For the first time, NHRA’s Mission Foods Drag Racing Series is racing at South Georgia Motorsports Park, and on the first day of qualifying there at the NHRA Southern Nationals, Greg Anderson rolled the dice on an unknown racing surface and came up aces. Driving the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro out of the esteemed KB Titan Racing stable of Pro Stock cars, six-time world champ Anderson is set to thrown down on Saturday at SGMP in an effort to keep hold of the top spot and chase a second Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge title.
In the first session of qualifying on a racetrack that no one yet knew how to manage, Anderson was out of the gate with a wildly quick 6.498-second pass at 210.60 mph. Three bonus points were drawn in, and the KB Titan team began to build a notebook. In the second session, the power applied was more than the racetrack could hold, which set bookends for Anderson and his HendrickCars.com Chevy.
“It’s great out there, it’s fantastic, and that’s why we used to come here to test,” said Anderson, who hadn’t been to South Georgia Motorsports Park in upwards of a decade. “There were quite a few cars that got over-center today, but that’s just because the air was very good and we’re making a lot of power. We missed a little bit on the starting line second session and got a little bit too aggressive, but that will just be a small adjustment for tomorrow.”
Weather permitting, Saturday should bring two final rounds of qualifying as well as the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, the specialty race that pits the semifinalists from the previous race against one another for bragging rights and bonus points that will come into play when the Countdown to the Championship kicks begins. Anderson, along with KB Titan Racing teammates Matt Latino, Cody Coughlin, and Charlotte winner Matt Hartford, will all compete in the bonus event. If Anderson holds onto the top spot, it will be the fourth consecutive and 144th No. 1 qualifier award of his career.
“Power-wise, the weather is looking good all weekend, so it’s going to be fast, and come Sunday, it’s going to be a great race,” said Anderson. “This is such a neat place to race. The people here are very appreciative that we’re here, and I like that a lot. I love being here, and I’m having fun.”
Qualifying and the first rounds of the Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge are scheduled to begin at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at South Georgia Motorsports Park, with final qualifying and the #2Fast2Tasty finals to take place beginning at 3 p.m. ET.
The post Peachy Start for Greg Anderson and HendrickCars.com with Provisional No. 1 first appeared on Drag Illustrated.
