It was quite the way for Erica Enders to begin defense of her sixth NHRA Pro Stock world Championship.

Enders rocketed to the No. 1 spot at the Gatornationals thanks to her 6.550-second run at 207.88 mph in Q2 Friday at the 2024 season-opening Gatornationals at Gainesville (Fla.) Raceway.

Enders maintained her No. 1 position with a 6.549-second lap in Q4 on Saturday.

“Going into the tracks that you do really well at, you're like, ‘Yeah, I'm going back to Bristol. I'm going back to Vegas, we do well here,’” Enders said. “And like, ‘You're going to Gainesville.’ Sh*t. We've obviously not had a lot of great luck here. We qualified No. 2, we got beat out by mile per hour by my teammate, TJ Coughlin, for the No. 1 spot last year, and I went to hit the starter button before first round, and she did not crank.

“So, the gator bite continued, but we're determined to change that this weekend obviously. And I think this is one of the last tracks on the tour that we have left to accomplish, so it's high on our to-do list. It doesn't mean it's going to happen, but it definitely means we're going to give every bit of effort that we have.”

Enders, who pilots an Elite Motorsports Camaro, won Pro Stock championships in 2014-15, 2019-20 and 2022-23. She is the winningest female driver in NHRA history with 47 career national-event crowns.

“It means it's a left-foot drag race — well, leave and then don't forget to shift when the light flashes,” Enders said. “It's important, too. But yeah, Pro Stock has always been tight and competitive and crazy in a driver's class, and that's the way I like it. I like when they shut the door and it's up to me, and I live for those moments, and I know a lot of drivers do as well. So, (there is) a lot of talent in our class right now. A lot of young guns in our class right now, so no better time to shine.”

The fourth qualifying session Saturday in Gainesville was canceled because of rain.

Enders arrived at the Gators with plenty of momentum. She won the inaugural PRO Superstar Shootout in Bradenton, Florida, on Feb. 10 and took home the $125,000 winner’s check.

“Although it's been called a test session in a small race, but it was absolutely epic and unbelievable and my favorite drag race of all time, and I think I would say that even if we didn't win,” Enders said. “I'm not quite positive, but the atmosphere was electric, the fans were crazy. It was a small venue, so it felt like it was just impact of ... and we had a ball. So, yes, that was technically the start of our season. For us, we wanted to go out and show them what we worked on all offseason, and we were able to do just that, and then we got to go home three weeks before we came here to get reorganized. We had a couple of engine failures out there that we fixed, and this is kind of like a restart, if you will, and I'm excited about it. But winning the PRO Superstar Shootout was fantastic. I loved it. It was a blast.”

Enders acknowledged preseason test sessions aren’t a priority at Elite Motorsports, so the event in Bradenton was a new wrinkle.

Team owner Richard Freeman is “not big on track testing, and it's cold in Oklahoma all winter and it's a long way to Florida to drive your stuff to go test,” Enders said. “So, we typically don't test throughout the offseason until January, right before the season opener. We head to Bradenton, so, yes, it was great to get back in the car, and it made you feel like you kind of knocked the rust off — and racing, being in that mental state is different than testing. Having to get up for your competitors and try to perform flawlessly, it's a different mindset than you are when you go testing. I don't really know how to explain it, but it's probably like practicing basketball. It's way different when you're playing in front of a hometown crowd on TV.

“So, it was a big deal to us and to get those back-to-back runs, we tested there all week and then just like a normal race, four rounds of eliminations, four rounds of qualifying so at the end of the weekend, I had eight more runs under my belt. But I will tell you, when we got here for Q1, I'm like, ‘Man, I feel like I haven't been in the car in forever.’ It's only been three weeks, but I love driving. I'd do it every day if they let me.”

Enders is the leader of the Elite Motorsports team, which consists of nine Pro Stock drivers.

“I am excited to see my teammates perform well. I think you mentioned it when we were riding back from the scales, but to have all nine cars go A to B without shaking or hitting something or whatever, it was definitely a huge step in the right direction,” Enders said. “Then, I take a lot of pride in Kelley Murphy because he came to us as an intern from one of our sponsors, UNOH, and he was this kid that was so passionate, not just about drag racing but about Pro Stock, and that's rare in a 20-year-old kid these days. So, I lobbied for him to come work for us and he got the job. He lives in Norman, Oklahoma, which is where the University of Oklahoma is. He could be out every night trying to find cute college girls, and he's sitting on a simulator hitting a tree — every day.

“Friday was his opportunity to show the world what he's been working on, and I was really proud of him. He went out there and just performed flawlessly, and I'm excited to have him racing with us as well. But all the Elite cars, the Cuadra brothers, their dad. I mean, it's such a cool operation, and from the outside looking in, you just don't understand what a huge family atmosphere it is, so I'm proud of everyone.

“That's probably the most enjoyable aspect of it other than parking in the winner's circle, is being able to teach the next generation. And I went through, you were there, (there was) a lot of crap as I was learning, and my goal was to make the experience for these next kids enjoyable and not make them want to cry like I did, and not demean them and yell at them and make them want to walk away. So that was my goal, was to make their experience enjoyable and then to cut their path a lot shorter than it took me, so I take a lot of pride in that also.”