Written by Mary Lendzion
Photos by NMCA Staff
The competition has become more and more competitive in NMCA ARP Nitrous Pro Street over the years.
Racers are working around-the-clock to pull more power from their combinations, and they are doing everything they can to get that power to the ground at the races.
Among them in David Fallon Jr., who earned a championship in the category in 2022, and was focused on backing it up in 2023. He knew that it would take extreme effort, but he was eager to go for it in his Camaro with a 631 cubic-inch engine by Pat Musi Racing Engines, SpeedTech nitrous system, M&M Transmission Turbo 400, Neal Chance non-lockup converter, Merillat Racing rear end housing and four link setup and Hoosier tires.
“I told myself that it was going to take late nights in the shop, rebuilding engines between races and a lot of time to continuously improve the level of performance we are running at,” said Fallon Jr.
While snow was still falling in his home state of Michigan, Fallon Jr. made the trip to the Scoggin Dickey Parts Center NMCA Muscle Car Mayhem presented by Holbrook Racing Engines in March at Orlando Speed World Dragway in Florida. He started off his race season by setting the pace in qualifying with a 4.23, and he drove to a 4.26 on a solo pass in the first round. He won the second and third rounds with a 4.39 and a 4.27 before settling into the wonderful world of the NMCA Winner’s Circle after a 4.28 against strong contender Kyle Salminen.
At the NMRA/NMCA All-Star Nationals presented by MAHLE Motorsport in April at Rockingham Dragway in North Carolina, he led qualifying again, this time with a 4.26, and won the first and second rounds with a 4.33 and 4.31. He faced Kyle Salminen in the final for the second race in a row, and finished as the runner-up with an off-the-throttle 5.42 to Salminen’s 4.36.
After arriving at the NMRA/NMCA Super Bowl of Muscle Car Drag Racing in May at World Wide Technology Raceway in Illinois, Fallon Jr. led qualifying with a 4.26 and won the first round with a 4.26. He then put a 4.28 on the board on a solo pass in the second round, and went to the NMCA Winner’s Circle, again, with a 4.28 after longtime racer Joe Bucaro turned on the red light. Fallon Jr.’s successful weekend also included the Testo Super Bowl Shootout win against Kyle Salminen.
In the thick of summer, Fallon Jr. rolled into the TorqStorm NMRA/NMCA Power Festival presented by Paul’s High Performance in July at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Michigan. He led qualifying with a 4.23, and won the first round with a 4.25. He then advanced past the second and third rounds with a 4.26 and 4.23, even though Kyle Salminen put up a perfect .000 reaction time, and he later wrapped up another event win, this time with a 4.21 over skilled racer Nicole Liberty, who landed at 4.29.
Getting close to the end of the chase to the championship, Fallon Jr. drove about two hours from home for the 2nd Annual Mickey Thompson NMCA All-American Nationals presented by Sick the Mag in August at Summit Motorsports Park in Ohio. He led qualifying with a 4.23, and won the first round with a 4.30. He flat-footed to a 4.27 on a solo pass in the second round, and won the third round with a 4.26. He used a quick reaction time to defeat Nicole Liberty in the final round, as he clocked a 4.28 to Liberty’s quicker 4.26.
“We had some trouble at the race in Ohio,” said Fallon Jr. “We changed two pistons on Friday night, we changed the stator in the converter between qualifying on Saturday and then we changed the rear gear before eliminations early Sunday morning. So, it was rewarding to win.”
At the final race of the year, the 22nd Annual NMCA World Street Finals presented by Chevrolet Performance in September at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park in Indiana, Fallon Jr. qualified in the third spot with a 4.35, and exited eliminations in the first round when he hurt the engine.
While Fallon Jr. didn’t earn a win that weekend, he did earn the 2023 NMCA ARP Nitrous Pro Street championship, and he did accomplish his goal of backing up his 2022 championship.
“We wanted to do well in Indy, and I missed being interviewed by Steve Wolcott in the champions’ circle, but we are happy to have earned another championship,” said Fallon Jr., who also holds the category’s current records with a 4.231 and 170.60 mph. “This was not easy to earn, and it is special. The competition is definitely coming on strong. Everyone is working hard and wants to go faster, and we personally changed a lot of pistons, converter stators and rear ends to be able to do that, too. It takes a lot of effort to run at this level, and it is rewarding to be able to do well. I would like to thank my wife, Maggie, my crew chief and daughter, Ryleigh, Keith Scharp, Jackie Slone and the rest of my crew and friends, as well as SpeedTech, Pat Musi, Mark Micke, Marty Merillat and Hoosier. I couldn’t have done this without this support.”
The NMCA will proudly celebrate Fallon Jr. and his fellow racers at the Red Line Oil NMCA Muscle Car Nationals Awards, held during the Performance Racing Industry Trade Show, Dec. 8, 2023, at the Indiana Convention Center, and in the upcoming Champions Issue of Fastest Street Car.
