Greg Anderson was upset in the first round, and he also lost.
Erica Enders gained a first-round win light at
the starting line. Immediately thereafter a serious discussion broke out
between
car owner Ken Black and NHRA Chief Starter Rick Stewart.
The cause of their ire was their driver’s disqualification after Enders
lit both the pre-stage and stage bulbs as
eased into the beams. He was rolling in to activate the second bulb when Enders
got the green and the multi-time champ went red.
A second heated discussion, this one between NHRA Senior Vice President,
Racing Operations Graham Light and Anderson, ensued, but no reprieve was
forthcoming, bringing one of the worst weekends of Anderson’s racing career to
a disappointing end. The top-runner from
earned No. 1 qualifier honors at
but he only made it to the finish line under power one time all weekend.
“We all know as racers when a driver lights both bulbs that we are to
turn off the auto timer,”
said. “That eliminates the standard seven seconds so you don’t have to rush in.
There is too much that has got to happen to get in that quick.
Greg Anderson was upset in the first round, and he also lost.
Erica Enders gained a first-round win light at
the starting line. Immediately thereafter a serious discussion broke out
between
car owner Ken Black and NHRA Chief Starter Rick Stewart.
The cause of their ire was their driver’s disqualification after Enders
lit both the pre-stage and stage bulbs as
eased into the beams. He was rolling in to activate the second bulb when Enders
got the green and the multi-time champ went red.
A second heated discussion, this one between NHRA Senior Vice President,
Racing Operations Graham Light and Anderson, ensued, but no reprieve was
forthcoming, bringing one of the worst weekends of Anderson’s racing career to
a disappointing end. The top-runner from
earned No. 1 qualifier honors at
but he only made it to the finish line under power one time all weekend.
“We all know as racers when a driver lights both bulbs that we are to
turn off the auto timer,”
said. “That eliminates the standard seven seconds so you don’t have to rush in.
There is too much that has got to happen to get in that quick.
“We all light one light at a time and then you get the timer. There
would be no reason for the timer if we didn’t light one light at a time. The
timer should be disallowed. They’re trying to tell me that no matter what you
have seven seconds. That’s BS. They have made that up and we know that is not
the rule. What can I do about it? Absolutely nothing. They [NHRA] think it’s
funny.
“No other racer out here thinks the timer is on when both bulbs are lit
before you light your first one. The purpose of the timer is for a fair deal.
It is not fair when both bulbs are lit before a driver gets his first. There’s
a major time difference then.
“I got screwed and it’s that simple. There’s nothing I can do about it.”
Enders said she aspires to beat Greg Anderson every time but this time
there’s no conspiracy theory. It was just a matter of timing in the staging
process and she misjudged
intentions when she lit the second bulb.
“On race day my team and I meet to discuss a starting-line plan and I
have been encouraged to speed up my staging process since I started racing Pro
Stock,” Enders said. “I was a little slower at getting ready. On that run, I
put the pre-stage light on and I waited. When I looked over and saw his car
moving forward, I went in and staged. You have to be on your ‘A’ game when you
race Greg or Jason Line, or half the guys out here for that matter.
“I got ready and went in. I had my head together and waited for him to
turn his bulb on. I was going to tree his ass … hopefully. I was going to try
and win the race. When you are a tenth of a second behind those guys, you have
to do everything you can on the starting line as far as reaction time goes. I
was just prepared and ready for them.”
More times than not, when controversy erupts on the starting line, an
exchange ensues between drivers on the top end. Not this time.
“I knew that Greg and Ken Black were both angry,” Enders said. “Greg got
out of his car at the finish line and he was talking. He did his interview and
I could hear what he was saying. I decided it would be in my best interests to
stay next to my car. Greg was not rude to me and even gave me a hug. He told me
that he was not mad at me but just didn’t understand what the ruling should
have been. They are a classy group of guys and people we look up to and
respect.”
CompetitionPlus.com that he held no animosity towards Enders.
“I’m not mad at her,”
said. “I’m sure it was an accident and not done on purpose. You can do whatever
you want to do up there but every racer knows the auto timer is off when that
happens. There’s nothing wrong with what she did. We just know that when that
happens the timer is off because you need that extra time”
The timer remains on per a statement issued by the NHRA Competition
department. The official word is that once a third light is illuminated, the
time out count of seven seconds begins before the system triggers the tree.
