Here's your winners of the 2009 Auto Club Finals
Top Fuel: Antron Brown
Funny Car: Mike Neff
Pro Stock: Greg Anderson
Pro Stock Motorcycle: Eddie Krawiec

It was a thrilling weekend in Pomona, one where three first-time champions were crowned, one remained king and ended kind of anti-climatic as all finals featured three foul starts and one disqualification.
Brown scored his first win in the Top Fuel class at Pomona, winning the NHRA's elite class when Spencer Massey left early. Mike Neff, who tuned Gary Scelzi to his only Funny Car title in 2005, scored his first win as a driver when Ashley Force Hood struck the right retaining wall and was disqualified. Anderson, a former champion, who never found consistency this season, ended the year on a high note with a victory, and Krawiec, last year's Pro Stock Motorcycle series champion, recouped some of the disappointment of losing out on the championship by winning in PSM.
Antron Brown: "We got our car turned around this weekend. It was pretty strong all day, and we stepped up in the final. We ran a 4.81. I'm just blessed to be on this team. We just gave it what we thought the track would hold. We gave it all we could and came out on the right side of the fence."
Mike Neff: "I was starting to wonder if we ever we're going to get a win. But it ran good at the right time against (team owner John Force in the quarterfinals) when we needed it to and caught a break in the final. It's pretty awesome. Robert (Hight) winning the championship, Ashley finishing in second and me getting my first win. It really turned out to be a great weekend for us."
Greg Anderson: "I've come here before, after winning the championship, telling myself I don't want to stand on that stage after not winning the last race. It makes the title complete. I don't want to take anything away from (champion Mike Edwards), but there's just someting about winning the last race when you are going to be crowned. I'm the happiest guy going into tomorrow night. It says a lot when you can be the last guy to win the last race of the season."
Eddie Krawiec: "Last year, I was fortunate to come up here and not have the race win and have the championship, but this year I still am a very lucky person to be in here talking about getting the race win and not the championship. It came down to two points. It shows you how important qualifying is. We bobbled a little bit this weekend in qualifying, which ultimately could have cost us. We were trying to keep Hector from getting to that three-round deficit for us, and unfortunately for us, we didn't, and it shows in the end."

They told him it couldn't be done.
Tony Schumacher didn't believe them, and Sunday he had the last laugh when he clinched his seventh Top Fuel championship, including the past six in row, when two-time champ Larry Dixon smoked the tires in a semifinal at the Auto Club Finals at Fairplex to gift-wrap the title to Schumacher.
Schumacher claimed it his most-gratifying title, better than his 2006 title when he won the championship on the final run of the season.
"This was probably as gratifying as anything I had to do in my life," Schumacher said. "I can't possibly tell you what it's like to lose a complete team, have them all leave, have to rebuild, and have people say, 'It's impossible. You'll never do it.' That's now how it works. We can rebuild. That's what my dad does. He knows how to hire people let them hire people, motivate people and give us a gift to do what we love to do, and that's racing cars and win.
"Like I said, this trophy will go to Ft. Hood (in Texas). I don't think there's any question where it belongs. We stuck together as a team, got together and did what we had to do Saturday with that (top-qualifying run), and it got us the Full Throttle championship."
Said Dixon: "We were so great all day. It was just a victim of circumstances. It went out and spun the tires. At the end of the day, that was it."

Here we go. We could crown a Top Fuel champion this round.
First up is Larry Dixon against Spencer Massey, who drivers Dixon's old car. If Dixon loses, the race is over. Win, and he puts pressure on Tony Schumacher. And it's over! Dixon smokes the tires about half track and Massey sails on to victory. "We're going A-to-B," Massey said. "We had t go for it. We're out here to win."
Larry Dixon: "We came here with a an opportunity to win a championship, and it's been sometime since we've had it. We didn't get No. 1, but we go harder at No. 1 next year.
Funny Car
Ashley Force Hood will get the chance to become the first woman to win in the Funny car class at Pomona, beating Ron Capps in the semifinals. She will race teammate Mike Neff, who beat a tire-smoking Tim Wilkerson.

Top Fuel
We're back, and we have a good one in the second matchup of the round as Tony Schumacher, the points leader, faces Morgan Lucas, with the championship possibly riding in the balance. Lucas overpowers the track as Shoe goes right down the groove with a 3.83 pass. It officially eliminates Cory McClenathan, but the Sonora High grad can help his teammate when he faces Larry Dixon. But first, the Bud era is over for Kenny Bernstein Racing as Antron Brown takes him out. Now the championship lies in the balance."It's really tough," Brandon Bernstein said. "But now it's over, and its on to Copart." ... Dixon must beat Cory Mac to stay in the hunt. And the title chase continues, Dixon wins on a hole shot as his 3.84 beats Cory's 3.82. This battle will go to the semifnals, where Schumacher faces regular season champ Antron Brown, while Dixon faces his old car. the Don Prudhomme-car driven by Spencer Massey. The drama continues. "It's like the Super Bowl," Dixon said. "We both scored a touchdown, now it's halftime."
Funny Car
The battle is for No. 2, and Tim Wilkerson stays in the hunt by beating champion Robert Hight. ... Ashley Force Hood squeaks by Del Worsham and will face Ron Capps, who beat teammate Matt Hagan. John Force will not win this year, losing to teammate Mike Neff. Force then has a parachute problem and runs it into the sand trap. It's snaps Force's 22-year streak of winning at least one race.

