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Prock, Langdon, Anderson claim Phoenix NHRA wins

Austin Prock powered to his first career Funny Car win on Sunday at Firebird Motorsports Park for John Force Racing, driving past Alexis DeJoria in the final round in front of a sellout crowd at the 39th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals. Shawn Langdon …

Prock, who was also the No. 1 qualifier, went 3.952 seconds at 320.74 mph in his Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS to get past DeJoria in his second final round this season. After defeating Buddy Hull, Daniel Wilkerson and points leader J.R. Todd to reach the finals, Prock led wire-to-wire against DeJoria, becoming just the 19th driver in NHRA history to win in both Top Fuel and Funny Car.

It marked a memorable moment for Prock, especially winning with his father, Jimmy, as the crew chief, and his brother, Thomas, as the car chief.

“This is a huge win,” Prock said. “This car has been running great and we started the year out strong and struggled a little bit last week in Pomona. We had to get some revenge this weekend and we definitely did that. That was a great run in the final round there. That’s a run we were trying to do that all weekend long and just couldn’t piece it all together. For it all to finally come together to get my first Funny Car win means a lot.

“To enter that league (of winning in Top Fuel and Funny Car) with the Don Prudhommes, the Shawn Langdons, the J.R. Todds, the Kenny Bernsteins, who are legends and Hall of Famers, it’s pretty cool to be a part of that. To do it with my family makes it even more special. It was a beautiful day, a packed house and we’re rolling out of here with some gold. What more could you ask for?”

DeJoria reached the finals for the first time this season thanks to round wins against Bob Tasca III, Paul Lee and Blake Alexander.

Shawn Langdon picked up his second Top Fuel win in three races to open the 2024 season, this time knocking off Justin Ashley in the final round on Sunday with a run of 3.760 at 318.69 in his Kalitta Air Careers/Toyota dragster. It’s the first career Top Fuel win at Firebird Motorsports Park for Langdon, who also denied Ashley a double-up victory this weekend in Phoenix. Langdon defeated Josh Hart, Antron Brown and No. 1 qualifier Steve Torrence to reach the final round and then posted a brilliant .050 reaction time against Ashley to pick up his 19th career victory.

It’s the first time Langdon has led the points three races in a row since the 2015 campaign as he continues to roll early in the year, again crediting the job first-year crew chief Brian Husen has done.

“When you run a Justin in the final, you know what he’s capable of. He’s the best leaver in the class bar none, so my only focus was just leave with him. and then leave it up to Brian because I have that much confidence in Brian and my guys,” Langdon said. “So when I hit the gas, we left with him, I said, ‘Well, we’ve got a shot,’ and so I just tried to hold it straight and saw the win light and the rest is history.

“It feels great, obviously. I’m just really proud of everybody and all the hard work that went into the offseason. It’s been hard for the last couple of years to struggle. but you just keep your head down, just keep working hard, and eventually, the tide’s going to roll the other way. At some point, you don’t know how long that will be but it’s paying dividends right now.”

Ashley reached his second straight final and 21st overall on the strength of round wins against Tony Schumacher, Doug Kalitta and Tony Stewart, who won his first rounds in Top Fuel on Sunday.

In Pro Stock, Greg Anderson grabbed his first victory of the season in impressive fashion, taking down teammate Dallas Glenn in the final round with a 6.582 at 208.97 in his HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro. It’s also the 104th career victory for Anderson and his third career win in Phoenix, winning at Firebird Motorsports Park for the first time since 2017. Anderson defeated Eric Latino, Troy Coughlin Jr. and then No. 1 qualifier and longtime rival Jeg Coughlin Jr. to reach the championship round, posting an impressive .022 reaction time to lead wire-to-wire against his KB Titan Racing teammate.

The early-season win is also a breath of fresh air for Anderson, who remains focused on winning a sixth career world championship. He didn’t pick up a victory last year until late in the season but made sure that didn’t happen again on Sunday in Phoenix.

