Aaron Stanfield stayed red-hot in Pro Stock, picking up his second straight win and third in four races by knocking off points leader Greg Anderson in the final round of the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona with a run of 6.652 at 207.69 in his Janac Brothers Chevrolet Camaro.
It marked the 10th race of the 2021 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season and the final event of the famed three-race NHRA Western Swing.
It’s the second time in this recent stretch that the young standout got the better of the veteran and four-time champ in the final round, also denying Anderson the chance to pick up his 97th career win and tie Warren Johnson for the most in Pro Stock history.
Stanfield, though, is putting together his own championship resume this season, beating Kenny Delco, Matt Hartford and Elite Motorsports teammate Erica Enders to reach the final round. He never trailed against Anderson, picking up his fourth career win and inching closer to the points lead.
“I’ve got some great guys working on my hot rod and if I can stay doing my job behind the wheel, I think we’ve got a great shot (to compete for a championship),” Stanfield said. “To win back-to-back races, I couldn’t have dreamed of this. It’s cool to race against Greg and that milestone he’s trying to accomplish, but I’m glad we got him stopped today.”
Anderson advanced to his fifth final round this season and 163rd in his career with victories against Chris McGaha and KB Racing teammate Kyle Koretsky. He’ll look to tie Johnson’s mark for all-time wins in Pro Stock in two weeks in Topeka.
Smith continued to stay a step ahead of everyone in Pro Stock Motorcycle, picking up his fourth win this season on his Denso Auto Parts/Stockseth/Matt Smith Racing EBR after a pass of 6.828 at 199.52 in the final round against Angelle Sampey. Smith was the No. 1 qualifier by a wide margin and rolled through the field on Sunday, earning round wins against his wife, Angie, and teammate Scotty Pollacheck before cruising to the win against Sampey. He maintained his healthy lead in the points standings and picked up his second win on the Western Swing as well.
“It was hot out there and that was the biggest thing, just fighting the track with it being this hot,” said Smith, who now has 30 career wins. “But we got it done, qualified No. 1 and were almost low every round. I knew what we had to do in the final and we laid down a great run (in the final). I can’t say enough about the people who help us. We’ve got a great team.”
Sampey advanced to her first final round of the season and 75th in her standout career by taking out Jim Underdahl, Joey Gladstone and Vance & Hines teammate Eddie Krawiec. She also moved to fourth in points.
The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series returns to action Aug. 13-15 with the Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor at Heartland Motorsports Park in Topeka, Kan.
POMONA, Calif. — Final finish order (1-16) at the 61st annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. The race is the 10th of 20 events in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series.
PRO STOCK:
1. Aaron Stanfield; 2. Greg Anderson; 3. Erica Enders; 4. Kyle Koretsky; 5. Troy Coughlin Jr.; 6. Aaron Strong; 7. Chris McGaha; 8. Matt Hartford; 9. Dallas Glenn; 10. Val Smeland; 11. Kenny Delco; 12. Alan Prusiensky; 13. Deric Kramer; 14. Rob Tucker; 15. Mason McGaha.
PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE:
1. Matt Smith; 2. Angelle Sampey; 3. Eddie Krawiec; 4. Scotty Pollacheck; 5. Angie Smith; 6. Jerry Savoie; 7. Joey Gladstone; 8. Freddie Camarena; 9. Karen Stoffer; 10. Ryan Oehler; 11. Steve Johnson; 12. Jianna Salinas; 13. Cory Reed; 14. Andrew Hines; 15. Jim Underdahl.
POMONA, Calif. — Sunday’s final results from the 61st annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. The race is the 10th of 20 in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series:
Pro Stock — Aaron Stanfield, Chevy Camaro, 6.652, 207.69 def. Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.660, 207.08.
Pro Stock Motorcycle — Matt Smith, EBR, 6.828, 199.52 def. Angelle Sampey, Suzuki, 6.911, 173.96.
