Toyota NHRA Pomona Finals Preview

LANGDON RETURNS HOME LOOKING FOR TITLE – For Shawn Langdon, Pomona and racing have been synonymous.   He attended his first races as a toddler at Pomona. In elementary school, his father would use a trip to the Winternationals as a reward for good grades. By 14, he was behind the wheel of his own NHRA Junior Dragster, winning his first national championship with the dream of one day becoming a champion in Top Fuel.

And it was at his home-track where his dream season would begin.  Langdon opened the year by winning the prestigious Winternationals at Pomona. As the season advanced, he went on clinch the regular season crown and number one seed for the Countdown with a victory at the coveted U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis.  After struggling in the Countdown opener in Charlotte, Langdon has roared back with three number one qualifiers and registered a series-leading sixth victory at Reading to go along with a runner-up finish in Dallas and a semi-final showing last weekend in Las Vegas. The result is a commanding 102-point lead heading into the Finals at Pomona.

BROWN STILL FIGHTING FOR REPEAT – Antron Brown began the Countdown with a DNQ at Charlotte and losing in the opening round at Dallas.  Just two races into the Countdown, Brown found himself 150 points out of the series lead and many counted him out, yet, heading into the final event of the season, Brown is second in the points and still in the hunt for the title 102 points behind.

Since those first two races, Brown has been the hottest driver on the circuit, winning two of three races and advancing to the finals in the third and climbing from ninth in points back up to second.

Ironically, Brown was on the other end of the pursuit a year ago.   He held a 136-point advantage over Tony Schumacher with two races remaining only to have to wait out an anxious final round at Pomona where Schumacher loss in the finals to clinch Brown’s world championship.