Anderson Advances in Pro Stock Points in Vegas

The points chase in the 2019 Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship is nearing the end following the Dodge NHRA Nationals in Las Vegas. But more important to Team Summit Racing fans, it saw Greg Anderson move up to the Number 6 position in the points standings, thanks in part to a slew of bonus points in that including earning his 104th Number One Pro Stock qualifier award.

Anderson got the nod over a red-lighting Cristian Cuadra in the first round of eliminations before bowing out to teammate Jason Line in Round Two on a holeshot loss. Anderson ran 6.628 seconds at 206.39 mph with a .054 second reaction time) to Line's 6.649/206.89 with a .025 second RT. 

“My Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro was great in qualifying, and it was great in the first round, too,” said Anderson. “We slipped a little second round, and I believe I had the horse to beat again today. I just ran into the wrong guy at the wrong time. We’ll go to the final race in Pomona and try as hard as we can.”

Jason Line fared better on race day, defeating championship-hopeful Matt Hartford in the first round with a quicker reaction time (.025 RT versus .036 RT) and a quicker 6.625/206.70 pass versus Hartford's 6.698/205.69. After defeating Greg Anderson in Round Two, Line met up with Jeg Coughlin Jr in the semifinal. Line was the first to launch, but his 6.641/207.18 couldn't overcome Coughlin’s quicker 6.631/206.32. Line maintains his hold on the Number Four points position in the standings.

“It’s never a good thing when you have to race your teammate before the final round, and it feels like we’ve had that happen a lot lately,” said 50-time Pro Stock winner Line. “We’ve got one more race to go this year, and everyone on this team wants to bring that last Wally home.”

In Funny Car, Tim Wilkerson qualified his Levi, Ray, and Shoup Ford Mustang in the Number 9 position. He had a tough draw in the first round of eliminations, meeting up with points leader Robert Hight. The two drivers launched swiftly together off the line, but Hight was the first to the finish stripe, 3.893/329.75 to Wilkerson's 3.970/315.64.

“It dropped a hole out there about 150 feet,” explained Wilkerson, with a shake of his head. “We’ll pack our stuff up, go to Pomona, and see if we can do better there,” said the driver who’s aiming at climbing up a spot or two from his current No. 10 position in the standings to finish the season.

Final Round Results
Top Fuel—Brittany Force (3.652/334.73) defeated Steve Torrence (3.719/330.63)

Funny Car—Matt Hagan (3.876/331.36) defeated Jonnie Lindberg (3.945/321.12)

Pro Stock—Erica Enders (6.617/208.04) defeated Jeg Coughlin (6.620/201.70)

Pro Stock Motorcycle—Matt Smith (6.855/195.90) defeated Steve Johnson
(6.863/194.04)

Pro Stock Low ET—Greg Anderson, 6.584 seconds

Pro Stock Top Speed—Erica Enders, 208.88 MPH

What’s Next
The next event in the 2019 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship is the final race of the season, the Auto Club NHRA Finals at Auto Club Raceway in Pomona, California on November 14-17.

For more information and complete race results for the Dodge NHRA Nationals visit DragRaceCentral.com.