 Michael Saponara was the first car in line on Saturday afternoon when the cars began their three qualifying passes. He was still there after all the cars were done. At 3,440 lbs with driver, Mike’s 9.08, 8.97 and 9.09 worked out to a 9.052 average, which was certainly more impressive. While no one else had times that were even close, Mike was actually very lucky to make it through all three rounds. He had a tire go down at the end of the last run and was lucky to even make it back to the pits.
Mike’s 1987 GT used an A4 block bored and stroked out to 347 cubes with a set of Oliver rods and CO 8.5:1 pistons topped with Trick Flow Twisted Wedge heads. Boost came in the form of a Precision PT88 turbo, which can support up to 1,250-hp. Backing the engine is a 2-speed Powerglide with an 8.8-inch rear holding 3.55 gears and Mark Williams 35-spline axles.
What makes this car particularly interesting is the fact that he still runs factory A/C along with stock power steering and brakes. It’s so street worthy; he even used it to deliver pizza from the Italian restaurant he owns. Mike has since won three out of the last four FFW Gainesville events and plans to hit several more before the season is out. His goal? To try to break the FFW True Street 3-run record average of 8.98 seconds.
Hats off to Michael and his great running 1987 GT!  (click picture for larger view) |
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