And here we go for the first round. We'll concentrate more on Top Fuel, where Tony Schumacher, Larry Dixon, Cory McClenathan and Antron Brown are still in the running for the title, with Dixon and Shoe separated by two points. But we will have notes from the classes.
Top Fuel
McClenathan, from Sonora High, gets the first shot, facing Bob Vandergriff, who is from rival La Habra. Vandy smokes the tires and the Mac Attack blows it up just past half and runs a 4.43 to win the round, which puts the pressure back on Tony Schumacher and Larry Dixon, who are first and second points. "We're just trying to get down track and just when it looks like it's going to haul the mail - boom! But we turned the win light on, now (Schumacher and Dixon) have to do it," McClenathan said. ... That puts the ball in Schumacher and Dixon's court, and they both respond, winning with 3.83 and 3.82, respectively, which virtually eliminates Antron Brown, who came into the event 80 points back. But for the big three, the chase for the title will go at least one more round. The first round also included Brandon Bernstein, who is losing long-time sponsor Budweiser after the race. But Big Red will continue with a win over Chris Karamesines. The next round should be interesting as Cory Mac faces Dixon in a battle that can help himself and his teammate. Shoe gets Lucas. Stay tuned.
Funny Car
The championship race is over after Robert Hight clinched earlier. But this should still be a good race. It's also John Force's last chance to win a race this season, who has won at least one race every season since 1987. He stays in the hunt as he runs a 4.14 to beat veteran Gary Densham, who runs a stout .416 and loses. Densham's losing time is better than four of the eight winners.

Well, here we are about ready for the start of the race. I will post a report after each round. And we will decide the Top Fuel title today.

Above: Robert Hight clinched his first Funny Car title on Saturday.

Robert Hight, who had to slither his way into the Countdown to the Championship, sewed up his first Funny Car title by qualifying No. 3 for Sunday's Auto Club Finals.
It capped a great day for Team Force, which also saw Ashley Force Hood take the top qualifying spot with a 4.059-second pass, just beat her pops, John Force, who also ran a 4.059, but was edged on speed. Force Hood was faster at 310.20 compare to John Force's 309.20.
"I'm never going to get use to hear (being the champion)," Hight said. "And almost not making the Countdown, and coming so close the past few years, that's what makes this thing extra special.
"This was not about me, but about the team. This is not golf, or even baseball, but its about the whole team, and getting the breaks and John put me with the best people.
"(Crew chief) Jimmy (Prock) is my best friend. I can't believe I'm up here. We all worked so hard to get this. It's about John Force giving me this opportunity. He sold me on the sponsors. They all stood behind me...Eric Medlen. Eric and I used to dream about this. I just wish he was here. I still can't believe it's happened."
Ashley Force Hood: "We're so excited, you'd think we won the championship. But our car has not been running good, so to finally get it back, it was a great feeling.
"We missed it and we're glad we got it back."

Above: Mike Edwards clinched his first Pro Stock title Saturday.

No one will say Mike Edwards backed into the Pro Stock championship.
The veteran punctuated his title run in grand fashion, running low e.t. of the meet with a 6.562-second run on the final qualifying pass of the weekend.
"That just shows what this team is made of," Edwards said. "They're fabulous. There have been times where I haven't been there, but they never gave up on me.
"I can't explain how I feel right now. You just try to sink it all in, if you can. It's so real, so satisfying for me. It's been such a long wait for me, but well worth the wait.
"It's just about a bunch of guys who made a plan a few years ago and try and give it our best effort. We just got on a roll and I thought middle of the summer, we have a chance. We made a lot of good decisions and got the job done."

Above: Cory McClenathan will go for his first NHRA Top Fuel title on Sunday. (Staff photo by Will Lester)

The game plan Sunday is simple for Cory McClenathan, who comes into the final day of the NHRA Full Throttle Series season third in points and three rounds of racing from his first Top Fuel championship.
"Sometimes you get caught up in the deal," said McClenathan, who has finished second four times in a career that dates back to 1991. "We just have to go out there and try to race and not worry what we have to do (to win the championship).
"It's smarter to race our car no matter where we are qualified and just go some rounds."
But McClenathan, who was sixth through the first three rounds of qualifying, also knows when he wants to race Sunday, beginning with the first round, which is scheduled for 11 a.m.
"If it stays the way it is, we will be in front of (Larry Dixon and Tony Schumacher, who are first and second in points)," McClenathan said. "I'm OK with that. I'd rather to go out and win a round and know they have to win. If you can throw down one and know you're already into the second round, that's a big deal for me. I don't want to sit back there (in the staging lanes) and anticipate what's going to happen. I'd rather go out and race and get it done. Maybe it might be better to be eighth or ninth, first pair out and not worry about it."
McClenathan may also have to pull off what Schumacher did a few years ago - winning the race and setting a national record. He is more than 50 points back of Dixon and would have to go three rounds further than either Dixon or Schumacher to win the championship. If either of them advance to the semifinals, McClenathan would have to win the race and lower the national e.t. record a 3.77.
He thinks it's still possible.
"The conditions are definitely there," McClenathan said. "But now for us, we have to get a backup tonight, or have a record run and set the back up (on Sunday). Those points are still on the table and no one has taken advantage of them yet. That's what we are trying to do. If we can do it tonight, then we can go after an extra 20 points Sunday."

