Tiu, Quimpo burn rubber at Clark

MANILA, Philippines — Jonathan Tiu banked on experience and a monster of an engine to rule the Quick 8 class and share top honors with Ryan Quimpo in the 2020 National Drag Racing Championships at Clark International Speedway’s drag strip in Pampanga recently.

Tiu, the 48-year-old veteran who has dominated the elite racing class among the competition’s eight most powerful cars since 2008, was a blur in his 1,318-wheel horsepower 4-liter Nissan GTR, dusting off a badly beaten Alvin Abrigo in a Honda Civic in the finals with a time of 8.617 seconds over the quarter mile.

Allan Ararao timed 9.94 seconds in a Mitsubishi Evo 3 and finished second runner-up as Melvin Pamplona’s Civic red-lighted in their duel for third.

But it was Quimpo, in a silver 500-whp Honda Civic Hatchback, who posted the biggest victory in the second of the four-leg Northern Series of the national races. The 42-year-old safety and environment engineer clocked 12.990 seconds in besting Richard Hays, who red-lighted and ruined a 12.338 clip, for the M&H Pro title.