The 39th Automobile Club of Southern California Finals at the Fairplex in Pomona, Calif., will long be remembered as the NHRA national event at which two of the sport's most respected and revered racers, Kenny Bernstein and Shirley Muldowney, each bid a final farewell and slipped into retirement.

It will also be remembered as the race where another legend came back from it.

This weekend, 10-time Pro Stock champion and consensus Hall of Famer Bob Glidden will be behind the wheel of a second Dodge Stratus being fielded by his good friend Larry Morgan as part of the factory Mopar effort. The Stratus was scheduled to be purchased by Pro Stock privateer Nick Fratt prior to this weekend's race but when the sale fell through, Morgan and Glidden agreed to race the car at the season's concluding event -- and perhaps beyond.

"If we were to get a sponsorship deal we'd race it next year", said Glidden after running a 6.85/202.70 in Thursday's opening qualifying session, barely leaving him outside the 16-car field with three more qualifying sessions remaining. "We don't have anything right now but we'll see about putting something together."

Glidden's phenomenal career spanned three decades and resulted in a record ten NHRA championships and 85 national event wins, a total that remained unbeaten until Warren Johnson won his 86th race in Denver in 2001. After retiring at the end of the 1996 season, Glidden briefly returned in 1998 and attempted unsuccessfully to qualify at the U.S. Nationals in a car owned by another close friend, engine builder Steve Schmidt. Last year, Schmidt convinced Glidden to try another comeback but following a crash in Houston testing and several DNQs, the Pro Stock legend again left the sport.

	Glidden

But soon, he was back assisting Mark Pawuk on his Summit Racing Grand Am as a tuner and team consultant before joining up with Larry Morgan's Team Mopar this year. Morgan has been lavish in his praise of Glidden and how his expertise has helped Morgan find more consistent performance this season. But for Glidden, driving has always been a relentless desire which, at least for the time being, is being satisfied.

"I still feel great when I'm in one of those (racecars)", he says. "That never leaves you no matter how long it's been."

Although no announcements have been made, there is widespread speculation that the look and lineup at Team Mopar in 2004 may be quite different from how the operation appears this season. Rumors are circulating that the team may be pared down to three instead of four cars and that drivers Darrell Alderman, Allen Johnson and Morgan may be the only factory drivers retained, leaving former IHRA champion Gene Wilson shopping for a ride. With Glidden now attempting to fire up his driving career once again, it will be interesting to see how that may play into the team's plans for '04.

"I'll just do my best this weekend", says Glidden. "Whatever happens after that, happens."

Bill Stephens covers the NHRA for ESPN and ESPN.com.