POMONA, Calif. — Final round-by-round results from the 61st annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, the 10th of 20 events in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series:
PRO STOCK:
ROUND ONE — Chris McGaha, Chevy Camaro, 6.652, 207.88 def. Deric Kramer, Camaro, 6.710, 206.61; Aaron Strong, Camaro, 6.642, 207.46 def. Mason McGaha, Camaro, 9.635, 96.85; Aaron Stanfield, Camaro, 6.637, 205.79 def. Kenny Delco, Camaro, 6.702, 206.92; Kyle Koretsky, Camaro, 6.642, 206.73 def. Dallas Glenn, Camaro, 6.661, 205.72; Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.655, 206.80 def. Alan Prusiensky, Dodge Dart, 6.707, 205.01; Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.606, 206.95 was unopposed; Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.620, 206.39 def. Rob Tucker, Dart, 6.776, 203.09; Troy Coughlin Jr., Camaro, 6.618, 205.72 def. Val Smeland, Camaro, 6.690, 206.86;
QUARTERFINALS — Stanfield, 6.673, 205.29 def. Hartford, 6.738, 204.32; Enders, 6.673, 206.39 def. Strong, 6.679, 206.89; Koretsky, 6.665, 207.43 def. Coughlin Jr., 6.647, 205.79; Anderson, 6.648, 207.05 def. C. McGaha, 6.704, 207.11;
SEMIFINALS — Stanfield, 6.684, 204.76 def. Enders, 6.686, 206.04; Anderson, 6.649, 206.54 def. Koretsky, 6.702, 207.50;
FINAL — Stanfield, 6.652, 207.69 def. Anderson, 6.660, 207.08.
PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE:
ROUND ONE — Angie Smith, 6.917, 196.70 def. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 7.020, 177.30; Joey Gladstone, Suzuki, 6.937, 196.53 def. Jianna Salinas, Suzuki, 7.032, 192.11; Angelle Sampey, Suzuki, 6.822, 198.35 def. Jim Underdahl, Suzuki, Broke – No Show; Scotty Pollacheck, 6.882, 198.82 def. Cory Reed, Suzuki, 7.126, 178.54; Freddie Camarena, Suzuki, 7.031, 193.40 def. Andrew Hines, Buell, 19.190, 38.82; Eddie Krawiec, Buell, 6.884, 199.94 def. Karen Stoffer, Suzuki, 6.913, 195.62; Matt Smith, 6.901, 173.81 was unopposed; Jerry Savoie, Suzuki, 6.843, 197.31 def. Ryan Oehler, 7.017, 194.77;
QUARTERFINALS — M. Smith, 6.838, 199.82 def. A. Smith, 6.929, 196.76; Krawiec, 6.945, 197.62 def. Camarena, 7.091, 190.24; Sampey, 6.843, 197.10 def. Gladstone, 7.044, 196.53; Pollacheck, 6.891, 197.97 def. Savoie, 6.961, 195.65;
SEMIFINALS — Sampey, 6.878, 195.42 def. Krawiec, 6.933, 197.91; M. Smith, 6.919, 197.31 def. Pollacheck, 6.965, 197.62;
FINAL — M. Smith, 6.828, 199.52 def. Sampey, 6.911, 173.96.
POMONA, Calif. — Point standings (top 10) following the 61st annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, the 10th of 20 events in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series –
Pro Stock
1. Greg Anderson, 775; 2. Aaron Stanfield, 629; 3. Erica Enders, 608; 4. Matt Hartford, 546; 5. Dallas Glenn, 524; 6. Mason McGaha, 518; 7. Deric Kramer, 487; 8. Kyle Koretsky, 481; 9. Troy Coughlin Jr., 468; 10. Chris McGaha, 337.
Pro Stock Motorcycle
1. Matt Smith, 813; 2. Steve Johnson, 551; 3. Scotty Pollacheck, 491; 4. Angelle Sampey, 443; 5. Ryan Oehler, 441; 6. Angie Smith, 429; 7. Karen Stoffer, 428; 8. Eddie Krawiec, 409; 9. Joey Gladstone, 389; 10. Andrew Hines, 381.
This story was originally published on August 1, 2021. 
