Lindberg Enters Pomona With World Title on the Line

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  1. News Editor

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    Jonnie Lindberg has all he can ask for. With the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series season coming to an end at this weekend’s Auto Club NHRA Finals in Pomona, Calif., the 26-year-old driver and tuner from Upplands Vasby, Sweden, controls his own destiny with a one-point lead over Annie Whiteley in the Lucas Oil standings.

    Four drivers have a chance at the title including Lindberg, Whiteley, John Lombardo Jr., and Doug Gordon. The points system takes a driver’s best seven-of-10 national event finishes and best three-of-five regional finishes. For that reason, Whiteley would assume the points lead by winning the first round since she is replacing a first-round loss. Rather than play out the scenarios, Lindberg is focused on winning the event which would award him the season-long prize regardless of what his competitors do.

    “I need to go one round more than Annie Whiteley,” said Lindberg. “Lombardo and Gordon are hunting behind me, too. I need to go to the semi’s to gain 11 more points, but I think I really need to win the race to make sure I win. I’ll do my best as always.”

    Furthering Lindberg’s cause is a return to Auto Club Raceway at Pomona where he looked dominant during his first career NHRA win during the Circle K NHRA Winternationals in February.

    “The car ran perfect in February,” Lindberg recalled. “The car ran perfect for this track. Hopefully I can go even faster since I have more experience now than I did in February. It’s going to be a fast field, of course, because everyone has stepped up this year. I’m pretty confident that our car is going to work perfect this weekend. We checked everything with all the electronics before this weekend. I hope for some more luck this weekend, too.”

    Electrical issues had plagued the Landmeco-sponsored Chevrolet Monte Carlo during Lindberg’s recent efforts in Las Vegas. Lindberg was able to reach the semifinals at the NHRA Toyota Nationals and take the points lead despite battling ignition issues and subsequent misfires. He had no such luck at the West Region event held at the same track the following week, though. After running a brilliant 5.47 during testing prior to the event, he was unable to qualify for the eight-car field.

    “It was a little frustrating to not qualify for the first time since I brought the car over to Pomona in 2013,” said Lindberg. “If I won the race, I would have won the Central Region, so that was a little upsetting. It’s still better it happened there than first round this weekend.”

    Lindberg is delighted to be in a position to close in on a title following an up-and-down campaign that featured major highlights and lessons learned along the way. His first win in Pomona and another victory in Charlotte while breaking the class’ 5.3-second and 270-mph barriers are the high marks. A win at the Central Region event in Noble, Okla., in October also boosted his title hopes. A record that includes several runner-up and semifinal finishes have put Lindberg in a strong position, and the experience gained after a season of racing all over the United States has taught him lessons that will help him convert more of those late-round finishes into victories.

    “We learned a lot this year,” said Lindberg. “Now we know more about how the tracks change and how to change the car. We try to make it more consistent. We’ve had ups and down with a couple motor failures and parts failures. We haven’t had a great year because we only had two national wins and one regional win – it feels like you should have more wins if you’re the points leader – but we have a chance to win the title.”

    Regarding the title, the 2013 FIA Top Methanol Funny Car champion knows what it would mean but is trying to remain focused on the task at hand rather than getting caught up in it.

    “It would mean the world,” said Lindberg. “We won the European championship in 2013, and that was big. I think this would be 10 times bigger, but I don’t want to think about it too much and make myself nervous. We’re going to take it one run at a time, and hopefully by the end of the weekend we will be winners.

    “This weekend is going to be crazy with so many Swedes coming to Pomona. It’s pretty cool that all of them are in the grandstands supporting us. This weekend is going to be a full-house team. We’re probably going to have nine people. Everyone who has helped us this year will be flying over. I have a good feeling. I have a good team behind me, and I think it will be good if I play my cards right.”

    Lindberg Bros. Motorsports extends its gratitude to supporters Landmeco, Oslo Tapet & Gulvbelegg AS, Manton Pushrods and Rockerarms, Manley Performance valves, Noonan Race Engineering cylinder heads, Leanders Clutches, Composite Specialties injector hats, Bullet Cams, Jan-Cen, Red Line Oil, XRP, Kjelland Transport, CPI, Total Projekt, Geoveta, Scania, BST, Fastec, VSM, Scandrock, and Birka Motorrenoveringar.

    Television coverage of the 51st Annual Auto Club NHRA Finals will be Broadcast on May 3 at 11:30 PM-12:30 AM ET on 11/22 on ESPN2
     
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