POMONA, Calif. (AP) Del Worsham raced to his first Funny Car season title and went on to take the event victory Sunday in the season-ending Auto Club NHRA Finals.
Worsham beat playoff rival Jack Beckman in the semifinals to secure the season title and join Kenny Bernstein and Gary Scelzi as the only driver to win championships in both nitro categories.
Worsham, the 2011 Top Fuel champion, beat Tommy Johnson Jr. in the final round for his fourth victory of the season, 30th in Funny Car and 38th overall.
''When I put this trophy next to my other one at home it will be real,'' Worsham said. ''Every time I looked up there was a Schumacher car sitting there in my face. I was nervous about it. I was counting points. I am not going to tell you it was like any other race, because it wasn't. I know the points are the same as the first round at Charlotte, but the circumstances here were much greater.''
Worsham won the final with a 3.900-second run at 328.14 mph in a Toyota Camry.
Andrew Hines won his second consecutive and fifth championship in Pro Stock Motorcycle when his closest rival, Jerry Savoie, lost in the second round.
Shawn Langdon won the Top Fuel event, Allen Johnson topped the Pro Stock field, and Eddie Krawiec won in Pro Stock Motorcycle. Langdon outran season champion Antron Brown in the final with a 3.715 at 332.43, Johnson beat Vincent Nobile with a 6.541 at 210.18 in a Dodge Dart, and Krawiec topped Matt Smith with a 6.888 at 194.21 on a Harley-Davidson.
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