After qualifying a disappointing 11th in Dallas as the Countdown to the Championship really began to heat up, Rodger Brogdon was determined to improve, even if the championship was a longshot.

In the first qualifying session on Friday at Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, he was already showing improvement, driving his AttitudeApparelOnline.com Pistonator Pontiac Pro Stocker to a 6.565 at 209.72 mph for the provisional No. 3 spot -- a position that was good for a valuable qualifying bonus point.

Ultimately, Brogdon earned a start in Reading from the No. 5 position.

After qualifying a disappointing 11th in Dallas as the Countdown to the Championship really began to heat up, Rodger Brogdon was determined to improve, even if the championship was a longshot.

In the first qualifying session on Friday at Maple Grove Raceway in Reading, he was already showing improvement, driving his AttitudeApparelOnline.com Pistonator Pontiac Pro Stocker to a 6.565 at 209.72 mph for the provisional No. 3 spot -- a position that was good for a valuable qualifying bonus point.

Ultimately, Brogdon earned a start in Reading from the No. 5 position.

Brogdon started the Countdown holding down the 10th spot in the Full Throttle Series points and picked up a round win in Charlotte as the No. 5 qualifier to help him advance to ninth place in the standings. Dallas, though, was a dismal outing and a particular disappointment for the Texas native at his home track.

"We were just struggling with our car, with our setup," said Brogdon. "We did go testing this week, and that seems to have worked out; we qualified No. 5 here [at Maple Grove Raceway]. But this hasn't been a year to write home about anyway, we're just going down the road and trying to learn as much as we can. We're still trying to win, but everything we learn will help us next year."

The two-time Division 4 Competition Eliminator champ turned to Pro Stock racing in 2001 behind the wheel of a Pro Stock Truck, and in 2007 he launched into the next phase of his drag racing career in a Pro Stock car. The successful businessman teamed with Steve Kent and has enjoyed an impressive season this year despite setbacks; he posted a semifinals finish in Chicago at the Route 66 NHRA Nationals and has qualified in the top half on eight separate occasions so far, including a start from the No. 2 position at the final NHRA event in St. Louis.

"We're doing really good here [in Reading], and we're not disappointed at all. Tim [Freeman, crew chief] and the team had a few ideas on different ways to run the car that we tried in testing, and it worked over there, so they came over here with the same philosophy and it worked over here, too.

"Even though we can't mathematically win the championship unless the other guys just don't show up, we're just going to do the best we can, and if we do that the next three races, we can move up probably to 6th or 7th in the points. We're just happy to be in [the Countdown to the Championship], especially after all we've been through this year. Even if we finish 10th, we'll be okay."

{source}
<div style="float:left; padding:5px;">
<script type="text/javascript">
sr_adspace_id = 2000000613807;
sr_adspace_width = 300;
sr_adspace_height = 250;
sr_ad_new_window = true;
sr_adspace_type = "graphic";
</script>
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://ad.afy11.net/srad.js?azId=2000000613807">
</script></div>

<div style="padding:5px;"><script type="text/javascript">
google_ad_client = "pub-8044869477733334";
/* 300x250, created 4/3/09 */
google_ad_slot = "2028912167";
google_ad_width = 300;
google_ad_height = 250;
</script>
<script src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js" type="text/javascript"></script>
</div>{/source}