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RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. --
Todd became the odds-on favorite to win the coveted prize and accompanying $20,000 check by winning three times in four final-round appearances over the last 11 races of the 23-race season. Despite missing four races and not qualifying once, Todd parlayed his consistency into a climb from a low of 19th place in the standings all the way up an eighth place finish. "To win an award that great drivers like Brandon Bernstein, Ron Capps, Gary Scelzi, Doug Kalitta and the late Darrell Russell have won means a lot to me," said the soft-spoken Todd, of Lawrenceburg, Ind. "I just hope I can come close in comparison to those drivers. "There were some good rookie drivers out there this year and just to be nominated for the award is an honor . . . and to be taking it home is more than I expected." Others nominated were Alan Bradshaw, Top Fuel; Max Naylor, Pro Stock, and Hillary Will, Top Fuel. Todd's emergence may not have happened had Evan Knoll not approached team owner Dexter Tuttle with sponsorship assistance from his Skull Shine and Torco Racing Fuels companies seven races into the season. "I really didn't give us much chance to win this award because we had planned to only run 12 races," said Todd. "We missed four races early in the year but when Evan came on board we knew we'd be running the rest of the season. "By mid-season things really turned around for our team. Our crew chief, Jimmy Walsh got a good handle on setting up the car and the guys on the crew were flawless. I was getting more comfortable in the car as the year went along and, sure enough, we started to pick up some round wins." Todd first caught the spotlight's glare at Denver in mid-July when he strung four round wins together and claimed his first victory. That win also was the first by an African American Top Fuel or Funny Car driver in NHRA history. Two weeks later, Todd added his first exclamation point with another storybook win at Sonoma, Calif., defeating Tony Schumacher - the two-time reigning Top Fuel champion - in the final round for the second straight time. Todd won again at Reading, Pa. and was runner-up in Las Vegas last month. "We started opening some eyes, turned some heads and kind of surprised ourselves along the way," Todd said. No one was surprised Monday night when Todd won the award. "For more than 100 years, the Automobile Club of Southern California has represented integrity, commitment and professionalism to our millions of members. The Road to the Future Award has come to symbolize those same attributes in the sport of NHRA POWERade Drag Racing," said Thomas V. McKernan, president and CEO of the Auto Club. "To be nominated recognizes not only that a rookie driver had a noteworthy first season, but also that they demonstrated exceptional potential for the future."
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