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Photos by NMCA Staff
The competition has become more and more competitive in NMCA ARP Nitrous Pro Street over the years.
Racers are working around-the-clock to pull more power from their combinations, and they are doing everything they can to get that power to the ground at the races.
Among them in David Fallon Jr., who earned a championship in the category in 2022, and was focused on backing it up in 2023. He knew that it would take extreme effort, but he was eager to go for it in his Camaro with a 631 cubic-inch engine by Pat Musi Racing Engines, SpeedTech nitrous system, M&M Transmission Turbo 400, Neal Chance non-lockup converter, Merillat Racing rear end housing and four link setup and Hoosier tires.
“I told myself that it was going to take late nights in the shop, rebuilding engines between races and a lot of time to continuously improve the level of performance we are running at,” said Fallon Jr.
While snow was still falling in his home state of Michigan, Fallon Jr. made the trip to the Scoggin Dickey Parts Center NMCA Muscle Car Mayhem presented by Holbrook Racing Engines in March at Orlando Speed World Dragway in Florida. He started off his race season by setting the pace in qualifying with a 4.23, and he drove to a 4.26 on a solo pass in the first round. He won the second and third rounds with a 4.39 and a 4.27 before settling into the wonderful world of the NMCA Winner’s Circle after a 4.28 against strong contender Kyle Salminen.
At the NMRA/NMCA All-Star Nationals presented by MAHLE Motorsport in April at Rockingham Dragway in North Carolina, he led qualifying again, this time with a 4.26, and won the first and second rounds with a 4.33 and 4.31. He faced Kyle Salminen in the final for the second race in a row, and finished as the runner-up with an off-the-throttle 5.42 to Salminen’s 4.36.
After arriving at the NMRA/NMCA Super Bowl of Muscle Car Drag Racing in May at World Wide Technology Raceway in Illinois, Fallon Jr. led qualifying with a 4.26 and won the first round with a 4.26. He then put a 4.28 on the board on a solo pass in the second round, and went to the NMCA Winner’s Circle, again, with a 4.28 after longtime racer Joe Bucaro turned on the red light. Fallon Jr.’s successful weekend also included the Testo Super Bowl Shootout win against Kyle Salminen.
In the thick of summer, Fallon Jr. rolled into the TorqStorm NMRA/NMCA Power Festival presented by Paul’s High Performance in July at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Michigan. He led qualifying with a 4.23, and won the first round with a 4.25. He then advanced past the second and third rounds with a 4.26 and 4.23, even though Kyle Salminen put up a perfect .000 reaction time, and he later wrapped up another event win, this time with a 4.21 over skilled racer Nicole Liberty, who landed at 4.29.
Getting close to the end of the chase to the championship, Fallon Jr. drove about two hours from home for the 2nd Annual Mickey Thompson NMCA All-American Nationals presented by Sick the Mag in August at Summit Motorsports Park in Ohio. He led qualifying with a 4.23, and won the first round with a 4.30. He flat-footed to a 4.27 on a solo pass in the second round, and won the third round with a 4.26. He used a quick reaction time to defeat Nicole Liberty in the final round, as he clocked a 4.28 to Liberty’s quicker 4.26.
“We had some trouble at the race in Ohio,” said Fallon Jr. “We changed two pistons on Friday night, we changed the stator in the converter between qualifying on Saturday and then we changed the rear gear before eliminations early Sunday morning. So, it was rewarding to win.”
At the final race of the year, the 22nd Annual NMCA World Street Finals presented by Chevrolet Performance in September at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park in Indiana, Fallon Jr. qualified in the third spot with a 4.35, and exited eliminations in the first round when he hurt the engine.
While Fallon Jr. didn’t earn a win that weekend, he did earn the 2023 NMCA ARP Nitrous Pro Street championship, and he did accomplish his goal of backing up his 2022 championship.
“We wanted to do well in Indy, and I missed being interviewed by Steve Wolcott in the champions’ circle, but we are happy to have earned another championship,” said Fallon Jr., who also holds the category’s current records with a 4.231 and 170.60 mph. “This was not easy to earn, and it is special. The competition is definitely coming on strong. Everyone is working hard and wants to go faster, and we personally changed a lot of pistons, converter stators and rear ends to be able to do that, too. It takes a lot of effort to run at this level, and it is rewarding to be able to do well. I would like to thank my wife, Maggie, my crew chief and daughter, Ryleigh, Keith Scharp, Jackie Slone and the rest of my crew and friends, as well as SpeedTech, Pat Musi, Mark Micke, Marty Merillat and Hoosier. I couldn’t have done this without this support.”
The NMCA will proudly celebrate Fallon Jr. and his fellow racers at the Red Line Oil NMCA Muscle Car Nationals Awards, held during the Performance Racing Industry Trade Show, Dec. 8, 2023, at the Indiana Convention Center, and in the upcoming Champions Issue of Fastest Street Car.