Tony Schumacher set the tone during Saturday's early qualifying session, running what appeared to be a stout 3.82 to apparently take the points lead back away from Larry Dixon.
But the SoCal native responded by going low of the round with a 3.80 at 321 mph, which was the fastest pass since the move to 1,000 feet last season.
"That's just awesome," Dixon said. "Just awesome. (Team owner) Alan Johnson is not leaving anything on the table. There were six points available today, and we just got three and now we're going to try and get the other three later."

They just completed Saturday's first Funny Car session, and fan-favorite Tim Wilkerson had the best performance, running a steady 4.08-second run on a hot and slick track. Other steady efforts were turned in my Jack Beckman, who ran a 4.14, and Gary Densham, Del Worsham and Jerry Toliver, who all rand 4.15s.
"I just made some mistakes with the tuneup the past two days," Wilkerson said. "We're just playing catchup. I'm proud of my guys."

Above: Larry Dixon talks to the media after taking the lead in Top Fuel on Friday.

The second day of qualifying at the Auto Club Finals at Fairplex was Larry Dixon's turn.
The two-time Top Fuel champion, who battling this weekend with five-time champ Tony Schumacher, for supremacy in the rail division saw Schumacher thrown down the gauntlet on Thursday.
Dixon's response came Friday.
The Southern California native, getting aid from NHRA's new qualifying points structure, took over the points lead by topping the qualifying charts with a stout 4.801-second pass at 318.99 mph. Spencer Massey is second with Schumacher dropping to third.

Above: John Force was all smiles Friday after qualifying No. 1 in Funny Car.

The Funny Car show, which was highlighted Thursday by point-leader Robert Hight's 4.09 pass for the top spot, was taken over by NHRA icon John Force, who roared down the quartermile with a pass of 4.060 at 307.72 mph.
Hight remained second, while his two closest pursuers - Ashley Force Hood, who was 105 points back coming into the event, and Tony Pedregon, who was 113 back - moved up to No. 4 and seventh respectively. Force Hood ran a solid 4.098, with Pedregon, a two-time champion, stopping the clocks in 4.144.
It was status quo in the Pro Stock divisions, with Mike Edwards in Pro Stock car, and Karen Stoffer, in Pro Stock Motorcyle, holding on to the top spots.
Larry Dixon: "I'm cool with that run. We could just call it a weekend, now," Dixon said. "There were three points on the table today. We're just trying to do what we can. You want to do as much as you can, and hopefully be up going into Sunday. It's exciting to come to the last race of the season and have a chance at a championship. That's all you can ask for. You definitely want a shot at it. I haven't been in this position for awhile, so I'm enjoying. I'm having fun."
John Force: "I'm always excited, because there's a lot going on in our camps. I'm happy to be here. (Crew chiefs Austin Coil and Jimmy Prock) have been doing a good job. We've been running ahead of Robert (in the qualifying order), because we want to win this championship and give him the advantage. And last night, Jimmy apologized and said they pulled it back too much, and I ran a 4.15. We didn't know what was out there.
"I haven't been competitive since my crash (in 2008). I think I'm back OK. I think in 2010, I can run for the title. I was asked earlier in the day that if Robert win this, am I going to pass the torch. I got mad. That' means I'm done? I'm negotiating for another five years. I'm 60-years-old and I think I can do this until I'm 65."

SGVN sports writer Steve Ramirez interviews Matco Tools drag racer Antron Brown about his season.

Above: The first battle went to Tony Schumacher on Thursday.

Tony Schumacher has ruled Top Fuel the past five seasons and he took a step towards a sixth, although ever so slightly.
Schumacher, who brought a precarious one-point lead over two-time champ Larry Dixon coming into this weekend's Auto Club NHRA Finals at Fairplex, doubled that advantage during Thursday's qualifying, taking a two-point advantage with a top time of 3.832 seconds at 316.52 mph. Dixon just missed doing the same, stopping the clocks at 3.833 at 314.31. Doug Kalitta is third at 3.836 with Cory McClenathan, who is third in points, is fourth at 3.838.
If it holds through the weekend, it will give Schumacher a mental advantage over Dixon come race day.
"I just like that I doubled my lead," Schumacher said. "You can't say that very often. It was good. The car was a handful. We have been just missing. But it ran great. It's huge.
"Every point is huge. Even (a former crew member who now works for Dixon's team) said, 'You know what would be crazy, if we got one point (during qualifying) and we were even going to Sunday and we both smoked the tires first round, you'd win, but it would be a blast. We could come back after the race and settle it.' I said, 'Sorry, but I'll be drunk and writing a speech.'
"It's just so big. It is what it is. We're battling."