After all, when you win four in a row at a facility in a class as tough as Super Stock, it is safe to say you have mastered that track.
After sweeping Super Stock at Bradenton Motorsports Park in 2012, Nowicki returned to the facility this season for the Bradenton Nitro Jam and Division 2 Summit Racing Equipment Pro-Am Tour presented by AMSOIL double and once again swept the weekend, giving him four Ironman trophies from the western Florida facility all during a jam-packed weekend that featured one of the largest crowds in Bradenton Motorsports Park history.
Joining Nowicki in doubling up at Bradenton Motorsports Park were Mark Mullen in Hot Rod and Victor Fera in Top Dragster. The rest of the winners from the double event weekend were Mike Thompson and Rick McDonough (Top Sportsman), B.J. Bianchi and Anthony Puleo (Stock), John Biermann and Robert Greenling Jr. (Quick Rod) and Dave Marcus Jr. and Darius Poitier (Super Rod).
Also taking home Ironman trophies during the weekend were Brian Fredrickson (Top ET) and Sonny Freeland (Mod ET) and Junior Dragster winners Camryn Fredrickson and Anthony Addeo (Masters), Gage Burch and Nicholas Ferrara (Advanced) and Cody Krohn and Katie Craft (Beginner).
Nowicki began his journey to four straight with a Saturday march through the Super Stock ranks in front of the sold out Bradenton crowd on hand for Nitro Jam later that evening. Already an accomplished racer and with a little added motivation of a crowd cheering him on, the Michigan native whittled down the competition behind the wheel of his ’98 Dodge Avenger until it was only him and Pat Clifford left standing. In the final Nowicki nailed the tree with a .020 light and ran a 6.030 second lap at 107.83 miles per hour on a 5.98 dial in the 1/8 mile competition to take the win. Clifford ran a 6.191, 108.68 on a 6.18 dial.
On Sunday Nowicki did it again, only this time Merrill Schrimscher was his opponent as Nowicki once again cut an incredible light – this time a .003 – to take the win as Schrimscher broke out.
Also doubling up over the weekend was IHRA newcomer Mark Mullen who has visited every final round so far this season in Division 2, winning three times. In Bradenton Mullen went five rounds behind the wheel of his ’66 Chevelle, downing Vinny Laudicina in the final on Saturday and was unopposed on Sunday. Mullen won on the tree on Saturday with a .038 light being the difference as his opponent was very slow off of the line, while a rare incident on Sunday left Mullen with a freebie. In the semifinals on Sunday Ken Buckner and Charles Aldrich both left before the three was activated, disqualifying both drivers, leaving a defacto final round between Steve Dweck and Mullen for the Hot Rod title. Both drivers broke out, but Mullen was closest to the numbers with a 6.992 on a 7.00 to take his third trophy of the year.
Finally in Top Dragster Merritt Island, Florida native Victor Fera went five big rounds both days with one of the fastest dragsters in the field before defeating Jon Siegel and Steve Dweck in the two finals. Fera used a .014 light on Saturday to overcome a perfect 4.88 on a 4.88 run by Siegel on Saturday and then followed that up with a very close race against Dweck as Dweck won the battle on the tree and Fera closing in at the top end with a 4.673, 147.73 on a 4.66 dial.
In other action defending Top Sportsman world champion Mike Thompson continued to pad his Summit Pro-Am points lead with a win on Saturday and world number two B.J. Bianchi took the Stock win on Saturday in front of the Nitro Jam crowd.
Heat Wave Division racers head to Carolina Dragway for their next IHRA Summit Racing Equipment Pro-Am Tour event June 7-9.
The following are the final results from the IHRA Summit Racing Equipment Pro-Am Tour presented by AMSOIL double-header at Bradenton Motorsports Park:
SATURDAY
Saturday's final results from the IHRA Bradenton Nitro Jam presented by CarSafe, Metro PCS and Southern Ford Dealers, Day Two at Bradenton Motorsports Park. The race is the third of eight in the 2013 Nitro Jam Series:
TOP SPORTSMAN - Mike Thompson, Naples, Fla., '03 Chevy Cavalier, 4.706, 148.63 def. Rick McDonough, SW Ranches, Fla., '01 Chevy S-10, 4.817, 145.48.
TOP DRAGSTER - Victor Fera, Merritt Island, Fla., dragster, 4.669, 147.13 def. Jon Siegel, Riverview, Fla., dragster, 4.880, 138.58.
