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NHRA Finals at Pomona - Monday, November 17, 2008

Pontiac's Greg Anderson Wins Pro Stock At NHRA Finals - Defeats Kurt Johnson in All-GM Final Round

POMONA, Calif., Nov. 16, 2008 - The 2008 NHRA POWERade season came to a close today at the 44th annual Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals, and it ended for Pontiac's Greg Anderson the way it began; a bookend national-event victory from the No. 1 starting position. The 47-year-old Mooresville, N.C. resident defeated Kurt Johnson in an all GM-final round that locked up second place in the Pro Stock standings for Anderson, and his sixth consecutive top-two finish.

"I am so proud of this team," Anderson said. "We obviously didn't get the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but we got the next best thing, and that's the NHRA Finals win at Pomona. That final round was for second place. Kurt's (Johnson) a great competitor, I love racing him, he's had a great year, I've had a great year, we've just had some lapses during these last few races. I forgot how to have fun at the racetrack, and it's so easy to get out of your groove, but we love what we do, we love these great fans, and you just have to come and have fun, and everything goes smooth." ..read more

JONES' STELLAR ROOKIE SEASON COMES TO A CLOSE WITH TIGHT SECOND ROUND BATTLE

POMONA, Ca. November 16, 2008: The Quarter-Max Mopar Dodge Stratus team headed by noted chassis builder, Rick Jones and driven by son Rickie Jones, wanted to make a statement at the end of their rookie season, proving their ability for contention in the 2009 Countdown battle. They accomplished just that by getting past '08 Countdown contender Dave Connolly in round one, then losing by a slight three thousandths of a second to veteran racer Kurt Johnson in round two...read more

KJ Finishes 2008 with Runner-Up Finish in Pomona

Kurt Johnson and the ACDelco Cobalt Racing team completed a solid 2008 campaign in fine fashion, powering to a runner-up finish at the Auto Club of Southern California NHRA Finals. Starting third, Johnson eliminated Vinnie Deceglie, Rickie Jones and Jason Line in the early rounds to advance to the 72^nd final round of his career, where he would square off against No. 1 qualifier Greg Anderson..read more

Disappointed Connolly stunned in opening round

Pomona, Sunday: Tire shake in Sunday's first round shook up Dave Connolly's plans of winning the Auto Club Finals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona and placing second in NHRA's Pro Stock category.

Rickie Jones was the beneficiary of Connolly's loss of traction. Connolly put the Cagnazzi Racing Lucas Oil/Charter Communications Chevy Cobalt in front with a .057 reaction to Jones' .072 before the tire chattering forced him abort the run. Jones won with a 6.715-second, 206.76-mph effort while a disappointed Connolly coasted across in 10.050 seconds at 91.55 mph...read more

Newly re-crowned champ Coughlin out by .001 seconds

POMONA, Calif. (Nov. 16) -- After struggling in qualifying, Jeg Coughlin Jr.'s JEGS.com Chevrolet Cobalt came to life Sunday and carried the newly re-crowned POWERade champion to a great 6.673 at 206.76 mph that got him to within .001 of a second of upsetting higher-ranked racer Allen Johnson. Unfortunately, a wonky rear-end slowed him just enough to give Coughlin the rest of the day off to work on his champion's speech...read more

Stevens can't keep up with Anderson

Pomona, Sunday: Richie Stevens just shook his head after Sunday's first round of Pro Stock competition in the Auto Club Finals. "It's hard to beat the guy next to you when he runs low e.t. of the round," said the driver of Kenny Koretsky's Nitro Fish/Indicom Electric Dodge. "But that's what you expect from the No. 1 qualifier."

Stevens, who qualified 16th, squared off against Greg Anderson and watched Anderson get the win light in 6.644 seconds at 208.33 mph to a 6.727 at 206.04.

"Lane choice was a big deal because the right lane -- where we were -- isn't as good as the left one," Stevens noted. "We didn't qualify in the top half so we didn't get lane choice. I wish we had ended the season on a little better note by winning some rounds. But, all-in-all, it was a good weekend. We qualified 16th -- and that was a lot better than 17th."

