"We really just have had a miserable car for the past three races. It was actually good here, much better than it's been, but those first three Countdown races just knocked us down. We were capable of winning today. The last three races we couldn’t say that. You have to step it up in Countdown to win a championship and we haven't done that the last two years."

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE

(Debbie Gastelu photo)

In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Andrew Hines finally beat rival LE Tonglet in a playoff final round. After falling to the rookie rider in the last three races, Hines used a holeshot start to take his fifth win of the season and 23rd of his career. Hines used a quicker reaction time and rode his Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson to a 6.916 at 188.36 to defeat Tonglet’s quicker, but losing NitroFish Gear Suzuki, which finished in 6.913 at 190.40.

“When I saw that win light, that was one of the prettiest win lights I’ve seen in a long time,” Hines said. “I’m trying to rely on some of the other competitors out there to take LE out early, but we keep matching up in the final round. It’s been tough with that little blue bike beating us the last few races. We were wondering what it was going to take to get it done.”

Hines outran early round opponents Neil Jacobs, Angie Smith and teammate Eddie Krawiec to advance to his seventh consecutive final round. With the win, Hines increased his series lead to 72 points over Tonglet.

“We have a nice cushion,” Hines said. “It could come down to just a few measly points there at the end.”

The law of averages caught up with LE Tonglet and his Nitro Fish Suzuki GSXR Pro Stock Motorcycle team Sunday in the title round of the Toyo Tires Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway.

Tonglet’s remarkable rookie streak of three consecutive victories and an impressive string of 15 round wins was stopped by Andrew Hines, the driver who was in the opposite lane each time while LE was piling up the extraordinary numbers.

Hines avenged his trio of setbacks when the win light went on in his lane 6.916 seconds after he left the starting line.  Tonglet wasn’t far behind, running 6.913 at 190.40 mph.  Hines left the starting line first, .020-second to .043.

Hines also extended his lead over Tonglet to 52 points with two NHRA Countdown to the Championship events remaining.