Lucas Oil's Arana Sr. keeps No. 1 spot at Brainerd International Raceway

Hector Arana

Photo by: Michael C. Johnson

But he also wants to do well for Lucas Oil co-founder Forrest Lucas. And so far, Arana Sr. has made Lucas proud, earning the No. 1 qualifier in Pro Stock Motorcycle on Saturday.

"It means everything," Arana Sr. said. "This event is sponsored by Lucas Oil, so we want to do great so he can be proud of us. We want to make him proud of this event so he can keep sponsoring this event, us, and all the Sportsman and NHRA. We're so blessed that he loves this sport and he's here participating. That's awesome."

Arana Sr. put his Lucas Oil Buell atop the Pro Stock Motorcycle chart in the first round of qualifying on Friday with a pass of 6.884 seconds at 192.63 mph, and that lap help up Saturday.

"I'm still pleased with the outcome," said Arana Sr., who scored his fourth No. 1 of the season and 21st of his career.

"Today, I struggled little bit," Arana Sr. said. "My clutch tuneup is off. We made some changes. We were chasing one end of the problem, and we had to go far enough back so we could find the proper things to do for tomorrow."

Arana Sr. still made two solid passes Saturday, as he was third-fastest in both sessions.

"We were trying to leave the starting line aggressively because we wanted to lower the number to make sure I stayed No. 1," Arana Sr. said. "I'm surprised it stayed, but what we need to do now is stay focused for tomorrow. We need to make clean runs, and we should do well.

"I'm more surprised I didn't beat my time. I thought we could run a little bit better than that. If the 60-foot would've been really great, we were aiming for a high .86."

Arana Sr. faces No. 16 qualifier Michael Phillips in the first round of eliminations on Sunday. Phillips' top lap was 7.213 seconds at 186.69 mph.

Arana Sr. has qualified fourth or better in the last 15 races, dating back to last season.

Source: Lucas Oil