Karen Stoffer did not anticipate being a part of the championship picture this weekend.

Firmly out of the title fight, Stoffer knew she had pace as evident by her back-to-back runner-up finishes in Las Vegas and Bristol, but she didn’t anticipate finding herself right in the thick of the hunt on Sunday.

But that is exactly where the veteran rider finds herself after bumping Pro Stock Motorcycle championship leader Matt Smith from the top spot in the third and final qualifying session at the Auto Club NHRA Finals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona to earn her first No. 1 qualifier of the season and the fifth of her career.

“The team has put together a fantastic bike. We bobbled a little bit on the first hit this morning, we had a little malfunction on the bike, but it certainly came around,” Stoffer said. “Tim (Kulungian, crew chief) leaned over and said, ‘If you have to turn it off we will restart it, but it should be a good pass.’ And it certainly was.

“I was shooting for that 200 (mile-per-hour run) and thought maybe we could squeak it out, but we were very close. It was on my bucket list and while we didn’t manage to do it, I’ve got to thank Tim and the team. They worked really hard in between rounds to fix the motor.”

Stoffer was second on the ladder after a strong run Friday at the California track atop her Big St. Charles/Skillman Auto Group Suzuki, but hurt the motor in the first pass on Saturday. After turning it around and getting it back to the line for the final session, Stoffer surprised even herself with a stout 6.751-second pass at 199.11 mph to unseat Smith who slipped to second with a 6.778 at 201.25 mph.

“With the hurricane that we had this year that impacted so many, Jerry (Savoie, teammate) made the decision early on that he was only going to race when he truly could. They decided when he made that decision to keep the four-valve program and put it in my bike and keep working on it,” Stoffer said. “It was truly turning around in Dallas when Jerry raced it and I think he would have done well if he had been able to play it out. So they decided to put the four-valve in my bike and it has worked out well for me.

“I’m very fortunate to ride a fast bike. Jerry has been texting me and Tim and saying that he is behind us. I am sure he was jumping up and down when he saw we went No. 1.”

Eddie Krawiec was third with a 6.810 at 199.55 mph, followed by a pair of championship hopefuls in Steve Johnson (6.811) and Angelle Sampey (6.819).

Smith still controls his championship destiny on Sunday, with a two-round gap between himself and the duo of Johnson and Sampey. Smith will race Ryan Oehler in round one and could face Sampey in round two. If Sampey wins the race, she would also win her third championship.

The biggest surprise from Saturday came when championship-hopeful Johnson crossed the centerline during the final qualifying session, incurring a 15-point deduction for this third infraction of the season. Johnson would need to win two more rounds than Smith and one more round than Sampey to earn his first title.

While there are a number of scenarios that could factor into the championship picture on Sunday, right in the thick of it all now is Stoffer who looks to unexpectedly play spoiler.

“Our job is to turn that win light on Sunday and that is what we want to do. We are going to try and do it four times and I’ve got the bike to do it,” Stoffer said. “There is a lot on the line with this one and, while every race is hard, this one seems to be a little extra with all of the championship dialog going on. I’m not one to come in and do the spoiling. I am just the one who wants to race the bike and have fun.”

With only 12 bikes in the field, Stoffer will face Kelly Clontz in round one, with the winner receiving a bye run into the semifinals.

“I’m not a strategic racer; I had no idea what they were talking about until I got to the top end and they told me there were 12 bikes here,” Stoffer said. “That really doesn’t change a thing. My job is still to go out and do the best job I can and win this race.”

If Stoffer can win, it would be her second win of the year and 11th of her career. But that win might also come at the expense of beating some of her closest allies on the track, something that is not lost on her entering race day.

“Most of us are friends out here off the track, but on the track it is strictly racing,” Stoffer said. “We are all racers. Every one of us wants to beat the one in the other lane. You don’t put a face to it and you don’t put a name to it.

“Ultimately, I have no decision on who wins the championship. May the best rider and racer and team win. I am not changing my strategy. I will feel bad because those are my friends out there, but ultimately it is in their hands, not mine.”