CHEVROLET RACING IN NATIONAL HOT ROD ASSOCIATION AAA TEXAS NHRA FALL NATIONALS TEXAS MOTORPLEX IN ENNIS, TEXAS SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2020Chevy Doubles Up in Dallas in Pro Stock competition
• Erica Enders wins delayed St. Louis NHRA Midwest Nationals event on Saturday • Matt Hartford scores first win of 2020 with victory over last year’s winner Anderson
Ennis, Texas (October 18, 2020) – Matt Hartford marched from the No. 4 qualifier to the Winner’s Circle hoisting the coveted Wally for winning the AAA Texas NHRA Fall Nationals at Texas Motorplex. The driver of the Total Seal Camaro SS went through Chris McGaha, Bo Butner, three-time Pro Stock champion Erica Enders, and finally four-time champion Greg Anderson to capture his fourth career NHRA Pro Stock victory. Hartford sealed the deal with a holeshot run of .018 reaction time to start a 6.625 seconds/206.39 mph against Anderson in the Summit Racing Camaro SS.
Derek Kramer powered his American Ethanol Camaro SS to his second consecutive No. 1 qualifier. He fell to Enders in second round. After qualifying concluded for the Fall Nationals, Enders won the postponed finals of the Mopar Express Lane NHRA Midwest Nationals at St.Louis to take the points lead, only to have Jason Line in his Summit Racing Camaro SS take it back following Sunday’s finals at Texas. Line went down to Jeg Coughlin in round two.
Enders extended her points lead to 31 points over Line as the series heads to Houston with just two events left in the season.
PRO STOCK:
MATT HARTFORD, TOTAL SEAL/CIP1/NITRO FISH CAMARO SS (race winner) “I have raced Erica enough and she is so good, and she is always leaving on me. So many of these races that I have lost have been on a holeshot. So I said, ‘I am just going to take my chances, take my time and relax and get ready to go’. This is for everybody back at the shop and for my whole team. We are going to the finals and we aren’t scared of that guy in there (points to Greg Anderson).”
WHAT DID YOU MISS ABOUT THESE MOMENTS?“All I missed is that K.I. and Chris Singleton, my partner in crime and owner of CIP1 is not here. This is going back to Canada (holding Wally trophy). You said you wanted two of them and I only got you one. Everybody at Total Seal, they support me so much and all the investment group behind me, they allow me to come out and do this. Its good people that allow people like me to come out and race. And Greg Anderson, he and I have battled it out for a long time, and normally he beats me. They are giving me incredible horsepower, we didn’t utilize it great today, but the win lights came on.”
JASON LINE, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS, (Fell in the second round): “It was a shorter day than we anticipated for the silver Summit Racing Chevy Camaro, but the good news is that my teammates were helpful in making sure we still have a reasonable shot at the championship. They did a good job, and KB Racing got a win today. That’s great for our team owners, Ken and Judy Black, and it’s always a good thing to have a Summit Racing Chevy in the final. Tomorrow is a new day, and we’ll see what Houston holds for us. We’ve got two more races before the Finish Line Tour comes to an end for me, and I’d like to get another one of these trophies.”
GREG ANDERSON, KB RACING, SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (fell in the finals): “Today all day, Texas was good to us. My Summit Racing Chevy was fantastic, it was the best car I had all year by a mile. But I can’t seem to get the two things together, the car and the driver, to win a race right now. You have to have both of those things just right. My guys did a great job, and they saved my bacon all day long. They tried again in the final and I dropped the ball. I have to figure out what I’m doing wrong. I’m not a guy who cuts a .060 light. I’m doing something wrong, I just don’t know what yet. That’s what I’m going to be working on before we get to Houston next week, because if I can get that figured out, we’re going to win.”
ERICA ENDERS, ELITE MOTORSPORTS, MELLING PERFORMANCE/ELITE MOTORSPORTS CHEVROLET CAMARO SS(fell in semis) “We are good all the time and our back is against the wall, but I am not worried about anybody. For this Melling Performance Chevrolet, a lot of people help us out. Mark Melling, Gallagher, and I am really proud to be affiliated with all those people. Today wasn’t our day, but yesterday was. We got two more and they are two good tracks for us.”
JEG COUGHLIN JR., ELITE MOTORSPORTS, JEGS.COM/ELITE PERFORMANCE CHEVROLET CAMARO SS (fell in semis): “We chipped away a little bit but left some there as well. It was great to get Jason out of the way in Round 2 and, although I would never, ever wish Erica to lose, I was sitting in the waterbox watching in Round 3 when she lost to Matt Hartford, so there was a big chance to go another round or two, but Greg (Anderson, Coughlin’s semifinal opponent) and his crew had other plans. We’ve not helped our cause the last few races but we got back on track today to some extent and we have two and a half more races to go at two of my favorite tracks on tour so we’ll keep fighting. I say two and a half because the Vegas finale is awarding points and a half each round so there is extra on the table should anyone falter.”
BO BUTNER, KB RACING, JIM BUTNER AUTO GROUPCHEVROLET CAMARO SS:(fell in second round) “I’m planning to go to Houston and win. We had two KB Racing cars in the final this week, and that’s good because I drive a KB Racing Chevy. You never know what can happen these next two races. It’s so tight right now that you really can’t pick who’s going to win.”