“This feels great and, honestly, it feels as good as the first,” Anderson said. “It’s just so hard to win in this class anymore and to have the day I had, the weekend I had, I actually a good job behind the wheel. I’m really thrilled with that, but that’s what it takes to win in this class anymore. You have to have the whole total package, you have to have the best car, you have to have the best crew and you have to drive it well.

“We were able to put all three together today on a very, very tricky racetrack. It’s a tough one, but I love those challenges. My crew loves those challenges. You had to be on your toes, so now we’re going to Vegas with a little bit of momentum.”

Glenn, who won the postponed Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals on Saturday in Phoenix, reached the finals for the 19th time in his career and second time this season thanks to round wins against Mason McGaha, Cristian Cuadra and Aaron Stanfield.

The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series returns to action April 12-14 with the NHRA 4-Wide Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Caruso sidelined from NHRA competition with broken fibula

Camrie Caruso is expected to miss a minimum of six weeks of NHRA Pro Stock competition with a broken fibula in her left leg and a possible sprained ankle after a Saturday crash at Firebird Motorsports Park. The incident happened in Q3 of Pro Stock …

The incident happened in Q3 of Pro Stock qualifying for the NHRA Arizona Nationals in Phoenix. Caruso was on a solo run when her Aqua Prop/True Brand/Big Jeff Audio Chevrolet Camaro had issues off the starting line. Upon completing the run, which clocked in at 142.87mph, Caruso’s car let out a cloud of white smoke before hanging a left and hitting the wall. The car then turned back across the racetrack and hit the wall in the right lane.

Caruso was evaluated by the NHRA medical staff at Firebird Motorsports Park before being transported to a local hospital. The injury was announced Sunday morning.

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“First and foremost, I want to thank the fans and everyone who has reached out to me for support,” Caruso said. “The NHRA community always rallies around one of its own and that’s something I’ve now experienced firsthand. The outpouring of support has been incredible.

“My return date is a little up in the air at this moment, but I can’t wait to get back on the track and represent my incredible roster of partners aboard my Aqua Prop/True Brand/Big Jeff Audio Chevy Camaro.”

Caruso did not qualify for Sunday’s event. A year ago at Firebird Motorsports Park, Caruso became the second female to win in NHRA Pro Stock competition when defeating Bo Butner in the final round. It was her 21st career start.

It is Caruso’s third year of NHRA Pro Stock competition. She was named Rookie of the Year in 2022.

Friday speeds hold for nitro No. 1s at NHRA Arizona Nationals

J.R. Todd powered to the Funny Car victory in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge on Saturday at a sold-out Firebird Motorsports Park, defeating John Force in the final round of the specialty event as part of the 39th annual NHRA Arizona …

Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel) and Erica Enders (Pro Stock) also won the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, while Steve Torrence (Top Fuel), Austin Prock (Funny Car) and Jeg Coughlin Jr. (Pro Stock) claimed No. 1 qualifiers at the third of 20 races during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series.

Todd held off Force in the final round of the Challenge with a run of 3.974s at 316.67mph in his DHL Toyota GR Supra. It gives the former world champion his second victory in the specialty race, with the first coming last year in Sonoma. Todd swept that weekend, which is something he would certainly love to replicate in Phoenix. Todd knocked off Matt Hagan in the earlier round before leading from start-to-finish against Force in the final round.

“Anytime you could turn on a win light against the greatest of all time, that’s it’s doing something whether it’s the Mission race or the actual Sunday event,” said Todd, who won the Gatornationals earlier this season. “He’s a tough one to get by.

“It’s weird to say that we’ve been struggling this year, but we have been struggling to get down to try to make clean runs and haven’t really been consistent a lot, so coming up to this race I think the game plan was just going from A to B to make sure we got a good clean run. to start off the weekend.”