NHRA Finals at Pomona Final Qualifying - Saturday, November 15, 2008

JONES MAKES SATURDAY IMPROVEMENTS, QUALIFIES ELEVENTH

POMONA, Ca. November 15, 2008: Rickie Jones sat outside the field up until the final two qualifying runs. On the third session Jones' posted a 6.675 at 206.51 in his Quarter-Max Dodge Stratus, putting him in the show at eighth. Jones fell slightly off his earlier pace with rear end problems in the final session running a 6.696 at 205.79 but stayed in the show at eleventh. Less than seven hundredths spreads the entire Pro Stock field with all 16 cars under 6.70. Tough qualifying competition forecasts an intense battle in eliminations at this final event of the year...read more

Coughlin on qualifying: 'Mission accomplished'

POMONA, Calif. (Nov. 15) -- Jeg Coughlin Jr. successfully defended his POWERade championship by clinching the 2008 title Saturday afternoon. All Coughlin needed to do was make the field of the 44th annual Auto Club NHRA Finals, which he did with a 6.678 at 206.95 mph in his JEGS.com Chevrolet Cobalt...read more

Team Chevy's Jeg Coughlin Jr.
Clinches Fourth NHRA Pro Stock Title

POMONA, Calif., Nov. 15, 2008 - Team Chevy's Jeg Coughlin Jr. clinched his second consecutive NHRA Pro Stock title today at the 44th annual Automobile Club of Southern California Nationals. The 38-year-old Coughlin needed only to qualify for this weekend's event to mathematically eliminate the rest of the Pro Stock field. He ended three days of time trials with the JEGS.com Chevy Cobalt qualified in the No. 13 position and in possession of the 2008 POWERade Pro Stock crown.

"This is an extremely sweet moment for me," Coughlin said. "It's a new generation with the Countdown to 1 and we've been fortunate enough to win both championships under this format. It's a real testament to the caliber of this team and its ability to rise to the occasion when the pressure is at its highest. These guys are stout. ..read more

KJ & Crew Win Full Throttle Pit Crew Championship, Qualify Third for NHRA Season Finale

Kurt Johnson and the ACDelco Cobalt Racing team approached qualifying for the Auto Club of Southern California Finals with two separate goals. Naturally, their top priority was securing a position in the top half of the field for Sunday’s final eliminations. However, they also looked to capture this year’s Full Throttle Pit Crew championship, awarded to the team who had been the most consistent and highest performing in qualifying throughout the 24-race campaign...read more

Another Pro Stock world title goes to Jeg Coughlin Jr.

POMONA, Calif. (Nov. 15) -- "Big Daddy" Don Garlits didn't do it. Neither did Shirley Muldowney.

By qualifying for this weekend's 44th annual Auto Club NHRA Finals Saturday afternoon, 38-year-old Jeg Coughlin Jr. did something two of his drag racing idols never accomplished -- he won a fourth world championship in a professional category...read more

WJ Finds the Handle in Pomona, Qualifies Tenth

For the first two days of qualifying at the Auto Club of Southern California Finals, Warren Johnson and the GM Performance Parts GXP Racing team battled to adapt their race car to the hot and slick racing surface of the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. As a result, they entered Saturday’s twin sessions still looking to secure their spot in the starting field...read more

IT'S NOT ABOUT BEING THE CHAMPION. IT'S ABOUT WHAT YOU HAD TO DO TO GET THERE."

-Pete Berner

CRETE, Ill. November 13, 2008: Pete Berner may be your 2006 and newly crowned 2008 Pro Stock World Champion, but the title and accolades are not what he's after, at least not for himself anyway. The champion driver is always quick to point the credit in someone else's direction. Whether to one of his many sponsors such as long time supporter Ram Clutches, or to his hard-working crew, Berner is always giving praise to those who are behind the scenes of his Quarter-Max.com Pontiac Motorsports GXP...read more

Pontiac's Jason Line No. 1 at NHRA Finals After Second Day of Time Trials

POMONA, Calif., Nov. 14, 2008 - Pontiac's Jason Line moved to the top of the Pro Stock qualifying ladder today at the Automobile Club of Southern California NHRA Finals after posting a 6.658 second run at 208.39 mph in the Summit Racing GXP. With air temperatures soaring into the 90-degree range this afternoon at Auto Club of Southern California Raceway, Line's run was even more impressive, and allowed him to swap places with Team Chevy's Dave Connolly, who held the No. 1 spot after yesterday's lone qualifying session. ..read more

World Finals Open ADRL 2009 Season - Monday, October 27, 2008

World Finals Open ADRL 2009 Season

ENNIS, TX (Oct. 26, 2008) — Speed and thrills highlighted the running of the 4th annual LenMar Motorsports ADRL World Finals Oct. 24-25, at the Texas Motorplex, by the Flowmaster American Drag Racing League presented by the National Guard.

Day one featured the Speedtech Al Anabi Nitrous Battle for the Belts, in which the top-eight points earners in each ADRL pro class raced against each other in single-elimination “playoffs” that determined 2008 series champions. Pro Extreme Motorcycle rider Billy Vose successfully defended his 2007 title, as did Jason Scruggs in the almost unlimited Pro Extreme class, while Billy Harper prevailed in Pro Nitrous and Billy Glidden won the Extreme 10.5 championship...read more