KB Racing LLC: Anderson wins Auto Club Finals
KB RACING LLC NHRA POWERADE DRAG RACING SERIES SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT PONTIAC GTO PRO STOCK GREG ANDERSON - DRIVER 42nd ANNUAL NHRA AUTO CLUB FINALS AUTO CLUB RACEWAY AT POMONA (CALIF.) NOVEMBER 9-12, 2006 QUALIFYING: #2: 6.668 seconds at 207.18 mph ELIMINATIONS: Round 1: Anderson (6.641/208.10) def. Bob Panella, Jr. (red light: 6.938/172.23) Round 2: Anderson (6.640/208.07) def. Ron Krisher (6.701/206.32) Round 3 (Semifinals): Anderson (6.643/207.78) def. Allen Johnson (6.680/207.43) Round 4 (Final): Anderson (6.652/208.14) winner over Jason Line (6.691/208.46) Anderson wins Auto Club Finals POMONA, Calif. (November 12, 2006) - Greg Anderson, driver of the KB Racing LLC-owned, Summit Racing Equipment-sponsored Pontiac GTO, finished the 2006 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series the same way he started - with a win. Anderson won the season-opening CARQUEST Winternationals and now the season-ending NHRA Auto Club Finals. For Anderson, it was his third win at the NHRA Auto Club Finals, his fourth win of the year and 43 of his career. Additionally, it was the second time he won both the season-opening event and the season-ending finals (2004 and 2006). En route to the final round, Anderson defeated Bob Panella, Jr., Ron Krisher and Allen Johnson. In the final round, in a battle of two identically prepared KB Racing LLC / Summit Racing Equipment Pontiac GTOs, the three-time POWERade champ defeated his teammate Jason Line, the newly-crowned 2006 POWERade Pro Stock Champion. "It's a great confidence builder," Anderson said of the win. "I got knocked around myself pretty good this year. Even such, Jason had a fantastic year and I had a good year, but still head-to-head he mopped me up - he used me up like a spare tire. It did a lot for me to repay some of it today. It's not going to make any difference for next year but it makes me feel better personally. It always fun when Jason and I race each other. It's a perfect way to end the season." Both Anderson and Line had .005 reaction times (.000 being perfect). "The relaxed atmosphere helps with the good lights," added Anderson. "The starting line and the lights are all in your head. No question about it. How you get your head to that point every time when there is pressure on, that's what we have to figure out. That's what separates one driver from another. We didn't do that every time this year. We let the pressure get to us - too many thoughts, too many things going through our mind. You learn from that. We need to approach the starting line each time like we did today - relaxed." This is Anderson's fifth win Anderson on the Auto Club Raceway at Pomona quarter-mile, two at the season-opening event (2004 and 2006) and three at the finals (2003, 2004, and 2006). Line and teammate Anderson finished one-two respectively in the final NHRA POWERade point standings, the fourth consecutive year that a KB Racing LLC Pontiac, sponsored by Summit Racing Equipment has won the championship. Next Race: In approximately 3 months, the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series returns to Auto Club Raceway at Pomona for the season-opening 47th annual NHRA CARQUEST Auto Parts Winternationals (Feb. 8-11, 2007). Television: The elimination show for the 42nd annual NHRA Auto Club Finals, originally aired tonight, repeats on ESPN2 / ESPN2 HD early Tuesday morning (Nov. 14) from 3-5 a.m. Television time is Eastern Time (ET) and subject to change at anytime. Check local listings. KB Racing LLC is owned by Las Vegas businessmen Ken Black and his son Kenny Black. KB Racing LLC fields two Summit Racing Equipment Pro Stock Pontiac GTOs, one driven by Greg Anderson and the other by Jason Line in the NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series. Anderson has earned three POWERade Pro Stock Championships (2003-2005) and finished second this season. His teammate Line is the 2006 NHRA POWERade Pro Stock champion. Line finished third in the 2005 POWERade point standings, second in 2004 and was honored with the 2004 Automobile Club of Southern California Road to the Future award, presented to the most outstanding rookie in a professional category KB Racing LLC also fields the Kalitta Motorsports-managed Top Fuel dragster driven by Hillary Will.