Shannon Jenkins had a simple request and his team responded.

When the crew chief for the Awesome/Al-Anabi Pro Modified team suffered the unexpected death of his father, the team expressed an interest to attend the wake and the funeral, with little regard to the weekend’s ADRL Speedtech Battle for the Belts competition.

Their noble gesture was met with a request to not only race, but to win.

On Saturday afternoon, team driver K.A. Balooshi stepped up to the plate and delivered a home run with not only the quickest and fastest run in the history of nitrous doorslammer racing but also a pair of victories, including the 2009 ADRL Pro Nitrous world championship.

Shannon Jenkins had a simple request and his team responded.

When the crew chief for the Awesome/Al-Anabi Pro Modified team suffered the unexpected death of his father, the team expressed an interest to attend the wake and the funeral, with little regard to the weekend’s ADRL Speedtech Battle for the Belts competition.

Their noble gesture was met with a request to not only race, but to win.

On Saturday afternoon, team driver K.A. Balooshi stepped up to the plate and delivered a home run with not only the quickest and fastest run in the history of nitrous doorslammer racing but also a pair of victories, including the 2009 ADRL Pro Nitrous world championship.

“This is great for Al-Anabi Racing,” said Balooshi, who now leads the 2010 championship point standings. “The result of the best car, the best motor and the best team.”

Balooshi defeated teammate Burton Auxier to win the 2009 Speedtech Battle for the Belts Pro Modified title and then, later that same day, defeated Charles Carpenter to win the 2010 season-opening ADRL Len Mar World Finals at the Texas Motorplex in Ennis, Texas. The victory over Carpenter was Balooshi's first national event crown in ADRL competition.

Balooshi, often referred to as “The pride of Dubai”, is a three-time Arabian Gulf Region champion. The ADRL championship makes  Balooshi the first foreign-born racer to win an American-based drag racing championship.

This is an honor that pleases His Highness Sheikh Khalid Bin Hamad Al Thani of Qatar, Al-Anabi Racing team-owner.

“This is the level of performance that is expected from the team we have assembled to race in the ADRL,” said Al Thani, who commented via cell phone from Europe. “The effort put forth by this team over the course of the last two years, combined with the efforts of Speedtech Nitrous and Reher-Morrison Racing Engines, has ensured that this Al-Anabi Racing team be of championship caliber.

“Without Shannon Jenkins, whose knowledge and racing experience has propelled this team to this level, it was obvious that we were facing an uphill battle for the championship. Brandon Switzer, though, co-owner and chief engineer at Speedtech Innovative Nitrous Solutions, stepped in for the weekend and helped get the job done. Not only does that say a lot for the team, it says a lot about Speedtech Nitrous and the knowledge behind their products.”

Teammate Mike Castellana told CompetitionPlus.com earlier in the weekend that Jenkins, while an incredible nitrous tuner, should receive recognition for his ability to organize a team capable of performing admirably in his absence.

“While we’ve had Shannon on our minds all weekend,” said Mike Castellana, founder of the Awesome Motorsports operation, “We’re excited to be able to put two Al-Anabi Racing cars in the Speedtech Nitrous Battle for the Belts final and know that we’re going to be able to put a world championship belt in the hands of Sheikh Khalid. It’s really a testament to the team effort put forth over the course of the entire year, but especially this weekend.”

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