SUPER STOCK - Mark Nowicki, Gaylord, Mich., '98 Dodge Avenger, GT/DA, 6.030, 107.83 def. Pat Clifford, Apopka, Fla., '85 Chevy Camaro, GT/CA, 6.191, 108.68.
STOCK ELIMINATOR - B.J. Bianchi, Bradenton, Fla., '89 Ford Mustang, L/CM, 7.152, 91.11 def. Anthony Puleo, Palm Bch Gardens, Fla., '85 Chevy Camaro, I/SA, 7.343, 91.93.
QUICK ROD - John Biermann, Loxahatchee, Fla., dragster, 5.719, 131.31 def. Ron Raymond, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., dragster, 5.756, 125.20.
SUPER ROD - Dave Marcus Jr., Sarasota, Fla., '92 Chevy Camaro, 6.401, 125.48 def. Jim Walter, Sarasota, Fla., '57 Chevy Bel Air, 6.398, 125.06.
HOT ROD - Mark Mullen, Bradenton, Fla., '66 Chevy Chevelle, 7.052, 91.05 def. Vinny Laudicina, Boca Raton, Fla., '83 Chevy Camaro, 7.028, 105.77.
JUNIOR DRAGSTER MASTERS - Camryn Fredrickson, Palm Harbor, Fla., 8.264, 76.71 def. Marie Muller, Pinellas Park, Fla., 8.271, 75.19.
JUNIOR DRAGSTER ADVANCED - Gage Burch, Palmetto, Fla., 8.936, 71.81 def. Nicholas Ferrara, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., 9.024, 70.43.
JUNIOR DRAGSTER BEGINNER - Cody Krohn, Rotonda West, Fla., 12.059, 53.22 def. Nick Gueli, Ellenton, Fla., foul.
SUNDAY
The following are Sunday's final results from the Summit Racing Equipment Pro-Am Tour presented by AMSOIL, Heat Wave Division 2 day two at Bradenton Motorsports Park:
TOP SPORTSMAN - Rick McDonough, SW Ranches, Fla., '01 S-10, 4.869, 140.14 def. Scott Davis, Pompano Bch, Fla., '97 Cutlass, 4.752, 148.80.
TOP DRAGSTER - Victor Fera, Merritt Island, Fla., dragster, 4.673, 147.73 def. Steve Dweck, Hollywood, Fla., dragster, 4.760, 141.75.
SUPER STOCK - Mark Nowicki, Gaylord, Mich., '98 Avenger, GT/DA, 6.006, 112.96 def. Merrill Schrimscher, Lake Mary, Fla., '66 Chevy II, SS/HA, 6.331, 106.42.
STOCK ELIMINATOR - Anthony Puleo, Palm Bch Gardens, Fla., '85 Camaro, H/SA, 12.480, 41.43 def. Louie Groth, Webster, Fla., '66 Belvedere, U/SA, foul.
QUICK ROD - Robert Greenling Jr, Naples, Fla., dragster, 5.702, 129.36 def. Brandon James, Loxahatchee, Fla., dragster, foul.
SUPER ROD - Darius Poitiel, Pompano Bch, Fla., '68 Camaro, 6.434, 116.20 def. Jim Walter, Sarasota, Fla., '57 Bel Air, foul.
HOT ROD - Mark Mullen, Bradenton, Fla., '66 Chevelle, 12.207, 58.09 was unopposed.
JUNIOR DRAGSTER MASTERS - Anthony Addeo, Delray Bch, Fla., dragster, 7.920, 84.05 def. Hannah Bouldry, Sarasota, Fla., dragster, foul.
JUNIOR DRAGSTER ADVANCED - Nicholas Ferrara, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., dragster, 9.126, 68.63 def. Katrina Carpenter, St. Petersburg, Fla., dragster, 8.886, 71.66.
JUNIOR DRAGSTER BEGINNER - Katie Craft, Melbourne, Fla., dragster, 12.650, 50.89 def. Cody Krohn, Rotonda West, Fla., dragster, 12.052, 53.30.
ET FINAL - Sonny Freeland, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., '70 Camaro, 6.871, no speed def. Brian Frederickson, Palm Harbor, Fla., dragster, foul.
TOP ET - Brian Fredrickson, Palm Harbor, Fla., dragster, 4.911, 134.26 def. Claude De Bonis, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., dragster, 4.699, 145.96.
MOD ET - Sonny Freeland, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., '70 Camaro, 6.159, 111.05 def. Jon Siegel, River View, Fla., '79 Malibu Wgn, 6.693, 96.23.
