Phillips became the #1 qualifier, smashed the track’s TA/FC Elapsed Time (ET) and speed records and came home event runner-up.
 
Despite experiencing a violent tyre shake during Saturday’s final that cost him the event win; Phillips wowed the crowds with his Lucas Oil Funny Car during qualifying on Friday with the quickest and fastest-ever run at Hidden Valley Dragway.
 
The Lucas Oil-backed racer set a 5.468-second ET for the quarter-mile at 264.34mph (425.41km/h), 0.217-second quicker and also 12.38mph faster than the previous track benchmark.
 
Phillips, a 17-time ANDRA champion, now leads the Top Alcohol championship by 61 points with just two rounds to go.
 
“We had a really good weekend in Darwin,” Phillips said.
 
“We were close to taking the event win, but shook the tyres hard and pedalled to a 5.68-second ET at 260.46mph in the final. Unfortunately, we were still a little gun-shy with the tune-up after smoking the tyres in the semi-finals.
 
“However, there’s a lot to be happy about. We achieved the event’s lowest ET and highest top speed, took the coveted number one spot in qualifying, and extended our championship lead out to 61 points.”
 
Phillips now has time to focus development of his Lucas Oils Funny Car, with the penultimate round – the Australian Nationals – held in Sydney in late October.