J.R. Todd carried out his role rather well during the 2006 season, the year he won the NHRA’s Rookie of the Year accolades.

Todd had a penchant that season of becoming Tony Schumacher’s nemesis and knocking off the champion during the most inopportune times which is generally in the final round.

After a 2007 which ended rather anticlimactically and for the most part a dreadful 2008, Todd stepped up with a performance of old behind the wheel of the Morgan Lucas Racing dragster. Schumacher just happened to have been in the opposite lane when Todd broke out of his shell again during the NHRA Fallnationals in Dallas, Tex.

J.R. Todd carried out his role rather well during the 2006 season, the year he won the NHRA’s Rookie of the Year accolades.

Todd had a penchant that season of becoming Tony Schumacher’s nemesis and knocking off the champion during the most inopportune times which is generally in the final round.

After a 2007 which ended rather anticlimactically and for the most part a dreadful 2008, Todd stepped up with a performance of old behind the wheel of the Morgan Lucas Racing dragster. Schumacher just happened to have been in the opposite lane when Todd broke out of his shell again during the NHRA Fallnationals in Dallas, Tex.

Todd ended Schumacher’s record-setting round win tally at 31 and halted the five-time champion shy of his eighth straight national event victory.

“This almost feels like a first event win,” Todd admitted. “I mean the way our year has gone I didn’t think it was ever going to turn around. We’d be gaining ground in qualifying and I think this is going to be it finally, then we struggle first round and if we get past first round we don’t get past second. We got past second round, I was like, ‘uh oh we got some momentum now.”

Todd continued, “It was really consistent, since Jimmy Walsh came aboard that was really the turning point in our season. We’re still struggling a little bit. The more runs he gets under his belt the better these two cars start running. We just need to get Morgan’s car back where it should be. We had to face the champ in the final, if there’s one guy we can beat everyday it’d be him. He’s the toughest guy out here and if you beat him then you know you’ve done something at the end of the day.”

To have beat him on a hole shot is icing on the cake, although Todd declines to put extra special important on winning at the lights.

“A win’s a win,” Todd admitted. “You just go up there see the yellow light and then stab the gas. But yeah you’re pretty jacked up getting to the final round no matter who you’re racing but to be racing the champ, you know you better leave first because Alan Johnson makes big horsepower and he usually doesn’t beat himself, that’s why they don’t lose. We had a little luck on our side and that’s what it takes to win these things.”

Of course there are those who have coined the phrase “Giant Killer” to describe Todd’s success opposite the five-time champion. He’s got a little advice for them.

Besides, today’s win was for a friend as much as it was for him and his team.

“Everyone calls me the Giant Killer when I beat Schumacher,” Todd said. “They are the best team out here. Everyone is the underdog to them out here. If you back up to the second round seeing how dejected Larry Dixon was down there; in my book he’s the best driver in Top Fuel. He’s the best leaver out here, he’s the best driver and I wanted to go out there and knock off Schumacher in the final round kind of for him because he’s kind of one of my good buddies and we’re always talking about beating Tony. I was pretty pumped up and seeing them race each other, seeing him down in the dumps really got me pumped up for the final.”