Can’t win ‘em all

Although normally run at the Irwindale Speedway, the fourth installment of the Annual Manufacturers’ Challenge Cup Race presented by BG Products was instead run at Barona Raceway, just outside of Ramona, California. The change in venue didn’t make a difference to turnout however, as four teams attended, each with twenty-five of the finest racers.

Mopar was represented with a team sponsored by Edge Racing Converters, while Chino Hills Transmission footed the bill for the GM team, Ford was sponsored by A/FX racer Ernie “The Attorney” Algorri, and Mickey Thompson Tires sponsored a wild card team.

The final pair would be the two racers with the most wins, and so GM team member Greg Phillipson (above), who earlier ran a 5.55 ET on an identical dial-in with a .026 RT, lined up his ‘Philly Flash’ Nova against the ’72 Ford Maverick of Jim Adams. It was decided before the green light ever flashed, as Phillipson left just .061 early, handing the win to Adams, who ran a 6.934 at 94.80 mph on a 6.87 dial-in. For his win Adams took home the Manufacturers’ Cup trophy plus a cool $1000. Phillipson took the $500 for runner-up.

Sad to say, at the end of the event, the Ford team took first with 42 wins, while coming in second was the Edge Racing Converters-sponsored Mopar team with 26 wins. Third place with 24 wins was taken by the wild card team, and the GM team brought up the rear with 23 wins. (James Drew photos) [07/01/10]