Photo courtesy of NHRA.com

The Summit Racing Pro Stock team gave up some ground in the season point standings, but came out of the weekend at the Ford NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals in Bristol, TN, still in the top two spots and with its sights set on Chicago in two weeks.

Having only made eight test runs with their new Chevrolet Camaro prior to coming to Bristol Dragway, Jason Line and the Summit Racing Pro Stock team knew they would face a steep learning curve during this weekend’s race. As expected, the team responded to challenge, posting some of the quickest times throughout qualifying and securing the fourth starting position.

Line was equally solid on race day, using a 6.682-second, 205.69 mph pass to defeat Warren Johnson in the opening stanza. After eliminating V. Gaines in the second round, Line squared off against hometown favorite and No. 1 qualifier Allen Johnson in the semifinals.

Although Line was able to make his best run of eliminations at 6.677 seconds with a top speed of 206.54 mph, it was not enough to hold off Johnson’s 6.659-second charge, putting a premature end to his day. Even so, the reigning Full Throttle champion was pleased with how quickly his team was able to adapt to their new ride.

“I am very pleased with the progress we made this weekend with this new car,” Line said. “I think this Summit Racing Camaro is a good piece and it’s only going to get better. I could have done a better job of tuning and driving it, and we’re only completely satisfied when we win, but all in all, I’m really happy with our performance, especially considering how few runs we have on it.

Greg Anderson

“As I have said repeatedly, nobody could have done a better job with this new Camaro than what our guys on this KB Racing team did this weekend. With as little track time as we had coming into this race, it ran quite well, and we were able to qualify fourth and make it all the way to the semis. I made notes of areas I wanted to address throughout the weekend, which we’ll do between now and the next race in Chicago, building on what we learned here. I’m really looking forward to what we can do with this car.”

Line’s teammate and 2012 points leader Greg Anderson fell to Jeg Coughlin in the first round of eliminations.

 

NHRA Full Throttle Pro Stock Championship Points Standings

(After 9 of 23 races)

1.  Greg Anderson                           902       

2.  Jason Line                                  848

3.  Allen Johnson                              818

4.  Mike Edwards                              707

5.  Vincent Nobile                             640

 

NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals Results

Top Fuel — Tony Schumacher, 3.819 seconds, 324.28 mph def. Doug Kalitta, 3.802 seconds, no speed.

Funny Car — Ron Capps, Dodge Charger, 4.076, 312.35 def. Alexis DeJoria, Toyota Camry, 5.232, 144.15.

Pro Stock — Mike Edwards, Pontiac GXP, 6.674, 206.16 def. Allen Johnson, Dodge Avenger, 6.661, 207.05.

Pro Modified — Rickie Smith, Chevy Camaro, 6.055, 241.24 def. Donald Walsh, Ford Mustang, 7.393, 171.99.

Stock Eliminator — Russell Johnson, Fairlane, 11.183, 117.23 def. Anthony Bertozzi, Camaro, foul.

Super Stock — Peter Biondo, Firebird, 9.753, 129.18 def. Bobby Dennis, Calais, 10.905, 112.45.

Super Comp — Tyler Caheely, Dragster, 8.894, 182.38 def. Edmond Richardson, Dragster, 8.893, 170.97.

Super Gas — Emily Lewis, Corvette, 9.890, 166.72 def. Marvin Benoit Jr, Ford, 9.879, 154.76.

Top Dragster — Steven Furr, Dragster, 7.196, 184.83 def. Marco Abruzzi, Dragster, foul.

Nitro Harley — Tommy Grimes, Harley, 6.347, 219.44 def. Douglas Horne, Harley Weekend, 6.320, 227.92.