For the 179th time in his long, storied, and still very much alive career, Greg Anderson wheeled his way to a Pro Stock final. At this weekend’s NHRA Texas FallNationals, the most winning driver in the history of Pro Stock had the car to beat with his HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro, and he paired it with top-notch driving to keep his championship hopes thriving as he raked in valuable points.
After qualifying on the pole for the 130th time in his career and earning eight bonus points as one of the top cars in three of the four rounds, Anderson came into Sunday at Texas Motorplex looking for a seventh win at a facility where he holds track records and has logged milestone moments – including the 98th win of his career that edged him into the all-time lead in the class.
“I love it here,” said Anderson. “It’s as simple as that. It’s a great facility. Texas Motorplex was our first ‘super track,’ and they still do an outstanding job making this race and the events leading up to it very special. It stands out, and it’s just so much fun to win here. I wish we could have done that today.”
In the final round, Anderson raced longtime rival Jeg Coughlin Jr. It was the 113th time that the two had gone toe-to-toe in elimination rounds and the 23rd time they met in the final. Anderson left ahead of his opponent but ran into a bit of trouble, slowing to a 6.603 at 210.13 mph and coming just .002-second shy of earning the 106th trophy of his career.
Anderson had a solo run in the opening round as would-be opponent Eric Latino crashed his racecar in Friday qualifying, and the five-time champion made the most of the single as he dealt out a 6.543, 210.59 that would stand as low elapsed time and top speed of raceday. With lane choice over Fernando Cuadra Jr. in round two, he again put up the quickest run of the round, a 6.568, 209.92, to beat a 6.607, 207.89.
The semifinals brought Anderson up for a meeting with incoming points leader and KB Titan Racing teammate Dallas Glenn, who got the win over second-place Aaron Stanfield in the second round to stretch his points lead. There, though, Anderson left ahead of Glenn and turned the advantage into a win light, 6.601, 209.50 to 6.619, 208.75.
“We had a great car today, all the way up to the final round,” said Anderson. “We have a few minor issues to iron out before we head west for Vegas and Pomona, but I’m confident. The HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro was the best car out there this weekend, and this isn’t the first time we’ve been able to say that this season. I feel good. I’m excited for these last two races, and I can’t wait to get out there.”
The next event on the 2024 Mission Foods Drag Racing Series tour is the 24th annual NHRA Nevada Nationals in Las Vegas, Oct. 31-Nov. 3.
This story was originally published on October 14, 2024. 
