2009 NMRA World Finals - Final Draw

Packing a fresh bullet from Roush Competition Engines, Paul Wiley wasn't playing at Bowling Green. However, he did start off in the middle of the qualifying pack thanks to a 9.64/141 pass. Paul has run Real Street longer than anyone in the class, so it's nice to see him pushing toward the top. That's just what he did when it counted. He took out returning racer Craig Baldwin in the first round, before blowing away Kevin Scott with a 9.44/142 pass that showed he can run with the big dogs. He took that swagger to the finals, but Tim Matherly cut down the Tree and ran the low e.t. of the weekend to spoil Paul's storybook ending.

Kevin Scott is our hero. He brought back the spirit of the class rocking a stock-block combo against the race blocks and mod motors, and he's proven he can go rounds. At Bowling Green, Kevin qualified his four-eyed Fox sixth with a 9.81/137. This ranking had him drawing defending champ Bruce Hemminger in Round 1. Bruce had to have everything go his way to have an outside shot at another championship; things went far from his way against Kevin. Bruce reached for the sky and slammed his oil pan into the pavement to give Kevin the easy win. His luck ran out against Paul Wiley's Roush-powered machine in Round 2.

Pure Street
Mark Anderson continued in his dad Ron's footsteps at Bowling Green. Ron always ran well here and the apple didn't fall far from the Tree. Mark had the coupe running 10.teens to put the car in the top spot. Evidently, Mark's shifting issues are a thing of the past. It seems the team has figured out the right cable/quadrant setup to use for quick shifting. At Bowling Green, Mark shifted his way right through the field with 10.teens every pass. In the final, he bested Ryan Hecox to take the event win.

Ryan Hecox was supposed to be retired this year. Instead, he attended every event and did a ton of testing in between races. Ryan tested different components and combinations all year to try and get a leg up on the combination. He started out the year using Associate Editor Johnson's Cobra to get points at Bradenton, and that could've been what kept Ryan in the mix all year. He is your 2009 Pure Street champion by a mere 25 points. To accomplish this feat, he had to go as far as he could at Bowling Green, and the final-round appearance sealed the deal. Though he lost the battle to Mark Anderson at Bowling Green, Ryan won the war in overall points.

Jim Breese is always so close to taking over a race, always at the top of the qualifying list. He runs consistently competitive numbers and does good work at the Tree. Because he's usually near the action, he often runs into teammate Tim Matherly on the way to the finals. Jim qualified right behind Tim and Bruce with a 9.53/142 pass. He took out fellow modular racer Dave Ginter in the first round, and then it was a clash with Tim. These guys don't take it easy on each other. Once they are on the track, it's a race. Jim cut down the Tree on Tim, but Tim had the steam to drive around him on his way to another championship.