The importance of the Mopar Hemi Challenge is not lost on second-generation Mopar racer Jimmy Daniels.

Daniels, a second-generation Mopar racer, joined the prestigious list of winners in his first final round by beating second-time finalist Stephen Hebert Friday evening before a packed house at the NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway Park. 

Friday represents class elimination day for the Super Stock racers, and the Mopar Hemi Challenge is a gathering of the Mopar-powered Super Stock/A HEMI (SS/AH) Sportsman entries. 
 
Hebert fouled out by leaving the starting line .038-second too soon, handing Daniels, who raced to a very quick 8.443-second pass at 154.90 mph in his Ray Barton-built Dart. Hebert's final time was a slowing 9.352 at 110.51 as he lifted from the throttle after noting his too-quick reaction time.

Daniels becomes the second Mopar Hemi Challenge winner in his family as his father, Jim Daniels, won the event in 2010 behind the wheel of the same car. 

Daniels' road the winner's circle included round wins over 1968 Dodge Dart driver Doug Fazzolare, Matt Welker in his 1968 Plymouth Barracuda, and fellow Dodge Dart campaigner Jim Pancake. Every round, Daniels clocked an 8.4-second pass.
 
"This is just unbelievable," said 20-year-old Daniels, a biology student aiming to follow his father's footsteps into the world of dentistry. "I've only had about three passes in the car before this. We struggled at the beginning of the year, going back to an automatic, and it just turned around this weekend. We did some work on it before the race, and everything just came together. It's an unbelievable experience. If it wasn't for my dad, and Ray and David for the awesome horsepower, and just the whole team effort, I couldn't imagine leaving our home in Bristol, Pennsylvania, and saying, 'I'm going to be in the winner's circle Friday night.' It's unreal.
 
"Other than the two full passes I made at the Maple Grove points race [earlier this year], these were my only full passes in this car. This feels great. It's such an accomplishment. I just could have never imagined this happening."
 
When Daniels raced to the Mopar HEMI Challenge victory, his father was on the starting line.
 
"This is incredible. What a feeling," said the senior Daniels. "I can't say that I wasn't real nervous today, but the car just performed really well all weekend. It responded to every change that we made. Ray and David just worked tirelessly, and I can't thank them enough."

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