NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Andrew Hines

Andrew Hines and Eddie Krawiec are used to competing against one another for NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series world championships, as the Pro Stock Motorcycle teammates have won four of the past five world titles in the class.

They enter this weekend’s Auto Club NHRA Finals at historic Auto Club Raceway tied for first place, promising another entertaining duel at the season finale, but Jerry Savoie has his own plans for the weekend. Savoie won in Vegas to pull within three points of the perennial title contenders in the Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship, setting up one of the most dramatic finishes in class history in Pomona.

“We both have the desire to want to win this race, so (Eddie and I are) going to do whatever we can to try and take out the alligator that's chasing us,” Hines said, referencing Savoie, a Louisiana alligator farmer.

Shawn Langdon (Top Fuel), Del Worsham (Funny Car), Allen Johnson (Pro Stock) and Krawiec (Pro Stock Motorcycle) were last year’s winners of the event that will air for the first time on FOX Sports 1. On Sunday, FS1 will televise three hours of live finals coverage starting at 4 p.m. (ET). It is the final race of the 2016 season and the three-way duel in Pro Stock Motorcycle is one of the most thrilling storylines of the weekend.

Hines is after his third straight championship and sixth overall, while Krawiec has his sights set on his fourth world title. Savoie, meanwhile, wants to join the championship club for the first time in his career and his Vegas triumph gives him a legitimate shot. He has won twice and advanced to three finals during the Countdown to the Championship on his Savoie’s Alligator Farm Suzuki, carrying a great deal of momentum into Pomona.

“If you look at the past two races in qualifying and eliminations, we’ve had the top qualifying bike in 15 of those 16 rounds,” said Savoie, who has six career wins. “That says a lot and we’re going into Pomona running really well. That’s pretty stout. Hopefully we can qualify No. 1 every round, get those bonus points and continue to run the best every round. I have a lot of confidence in our team, and we’ll be focused.”

The same goes for the Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson teammates of Krawiec and Hines. Krawiec jumped back into the lead he had for most of the regular season with back-to-back victories in Reading and Dallas where he beat Savoie in the final. But Hines, who has five wins in 2016, pulled even in Vegas with a final round showing.

“I think this year Andrew and I have been brought to a better level of riding,” said Krawiec, who has 36 career wins. “Definitely with the level of competition, there's about eight or ten bikes on any given weekend that could possibly win. It's definitely good to win on a weekend where you know you pulled it off.”

Krawiec has also thrived in Pomona, advancing to eight straight final rounds at the Auto Club NHRA Finals dating back to 2008. Krawiec has won four of those years and a fifth would cement another world championship. That dominance is impressive and with Savoie also in top form to end the season, Hines is looking forward to seeing what will transpire throughout the weekend in Pomona.

“Everybody puts forth the maximum effort they possibly can to make sure we're in the position that we are in right now,” said Hines, who has 47 career wins. “If all goes well, hopefully we can bring another championship to Vance & Hines. Hopefully if we can find another one or two hundredths, it'll get us closer to Jerry.”
 
Mello Yello Drag Racing Series qualifying feature two rounds at 12:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 11, and two final qualifying rounds on Saturday, Nov. 12, at 12:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 13.

Tickets are available at NHRA.com/tickets or by calling 1-800-884-NHRA. Kids 12 & under can see it all for free with a general admission ticket, while all students can save 50 percent on general admission at the gate with a student ID.