NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Deric Kramer, who won two of the four burnout challenges that ran throughout qualifying during the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals, was declared the winner of the Pro Stock Battle of the Burnouts, edging Shane Gray for the title.

Kramer won the Q4 and Q5 titles while Gray won in Q2 and was runner-up in Q4 and Q5, giving them both 400 points. Because Kramer had more “wins,” he was declared the overall champion and won the $5,000 first prize from Denso Spark Plugs.

Both drivers took different tactics. Gray went for distance while Kramer went for smoke by locking his American Ethanol Dodge on the line and fogging in the starting line.

“I just tried to see how far we could carry it out there; I wasn’t too interested in just sitting there,” said Gray. “The burnout contest should be whoever can do a burnout the furthest.”

Kramer countered, “If I could see through all the smoke I was making I could have tried to drive it a little further.”

Judging in the contest was a two-step process, with the top two burnouts of the round decided by NHRA’s announcers, who then turned it over to the fans for a vote-by-applause. The winner of each session got 200 points and a set of Goodyear slicks; the runner-up got 100 points. Vincent Nobile was the other session winner, getting the most votes in Q1 Friday.

“I feel great,” said Kramer. “The fans really responded to the competition and I was happy to please them. It’s a good feeling to get a nice RPM, feel the motor and feel the car and let ‘em roast.”