Anderson Number One Qualifier in Chicago

Greg Anderson was the Number One qualifier of the weekend—the 103rd of his career—at the NHRA Route 66 NHRA Nationals in Elwood, Illinois. He also reset the track record for speed with his semifinals pass of 212.39 MPH. The previous record was set by Anderson in 2015 at 211.83 MPH.

In Round One of eliminations, Anderson’s 6.537 second/211.23 MPH pass defeated Alan Prusiensky’s 6.680/206.45.

In Round Two, Anderson faced KB Racing teammate Bo Butner. Anderson got the win with a 6.541/211.06 as Butner tripped the red light (-0.075 foul).

In the semifinal round, Anderson had top speed, but Erica Enders won on the holeshot with a .012 second reaction time and 6.573/210.41 pass to Anderson’s .047 RT, 6.552/212.39.

“My car was the fastest car out here today and that feels good,” said Anderson. “We’re excited about how all of our cars are performing, and the next race is the Summit Racing Nationals in Norwalk, so that gets us really excited.”  

Anderson is fifth in the Pro Stock Points standings.

Jason Line was the Number Two qualifier of the event. In Round One of eliminations, Line defeated Kenny Delco (who experienced tire shake), 6.548/210.44 to 13.795/61.92.

In Round Two, Line was fast, but opponent Alex Laughlin got a holeshot win, 6.570/209.23 to Line’s 6.568/210.41.

“It was a good weekend for us, but we really wanted it to be great,” said Line. “We have some time to work on things back at the shop before the next race.”

Line is fourth in Pro Stock points.

The next Pro Stock event is the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio, June 20-23.

Tim Wilkerson, driver of the Levi, Ray and Shoup Ford Shelby Mustang Nitro Funny Car, started out fast in Round One of eliminations against Cruz Pedregon. However, Wilkerson’s tires broke loose and he made contact with the wall, disqualifying the run for being out of bounds.

“It was really running good there, but at about 600 feet the car started sliding,” said Wilkerson. “I lifted off the gas, but it kept sliding and knocked the corner panel out of it. It’s aggravating, but we’ll get it worked out.”

Wilkerson remains eighth in the Funny Car points standings.

Final Round Results
Top Fuel—Steve Torrence (3.763/326.32) defeated Mike Salinas (4.102/213.74)

Funny Car—Tommy Johnson Jr. (4.175/229.86) defeated Robert Hight (4.438/202.55)

Pro Stock—Deric Kramer (6.532/210.70) defeated Erica Enders (Foul, Red Light)

Pro Stock Motorcycle—Matt Smith (6.807/198.88) defeated Karen Stoffer (6.885/193.71)

Low ET: Deric Kramer, 6.532 seconds
Top Speed: Greg Anderson, 212.39 MPH

What’s Next
The next race on the 2019 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series tour is the Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals presented by Minties at Heartland Motorsports Park in Topeka, Kansas, June 7-9.

For more information and complete race results visit DragRaceCentral.com.