NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

After dodging a tire-smoking bullet in round one, reigning world champ J.R. Todd is wasting no time making good use of that reprieve, powering the DHL Toyota to a 3.961 to defeat Tommy Johnson Jr., who exploded the supercharger for the second straight round.

Todd will cede semifinal lane choice to 2017 champ Robert Hight, who beat his boss, John Force, with a strong 3.87, the second straight 3.8-second pass for the Jimmy Prock-tuned Auto Club Camaro.

Bob Tasca III, who broke a chassis Friday and had to revert to a backup, beat Jack Beckman in a terrific race, 3.95 to 3.96, to advance his new Motorcraft Mustang to the semi’s, where he will take on Matt Hagan, whose Dickie Venables-tuned Sandvik Coromant Dodge raced to its best run of the event, a 3.89.

Semifinal matchups (lane choice first): Robert Hight vs. J.R. Todd; Matt Hagan vs. Bob Tasca III

[Round 1 recap]