With over $200,000 in purse money and colossal trophies attached with ultimate bragging rights, the 28th annual Haltech World Cup Finals Import vs. Domestic, presented by Wiseco, produced an abundance of broken world records and brought in thousands of spectators who witnessed the thrilling side-by-side racing action all weekend long. Jason Miller and the rest of his staff worked their magic, giving racers a consistent racing surface for the sold-out event at Maryland International Raceway. Overall, twelve individual classes brought in over 350 entries.
In the top tier class, Outlaw vs Extreme presented by Mickey Thompson, it was Mark Benston Jr. who endured a record-breaking weekend. The 16-car field was filled with nearly all sub-6-second runs. By the final round of qualifying, Mark Benston Jr., of Selbyville, Delaware, found himself sitting in the third position with a hefty 5.752 e.t. at 254.14 mph. Benston Jr. continuously advanced his e.t. during all four rounds of eliminations, sending import after import home with his Precision Turbo-boosted 2002 Chevrolet Camaro. Starting with a 5.816 at 246.75 mph during the first round and advancing to the third round with a 5.733 at 254.76 mph against Jose Alejandro and then to the final round with a 5.713 at 252.00 mph against Victor Flores.
Facing Street Outlaws No Prep Kings racer John Odom in the final round, Benston Jr. clicked off an impressive 5.697 at 254.66 mph against Odom’s 5.813 E.T. at 243.73 mph in his 2019 GTR. Benston Jr. not only won the race but simultaneously shattered the radial tire world record, earning bragging rights for him and his team.
“What a day I’ll never forget, I mean A to B every pass,” Benston Jr. said in a post-race interview. “I just wanted to the first one in 5.60s on a radial tire, and I guess we made that happen.”
What made Benston Jr.’s whirlwind weekend even more impressive is the fact that his stealth black Camaro has been on track for nearly 20 years.
“The ol’ girl there, she’s looking for a little breath, but she’ll be able to have a good winter now,” Benston Jr. said, referring to his racecar that’s controlled by a Haltech Nexus R5 engine control unit. “It’s going to be her 20th anniversary coming up next year.”