Anderson Aims to Close 2009 on a Winning Note
Mooresville, N.C., November 10, 2009 -- After nine months, 23 races
and countless travel miles in the air and on the ground, the 2009 Full
Throttle Drag Racing season will draw to a close this weekend with the
Auto Club NHRA Finals in Pomona, CA. By most accounts, it has been
another good year for Pro Stock standout Greg Anderson and his Summit
Racing team having already scored two wins in five final round
appearances. Coming into the season finale second in the championship
standings, the KB Racing driver explains that even though this year's
title is out of reach, there is still plenty for his crew to accomplish
in California, including defending their win at this event one year ago.
"The pressure may be off as far as the championship is concerned, but
we still have a race to win," said Anderson. "In fact, the
Summit Racing team is coming into Pomona with the same mindset as we did
last year. The championship is pretty well decided and the only things
left are winning the last race and determining exactly where you're
going to finish in the points.
"It's a situation that worked for us last year, as we performed
great and left with the trophy. Hopefully we can have a repeat of that
this weekend, so we can say that Mike (current points leader Edwards) may
have won the war, but we won the last battle, giving us a shot in the arm
for the winter."
If the three-time Pro Stock champion had his choice of tracks on which to
complete the season, it is very likely he would choose the Auto Club
Raceway at Pomona. After all, his 82% elimination round win percentage
and eight wins on the California quarter-mile represent the most of any
circuit on the NHRA tour. Adding in the fact that at the season-opening
Winternationals he reset the national elapsed time record in qualifying
No. 1 (a mark that stood until two races ago), it is easy to see why it
is one of Anderson's personal favorites.
"Pomona has been a good track for me and with the forecast calling
for cooler temperatures, I like it even better, because that's when
our Summit Racing Pontiacs perform the best," detailed Anderson.
"You always know what you're going to get as far as the racing
surface is concerned. During the first day of qualifying on Thursday,
it's going to be green, because it hasn't been run on all year.
Then, as the weekend progresses and more rubber is put down, it gets
better to where it's a pretty good racetrack on Saturday morning. To
be honest, it's not a bad place to race, and we're excited to be
going out there."
Finally, as the season comes to a close, a priority is given to
maintaining KB Racing's current second and third-place positions.
Although only truly satisfied when either he or his stable mate Jason
Line win the championship, Anderson is quick to acknowledge that it has
been another solid year for the Mooresville-based team. However, he is
also quick to credit the accomplishment of this year's apparent
titlist, a performance that will serve to motivate the team over the next
few months.
"I know we're stomping our feet and kicking the dirt a little bit
about the championship, but having our Summit Pontiacs finish second and
third wouldn't be horrible, so that will be our focus for this
weekend," said Anderson. "I hate to admit it, but this year the
best car will win the championship. Mike and his team have had the
strongest car all season and whether we had the Countdown or not, he
deserves to win. We would have stolen it if we had a chance, but
that's what it would have been -- stealing. Still, we're not
about to stand still. We'll use this season as motivation to work
even harder over the winter, doing what we can to put our Summit Pontiacs
back on top in 2010. But before that, we have one last race to win."
-credit: kbr