Austin Prock’s 3.840s at 334.40mph from Friday in his Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS held up, giving the first-year Funny Car driver his second No. 1 spot in three races. He’ll open eliminations against Buddy Hull. Bob Tasca III took second with a 3.876s at 334.65mph and Paul Lee qualified third after going 3.889s at 329.02mph.

In Top Fuel, Tony Schumacher picked up the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge victory with a run of 3.925s at 292.77mph in his Leatherwood Distillery/RAC Financial dragster, getting past Brittany Force in the finals of the specialty race. It’s the first victory in the Challenge for Schumacher, an eight-time Top Fuel world champ, who likes the direction the team is headed.

“This does a lot for us,” Schumacher said. “The car has been running well. They’ve made some changes. We’re happy where we’re at. We’re gaining knowledge. We have a great race car. I’m driving the car well, minus that last round. All things considered, we get to do it again tomorrow. This is a great race track, it’s a sold out show today and I’m looking forward to getting started for tomorrow.”

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Steve Torrence’s strong run from Friday stood up, as the four-time world champion earned his first top spot of the season with his 3.678s at 336.23mph in his Capco Contractors dragster. He’ll open eliminations against Top Fuel rookie Travis Shumake, looking for his first victory of the season. Brittany Force qualified second thanks to Friday’s 3.689s at 334.90mph, while defending world champ Doug Kalitta’s 3.697s at 323.66mph put him third.

Enders’ Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge win in Pro Stock came against Mason McGaha, as the defending world champion tracked down McGaha with a run of 6.541s at 210.87mph in her Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Melling Performance/Scag Power Equipment car. It’s the second specialty event win for motorsports’ winningest female, and she’ll look to pick up her 50th career national event win on Sunday.

“We’re obviously very thankful for what Mission is doing for our sport and our class, and it’s exciting to have a race within a race despite the stress that it has been,” Enders said. “Rolling off the trailer and having no shots at the Tree or the racetrack before that round of eliminations, it was nerve-wracking. Fortunately, my horsepower saved me. I’ve saved my car before and today they saved me.”

Her Elite Motorsports teammate Jeg Coughlin Jr. swiped the No. 1 spot from the six-time world champ during the final session, as the veteran went 6.517s at 210.64mph in his Scag Power Equipment car. It’s the 35th career No. 1 qualifier for Coughlin, who returned back to full-time racing this season. He’ll open eliminations against Phoenix-area native Matt Hartford, looking to win for the first time since 2020.

“It’s very exciting and a big testament to this team,” Coughlin said. “To be on the pole, it feels fantastic. We unloaded off the trailer with a good run right off the bat. I had my hands full the first three gears and we tuned it up for Q2. It was the quickest of the session and went straight down the track. They tuned it up for Q3 and gave me a little more and it felt really nice. The car feels good and the team is gelling, and that’s what it takes.”

Enders’ 6.518s at 210.90mph put her second, while Dallas Glenn took third with a 6.537s at 209.14mph.

Eliminations for the 39th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals begin at 11 a.m. ET on Sunday at Firebird Motorsports Park.

John Force scores first win in two years at postponed NHRA Winternationals in Phoenix

Funny Car legend John Force picked up his first victory in two years, powering past Matt Hagan of Tony Stewart Racing to win the postponed Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals, which was completed on Saturday in front of a sellout crowd at Firebird …

Justin Ashley (Top Fuel) and Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) also won the postponed Pomona race on Saturday at Firebird Motorsports Park, which was the second of 20 races during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season.

Force, the winningest driver in NHRA history, went 4.033s at 318.24mph in his PEAK Antifreeze & Coolant Chevrolet Camaro SS, slipping past Hagan’s 4.048s to claim his 156th career victory and first since April of 2022. Force now has eight Winternationals wins to his credit and this marked another special one in his iconic career.

“I’m just facing the truth in life, that, you know, time’s running out, and I’m trying to hang on,” Force said. “This morning, I was talking about, ‘You know, maybe this is it. Maybe I should just walk out the gate and go to the casino,’ and then all of a sudden you win and your weight and your personality just changes.

