Team Summit Racing Starts 2017 with Big Win in Pomona

Last season, Team Summit Racing was unstoppable. The 2017 season of NHRA's Mello Yello Drag Racing Series is starting the same way for Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro Pro Stock drivers Jason Line and Greg Anderson. Line, the reigning NHRA Pro Stock champion, took home Wally with a final-round win over Anderson at the 57th annual Circle K NHRA Winternationals. Line is the only driver to ever beat Anderson in the final round of the season-opener.

"You have to be close to perfect on the tree or you’re not going to beat him," said Line, who paired a very quick .005-second reaction time with a 6.568-second, 211.10 MPH pass to overcome Anderson's 6.579/211.56.

"I know how much power he has; he’s got the same stuff I do. It comes down to who lets his foot off the clutch first. Today I was able to do a good job and get it done,” said Line. “It was a fun final round, but if there’s one person I don’t want to race in the final, it’s Greg. He wants to win more than any person I’ve ever met in my life.”

This is Line’s 46th NHRA Pro Stock career win and his ninth final round at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. It’s his fifth Winternationals victory and fourth consecutive final at the season-opening race.

For the 41st time in the history of KB Racing, Jason Line and Greg Anderson qualified first and second. Line defeated Val Smeland in Round One of eliminations, 6.533/211.69 to 11.376/79.29. That run earned Line Low Elapsed Time and Top Speed honors.

In the second round, Line defeated rookie Tanner Gray, 6.558/210.97 to 6.604/210.18. Line faced KB Racing-powered Bo Butner in the semifinals. Knowing Butner would be plenty eager to reach the final, Line did his job at the starting line, getting a .009 second jump on his opponent and taking the win with a 6.559/210.97 to Butner's 6.567/210.90.

Just like last season, the Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaros were on par with one another all weekend. Line had low elapsed time of every round of eliminations on race day, and Anderson had the fastest speed in two of the four rounds. KB Racing-powered Bo Butner claimed top speed of the second round. The team had clearly done their homework during the off-season, but Line assumed nothing coming into the first race of the year.

"No matter what, I always feel like we’re behind," said Line. "It’s a good way to stay motivated. The rest of this season is going to be more like it was in the carburetor days. The package has tightened up considerably, so the devil is in the details. Whoever does the best job of tuning the chassis and engine is going to be the winner or have the fastest car."

Greg Anderson entered the race with 86 national event wins on his scorecard—just 11 away from tying Warren Johnson for the most wins in NHRA Pro Stock history.

Anderson blasted past Kenny Delco in Round One of eliminations with a 6.549/211/49 pass, the second-quickest pass of the round. In Round Two, Anderson got a .021-second jump on Jeg Coughlin Jr. He held on for a decisive win, clocking a 6.567/210.93 pass to his opponent's 6.585/209.85.

Anderson knocked out Erica Enders in the semifinals, 6.574/211.10 to 6.599/210.18, to nab a ticket to the 139th final round of his career. The final marked the 35th time he and Line would race one another for the Pro Stock trophy.

The all-Summit Racing final round was a great victory for the team, but Anderson was quick to note that this year is certainly not a carbon copy of the last.

"I'm very happy, but it wasn't as easy as it sounds," said the four-time NHRA Pro Stock world champion. "It turned out great, but let me tell you, after the first qualifying run, we knew we were going to have our hands full. The field has tightened up. Luckily the drivers were good today, our Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaros were great, and we got the job done.”

"To win this year, you need all three of the major ingredients,” Anderson continued. “The engine is going to have to run better, the driver has to drive better, and the chassis has to work better or you're going to lose. It's going to be a dog fight in Pro Stock this year, but we'll take Round One."

Tim Wilkerson, driver of the Levi, Ray & Shoup Ford Shelby Mustang Funny Car, rocketed to a career best 3.857-second pass at 322.65 MPH in the second session of qualifying on Saturday, good for sixth place on the qualifying ladder.

Qualifying started a little rough. At the hit of the throttle in the first session the LRS Mustang went up in tire smoke, but Wilkerson and his team rallied between rounds.
The air was cool and damp heading into the second session, and the race track was at 73 degrees Fahrenheit and dropping. Just before the run, co-crew chief Richard Hartman said, "We've got a lot of power right now; it's just a matter of whether or not the track can take it."

Sure enough, the track surface at Auto Club Raceway was keen for what Team LRS had to offer, and Wilkerson ran the 3.857.

"We just missed it the last run,” said Wilkerson. "I was over-center first round trying to get past the race track, but that run there is what we should run. We’re going to make it interesting this year.”

On race day, Wilkerson's engine overpowered the track and he smoked the tires in the first round, falling to J.R. Todd. Wilkerson is currently No. 11 in the points standings.

Final Round Results
Top Fuel: Leah Pritchett (3.711/324.98) defeated Doug Kalitta (7.630/103.85).
Funny Car: Matt Hagan (3.875/330.07) defeated Courtney Force (3.901, 326.95).
Pro Stock: Jason Line (6.568/211.10) defeated Greg Anderson (6.579/211.56).

Next Race
The next race in the Mello Yello Drag Racing Series is the 33rd annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Chandler, Arizona, February 24-26, 2017. Visit Drag Race Central for more information and complete results from the Circle K NHRA Winternationals.