Just about an hour after an initial celebration of his fifth Camping World NHRA Pro Stock championship, Greg Anderson had to move on from his battle with Erica Enders and instead face KB Racing teammate Kyle Koretsky for the NHRA Finals Wally.
You could say that he kept enough of the focus required as he went on to barely get the win and claim his 99th series victory.
“Apparently, I’m not too old. Don’t throw that dirt on the grave just yet,” said Anderson. “I’m so proud to wear the colors of HendrickCars.com. This weekend things just couldn’t go wrong. I didn’t’ screw it up. This class is awesome. The competition is so close and the rivalries are so intense. Thank you to all our competitors. I can’t wait to come back next year.”
"She’s a bad-to-the bone driver, one of the best there is and you don’t want to go up there and think too much about that," Anderson added. You need to focus on your own lane. My teammate Kyle Larson gave me a shot in the arm. I watched him come from behind with a great pit stop to win and that’s what I needed to get my head together. I did not want to drop the ball. We got it done and I’m bringing home the trophy and another Wally.
"To win 99 races is pretty doggone incredible," Anderson continued. "To get to that number and be one away from 100 is amazing. I passed Warren Johnson, my old time mentor. Now 100 is the goal but I don’t want to stop there. Hopefully, I can come back here at the Winternationals and win another.”
RPM congratulates Greg Anderson, KB Racing and everyone on the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet team on the success in 2021. Congrats on todays win and the championship.
RPM Round By Round:
Round 1 - Anderson faced John Callahan to open the day and with a 78% win percentage in round 1, he wasn't showing any signs he was ready to call it a day. Callahan was making his first round of eliminations and this would also be his last of 2021 as Anderson runs 6.549 at 208.68 MPH. Callahans nerves gets the best of him as he red lighted the start.
Round 2 - Derek Kramer awaited in round number two and Anderson has a solid 11-2 record against him in prior events. Both cars get a great start with an almost even reaction time and Anderson gets there first with a run of 6.569 at 208.10 MPH. He had the quickest pass of the round which will give him lane choice in the semi's.
Round 3 - With all the marbles on the line, the semi's would be the matchup of the day as championship competitor and arch rival Erica Enders would line up in the other lane. Enders had a substantial lead at the launch but it was Anderson who brought the best donkey to the farm running 6.578 at 208.23. This sealed the deal on the championship for Anderson so he would move on to the final only to try to capture his 99th win.
Round 4 - Anderson would face Kyle Koretsky in the finals in an attempt to sweep the weekend after becoming a five time champion. Anderson had the advantage at the launch but it was Koretsky with a faster car. By just 4 feet, Anderson gets to the strip first with a hole shot win and his 99th career Pro Stock Wally.
Check out the recap by Kevin McKenna, NHRA National Dragster Senior Editor:
Auto Club NHRA Finals Sunday photo gallery (NHRA National Dragster):
Camping World points standings:
#ProStock / #NHRA / #NHRAFinals / #Pomona / #Wally / #TeamChevy
Photo: NHRA National Dragster
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