Thu, 21 Aug 2025, 13:07 PM Brainerd Win Keeps Reigning Champ Greg Anderson's Regular Season Championship Hopes Alive

Courtesy of Kelly Wade, WinLight Communications Photo courtesy of Auto Imagery/Gary Nastase

BRAINERD, Minn. - A tremendous season for reigning Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Pro Stock world champion Greg Anderson continued at the 43rd annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals this weekend. Anderson, driving his HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro with the No. 1 affixed to the window, put forth a powerful presentation, dominating the Pro Stock class through qualifying and eliminations to take the battle for the regular-season championship down to the wire.

With a final-round victory over KB Titan Racing teammate Dallas Glenn, hometown hero Anderson chopped his opponent's point lead down to just nine marks with one race to go before the first major title of the season is decided. For the first time, the NHRA Countdown to the Championship will be preceded by formal acknowledgment of the racer who outperforms the competition in the first part of the season.

"It was just an absolutely perfect day; everything was perfect," said Duluth, Minn., native Anderson, who took out rookie Chris Vang in the opening act before securing victories over Eric Latino and Aaron Stanfield to reach the 189th final of his career. "Now we're going to Indy with darn near a dead-tie. Whoever can come out of Indy the best is going to be the regular season champion, and Dallas and I both want that, bad. This was a great weekend for HendrickCars.com, Summit Racing Equipment, KB Titan Racing, and all of the great people who support us."

The intensity of last year's championship battle between friendly rivals Anderson and Glenn carried right on through to this season, and after Anderson defeated Glenn in the final round of the final race in 2024 to inch past the young gun for the series title, Glenn flipped the table at the first race this season, defeating Anderson in the money round in Gainesville to claim the points lead. In Phoenix, Anderson flipped it back and beat Glenn both there and in Pomona, then it was Glenn on top again after back-to-back four-wide wins in Las Vegas and Charlotte.

But the elder was not to be kept down. Anderson defeated Erica Enders for the Epping trophy, then defeated Glenn in Bristol to get the points lead back. In Norwalk, it was Glenn over KB Titan's Cory Reed for the win, and with a defeat of Jeg Coughlin Jr. in Seattle, he was back on top with veteran Anderson in second.

"We've had a wonderful season, Dallas and I, but you have to find another gear by the time it comes to playoff time," said 111-time victor Anderson, the most winning driver in the history of Pro Stock. "We're one race away from the Countdown to the Championship, and you have to peak at the right time, or you won't be the champion."

With the competition picking up speed at this crucial time of the year, Anderson and company used the grounds at Brainerd International Raceway to show that they, too, were improving.

After driving his HendrickCars.com Chevrolet to the pole for the fifth time this season and earning the 137th No. 1 of his career, Anderson opened eliminations with a new Brainerd International Raceway track record for elapsed time, his 6.521-second pass stunning fans in the stands. Anderson had low elapsed time through every round of eliminations (and in three of four qualifying rounds) , while KB Titan-powered Matt Hartford clocked top speed of the meet with a 209.01 mph pass in round one.

"This weekend made us feel very good," said Anderson. "The other team has absolutely gained, and they're knocking on the door, but we're still gaining performance and racing well. It's going to be a battle the rest of the way. We'll have a great time tonight and celebrate, then we'll go home and work for a week and a half before Indy. Hopefully, that will be the best race of the year for us, and we'll continue to improve through the Countdown. That's the goal every week. That's what Pro Stock is all about. We never give up."

Race results
Qualifyied No. 1 (6.555, 207.59)
Total bonus points: +11
R1: Greg Anderson def. Chris Vang, (.022) 6.521, 208.07 to (-.036) no time
R2: Anderson def. Eric Latino, (.072) 6.551, 207.66 to (.113) 6.598, 206.48
R3: Anderson def. Aaron Stanfield, (.041) 6.555, 207.66 to (.037) 6.583, 207.85
R4: Anderson def. Dallas Glenn, (.025) 6.551, 206.86 to (.026) 6.577, 206.10

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Pro Stock standings
(unofficial) after NHRA Brainerd

1.  Dallas Glenn, 1,146
2.  Greg Anderson, 1,137
3. Matt Hartford, 715
4. Cory Reed, 658
5. Aaron Stanfield, 582
6. Eric Latino, 577
7. Jeg Coughlin Jr., 516
8. Greg Stanfield, 506
9. Cody Coughlin, 462
10. Deric Kramer, 447

Anderson's 2025 race results
Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals: No. 1 qualifier, final round, reset national record for elapsed time (6.443)
NHRA Arizona Nationals: No. 2 qualifier, won event
Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals: No. 1 qualifier, won event
Las Vegas NHRA Four-Wide Nationals: No. 1 qualifier, final round
Charlotte American Rebel Light NHRA Four-Wide Nationals: No. 2 qualifier, final round
New England Nationals: No. 2 qualifier, won event
Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals: No. 2 qualifier, earned milestone 1,000th round win, won event
Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals: No. 1 qualifier, reached the final round of the GETTRX All-Star Callout, semifinals at main event
Muckleshoot Casino Resort NHRA Northwest Nationals: No. 2 qualifier, first round
DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals: No. 2 qualifier, semifinals
Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals: No. 1 qualifier, won Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, won event

205 Pro Stock wins
10 NHRA Pro Stock Championships

KB Titan Racing includes NHRA Pro Stock drivers Greg Anderson, a six-time world champion and the most winning driver in the category; 2021 Rookie of the Year Dallas Glenn; Deric Kramer; Matt Hartford; Eric Latino; Cory Reed; and 2025 Rookie of the Year contenders Cody Coughlin and Matt Latino.