Johnson’s Maiden Voyage in Mopar® Dodge Avenger Results in No. 5 Spot in NHRA Winternationals Thursday Qualifying

Following months of testing and tuning, the Greeneville, Tenn., native’s Mopar Dodge Avenger reeled off a first-class first pass. Johnson posted a 6.611 ET at 209.39 mph in the first run that counted in his Mopar Dodge. Lower elapsed times and higher speeds will come in the final two days of qualifying, according to Johnson.

“We were really conservative on the starting line,” said Johnson, who is celebrating his 15th year on the Pro Stock circuit, all in a Mopar-powered Dodge. “That right lane always bites people, but maybe we were a little bit too conservative. The tune-up is close. For the first run in the new Mopar Dodge Avenger, right off the bat, we were happy. We’ll throw another Mopar HEMI motor in for tomorrow and compare motors a little bit while we’re qualifying.

“It seemed like we ran a little closer to Mike (Edwards, defending Pro Stock champion) at Vegas last weekend than what we did today, so hopefully the other motor will be a bit better and we can pick up another couple of hundredths. If the air stays the same, I think we can go .57 or .58. That’s what we’re shooting for.”

Mopar-powered veterans Vinnie Deceglie and V. Gaines also experienced fine competition debuts in their new Dodge Avengers. Deceglie, who will work closely and share data with Johnson’s J&J Racing team, posted a run of 6.613/209.23, good for No. 6 today. Gaines’ run of 6.647/207.82 penciled him into the No. 11 spot at the end of today’s session.

One round of qualifying will take place tomorrow, with two final qualifying sessions set for Saturday, Feb. 13, at Auto Club Dragway at Pomona. Elimination rounds are scheduled to take place on Sunday, Feb. 14.