Sun, 09 Mar 2025, 13:16 PM Reigning world champ Greg Anderson locks down 133rd No. 1, set for round one in Gainesville

Courtesy of Tamara Langner, KB Titan Racing Photo courtesy of Auto Imagery / Gary Nastase

Saturday at Gainesville Raceway was a complete wash-out, and not a single pass could be made on the final day of qualifying for the 56th annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals as rain moved in and out of the area. Six-time world champion Greg Anderson, however, wasn't much perturbed. Anderson, driver of the set-on-kill HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro, had already blasted to a new national record for elapsed time, and that powerful pass was all he needed to set up for Sunday.

His perfect 6.443-second run in the later round of Friday qualifying eclipsed the previous class-best of 6.450 and landed the most winning driver in the history of the sport the 133rd No. 1 qualifier award of his career. As the polesitter, Anderson also scored the first GESi Pro Stock No. 1 Qualifier Award of the year and the $2,000 bonus.

"I'm excited for tomorrow," said Anderson. "My HendrickCars.com Chevrolet is fully prepared to go the distance, and even though we only had two runs on Friday before the field was set, what we saw was proof enough for me that we can get it done here tomorrow and start the season with a trophy. I'm looking forward to getting back here in the morning and getting to work."

Anderson will begin eliminations with a first-round meeting with Chris McGaha, a driver he has raced 35 times in elimination rounds. Anderson holds a 23-12 advantage over his opponent heading into the first round at Gainesville Raceway, where he is a five-time winner with victories earned in 2004, 2007, 2015, 2016, and 2021.

Eliminations for the 56th annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals are set to begin at 9:30 a.m. EST on Sunday at Gainesville Raceway.

Anderson's qualifying results
Q1: 6.508-second at 211.89 mph (No. 5)
Q2: 6.443, 212.06 (No. 1, national record, +3 bonus points)

First-round opponent: Chris McGaha