In only his first year competing in Comp Eliminator, Monty Bogan already has a divisional event win to his credit.

And not just any event win. He won the first Divison 4 Comp Eliminator race in Belle Rose, La., which means he’s leading the points in the Rooftec Comp Eliminator Bonus Fund. He couldn’t have planned it any better.

“We cooked out, won some races, and had a pretty good time,” said Bogan. “And we didn’t break anything, so all in all, it was a great way to start the season.”

It all started with a fortuitous phone call from Lee Sharp last December.

“Lee asked me how much racing I was going to do this year,” recalled Bogan. “I told him I wasn’t sure, and he asked if I was interested in driving his car. He couldn’t get the words out of his mouth fast enough. I was in!”

Bogan and Sharp are specifically running in Division 4 because of the Comp Eliminator Bonus Fund, proving that it’s doing exactly what it was designed to do, bringing out more Comp Eliminator cars to revive the category. Sharp’s 1992 Camaro was ready to attack the track.

“It’s a bad ombre,” said Bogan. “It’s unbelievably nice how well-detailed they’ve got it. You’ve really got to see it.”

Bogan had one significant advantage in Belle Rose. He never had to hit his index in eliminations. He defeated Bill Tomlinson, Rick Brown, Cody Lane, and Jim Kimbrough before coming into the final round against Jeff Taylor. Unlike Bogan, Taylor had taken a few hits to his index throughout the day, giving Bogan an advantage.

“I was pretty excited going into the finals,” he recalled. “We knew we could outrun him just as long as I turned it green and kept everything good.”

Not only did Bogan win in Comp Eliminator at this event, but he also won in Super Stock, marking the first time the talented driver doubled up at an NHRA event.

The next Division 4 event to count toward the Rooftec Comp Eliminator Bonus Fund is this weekend in Houston at Houston Raceway Park.