for the 17th and give us all another thrill."
The forty-six year old Franco has been racing professionally for "about eight years … all in jets," he told us. Asked how the Toyota 1/8-mile looks at two hundred plus miles an hour, Franco simply told us that good concentration is must with this kind of horsepower and at these speeds. His long, low wild racer is powered by a Pratt & Whitney J60-6 engine with "AB" (afterburner).
Drag racing happens every Thursday night at Toyota Dragstrip at Irwindale. Fans can park right in the pits and watch hundreds of runs up close for only $10 or go up against the NHRA "Christmas Tree" starting lights themselves for only 20 bucks. For more information: toyotadragstripatirwindale.com. See you at the Strip on Thursday!
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