Top Fuel champion Brett Harris

Funny Car king Garrett Bateman

Bud Hammer, Jr. Fuel champion

A/Fuel champ Kin Bates

Sean Renteria, AA/Gas champ

The NHRA Hot Rod Heritage Racing Series put a close to the 2009 season with the California Hot Rod Reunion presented by the Automobile Club of Southern California. Brett Harris and Garrett Bateman locked up season championships in Nostalgia Top Fuel and Nostalgia Funny Car, respectively.

Harris, of Kaysville, Utah, came into the event trailing Rick White by 59 points, but when White failed to qualify, it left the door open for Harris.  Harris qualified No. 1 and beat Mike Chrisman and Brad Thompson in rounds one and two before losing to Troy Green in a semifinal match. 

Advancing to the semi's gave Harris 78 points, which moved him past White for the championship. White finished second, nine points back.

The Nostalgia Funny Car chase was between teammates Bateman, of Tacoma, Wash., and Bucky Austin. Both qualified well, with Bateman on top and Austin in the No. 3 position. In round one, upsets claimed both Bateman and Austin, who suffered mechanical problems and dropped out of competition early.

Bateman held on with a 26-point lead to take the championship and team bragging rights for the year, and Austin held on to the No. 2 spot.

Bud Hammer, of Oxnard, Calif., clinched the Jr. Fuel championship in July with a win at the Fremont Reunion in Sacramento, Calif., his third win of the season in his fourth final-round appearance. He followed up at the Hot Rod Reunion with another final-round appearance but fell short of the win to Bob Lander. Don Enriquez finished second in points after advancing to the semifinals at the Reunion.

Kin Bates, of Anderson, Calif., came into the event having the championship all but wrapped up in A/Fuel, basically needing just to qualify; Bill Wayne sat in second, 106 points behind. Bates qualified No. 5 to secure the championship and, after winning in round one, fell to Wayne in the semifinals. Wayne went on to win the race and finish second in the points standings.

In AA/Gas, Sean Renteria, of Hollister, Calif., entered the event leading the points with one win in three final rounds.  Mike Lenard was the only one who could catch Renteria, but a loss in round one ended Lenard’s hopes and gave the championship to Renteria.

The final championship was not decided until the final round of the 7.0 Pro class. Mike Cross, of Culver City, Calif., held a 72-point lead prior to the event but failed to qualify, opening the door for Bob Murphy and Will Martin. Murphy went out in round two, dropping him out of contention, but Martin, of San Dimas, Calif., who had to win the event, marched through eliminations and into a final-round matchup with Joey Steckler. Martin, son of former NHRA Funny Car competitor John Martin, saved his best run of the day, posting a 7.083-second run at 187.65 mph to take the win and the championship by just one point. Cross finished the year in second with one win.

Other NHRA Hot Rod Heritage Racing Series champions crowned earlier in the year were Austin Frye, Taft, Calif., in NE I; Doug Davenport, Las Vegas, in NE II; Lindsey Lister, San Pedro, Calif., in NE III; Rob Patten, Tracy, Calif., in A/Gas; Jim Teague, Sanger, Calif., in B/Gas; Nick Kendrick, Lake Havasu City, Ariz., in C/Gas; Mike Williams, Bakersfield, Calif., in D/Gas; and Billy Teague, Reedley, Calif., in Hot Rod Eliminator.