Tommy Phillips Earns Second Career Double Win Event at AAA Texas NHRA Nationals
- 19 Oct 2012
"It's pretty incredible how quickly things can turn, particularly in this sport," admitted Phillips. "I'll be the first to tell you that the first half of my racing season was basically a disaster from a performance perspective. The cars were not very good and I was even worse! I don't feel like we're doing anything drastically different now, things have just clicked." Keep in mind that we are talking about perspectives here, what Phillips considers an early season performance disaster, many others would see as a strong race season overall. The humble Forney, Texas, Texan already had a pair of national event runner-up finishes in the bag (Super Comp in Pomona, California and Super Gas in Chicago), he took part in the annual Jegs All-Stars competition, and he sits in the elite top-ten standing in the NHRA Lucas Oil points chase. But it was at the Texas Motorplex in Ennis, that Phillips marked yet another career-defining weekend by winning both Super Comp and Super Gas at his home event. And, while clearly a double victory is an extraordinary achievement, Phillips is no stranger to this level of triumph in his stellar NHRA drag racing career, as this was his second double win weekend. Phillips also doubled up on the Wally's at the Jegs Cajun Sportsnationals two years ago in Belle Rose, Louisiana. So, to put the K&N racers accomplishment into perspective, Phillips is one of just twelve competitors who have ever won two categories at the same NHRA national event. Plus, he's now one of only six drivers who have achieved that feat on more than one occasion. In the Super Comp final, driving his virtually iconic status CBS ArcSafe/K&N backed TNT dragster, Phillips posted a near-perfect .007 reaction time and 8.907 ET to stop Austin Williams and claim the event title. Overall in the seven rounds of Super Comp eliminations, Phillips posted two perfect 8.900 ET's and never left the starting line with a reaction time slower than .022.
Phillips second win in Super Gas was as much a display of masterful racing as it was of incomparable sportsmanship. His round 4 matchup was with K&N's, Steve Williams, only Williams' car wouldn't start. Rather than run alone, Phillips waited while Williams' crew hustled to overcome the problem. "(NHRA Starter) Mark Lyle told me that I could take a single, but I said I'd give him time to fix his car so we could race," Phillips explained. "In most circumstances, (NHRA officials) would have probably forced me to take a competition bye run, but we were the last pair of the last class on the track that night; so we weren't holding anyone up. I just told Mark that I would wait until they told me I had to stage or be disqualified. We've all been in that situation, and it's a terrible feeling when mechanical issues force you out of a race. I would rather get beat in a good race than take a win because of my opponent's misfortune."
However, in final pass it was Phillips that got a slight jump at the starting line, .017 to .018, and held on for a 9.911 to 9.921 victory. "It's all still sinking in to be honest," said Phillips whose victories marked the 26th and 27th national event crowns of his career. "A double-up is what we all dream of, and to do it here at our home event makes it even more special. Phillips and his CBS ArcSafe/K&N Engineering team were also awarded the Best Appearing Car honors for the event. Find K&N products for your vehicle using the K&N application search then use the K&N dealer search to find a K&N dealer in your part of the world. |
