PRO STOCK CHAMPION ERICA ENDERS GETS REDEMPTION WITH COMP ELIMINATOR WIN

But with an immediate chance to make amends , Enders finished her weekend at Orlando Speed World Dragway in style and added an impressive first in the process .

Driving the Lee Sharp-owned Sharp Racing ’ 08 Pontiac G5 , Enders won for the first time in Competition Eliminator , going 7.894-seconds at 176.42 mph on an 8.15 index in the final round to win and collect the $ 10,000 prize .

“ I ’ m proud for the team , but I want to thank Lee Sharp for giving me the chance to drive this car ,” Enders said . “ I know I ’ ve had a bit of a bumpy road in this car , but they ’ ve stuck with me regardless . It ’ s been a huge learning curve and I ’ m thankful for this team staying patient with me .”

Enders , the four-time Pro Stock world champ , got refocused after falling to Cristian Cuadra in the Pro Stock semifinals when Cuadra went . 001 on the starting line . Enders put up a strong . 029 reaction time but she couldn ’ t quite track down Cuadra , going 6.516 at 210.54 .

Enders was after the $ 75,000 prize in Pro Stock , but she rebounded in the Elite Performance-powered Comp Eliminator car . It wasn ’ t the perfect run in the final round under the lights , but Enders stayed after it and chased down Joseph Arrowsmith for the satisfying victory .

“ A win is a win , no matter what the time slip says ,” Enders said . “ I was still pretty mad about my semifinal Pro Stock performance , but it ’ s really cool to win in Comp . It ’ s a class that I ’ m very new to , and I ’ m still learning how to drive the car . Leaving on a bottom bulb is a totally different procedure . It was a little ugly and I had to pedal the car , but you leg it out to the finish and I saw him disappear . It was cool .”

Enders eliminated Taylor Chomiski , Greg Kamplain and Brian Browell before meeting Arrowsmith in the $ 10,000 final round .

She looked strong in Pro Stock for a majority of the weekend , too , going as quick as 6.501 during eliminations and taking plenty of positives from the race . Competing in two classes and winning in one of them was memorable , but she was just

as impressed with another incredible atmosphere .

“ I love this race ,” Enders said . “ Having the privilege of seeing what goes on behind the scenes for this race , it ’ s a ton of work and effort and sacrifice . I think it goes to show when you have people who are passionate about something , today is an indication of what happens in year two .

“ On the fun side of things , driving through that crowd of people , talk about an adrenaline rush . I ’ m thankful to all the people who made this possible . I feel like this race is awesome and they treat the racers like they deserve to be treated , and it ’ s only going to grow . I ’ m proud to be part of it .” – JOSH HACHAT DI

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