Zappia overcomes dramas to set pace at Westernationals
The countdown is on to race day at the Westernationals after a big day of qualifying at Perth Motorplex on Saturday in the fifth round of the 2022/23 Burson Auto Parts Australian Top Fuel Championship.
In ADRC Top Doorslammer, John Zappia put in an inspired performance by improving across each pass to top qualifying at the Westernationals.
Zappia finally overcame the issues that have caused his Dannani Hot Shots Fuchs Lubricants Monaro to pull to the right on a number of occasions across the season.
But there were no sign of dramas on Saturday’s running at the Westernationals as he claimed the number one spot from the first outing with a 5.697 second pass.
Despite the strong pace, Zappia immediately improved to a 5.675 ET and then bettered it again with a storming 5.614 second pass in the final qualifier.
He said a Supercharger change was key behind the continued improvement of pace and eyes the national record of a 5.64.
John Zappia smokes it from the start line at Perth Motorplex. Image: Crackling Pipes Photography
“In the first run the car went pretty much dead straight for a 5.69 second pass at 254 miles per hour,” Zappia said.
“Then we came back and changed the Supercharger as we wanted to see which was our better blower so we put the spare on.
“We went out for the next run and the track had got better. The car slowed down off the startline but it made up for it, running five kilometres faster for a 5.67 ET at 257 miles per hour – our best speed since we have been running the Ty-drive converter and B&J Three Speed.
“Then for the final with the startline getting better we put a bit more power in and left everything else the same and the car just kept pulling and pulling, it was on a mission and it went 5.614 at 256.88mph. A tad slower, but under the national record – but too far under to be backed up by the previous pass.
“Sunday is another day, and hopefully we can back up the national record – although at the end of the day, I own the national record anyway at 5.64.
“We are definitely looking forward to racing tomorrow, and hopefully we can get back to the winners circle.”
Zappia was relieved to overcome the gremlins that have held him back throughout the season, which emerged within the suspension.
“We checked out the suspension and found something that wasn’t where it should have been, so we readjusted the suspension,” he said.
“The car had been turning right all season and last week in the Street Outlaws it kept us from getting past Jeff Lutz.
“It has plagued us for a long time and we have been trying to drive around it, but I had to back off last week and Lutz got past me! So, we put the fibreglass body back on and the long front end back on and checked out the suspension and made the adjustments before putting our A motor back in.”
Also turning heads was Lisa Gregorini and her all-female racing crew, who successfully licensed for Top Doorslammer after a lengthy process and then went on to qualify fifth in a highly competitive field at the Westernationals.
Following two rounds of qualifying for the Top Fuelers, Wayne Newby set the top pace of 3.822.
However, Newby believes his time could have been even quicker, if not for throwing a belt.
Wayne Newby in action at the Westernationals. Image: Cackling Pipes Photography
“It was on a really good number when we top qualified, and it threw a belt off,” he recalled.
“It was probably going to run into the seventies, possibly a seventy seven or somewhere around there, so that is a bit disappointing, but I am definitely still happy to be top qualified.
“I am feeling confident heading into race day. Hopefully we can go out there and keep the momentum going and maybe we can even win this thing!
In ADRC Top Fuel Motorcycle, a number of the entrants struggled with overpowering the track, but not Benny Stevens, who was the pacesetter across the entire session.
Stevens topped the sheets in Q1 with a 6.64 second pass, which was enough to hold onto the number one spot in Q2 despite not presenting due to bike issues.
He returned in Q3 to go two tenths faster and cement his spot as the Top Qualifier with a 6.45 ET.
Full results of the Westernationals can be found here at https://motorplex.com.au/drag-
The Top Fuel, Top Doorslammer and Top Fuel Motorcycle action at the Perth Motorplex continues today with three rounds of racing starting from 4.00pm WA time.
For event information including full schedules, entry lists and more, go to www.motorplex.com.au
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