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2013 NHRA: Nobile Begins 2013 Season On A High Note With Sixth Career Victory
NHRA Pro Stock sensation Vincent Nobile began the 2013 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing season in the best way possible with a win in this weekend’s 53rd annual O’Reilly NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Pomona Raceway. Nobile defeated teammate Jeg Coughlin in the final round after Coughlin red-lighted.
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"It’s really awesome to win, especially to do it in front of the whole Mitsos family and the Mountain View Performance team," said Nobile, referring to team owners Nick and Irene Mitsos, who reside just a few miles from Pomona. "We are leaving here with the points lead and that’s every team’s goal. Now, we just want to stay there. We need to stay consistent and the wins will keep on coming."
Following several very successful off-season test sessions, Nobile’s Hemi-powered NAPA/Mountain View Performance Dodge Avenger was exceptionally consistent in Pomona as he qualified in the No. 5 spot with a 6.5 and made runs of 6.58, 6.59, and 6.57 in his three wins against Matt Hartford, Shane Gray, and Greg Stanfield. Nobile also ran a 6.58 in the final round but that run did not come without some drama as Nobile stalled the car after the burnout and struggled to get it re-fired. Opponent Coughlin also had his share of problems as his JEGS Avenger stalled on the starting line.
"We messed with the carburetors before the final in order to fix a problem and we ended up hurting something else," said Nobile. "After the burnout the car actually stalled on me. Then Jeg’s car stalled. I didn’t know what was going on. At one point they told me that he was broken and that I was getting a single run and then his car started again. It was crazy but thankfully, we got the win."
With one of 24 events in the books, Nobile is also the NHRA Pro Stock points leader for the first time in his career. He leaves Pomona with 118 points. Coughlin is second with 95 points and V. Gaines third with 81.
"There is a long, long way to go but it’s great to be No. 1," said Nobile. "In Pro Stock and in every other class, consistency is the key. At the end of last year, I went to three-straight finals rounds and now we have another win to our credit. In my first year, I finished fifth in the points and last year I was third. I’d like to better that this year."
Nobile, 21, will now return to his native New York where he attends classes at Adelphi University in Garden City, N.Y. He, and the rest of the NAPA/Mountain View Performance team will be back in action next weekend at the NHRA Arizona Nationals in Chandler, Ariz. Nobile won Arizona event in 2011.
PaddockTalk Perspective
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