Quick links to the previous newsletters issued by Speedgroup Club Europe in 2010:

#1 Main Event Preview
#2 Main Event Review
#3 Nitro Nationals Preview
#4 Nitro Nationals Review
#5 Veidec Festival Preview
#6 Drag Challenge Preview
#7 NitrOlympx Preview
#8 NitrOlympx Review
#9 Drag Challenge Review
#10 European Finals Preview
#11 European Finals Review
#12 Contingency sponsor Ed.
#13 PRI Show preview

2011
#1 FIA gala review
#2 2011 Newsletter 2
#3 Kunmadaras preview
#4 Kunmadaras review
#5 Main Event preview
#6 Main Event report
#7 Sweden Internats preview

Eurodragster.com reports and covers all  aspects of European Drag Racing via close to daily updates on an all year round basis. During Race season Eurodragster reports live from most championship events and in addition to providing results also give the readers exckusive behind the scenes features including the illustrated pit notes and extensive photo galleries. www.eurodragster.com
 

The Sweden Internationals was the first championship event held at the new world class drag racing facility of Tierp Arena. The event was included in the FIA & UEM European Drag Racing Championships as round #2 for the FIA Car teams and round #3 for the UEM Drag Bike teams. It was also included in the NDRS Dragracing Series and SDL Drag Racing League which is administered by Speedgroup.

The five winners of the FIA championship classes at the Sweden Internationals all came from different nations, where of one non-european; Tommy Johnson Jr from the US (but running in Europe for Danish team Andersen Racing). Also congratulations were in order to Methanol winners in Dragster Fred Hanssen, ,Norway and Funny Car Jonas Staflund, Sweden. The Pro Mod class got its event winner in consistent Bruno Bader from Switzerland, while Finnish Sampsa Palos  earned a well deserved win in Pro Stock. Check out what the winners had to tell and don´t miss the photos of the runners-up in addition at the bottom of this page!

The winners of the UEM championship round #3, the Sweden Internationals at Tierp Arena represented two nations; Denmark and Sweden. Well deserved wins for Jesper Thiel, Per Bengtsson and Peter Svensson! we asked them what the event had been like for them.

Top Fuel racing at the Sweden Internationals had everything: thirteen cars trying to qualify for an eight-car field, three cars exceeding speeds of 300mph, a semi-final decided by 0.0006sec and Europe’s first-ever 3sec 1000-foot pass. Tommy Johnson Jr. was the man in the spotlight but gave all the credit to his Andersen Racing crew who made his machine the fastest and most consistent of all.

Once in a while, it’s nice to be right. It doesn’t happen often.

“So who might challenge Professor Gullqvist?” mused your correspondent in his Speedgroup preview to this race. “How about Bruno Bader, for instance?… Some day Bader is going to win one of these races, and no one will say he hasn’t earned it.”

The inaugural Sweden Internationals at the newly-constructed Tierp Arena attracted a 14 car Pro Stock field. With 14 competitors chasing a place in the 8-car ladder this was always going to be interesting. On paper there were only a few cars which even the most valiant betting man would have said were guaranteed a position in Sunday’s finals.

In Top Methanol Funny Car 8 cars filled the same sized field elimination ladder. Everybody of some importance for the class was there. What had attracted interest before the event was the fact that 2010 champion Dan Larsen had teamed up with rookie Mikael Larsson from Sweden. The talk of the class afterwards should prove to be something completely different..

Nine teams entered at Tierp Arena in the methanol dragster class, which we have become so spoiled by when it comes to the performance level. The Habermann Bros who dominated the championship in 2010 are competitive this season too, but it was two other drivers who took the command in Tierp..

On paper the battle for glory in Top Fuel Bike at Tierp Arena ought to be between Sweden´s Peter Svensson and UK´s Ian King. King with a new bike for the third event while Svensson  tested the surface of the maiden Tierp track earlier in May.

The Super Twin class has literally exploded this season. For the Sweden Internationals 20 (!) teams competed for a spot in the 8 bike elimination ladder. And one of the teams travelled extremely far to be present. Australian Mark Ashelford and crew made their first entry to the UEM European championship at Tierp Arena.

The size of the elimination ladder in Pro Stock Bike was limited to 8 bikes (where it has been 16 for the first two events this season). What probably caught the most attention before the event was that Fredrik Fredlund had engaged US tuner Gary Stoffer to attend and assist him at Tierp Arena. Stoffer, whose wife Karen is a leading rider in the NHRA Pro Stock Bike class, what difference could he make to Fredlund´s performance at this one event?

It does not often happen that an Australian drag racer comes to Europe to take part in a championship so far away from home. Mark Ashelford lives in Perth on the Australian West Coast and will spend the summer in Europe to run the UEM Super Twin tour.

The Sweden Internationals, Tierp Arena’s first major international race, was a great success. Racing was great and the teams, fans and media were happy with the NHRA-style facility that brings European drag racing to the next level. So on Sunday evening the two major promoters and driving forces behind Tierp Arena, Lars-Erik Lindberg and Leif Andreasson, were happy men.

The NDRS sportsman categories played an important role during the Sweden Internationals. Large and competitive fields in most classes, stunning vehicles and tight racing over the finish line entertained the crowd at Tierp Arena in between the championship classes. And the Jr Dragsters of course charmed everyone.. meet the NDRS winners and check out the sportsman review!  

Pro Mod is the FIA class which have the largest number of entries per event. The task of qualifying for the eliminations is the first big step at each event. We hope the Pro Mod Challenge (where drivers gain points when qualified) will include some extra excitement for the Pro Mod drivers and teams as well as for the spectators”.