NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

2010: Rookie rider L.E. Tonglet ekes out Pro Stock Motorcycle title by four points

L.E. Tonglet became just the third rookie to win an NHRA Pro championship after coming from behind to steal the Pro Stock Motorcycle title from Andrew Hines, who surprisingly fouled in the first round.
03 Nov 2022
Phil Burgess, NHRA National Dragster Editor
NHRA's Closest Championship Finishes (2007-21)
L.E. Tonglet

For the third time in four years, the NHRA world championship in Pro Stock Motorcycle was decided by a single-digit margin when rookie rider L.E. Tonglet won the championship by just four points over Andrew Hines, who had lost the 2007 title by just six points.

At the penultimate event in Las Vegas, Tonglet scored the fifth win of his freshman season which, combined with Hines’ semifinal loss, closed the gap to just 34 points, setting up an epic showdown between the rookie and the three-time champion at the season finale in Pomona. 

Against all odds, Hines fouled in round one — as he had done in round two to cost himself the 2007 championship — opening the door for Tonglet to complete his miracle season. 

Tonglet, aboard his NitroFish Suzuki, didn’t disappoint as he topped Matt Guidera in the opening round and then locked up the title with a clutch .007 reaction time in his quarterfinal win over Steve Johnson. Ironically, Tonglet never led the points until the final day of the season and topped the standings by a scant four points.

Tonglet became just the third rookie to win a Pro championship (Frank Hawley, 1982; Gary Scelzi, 1997) and the sport’s youngest champ at 20 years, 11 months. Not surprisingly, Tonglet was also voted NHRA Rookie of the Year.

“I’m still trying to believe that it actually happened,” said Tonglet. “It still seems like a dream to me. We always felt like we had a good bike, and my dad and my brother do a great job tuning it. We just never thought anything like this would happen to us.” 

Final points
1. L.E. Tonglet: 2,681
2. Andrew Hines: 2,677
3. Eddie Krawiec: 2,559

CLOSEST FINISHES IN NHRA HISTORY

Year

Class

Champion

Points margin

Second place

2012

Top Fuel

Antron Brown

7

Tony Schumacher

2017

Pro Stock

Bo Butner

7

Greg Anderson

2007

Pro Stock Motorcycle

Matt Smith

6

Andrew Hines

2008

Pro Stock Motorcycle

Eddie Krawiec

5

Chris Rivas

2010

Pro Stock Motorcycle

L.E. Tonglet

4

Andrew Hines

2016

Pro Stock

Jason Line

3

Greg Anderson

2019

Top Fuel

Steve Torrence

3

Doug Kalitta

2009

Pro Stock Motorcycle

Hector Arana Sr.

2

Eddie Krawiec

2009

Top Fuel

Tony Schumacher

2

Larry Dixon

2012

Funny Car

Jack Beckman

2

Ron Capps