Through with beating himself, Drew Skillman was ready to let someone else finally take the punishment Sunday at Route 66 Raceway.

The talented Skillman had been his own worst enemy through the first half of the 2017 NHRA Pro Stock season, losing in the first round eight times and letting that frustration get the best of him.

That all changed on Sunday when he was brilliant on the starting line and delivered consistent performances to win his first race of the season at the NHRA Route 66 Nationals, becoming the ninth different Pro Stock winner in 2017.

He got past Erica Enders in the final round with a 6.627 at 209.23 mph, exorcising a lot of frustrations – mostly in his own head – in the process.

“We’ve struggled all year,” said Skillman, who is eighth in points after his fourth career win. “I’ve had a lot better car than I’ve been a driver, so we finally put everything together and got my head right. We’ve got great people behind me. We’ve got a lot of experience. There’s no reason we haven’t won before this and we’re going to win after this.”

Sunday’s breakthrough may be just what Skillman needed.

After beating Shane Tucker in the opening round with a 6.624 at 209.23, Skillman knocked off two of the top three in points before beating a two-time world champ in the final round.

The second-round win came in a close race against Gray Motorsports teammate and rookie Tanner Gray, who had won against Skillman every time they had met previously. Skillman finally got the best of him on Sunday with 6.622 at 208.91, and the third-year pro followed with an impressive showing against points leader Bo Butner. He had another consistent run with a 6.625, but a 0.009 reaction time against Butner was the difference.

“Bo is one of my good friends,” Skillman said. “I’ve raced against Bo for a very long time and he’s really come to be a great Pro Stock driver this past year. I love racing against that guy and we play with each other constantly, so it’s always a mind game with each other. A little talking back and forth goes on and it’s fun, and at the end of the day none of us is bitter. That’s what this racing should be.”

The final round produced another 6.62 and a killer 0.013 reaction time to hold off Enders, whose first Pro Stock win came in Chicago in 2012.

Skillman, though, felt he has had a consistent car all year. But he felt he wasn’t delivering on his end, and it was becoming an irritating ordeal he knew had to change. For Skillman, the solution was simple.

“Just get out of my own head,” Skillman said. “It’s a struggle. My first year I didn’t know it better, so that one if I lost I was supposed to lose so it was no big deal. The next year you’re supposed to do a little better and I did a little bit better, and this year we came out and I did horrible, and I got in my own head. Like I said, I’ve had a better car than I’ve been a driver, (but) we’re on the right path now.”

With those struggles seemingly behind him, Skillman is excited to see what he can build heading into the Countdown to the Championship.

He realizes the tight competition at the top, but Skillman also believes he belongs in that conversation.

“Pro Stock’s so close right now,” Skillman said. “That’s how it used to be and that’s how it should be. We’re all in that group now and we’ve been pretty steady, so we finally got where we deserved to be.”