Columnist Brian Hilderbrand: Anderson wins Pro Stock title earlier than anyone ever

Thursday, Sept. 30, 2004 | 9:55 a.m.

Brian Hilderbrand covers motor sports for the Las Vegas Sun. His motor sports notebook appears Friday. He can be reached at bh@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4089.

Greg Anderson put an exclamation point on another phenomenal season last weekend when he clinched his second consecutive NHRA Pro Stock championship at the NHRA O'Reilly Nationals at the Texas Motorplex.

With four races remaining in the 2004 season, Anderson clinched the championship earlier than any other professional driver in NHRA history. He has driven the Summit Racing Equipment Pontiac Grand Am to a record-tying 13 victories and 62 round wins this season and is on track to break both of those single-season marks.

But not everyone in NHRA's inner sanctum is impressed with Anderson's feats over the past two seasons, which include 25 event victories and 129 round wins.

Fellow Pro Stock owner/driver Warren Johnson, who employed Anderson for 12 years before Anderson left to drive for Ken Black of Las Vegas, told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram last week that Anderson's success is directly tied to his team's $2 million budget -- which Johnson claimed is four times the amount he spends on his program.

"Anything can be bought," Johnson told the Star-Telegram. "Spend enough money at anything and you can buy anything at all. Greg's problem is he's found out he can't buy respect; he's got to earn it, and that's what's bugging him. That's really the bottom line.

"He's apparently complaining because nobody acknowledges that he's doing well, at least directly to him. That appears to be the common denominator, that he feels that he's not being respected. I might be incorrect, but that's what I read out of it."

Anderson countered by saying that there is no way Johnson is racing on a $500,000 budget, and added that he didn't need his former mentor's respect to validate his success.

"All I hear is money, money, money," Anderson said. "It has nothing to do with money; it's teamwork, teamwork, teamwork. Not money. It's absolute jealousy on his part. Where's he at in points right now?

"I don't need anything from him. I really think I do have (respect among my peers). And I think (Johnson) is losing (respect) by the day, talking like that."

Johnson entered the O'Reilly Nationals needing to qualify fourth and win his first-round elimination race to clinch the championship. Anderson qualified third, but clinched the title when Jason Line, his teammate and closest challenger, lost in the first round. Anderson also lost his first-round race, to Kurt Johnson, but already had the title locked up.

"Certainly that wasn't the way we wanted to finish this championship run because we wanted to win this race, but that one round wasn't the championship," Anderson said. "I think the way we ran all season has put us in this position and I am very happy to win the Powerade world championship again because you just never know if you are going to be able to win another one.

"There have been so many other things going on that winning this second championship really hasn't sunk in yet. We've won a lot of races and have held such a big lead that sometimes I think we've lost track of exactly what we've accomplished. But this Powerade Pro Stock title was our main goal, and it's what we set out to do at the beginning of every year."

VIVA SANTANA: NHRA Funny Car drivers Cruz and Tony Pedregon will team with legendary musician Carlos Santana and display special paint schemes on their cars during next month's ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

The distinct paint schemes will promote and benefit the Milagro Foundation, an organization founded by Santana and his wife, Deborah, that has given $1.5 million to charities and agencies that support children and youth in the areas of health, education and the arts.

Carlos Santana, a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and a multiple Grammy winner, is scheduled to make a special appearance on Sunday, Oct. 31, at the ACDelco Las Vegas NHRA Nationals.

AT THE STRIP: The season finale of the 2004 Jerry's Nugget Championship Drag Racing Series will be held Saturday at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway with season championships in Super Pro, Pro, Motorcycle and Street to be decided. The Super E Association will join the weekly racing show beginning at 4:30 p.m.

Midnight Mayhem returns to The Strip Friday night beginning at 10, the NHRA Junior Dragster Series will compete in the National Dragster Challenge Saturday beginning at 8 a.m. and the annual Las Vegas Bug-In all-Volkswagen races, car show and swap meet will take over The Strip from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.