Sixth Season Victory at Las Vegas Caps 2013 Top Fuel Championship
Horne-Romine Racing’s Doug Horne capped his NHRA Harley-Davidson Drag Racing Series Top Fuel Harley Championship season with a win over Tommy Grimes at the The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway November 3, winning a coveted NHRA Wally championship trophy and a $7,500 bonus from Harley-Davidson Motor Company.
After mathematically clinching the 2013 Top Fuel Harley championship in October at Bristol Motor Speedway, Horne qualified second at Las Vegas behind Grimes. He ran down Mike Scott in Round 1 with a 6.295-second/226.32 mph pass, and then bested Jay Turner in Round 2 with 6.317 at 210.90 mph before lining up against Grimes in the final. Grimes got the holeshot with a 0.011-second reaction time to Horne’s 0.032 light, but Horne had the horsepower to run him down at the top end, posting a 6.403/225.82 mph run to Grimes’s 6.536. The win was Horne’s sixth of the season in the NHRA Harley-Davidson Drag Racing Series. Grimes also finished as runner-up in the championship.
“I’m very fortunate that my dad, Steve Horne, has surrounded me with great, knowledgeable people throughout my racing career. Our Top Fuel Harley is a top notch motorcycle that runs superbly everywhere we take it, all because of the preparation and dedication of our crew chief Mike Romine. We work well together, we have fun together, and most of all, we have the drive to win together,” Horne said. “I’m thankful that NHRA partnered with Harley-Davidson to give all of us Harley racers the opportunity to race at amazing venues and to show how great the sport of Harley drag racing really is. It was a great year from start to finish. I can’t wait to do it all over again next year.”
