Australian drag racer Andrew Cowin returned home from the U.S.A. to make a special one-off appearance at the Castrol Winternationals. Cowin, who drives the New York Yankees Top Fuel dragster owned by Darrell Gwynn on the lucrative NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series tour in the United States, will rejoin with his father, Graeme, at the Castrol Winternationals and drive the Cowin Family Racing dragster.

The car, which will feature backing from Rocket, is the same 7,000-horsepower Top Fuel dragster the 22-year-old drove to the final round of the NHRA Summit Racing Nationals at ‘the Strip’ at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in April 2001.

In it, Cowin has covered the standing quarter-mile in just 4.58 seconds, topping 323 miles per hour (520kmh) and, last year, finished 11th in the NHRA Top Fuel World Championship point standings. The car, along with the entire Cowin Family Racing inventory, was shipped back to Australia following Cowin’s signing with the New York Yankees-backed team.

“It’s been four years since the Cowin family has raced at home and I’m thrilled that the NHRA schedule allows me the opportunity to sneak home for a week and race at the Winternationals … “Darrell [Gwynn] has been kind enough to give me a release for the week and allow me to drive and I’m now looking forward to showing the Australian fans what the Cowin Family Racing team learnt racing in the US between 1999 and 2001. While you can never predict the performance of these awesome Top Fuellers, I’m confident, if the conditions allow, we’ll better the current Australian bests,” he said.

Graeme Cowin still holds the record for the quickest pass ever in Australia, set at 4.81secs at the Winternationals in 1997, while long-time rival Jim Read recorded the sport’s first and only 300mph run – 301.40mph (485kmh) – also at Willowbank Raceway early last year.  

Rain interrupted qualifying for the 35^th Annual Castrol Winternationals at Willowbank Raceway last night but not before 22 year old Andrew Cowin rocked the huge crowd with a stunning 4.75 at 314 mph (505 kph) to grab the number one spot in Castrol Formula R Top Fuel Eliminator. Sydney veteran, Jim Read recorded a strong 4.90 in the other lane to claim second position and provide the fans with Australia’s first side by side four second pass.

Heavy showers just after 6.00pm forced the abandonment of the night’s qualifying program part way through the second session of Hog’s Breath Café Top Doorslammer, along with the second session of Morgan & Wacker Top Bike, Doorslammer was completed Sunday morning but all other qualifying was cancelled. Fields were seeded for racing as they stood.

Sportsman racing commenced at 9.00 am as per the original schedule. Elimination racing for the iTEL Supercharged Outlaws and Screamin Eagle exhibition categories was also completed through the morning.

The main program of elimination finals commenced at 3.00 pm with the first round of Castrol Formula R Top Fuel

TOP FUEL QUALIFYING LIST

1  COWIN  4.750        314.46
2  READ  4.909        295.67
3  SAINTY  5.720        174.62  
4  KIRBY  10.881         77.17
5  DIFILIPPO 19.124         61.26

ROUND TWO QUALIFYING TOP FUEL

Highlight:
ANDREW COWIN 4.750 314.46 beat JIM READ 4.909 295.67
This was Australia first ever side by side 4 second pass. 

FINAL TOP FUEL

ANDREW COWIN 4.985 292.40 beat JIM READ 5.522 217.81
A great final which took place at 9.45pm!

FINAL TOP ALCOHOL

WAYNE NEWBY 5.698 229.71 beat STEVEN READ 5.949 242.45