Down to the Wire for Greg Anderson and Jason Line

The 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series began at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in February and will end the season at the same track with the NHRA Auto Club Finals this weekend. It’s all but assured a Team Summit Racing driver will go home with the Pro Stock Championship—but will it be Jason Line or Greg Anderson?

The pair is separated by just 19 points with Line holding the top spot and Anderson in second place. Shane Gray is currently is third, 94 points behind Line and 75 behind Anderson. There is a slim chance for Gray to move into second place, and an even slimmer chance to win it all. To make that happen, both Line and Anderson will have to fail to qualify.

The KB Racing drivers conducted phone interviews earlier this week. The discussions covered the team’s 2016 ‘dream season’ as well as the battle for the 2016 Pro Stock Championship. Here are some excerpts from those interviews.

Greg Anderson
Q: How are you and your buddy Jason getting along these days?

Anderson: We've been doing well. We work as one around here at KB Racing. We try to make each other's car as fast as we can. When we put the helmet on and stage, you don't want to beat anybody more than you want to beat your teammate. It's like a brother—you want to pick on your brother.

Q: With the start of the Countdown and drivers like Allen Johnson and Vincent Nobile, Alex Laughlin and Shane Gray starting to perform pretty well, did you ever think this might be tougher than we thought?

Anderson: Absolutely. When you reset for the playoffs, it's game on, start over, everybody starts from scratch, and that huge points advantage we had went away, so we had to regroup and find an extra gear. Fortunately we've been able to do that. Barring Jason not qualifying or me not qualifying, I don't really think anybody can catch Jason for the title except me. Hopefully it comes down to a two-car battle. That would be the best scenario ever, and may the best man win.

Q: It's down to the final round, it's you and Jason. What have you got for good luck?

Anderson: Every race I've got medals from soldiers, I've got a good luck charm from my wife. I usually have a medal or something taped to the dashboard in the race car. I'll take a chance on anything that could possibly help me. As I said, the dream scenario would be for us to plow through the field and make our way to the final and duke it out. It would be the coolest thing of my career and probably Jason's too. Hopefully we can make some memories come Pomona.

Jason Line
Q: How are you feeling going into the last race of the year and possibly winning the championship?

Line: I’m actually pretty relaxed. I’ve been in this position before, and there is a good chance a Summit/KB Racing team will be the champion. The selfish side of me wants to win it all but if it is Greg then it is all good. I’ve also learned that being nervous will not affect the outcome of the race. I’m going to go out to Pomona and do the best I can do and hopefully that is enough. However it all ends, 2016 was a great year for KB Racing.

Q: What do you think about having to take on your teammate for the championship?

Line: Honestly it is fun. We’ve had the two best cars out there most of the year—se responded better to the major rules changes this year and I’m very proud of that. It is only fitting it comes down to Greg and myself for the Championship. That’s the way it should be.

Q: What would it mean to bring home the championship?

Line: As time goes on, winning a Championship gets more special. I think I appreciate it now more than I would have 10 years ago. To be able to say you were the best is a cool thing. It is very rare to be in the battle for Championship. To be in this position is an honor and I’m extremely grateful.

Wilkerson Looks to 2017, DeJoria Sits Out Auto Club Finals
Team Summit Nitro Funny Car driver Tim Wilkerson is hoping to end the 2016 season on a strong note and even move up a couple more positions before the final run down the track on Sunday. The Countdown to the Championship has been a rollercoaster for Wilkerson. He is in ninth place heading into the final race.

“I’ve been happy with how the Levi, Ray & Shoup Mustang has been running lately and I think we have a good chance to go rounds on Sunday,” Wilkerson said. “I’ve never won at Pomona and I would really like to check this one off my list. That would be a great way to end the season.”

Team Summit Funny Car driver Alex DeJoria is still recovering from a concussion she suffered at the Toyota NHRA Nationals. Jeff Arend will replace her in the cockpit of the Tequila Patrón Toyota Camry at the Auto Club NHRA Finals.

Championship Standings
Antron Brown clinched the 2016 Top Fuel championship at the Toyota NHRA Nationals in Las Vegas. But the battle for championships in the other three Pro classes is very tight. Here are the points standings heading into Pomona:
Pro Stock
Jason Line – 2,532
Greg Anderson – 2,513
Shane Gray – 2,438

Funny Car
Ron Capps – 2,546
Matt Hagan – 2,460
Tommy Johnson Jr. – 2,433

Pro Stock Motorcycle
Andrew Hines – 2,509
Eddie Krawiec – 2,509
Jerry Savoie – 2,506

NHRA Auto Club Finals Schedule
November 11
Pro Stock Qualifying at 12:00 and 3:00 pm
Top Fuel and Funny Car Qualifying at 12:45 and 3:45 pm

November 12
Pro Stock Qualifying at 12:00 and 3:00 pm
Top Fuel and Funny Car Qualifying at 12:45 and 3:45 pm

November 13: Eliminations begin at 11:00 am

NHRA Auto Club Finals TV Schedule on FS1 (All Times Eastern)
Friday November 11: One hour of qualifying coverage at 12:30 pm
Sunday November 13: One hour of qualifying coverage at 11:30 am
Sunday, November 13: Three hours of live finals coverage starting at 4 pm