Anderson scores second win of season
(4-16-2012) CONCORD, NC – Greg Anderson and the Summit Racing team scored a very special victory on Sunday, capturing the Pro Stock title at the Four-Wide NHRA Nationals in Charlotte, N.C. Starting from the seventh position, Anderson advanced to the final of this unique three-round, four abreast race by being the quickest in each of his first two rounds, where he would square off against teammate Jason Line, Vincent Nobile and Erica Enders.
Knowing he would need a strong performance in order to repeat his win at this event from a year ago, Anderson responded with his quickest pass of the day at 6.540-seconds with a top speed of 212.23 mph. However, unaware that his teammate had fouled by leaving the starting line early, he assumed he had lost having trailed him for the entire distance, not learning of his success until he turned off the top end of the track at the completion of his run.
Ironically, Anderson’s crew was enduring a similarly confusing experience at the starting line, as a scoreboard malfunction gave the erroneous impression that Enders, who carded a 6.608-second, 210.93 mph pass, had won. However, once NHRA officials reviewed the finish line video, it was readily apparent that the Summit Racing Pontiac had crossed well ahead, giving the four-time champion his third home track win and 72nd of his illustrious career.
“Seeing Jason a car length ahead of me for the whole race, I knew I must have lost to him,” said Anderson. “He doesn’t red light very often, so I didn’t even think of that. I figured I must have been really late, and didn’t even bother looking at my win light on the wall. As I came around the corner at the top end I was really bummed, because I was wondering who else might have finished ahead of me. I then saw the TV cameras coming towards me, and realized that I had somehow won.
“Once my crew arrived to pick me up, I found out that there had also been some confusion at the starting line, with only one light coming on, leading people to believe Erica had won. It was a crazy deal that had me losing a couple ways, but I still won.”
Anderson’s victory extended a remarkable string of 2012 successes for the Mooresville, NC-based driver, having advanced to the final round in four of this season’s five races, with his two wins the most in the highly competitive Pro Stock category. Naturally, he was quick to credit his talented crew for his showing, reveling in the fact that the entire team, including those in the shop who do not normally travel to the races, were able to join in the celebration.
“This Summit Racing team has come out of the gate absolutely on fire,” said Anderson. “Both Jason and I have great hot rods, we’ve combined for three wins and at the moment are 1-2 in the points. I think it’s going to be a great year for us, with a lot of things to look forward to. Having said that, we have some very tough competitors in this class, and it promises to be a battle royal all season long.
“It means the world to be able to get this win at our home track, where everyone from the shop and their families can join us in the winner’s circle. They do such a tremendous job all year long, putting in the long hours and doing whatever it takes to try and keep us on top, just like they did here this weekend. Even though we struggled in qualifying, they never gave up, working on my car to get it right. We ended up having a great car, and it put us in a position to win the race. My hat’s off to my guys for a job well done.
“The one thing that would have made it better would have been having (team owners) Ken and Judy Black with us here at the track, as we owe this all to them, as well as our sponsors, Summit Racing Equipment, Red Line Oil, Cometic Gaskets, Mac Tools, PAC Valve Springs, Wilson Manifolds, Diamond Pistons, K&N Filters and all the other companies that make this all possible. I’m glad we were once again able to reward you for your support.
“We’ll enjoy this win tonight, but tomorrow we’ll be right back at the shop working to get ready for the next race and beyond. Today was a great day and a lot of fun, but it’s a long season, and we have a lot of work ahead of us.”
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