Allen Johnson Hopes to Bring the Thunder to the Valley on Raceday in Bristol

BRISTOL, Tenn. (June 17, 2017) – Marathon Petroleum Co./J&J Racing Dodge Dart driver Allen Johnson drove his way to the No. 7 spot after four rounds of qualifying at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.

On Friday, Johnson began his qualifying efforts with a solid 6.730-second pass at 205.13 mph. Battling against high humidity, the entire Pro Stock class made their best attempts in the extreme conditions. In the second session, Johnson and the Adam Hornberger-led team clocked in with a 6.745, 204.26.

Saturday, the red, white, and blue Marathon Petroleum Dodge Dart crossed the finish line at Bristol Dragway with a 6.752, 205.60. It was a 6.738, 204.63 that closed out qualifying for the Marathon Petroleum/J&J Racing team after a brief rain delay.

“In the final session, we really got after it and it finally 60-footed better,” Johnson said. “I know we can be competitive tomorrow.”

No. 7 Johnson will have lane choice over No. 8 Alex Laughlin in the first round. In eliminations, Johnson is 5-0 against Laughlin.

“Our tune-up is really close to the top right now,” he added. “It’s going to be hot and tricky out there but we have a setup for that kind of weather. We don’t change our tune-up a lot during raceday unless the weather changes a bunch but we just gotta get after it tomorrow like we did today in the final session. If we can do that, we could very well win this thing tomorrow.”