Steve Johnson captured his second consecutive win of the season and 13th of his storied career at the Charlotte Four-Wide Nationals from zMax Dragway, putting together another convincing performance aboard his Slick 50 / USA Electric Suzuki.

"Anytime you can race and win on a Bruton Smith track, you are killing it in drag racing," Johnson said.

Johnson, at times, made it look effortless, but the reality of establishing the low elapsed time of the event [6.712] came amid multiple struggles. 

Most notably, during qualifying Friday afternoon, Johnson's alter-ego crew chief [himself] made a self-induced error that caused the team to lose their second run when he forgot to tighten the bolts on top of the engine, which caused oil to spill out and the bike to smoke on the starting line.

Johnson and his team came into Sunday's final eliminations more than ready to battle. He needed the momentum from winning last weekend in Houston to outlast formidable foes such as Angie Smith, Hector Arana Jr, and Ron Tornow in his opening quad before laying down the jaw-dropping 6.712 in the semifinals.

However, before the final, Johnson's problems would creep back in once again, as the same problem from Friday would plague him for a second time.

"The valve cover had loosened up again," Johnson said. "The engine builder, the knucklehead engine builder, didn't tighten everything right. Oil had filled up."

Sometimes when it rains, it pours.

"When they finished fixing that, we have this battery, and it's smoking inside our bike, and it's ready to burn up," Johnson explained. 

Johnson's attentive crew quickly leaped into action. 

Leaky valve cover and battery issues aside, Johnson and his team didn't miss a beat, belting out a 6.740 at 200.65 miles per hour during the least favorable conditions to beat Gainesville winner Karen Stoffer, Eddie Krawiec, and Joey Gladstone in the final round. 

Johnson not only got the win this weekend, but he also put the icing on the cake by taking over the Pro Stock Motorcycle points lead heading into the next race in Richmond, Virginia. 

There's still plenty of season left, but this doesn't stop Johnson from dreaming big.

"That's what I want and why we are up [working] every single day," Johnson said. "I sleep at the shop. Every penny I have goes into the engine, pistons, and valves. Contending for a championship is why we are here."