Greg Anderson: A Champion Reinvented
Greg Anderson Wins--as Driver and Crew Chief
When you think of championship drag racers, you probably envision guys like John Force, Kenny Bernstein, and Bob Glidden. When you think about some of the more highly respected crew chiefs, names like Austin Coil and Bernie Fedderly may come to mind.
If you start talking about guys who have dominated both as crew chief and driver, though, the names are very hard to come by. In fact, just three men have ever won championships as a crew chief and as a driver, and have been honored as Car Craft Crew Chief of the Year: Bill Jenkins, Dick LaHaie, and now Greg Anderson.
Greg Anderson, the reigning three-time NHRA Pro Stock World Champion, is the only person to win multiple championships as both a driver and crew chief. He earned the Car Craft Crew Chief of the Year award in 1992 and 1993 while serving on Warren Johnson’s championship teams. He has since won three straight Pro Stock NHRA championships as a driver (2003, 2004, and 2005).
“They’re very different achievements, but boy they’re both very, very important,” Anderson said of his accomplishments. “They’re each special in their own kind of way.”
Anderson says his success as a driver is directly related to the success he achieved as crew chief for Johnson. “Warren’s a brilliant guy, and he surrounded himself with a good supporting cast,” Anderson said. “He had a well-rounded team, and I learned that it takes a complete team to achieve maximum success.”
The technical knowledge that Anderson picked up while working for Johnson also plays a big part in his success as a driver. “To be a better driver, I think you need to have some background working on the cars and calling the shots on the cars,” Anderson said. “I’m probably one of the few that’s got it on both sides. I can’t imagine not knowing about the nuts and bolts of the car and getting in and driving it.”
The reigning three-time Pro Stock World Champion says his technical knowledge gives him a better feel for the car as it goes down the track. “I can make a run down the track, know when something’s not exactly right, and report it back to the guys in the pits,” Anderson said.
Although he’s raced his way into the record books as a driver, Anderson still gets a lot of satisfaction from his success as a crew chief. “It’s a totally different feel,” Anderson said. “It was the greatest feeling in the world winning championships (as crew chief), and I never thought anything could be better than that…then I moved on and started driving, and it’s a totally different way of looking at things and a totally different feeling of gratification.”
It’s a difference that very few racers will ever experience.
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