Jason Line Leaves U.S. Nationals as No. 1 Seed Heading into Countdown
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind., September 1, 2014 – The 60th annual Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals only served to add fuel to Summit Racing Pro Stock driver Jason Line’s fire. He came into raceday with three consecutive wins in a row on his scorecard and was hoping for a fourth, but the final outcome was still an extraordinary accomplishment as he will enter the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship as the top seed. The six-race playoffs will begin in just two weeks in Charlotte.
The drawn out Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis saw Line qualify at the top of the pack with a series of dominating passes, and at the heart of the Indy race was the completion of the rain delayed Nationals that were supposed to be held two weeks ago at Brainerd International Raceway, Minnesota-native Line’s home track. Although he was unable to pick up his first Minnesota Pro Stock win in his home state, the uprooted final round fell in his favor as he got the best of Jeg Coughlin to earn the 35th Pro Stock title of his career.
The successful warm up to the U.S. Nationals elimination rounds certainly helped, and Line first defeated Rodger Brogdon in the opening round on Labor Day Monday with a 6.632-second pass at 208.55 mph. He went on to clock the fastest speed of the second round in his defeat of brand new Pro Stock driver Aaron Stanfield. Line was a quick 6.615 at the top end to defeat Stanfield’s 6.662, 207.34.
Stepping towards the semifinals with 14 straight round wins collected, Line was surely confident that he had the chance to win his match with Dave Connolly, but his opponent had other ideas. Line launched first, clocking a .024-second reaction time to Connolly’s .032, but his 6.635, paired with the fastest speed of eliminations at 209.20, wasn’t enough to top a 6.615, 208.42.
“It was still a good day,” said Line. “You know, we’ve made about 20 runs with this car that have been very close, but nothing lasts forever. Like I said, all bad things must come to an end, and all good things must come to an end as well. We had a great run going and for the Summit Racing team and me; we set some new personal bests with this race. It was a great weekend.”
In the last five races, Line has visited two semifinals and collected three wins, and while the driver of the blue Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro would have liked to make it four in a row and pick up his first U.S. Nationals win, he isn’t complaining.
“It was a great weekend,” said Line. “There have been a lot of positives. I’ll go into the Countdown with a little bit of a lead, and this was the best weekend I’ve ever had in Indy. It’s definitely bittersweet, but such is life. That’s racing, and we’ll move on. Everyone will take something away from this weekend.”