Shane Gray sits on top of the Sonoma NHRA Nationals Pro Stock qualifying list…and he should thank his delivery man.

In the third qualifying session Saturday, Gray carded a 6.539 at 212.13 mph…a number that stood up against all comers in the evening qualifying session and earned him a first-round bye in Sunday’s eliminations.

Shane Gray sits on top of the Sonoma NHRA Nationals Pro Stock qualifying list…and he should thank his delivery man.

In the third qualifying session Saturday, Gray carded a 6.539 at 212.13 mph…a number that stood up against all comers in the evening qualifying session and earned him a first-round bye in Sunday’s eliminations.

He did this with an engine that was back in Mooresville, North Carolina Friday morning.

“What was so neat about this deal was my guys back at the shop, Paul and Dan, built an engine the day before yesterday and told me they wanted me to run this thing,” Gray explained. “They put it in a box and we overnighted it out here and put it in the car. They definitely did a great job and I really want to thank those guys, Dan Hoskins and Paul Courtier, back at the shop.”

With decent weather and a fast track, Gray said the conditions were great for his quick pass.

“It was cooler than it was yesterday and we got a tail wind instead of a headwind,” he said. “That was why the speeds were up. It’s always nice to come here. I was talking to a buddy of mine that’s in Topeka. It was 102 there with 60 percent humidity. I like it here.”

Gray sits in seventh place in the NHRA Pro Stock standings, and is a good bet to qualify for the season-ending Countdown to the Championship. It was the third time this season he qualified at the top of the sheet.

He is happy to have a motor that he can count on for the final three races before the Countdown begins.

“I really didn’t realize we could speed up like that. Boy, the guys did a great job,” Gray said. “From the first time we ran it we knew it was a good piece. We were very pleased with it. It was just something new they built for us and they did a great job on it.”

Even though he has a strong engine, Gray is not ready to share what new things his guys back at the shop tried to make it run so well.

“They would probably put my head on a fence post if I said anything,” he said with a chuckle.

Of the top four Pro Stockers that qualified, three were 2014 Camaros. All three call Mooresville home.

Jason Line was second with a 6.541 pass at 211.79 while Greg Anderson was fourth at 6.551/211.93.

Allen Johnson, in his 2014 Dart, spoiled the party by qualifying third with a 6.547/212.16 pass.

Line will take on Tommy Lee in the first round, Anderson will square off with Deric Kramer and Johnson will race Larry Morgan.

The act of cutting and pasting articles from this publication to a message board is a clear copyright violation as is pulling photos to post on social media sites. All articles and photography published in CompetitionPlus.com are protected by United States of America and International copyright laws unless mentioned otherwise. The content on this website is intended for the private use of the reader and may not be published or reposted in any form without the prior written consent of CompetitionPlus.com.