ST. LOUIS, MO — Erica Enders arrives at Gateway Motorsports Park for this weekend’s AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals on a three-race winning streak that has her 83 points ahead of her nearest rival in a quest to win consecutive Pro Stock world championships.
In addition, the driver of Elite Motorsports’ crimson cannonball, which will sport new sponsorship from Transportation Impact, doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. Enders is on a roll, having just passed legend and friend Shirley Muldowney’s career win total with her 19th victory last Sunday in Charlotte.
“It’s definitely a good point in the year to have momentum,” Enders said. “I’ve always said we create our own momentum, and it’s a great confidence-booster for everyone on the team. We’re one race into three consecutive events for the start of the Countdown to the Championship, and we couldn’t be doing any better. We were able to begin the Countdown with the No. 1 ranking and hold strong in Charlotte and win the race, so we definitely have a little bit of a lead.
“Passing Shirley was too much to even wrap my head around. She was the person I wanted to be when I grew up and to see her name next to mine is surreal. And then she was one of the first people to call me and say, ‘Good job.’ It’s very special and means more to me than you’ll ever know.”
As for this weekend, Enders already knows the way to Gateway’s victory platform, having visited it twice before. Now she’s hoping for another return to pad her lead that much more.
“I’ve never been shy to say St. Louis is one of my favorite tracks,” Enders said. “I had some success there in the Sportsman days and got my only Countdown win in 2013 there. It’s just an exciting, fun place to race. We recently tested there before Indy, so we got some good data for that facility. I’m excited to go back, especially off the successful three weeks we’ve had.”
Just one day after winning at zMax Dragway for the very first time, Enders and her Elite Motorsports Chevrolet Camaro team proudly announced a major associate sponsorship agreement with Transportation Impact, a privately-held logistics company that specializes in helping some of the largest companies in the world drastically reduce their shipping costs.
Enders will be celebrating a birthday shortly after the AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals, and she plans to blow out everyone else’s candles on Sunday before extinguishing hers on Oct. 8.
“I’m very optimistic and excited about what’s to come,” Enders said. “I’m hopeful we can carry our momentum to St. Louis.”
Pro Stock qualifying sessions are scheduled for 2:45 and 5:15 p.m., Friday, and 1:45 and 4:15 p.m., Saturday. Eliminations are scheduled to begin at noon on Sunday.