Torrence Falls to Stewart at Norwalk

It was same story, different verse Sunday for four-time World Champion Steve Torrence whose CAPCO Contractors Top Fuel Toyota stumbled in the heat at Summit Motorsports Park, unable to capitalize on the .022 of a second starting line advantage he forged over point leader Tony Stewart in the second round of the 18th Summit Racing Equipment Nationals.

Stewart won in 3.908 seconds after Torrence’s CAPCO dragster slowed from 3.939 in a round one win over Shawn Reed to 5.113 seconds at only 143.89 miles per hour.  

“Like I’ve said so many times the last couple seasons, we can’t seem to get on the same page,” Torrence said.  “When the driver’s good, the car isn’t and when the car’s good, there’ve been times when the driver hasn’t done the job.

“Today, I was on the ‘Tree, but the car couldn’t handle the heat and smoked the tires,” said the 55-time Mission Foods tour winner and only driver to have won NHRA championships in both the Top Fuel and Top Alcohol classes.  “Really tough out there for drivers, crew chiefs, crew members, fans, everybody and it just makes it worse when you’re not winning.”

Torrence and Co. will have two weeks to regroup and reassess their options before racing resumes July 18-20 at the 36th Muckleshoot Casino Northwest Nationals at Seattle, Wash., a race they’ve won the last two years and three times overall.

Despite the early exit, the 42-year-old Texas rancher and businessman remains seventh in the driver standings with just four races remaining before the points are adjusted for the start of the Countdown to the Championship.

Owner of the longest active winning streak in the Top Fuel division, one he extended to 11 straight years with a win earlier this month in the Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol, Tenn., Torrence had been seeking his fourth win in his last seven appearances in the Summit Nationals.