The second leg of the Northern Swing delivered a decisive result at Alice Springs Inland Dragway. John Zappia swept the Desert Nationals - top qualifying, event victory, low ET, top speed, and new track records in both elapsed time and mph.

It was the kind of weekend that separates consistency from dominance.

Qualifying and Elimination Rounds

Zappia topped qualifying with a 4.07 at 187.50 mph, ahead of Ben Bray (4.11 at 184.43) and Grant O'Rourke (4.13 at 183.67).

In Round 1, the Fuchs Monaro ran a 4.009 at 189.87 to defeat local Darwin resident Matt Abel (4.274 at 179.28). Elsewhere, newcomer Fenech dispatched Victor Bray (4.299 to 4.489), O'Rourke put away Perth's Mark Chapman, and Ben Bray ended Belleri's campaign with a 4.106 at 183.67.

The semi-final saw Zappia post near-identical numbers - 4.009 at 189.87 - to defeat Fenech. The mph differential confirmed the horsepower advantage; the task was managing it without overstepping. Ben Bray advanced with a 4.089 at 185.95 over O'Rourke, setting up a final between two of the category's sharpest competitors.

The Final

Bray took the holeshot. Zappia drove through it. The winning margin: 25 thousandths of a second.

"Benny got the holeshot on me - I had a bad light on that one. But the overall winning margin was 25 thousandths of a second, so there was not much in it at all at the finish line. We come away with the only three-second pass for the weekend - the track record for ASID on the eighth mile, and also the overall speed record of nearly 194 miles per hour for this track." - John Zappia

The Noonan Engine Package

The Darwin and Alice Springs meetings marked the first competitive outing for a Noonan's Ultimate Race Engineering block, paired with existing Noonan heads. Early results point to untapped potential.

"We will do more R&D with this combination and testing with full power at the better tracks should show us what it can do." - John Zappia

Zappia also credited Southside Engine Centre for their role in getting damaged parts from the Winters back to race condition ahead of the Northern Swing.

Championship Standings After Round 2

Zappia now leads the ANDRA Championship on 184 points, followed by Ben Bray (154), Mark Belleri (131), Gary Phillips (126), and Grant O'Rourke (114).

"We are on track for our goal of winning ten straight championships - a testimony to all the hard work our crew, team, and supporters have invested over that period." - John Zappia

What Comes Next

Zappia Racing takes a short break before preparing for testing and further R&D. The next round of the ANDRA Top Doorslammer Championship is scheduled for Adelaide International Raceway on 3-4 December 2016.