As Burton Auxier rolled into the stage beams to race Shannon Jenkins in the Pro Nitrous final during the ADRL’s Battle for the Belts competition, he had a flashback.

This race was important to both drivers. The winner would take home the 2010 series championship. But, old memories are hard to block out sometimes.

Auxier, the 2009 NHRA Pro Modified champion from Dixie, West Va., remembers well the day when he’d burned up the one and only engine in his trailer. Keeping up with the frontrunners in the fast-paced IHRA Pro Modified division, then the leading arena for cars of this type, was an overwhelming proposition, even for the most seasoned veteran.

“I was ready to quit and Shannon came by the trailer and told me to come over and to talk about an engine,” recalled Auxier. “After that we started to work together on everything. I knew early on he was the best there is.”

As Burton Auxier rolled into the stage beams to race Shannon Jenkins in the Pro Nitrous final during the ADRL’s Battle for the Belts competition, he had a flashback.

This race was important to both drivers. The winner would take home the 2010 series championship. But, old memories are hard to block out sometimes.

Auxier, the 2009 NHRA Pro Modified champion from Dixie, West Va., remembers well the day when he’d burned up the one and only engine in his trailer. Keeping up with the frontrunners in the fast-paced IHRA Pro Modified division, then the leading arena for cars of this type, was an overwhelming proposition, even for the most seasoned veteran.

“I was ready to quit and Shannon came by the trailer and told me to come over and to talk about an engine,” recalled Auxier. “After that we started to work together on everything. I knew early on he was the best there is.”

It only took 3.895 seconds for Auxier to regretfully become the best, at least for the 2010 season, in the Pro Nitrous division. Auxier left on Jenkins, barely holding his lead until Jenkins pulled a massive mid-range wheelstand and was forced to lift.

“It was good that we met in the final round but sometimes we have to meet earlier,” said Auxier. “I’d just as soon not race him because he’s the best out here.”

If anyone knows the legend of the Iceman, a nickname given Jenkins for his ability to project a cool demeanor in the face of adversity, it’s Auxier.

“You’re never going to shake him, he’s the Iceman,” Auxier reiterated. “He can still get in my head even though he’s my friend. We work together but clearly I know who’s the best out here.”

At stake on the starting line Friday evening was more than just a single championship for Jenkins, the opportunity was there for a  milestone moment in history. With a win, he could become the first to win a Pro Modified style championship in three major sanctioning bodies.

For Auxier, a victory could make amends for a season that has been anything but one to brag about.

“We’ve been struggling ever since we brought this car out,” Auxier admitted. “We failed to make the field in Norwalk, couldn’t get the car down the track in Martin during testing. We blew the hood scoop off in Norwalk. We came down and tested last week with Shannon and we found a little something.

“We found a little something and it has been going down the race track ever since,” Auxier said. “Everyone on this team just pitched in and made it happen.”

And even though he will get credit for the championship in the record books, Auxier chooses to let his friend share the championship. He believes this championship belongs to the man he beat as much as it does his team.

“Shannon is one of the best racers out here and he’s the one responsible for making this happen for me,” Auxier said. “He’s taught me a lot.”

As Auxier puts it, Jenkins taught him how to be a champion.

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