Anderson closing the gap on points leader with Reading final round

READING, Pa., October 4, 2015 – Racing on Sunday at the 31st annual NHRA Keystone Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway was nothing short of exhilarating, particularly for Greg Anderson. Coming into the event – the third race of six in NHRA’s 2015 Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship playoffs – Anderson was No. 2 in the Pro Stock points with a significant gap between himself and the leader. A final round finish in Reading for Team Summit put a big dent in the difference and Anderson, now a 124-time finalist, is just 72 points out of the top spot.

Driving the red Summit Racing Chevrolet Camaro, Anderson made his start from the No. 4 position with just one round of qualifying from which to gather data. His 6.526-second pass at 213.23 mph – tied for the fastest pass of qualifying with KB Racing teammate Jason Line – set him up for a first-round meeting with John Gaydosh, the 77th different driver he has raced during eliminations. Anderson took a slight edge, .028 to .030, and made a strong 6.479-second pass at a big speed of 214.31 for the win. Gaydosh was 6.800 at the top end.

The second round brought about a match with a friendly foe in teammate Line. Anderson was first to leave by a bunch and first to the finish with a 6.488, 213.98 – the quickest and fastest pass of the round – to Line’s troubled 6.967, 156.48.

Lane choice certainly came in handy in the semifinals when Anderson blasted to a clean 6.475, 214.38 – the quickest pass of the weekend and fastest of the round in terms of speed. Morgan fell with a nice but ineffective 6.502, 214.21.

For the first time in Anderson’s career, he came up against Chris McGaha in the final round of competition. The two had met before during eliminations, with Anderson holding a 10-2 advantage, but McGaha was declared the victor this time on the basis of a holeshot – Anderson’s Camaro was the better of the two, but the win light flashed in McGaha’s lane, 6.492, 213.64 to 6.484 at top speed of the meet, 214.59. The margin of victory was just .0341-second.

Only four runs over the course of the weekend exceed 214 mph – and three of them were Anderson’s.

“My Summit Racing Chevy Camaro was great today; it was great all weekend, again,” said Anderson, who has had a dominant car in the last few races and achieved three consecutive low qualifier awards leading up to the Maple Grove Raceway event. “I don’t have any excuses for not winning this race, because once again my team gave me the car to do it. We did close the gap some, but we could have closed it more – and I wish we would have because that would have been 20 more points to cut into that lead.

“I drove well until the final round, but it will be very important in these next three races to finish the job, to drive your best all the way to the winner’s circle. I know I have the car, and I know I can get there. We just have to do it.”