Rolling into the seventh and final round of the 2009-10 Arabian Drag Racing League series at the Qatar Race Club, Von Smith and his Barwa Racing Pro Extreme ’68 Chevy Camaro have earned the No. 1 spot in the championship points standings by way of two wins and five-straight final round appearances. Their margin over Al-Anabi Racing teammate Sheikh Khalid Al Thani in second place, though, amounts to less than one competition round win.

In the two-year history of the Qatar Race Club, this will be the second straight Pro Extreme championship that may come down to the final round of the final race, and while the pressure mounts, veteran driver Von Smith and his crew-chief, the legendary Howard Moon, know this stressful situation all too well.

Rolling into the seventh and final round of the 2009-10 Arabian Drag Racing League series at the Qatar Race Club, Von Smith and his Barwa Racing Pro Extreme ’68 Chevy Camaro have earned the No. 1 spot in the championship points standings by way of two wins and five-straight final round appearances. Their margin over Al-Anabi Racing teammate Sheikh Khalid Al Thani in second place, though, amounts to less than one competition round win.

In the two-year history of the Qatar Race Club, this will be the second straight Pro Extreme championship that may come down to the final round of the final race, and while the pressure mounts, veteran driver Von Smith and his crew-chief, the legendary Howard Moon, know this stressful situation all too well.

“We’ve been here before,” says Von Smith, trackside at the luxurious Qatar Race Club. “The key, at least in my eyes, is to treat Round 7 just like we would any other. We can’t let the championship chase change the way we would act going into any race, and our goal needs to be simply qualifying well and winning every race we’re in. Winning the race is how we’re going to win this championship, so we’ve got to take it one step at a time.

“I think that is a very attainable goal for this team,” continued Smith, who represents the Barwa Real Estate Company in the State of Qatar. “It’s hard to even describe how hard this team has been working since the last race. It’s been a round-the-clock effort from the guys, making sure I’ve got a car that is consistent and fast.”

After a successful day of testing earlier this week, Smith and team are all smiles going into today’s qualifying rounds.

“I think we’re back,” Smith adds. “Like I said, we’ve got to go out here and do what we know we can do, qualify at the top of the sheets and take it round by round, but having a car that will run the number – that makes a lot of difference in our confidence. So, I’m excited. We’ve got an incredible opportunity here to win a first championship for Barwa Real Estate and a second for Al-Anabi Racing.

“I can’t deny that it’d be nice to go into the last race of the season with the championship already locked up,” he says with a laugh, “but what fun would that be?”

Barwa’s Pro Extreme team will get to work later today, starting with the opening rounds of qualifying for Round 7 of the Arabian Drag Racing League series at the Qatar Race Club. The first round is slated for 7:00 PM AST on Thursday, February 25th, with a second round scheduled for 9:00 PM. A final round of qualifying will take place at 5:00 PM AST on Friday the 26th, with eliminations getting underway at 7:00 PM AST.