After swapping the tires, Saitz pulled in front of the grandstands where Mallicoat offered a handshake before the championship match. “You better pull that thing outta my face”, said a grinning Saitz as he stared at Mallicoat’s outstretched hand, “before I rip it off and shove it down your throat!”. Stunned, Mallicoat lunged at Saitz but Mallicoat’s family and most of the GIR Security team held him back long enough for Saitz to jump in his Mustang and prepare for the final round. To a chorus of boos and cheers, Mallicoat jumped in his Camaro and pulled into the water box.
Burnouts complete, the two staged with the crowd on its collective feet. Announcer “Radical Rich” Tivitt asked the crowd to pick its favorite in a battle of over one half-million dollars of new SCSS machinery. As the green light flashed, the nearly-silent Ford shocked the crowd by hooking up solidly and leaping to a car-length advantage. By half-track, Mallicoat’s Camaro was only a few feet behind the Ford but the smallblock turbo car stayed in front for the duration of the race. While Mallicoat charged to another incredibly consistent 6.38/219.24, Saitz’s Mustang blasted out a mind-boggling 6.19-second ET at an incredible 236.23 mph…the quickest and fastest run on DOT tires in drag racing history!
Incredibly, the action didn’t stop there. The crowd soon noticed the ambulance pulling out onto the track surface past the finish line and, while Tivitt quickly assured the fans that both drivers were safe, the medical technicians arrived at the end of the shutdown area to find both Mallicoat and Saitz involved in a loud shouting match outside their cars! A physical altercation was narrowly avoided but the difference of opinion continued in front of the main grandstands during the trophy presentation. “You ain’t seen the last of me!”, shouted an angry Mallicoat as the crowd cheered him on. “I’ll be here every week waitin’ for you!”. “Yeah, yeah…whatever”, laughed Saitz. “I’ll be back next week. We’ll see if that big, bad Chevy can beat this little small block Ford!”.
