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Team Atchison Clinches 3rd Straight IHRA World Title!
Bruce Biegler - October 30, 2005
 The London Ontario-based Atchison Racing team made Canada proud again during yesterday's IHRA Udderly Smooth World Finals at North Carolina's Rockingham Dragway.
Not only did the team win the event, their 7th IHRA national event victory of the season -- they also accomplished season goal #1 -- a successful IHRA Hooters Drag Racing Series title defense.
The Rockingham event brought to a dramatic conclusion what was truly a ferocious IHRA points battle in the Alcohol Funny Car division this season. Atchison entered the World Finals leading New York's Jim Sickles by only 5 points. Sickles clearly had the momentum going into the final race as he had won the previous three IHRA events held at Budds Creek MD, Epping NH and Norwalk OH to set up the season-ending showdown.
But at Rockingham the talented Erickson Manufacturing-sponsored team shone through once again. They controlled their own destiny and really were never challenged. The team qualified on the pole with a track record 5.709 secs and clinched the points title mathematically when they won in round one over Tom Carter while Sickles fell to Fred Tigges. Robbie's team rewrote the IHRA national ET record during Sunday's final action -- concluding their season with a spectacular 5.685 secs at 247.07 mph -- their best run ever and the quickest run in Alcohol Funny Car racing history using a conventional "roots" type supercharger. That superb run earned them event victory over Ohio's Mark Thomas, who trailed with a 5.812 secs at 240.81 mph.
 "We came off the trailer running hard -- had a few glitches but we ironed them out and away we went," said Rob Atchison. "This was our first win at Rockingham, we tied the most wins in a season (seven) in Funny Car, cinched our third straight championship and reset a world record. It's an unbelievable dream weekend."
(Bruce Biegler photos)
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