FIA Top Fuel Dragster

Although no a stranger to the winner’s circle, Carter has wrapped up his fourth points title in supreme fashion with one event to go on the season’s schedule in the Lucas Oil backed flyer. Victory at the Nitrolymp’X gave the British driver an unassailable lead in title chase, having qualified in second with a 4.866 which earnt him the all important lane choice on raceday (a full track oildown during the sportsman classes having made the right hand lane a tricky path to navigate). Win lights over Timo Lehtimaki (4.897/296) and Micke Kagered (4.985/280) put him into the final against closest points challenger Risto Poutiainen. When Risto developed transmission problems on the burnout Carter was able to take a solo to continue his unbeaten march through the 2009 season. “It’s sunk in this morning” commented Carter on the Monday after the race “I'm the FIA European Top Fuel Champion for a 4th time, it really is a great feeling! Although sometimes it seems like it's not me its like I'm looking in on someone else. Like to say thanks to Lucas Oil, Karsten and Per Andersen, all the team and all my associate sponsors.”

Risto Poutiainen is on the verge of his first event win just over a year after returning to the European Top Fuel scene, indeed if it wasn’t for Carter it would probably have happened by now. Driving the front line Rune Fjeld Motorsports car to a second final in the row, Risto knocked out an up in smoke Urs Erbacher in the first round of eliminations with a 4.959/294. Poutiainen’s team were frustrated by the extremely rapid turnaround after their semi-final victory over RFM team mate Janne Ahonen, and came to the line with a car that was only likely to stage if they could make it to the beams, but the transmission failed to engage whilst backing up from the burnout and the car was shutdown giving Carter a freebie.