PremiAir Nulon Racing has raced through for a C-Final victory at Dragway at The Bend’s Riverbend Nationals today, as part of what was a truly epic Top Fuel show at the state-of-the-art South Australian facility.
After qualifying third fastest on Saturday (link to Sat report), Xiberras once again lined up against Phil Read for what was the opening Top Fuel racing pass of the weekend.
The pair had the fans on their feet with an incredible side-by-side 3.824/324.07mph (Xiberras) to 3.808/303.48mph (Read) pass, with the pair separated by a razor thin margin at the finish line and Read taking the narrow win.
In round two, Xiberras was forced to get off the throttle early in the PremiAir Nulon Racing Top Fuel dragster but still clocked a 3.825-second run at 293.96mph in his pass against defending champion Damien Harris – who in the same pass, ran the quickest and fastest Top Fuel ET over 1000ft outside of the US, a marker Xiberras has held for a number of years.
Those results saw Xiberras into the C-Final for a solo-pass, taking the win with a 3.840 second pass at 315.06mph.
The A-Final win went to Phil Lamattina over Harris, while the B-Final victory was claimed by Read over Wayne Newby.
The team now looks ahead to May’s Nitro Champs which will feature two rounds of the NDRC Top Fuel Championship across May 3-5, with plenty on the ‘to do’ list already as the team looks to overcome an issue that is holding them back in the 60 foot zone. For event info, go to ndrc.tv
QUOTEBOARD: PETER XIBERRAS – RIVERBEND NATIONALS, SUNDAY 7 APRIL, 2024
“What a weekend, the Top Fuel field were really on fire all weekend and the crowd here was amazing, it was a great
weekend for Top Fuel racing, that is for sure,” Xiberras said.
“When it came to our racing in particular, three-eighties are okay but that isn’t where it is at anymore, and we are being held back by an issue which is seeing us give away vital time in the 60 foot compared to everyone else.
“Our half-track speed and top end speed has been really good, but we haven’t been able to fix that 60 foot time just yet, and that is causing us some issues.
“But we never give up and it is back to the workshop now to try and get that sorted before the double round in Sydney.
“In the meantime, we have to say two big congratulations.
“First to Damien Harris on taking our record of the quickest and fastest Top Fuel ET outside of the US – we have held that for a few years now since setting it at the Winters, what an achievement for him to run that in what is not his main car and we are very happy for him and the Rapisarda Autosport International team.
“Secondly, to Phil Lamattina – what a great A-Final victory, one that was very well-deserved. It is a shame that we didn’t get to run against him in any of the runs this weekend, we really enjoy racing with him and hopefully we get to match up in Sydney.”
For more information on PremiAir Nulon Racing, please visit www.premiairracing.com or follow the team on its social
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