KB Racing LLC: Line gathers win number four
*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE KB RACING LLC NHRA POWERADE DRAG RACING SERIES SUMMIT RACING EQUIPMENT PONTIAC GTO PRO STOCK JASON LINE -- DRIVER MEDIA CONTACT: Mickey Schultz PHONE: 425-557-8899 E-MAIL: mschultz@bellsouth.net INAUGURAL NHRA TORCO NATIONALS VIRGINIA MOTORSPORTS PARK -- RICHMOND (DINWIDDIE) VA OCTOBER 6-8, 2006 RAIN DATE: OCTOBER 13-16, 2006 QUALIFYING: #1: 6.571 seconds at 209.49mph ELIMINATIONS: Round 1: Line (6.556*/209.75**) def. Erica Enders (6.641/208.26) Round 2: Line (6.576/209.56) def. Dave Connolly (12.642/67.11) Round 3 (semifinals): Line (6.588/209.17) def. Greg Anderson (6.623/209.26) Round 4 (finals): Line (6.597/208.42) winner over Tom Martino (6.645/207.78) * NHRA National Elapsed Time Record and track record ** NHRA National Speed Record and track record * *Line gathers win number four in 2006; Sets national records for E.T. and speed* DINWIDDIE, Va. (October 15, 2006) -- Marching through eliminations with four 6.5-second passes, Jason Line, driver of the KB Racing LLC-owned, Summit Racing Equipment Pontiac GTO, is one step closer to the NHRA POWERade Pro Stock championship, after winning the Inaugural NHRA Torco Racing Fuels Nationals this weekend. It was a dominate performance from the Wright, Minn.-born driver, who now calls Terrell, N.C. home. He ran the drag racer's table: Winning the race after qualifying No. 1 and setting low elapsed time and top speed of the event, both of which are national records and track records. "Obviously, it was an unbelievable weekend," said Line. "I was told a fact that is probably the coolest thing to ever happen to me in racing, the fact that the only other guys who have (had a perfect 138-point weekend) are Warren Johnson, Greg Anderson and Bob Glidden. That's pretty good company for a knucklehead like me to be in, that's for sure. But this is a Pro Stock track if there ever was one. The air was phenomenal. This record's going to stand for a long time. We're going to have to make a lot more power and see some killer conditions for us to go this fast again." Today's win was the fourth in seven final rounds for Line in 2006 and his 12th career win in 22 final rounds. The quickest field in NHRA Pro Stock history took to the Virginia Motorsports Park quarter-mile for eliminations. In the opening round, Line made it even quicker. His pass of 6.556 seconds at 209.75 mph not only defeated Erica Enders but reset, once again, the NHRA national records for elapsed time and speed. At race end, the E.T. national record also earned 20 bonus points for Line for the second time is as many races. The second round for Line against Dave Connolly was one of those that on paper would be a close race and the one that got off the line first would have the best chance of winning. Well, Line got off the starting line first with a .004 reaction time (.000 is perfect) to .028 for Connolly. And yes, Line (6.576 seconds/209.56 mph) won the race but it was never really a race as Connolly shut off and coasted to the finish line. This set the stage for the semifinal battle between the NHRA POWERade Pro Stock point leader Line and teammate Greg Anderson, who is No.2 in points. Only one Summit Racing Pontiac GTO will advance to the final round. Unfortunately for Anderson, it was all Line. The POWERade point leader was out first and never looked back. Line crossed the finish line in 6.588 seconds with Anderson following in 6.623 seconds. In the final round against Tom Martino, Martino got a slight jump at the start but it was not enough to hold off the hard changing Line. The power of Line's Pontiac GTO turned back Martino with a pass of 6.597 seconds. The win light came on in Line's lane signaling the end to one of the greatest weekend in his driving career. "Really, I was calm all day," added Line, "and I felt like this was a big weekend for us, a deciding weekend where we were really going to make a run for the championship or not. I put a lot of thought into it and it went unbelievably well. Like against Dave (Connolly), you better be on the ball or he's going to send you home. He's done it to me I don't know how many times. But it was a great day and I did a little bit better job of driving this weekend. If I would've done that all year, we would've clinched (the championship) a couple of races ago, but that's the way it goes. You can't look back on it; you just have to look ahead. It's been a great year and hopefully we can finish it off." The NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series is now down to two races on the 2006 schedule. In those final two races there are 138 points available in each, including 20 bonus points for setting a national elapsed time record. That a total of 276 points. Line continues to lead the NHRA POWERade Pro Stock point standings, a position he has held since the Denver race, with 1591 points. Anderson is second with 1472 points and now trails Line by 119 points. Dave Connolly, who lost to Line in the second round, continues to hold on to third with 1323 points, 268 points behind Line and 149 behind Anderson. Both Anderson and Connolly are mathematically alive, but realistically the door is shut on Connolly winning the POWERade championship and closing rapidly on Anderson. "(Being on the verge of a second championship) is a dream come true, to say the least, and not just for me but for my family and my original circle of friends that I started racing with," reflected Line, who won a NHRA sportsman championship in Stock Eliminator in 1993. "It would probably mean as much to them as it does to me. "We have a really neat bunch of guys (on this team) with everybody pulling on the (same) rope, and that's hard to find. It may never happen again. It's one of those deals where you get the right people at the right place at the right time, and this is the result." Tonight ESPN2 / ESPN2 HD will air qualifying highlights from Friday and Saturday along with same-day television coverage of today's eliminations for the Inaugural NHRA Torco Racing Fuels Nationals. The show started at 7 and continues until 9:30 p.m. Television time is Eastern Time (ET) and subject to change at anytime. Check local listings. Line and his team now take a weekend off from racing before moving to Las Vegas, the home of KB Racing LLC team owners Ken Black and his son Kenny Black. The next-to-last event on the 2006 NHRA POWERade Drag Racing Series schedule, the ACDelco Las Vegas Nationals, will unfold at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Oct. 26-29. /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 won three consecutive POWERade Pro Stock Championships (2003-2005). Line finished third in the 2005 POWERade point standings 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. This year KB Racing LLC also began fielding a Top Fuel Dragster, managed by Kalitta Motorsports, with rookie Top Fuel driver Hillary Will handling the driving duties./ ####