Team Summit Protects Points Lead with NHRA Las Vegas Nationals Performance

Greg Anderson took home his sixth K&N Horsepower Challenge victory at the NHRA Nationals in Las Vegas this weekend. Both Anderson and teammate Jason Line are still in positions No. 1 and No. 2 in the Pro Stock standings.

Defending K&N Horsepower Challenge champion Anderson holds the most wins in the Pro Stock bonus event. He beat Allen Johnson, KB Racing teammate Bo Butner, and then Shane Gray in the Final round with a 6.684-second pass at 205.47 MPH to Gray’s 6.699/206.26.

“My Summit Racing Chevy Camaro was flawless all day,” said Anderson. “I have to give this beautiful trophy to my crew chief, Rob Downing, and his guys. The starting line was tricky, but we did not have one issue with this racecar. She was a dream to drive.”

In the first round of eliminations, Anderson beat Allen Johnson, then met rookie Tanner Gray in the second round. Anderson, the second-most winning driver in NHRA Pro Stock history and four-time world champion, was stopped by his 17-year old opponent. Gray clocked a 6.702-second pass at 206.57 MPH to Anderson’s 6.717/206.42.

“Things started out good, but I broke my engine at the finish line in the first round. We had to change it out quickly," said Anderson. "It took a different tune-up than the other engine. We were way off. But the bottom line is Tanner Gray did a great job. He was .001 second on the tree, and it really wasn't going to matter what I ran. He took the bull by the horns, and my hat is off to him.”

Jason Line earned the 53rd No. 1 qualifier award of his career in Vegas. He has secured the pole at each event so far in 2017. On Sunday at, the reigning and three-time world champ took a single in the first round, then defeated Shane Gray in round two6.695/206.10 to 6.732/205.91. In the semifinals, Shane's son, Tanner, delivered a 6.691/206.67 to Line's 6.703/206.26.

“I have a really good car. I just didn't do a good job tuning it or driving it today,” said Line. “I'm fortunate to have the great folks at Summit Racing behind me and the support of team owner Ken Black.”

Jason Line was the No. 1 seed in the K&N Horsepower Challenge, but his day ended early when he fouled out by .004-second in the first round.

“I would have liked to have won today, but you let it go and move on," said Line. “It makes it a whole lot easier when my teammate wins. As long as one of the Summit Racing Chevy Camaros win, we're happy.”

Tim Wilkerson drove his Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Shelby Mustang to his highest qualifying position of the season. Although it didn’t translate to a win on Sunday, the Springfield, Illinois-based team owner/tuner/driver plans to parlay that speed into victory down the road.

Wilkerson qualified in the No. 3 position with a strong 3.876-second pass at 331.28 MPH. Facing Robert Hight on Sunday the two drivers were nearly identical as they launched their nitro Funny Cars. But Wilkerson's tires began to spin and that put an end to his day. Hight moved ahead with a 4.036/312.86 to Wilkerson’s 4.801/173.01.

“I believe we just have the balance off,” said Wilkerson, who encountered tire-shake after a solid first pass in qualifying. “I’m going to strip it down and take it back to Murf McKinney to check the chassis and make sure it's not bent or damaged from all the crazy shaking this weekend.”

Final Round Results

Top Fuel—Antron Brown (3.747/321.04) defeated Tony Schumacher
(3.809/325.14).

Funny Car—Tommy Johnson Jr. (3.933/323.66) defeated Jonnie Lindberg (4.016/302.14).

Pro Stock— Tanner Gray (6.681/206.61) defeated Bo Butner (6.678/206.76).

Next Race

The next race in the 2017 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series is the NHRA Spring Nationals at Royal Purple Raceway in Houston, April 21-23, 2017.

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