Press Release | SCRAPPERS RACING
SEATTLE (July 21, 2024) - It was a banner weekend for the Scrappers Sisters as they continued to improve their performances in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series at the NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways. In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Jianna Evaristo raced her Scrappers Racing Buell to a quarterfinal finish, setting new track records in both speed and elapsed time while her sister, Jasmine Salinas, achieved a new personal best speed behind the wheel of her Scrappers Racing Top Fuel dragster.
Jianna showcased her driving prowess with consistent runs throughout the weekend. But it was her final run of 6.802 seconds at 200.86 mph that landed her in the No. 7 qualifying position where she would face Pro Stock Motorcycle veteran Steve Johnson in the first round of eliminations.
After several rain delays and on-track incidents, the ultra-competitive Pro Stock Motorcycle category took to the track for eliminations in the early afternoon today. Johnson got a slight advantage over Jianna at the starting line but the talented driver of the Scrappers Racing Buell outpaced him to the stripe with a blistering pass of 6.733 at 201.52.
In the quarterfinals, Jianna faced current Pro Stock Motorcycle world champion Gaige Herrera. Herrera held on to his starting line advantage for a holeshot win, but it was Jianna’s performance that brought fans to their feet as she reset both ends of the track record for Pacific Raceways, making the fastest and quickest run of her career, a 6.704 at 203.95.
“Leaving here as the track record holder is not something I thought I would ever experience,” said Jianna. “It’s bittersweet because I reset the track record E.T. and speed, but lost on a holeshot. And I lost to someone who has been perceived as almost unbeatable. It’s a good reminder of how much I have to work. It keeps me hungry and perhaps more importantly, it solidifies what I already knew. I can beat him. I have the equipment to beat him. I just have to become a better racer. Regardless of how it ended, I can’t be too sad about the weekend. I get to leave Pacific Raceways as a track record holder and have continued to improve upon my personal bests. We’ve always known that this bike has a lot of power, so I need to focus on that and build upon this momentum.”
In Top Fuel, Jasmine raced to a new personal best speed on Friday evening when she rocketed to the No. 5 qualifying position with a pass of 3.734 at 332.43. The talented Top Fuel rookie earned a few valuable bonus points when she made the fastest run of the fourth qualifying session, a 3.798 at 320.66.
On race day, Jasmine faced motorsports legend Tony Stewart in the first round of eliminations. Rob Flynn and Arron Cave expertly tuned the Scrappers Racing dragster for the cool conditions presented on race day and their efforts paid off as Jasmine turned on the win light against Stewart with a pass of 3.777 at 330.31. In the quarterfinals, she lined up against the current Top Fuel world champion Doug Kalitta. In one of the best side-by-side drag races of the day, Kalitta only slightly outpaced Jasmine when his 3.729 at 325.06 defeated her 3.738 at 324.83.
“We’re leaving Seattle hungry and ready for Sonoma,” said Jasmine. “Our car ran some great numbers this weekend and that’s something we’ve been working on getting back to this year. I know what I’ve got to keep working on as a driver and I feel like I’m getting a better handle on this car with every run we make. I’m excited to see what happens during these next two races leading into Indy.”
The Scrappers Sisters will head to their home track, Sonoma Raceway, for next weekend’s DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals in Sonoma, Calif., July 26-28.
(Photo Courtesy Scrappers Racing)
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