“I was mad, mad at myself [for losing in the Mission Challenge earlier in the day], and I started saying, ‘You just need to get out of the seat, you’re just too old for this stuff,’ or, ‘Get out there and fight the fight.’ And I did, and things went right, and I got the win, so I’m excited.”

In Top Fuel, Justin Ashley kept his Winternationals winning streak alive, even in a new location, winning the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals for the third straight year and defeating Tony Schumacher on a holeshot with a pass of 3.802s at 330.15mph in his Scag Power Equipment dragster. Ashley posted an impressive reaction time of 0.023s to hold off Schumacher’s run of 3.772s at 326.00mph.

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It is Ashley’s 12th career victory and first this season, and certainly one of the more unique ones in his young career.

“It’s very special. Even though is not in Pomona, the NHRA Winternationals is a very prestigious race so to win it once is extraordinary. To win in three times in a row is an incredible blessing,” Ashley said. “This event, the way everything played out, it was a test for our team and they came through just as they seemingly do every time. I think we needed this as a team.

“This was a huge round win. It’s just so special because you never know when you’ll be in another final and you want to try to take advantage of that opportunity and you never know when you’re going to win your next race so you just have to try and enjoy it. This one feels a little bit different and a little bit different in a good way.”

In Pro Stock, Glenn defended his Winternationals victory with a second straight win, this one coming in Phoenix and on a holeshot against reigning world champion Erica Enders. Glenn went 6.537s at 209.14mph in his RAD Torque Systems Chevrolet Camaro, using a 0.024s reaction time to hold off Enders’ 6.531s at 209.52mph.

It’s the ninth career win for Glenn and his first in the 2024 campaign, giving the young standout some much-needed Phoenix success.

“I was just thinking that the last two times I’ve raced here in Phoenix, I’ve lost first round both times, so Phoenix hasn’t been the best place to me,” Glenn said. “I definitely wanted to finish that last one in Pomona. We tried some new things and kind of took a few runs to get it dialed in, but it definitely came around in the final. I just tried to do everything I can to hit everything I could on that one. I’m just glad to be able to get it done because I was feeling really good in Pomona.”

Eliminations for the 39th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals begin at 11 a.m. ET on Sunday at Firebird Motorsports Park.

S. Torrence, Prock lead Phoenix NHRA qualifiers

Four-time Top Fuel world champion Steve Torrence powered to the provisional No. 1 qualifier on Friday at Firebird Motorsports Park, putting him in line for his first top spot of the season at the 39th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals. Funny Car’s …

Due to unseasonable weather conditions on Friday in Phoenix, the Safety Safari spent additional time working on the track and track prep. Based on those weather conditions, the Pro Stock and Pro Mod qualifying sessions were postponed to Saturday. Both classes will make three qualifying attempts on Saturday, with Pro Stock running at its scheduled 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. times. The Pro Stock #2Fast2Tasty Mission Challenge will take place during those sessions. The last session in Pro Stock is slated for 3:30 p.m., where the finals of the NHRA Winternationals will also take place.

Torrence went 3.678 seconds at 336.23 mph in his Capco Contractors dragster to close out Friday qualifying as he looks for his 38th career No. 1 qualifier. The Texas native is also seeking his first victory of the 2024 season and was pleased with Friday’s run, which nearly set a career-best speed.

“I love racing here and I’m glad to be back in Phoenix,” Torrence said. “It’s a cool place to race and the car felt really smooth going down there. When you run that kind of mph, that’s nothing but power. It was a nice, smooth, clean run and that was exciting. We’ve made some big steps and figured some things out, and I feel like this car is better than it’s ever been. Now, we’re just trying to get that consistency down.”

Brittany Force took the second spot after going 3.689 at 334.90, while defending world champ Doug Kalitta’s 3.697 at 323.66 has him third.

In the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, Force and Tony Schumacher won their matchups and will meet in the final round of the specialty race in the opening qualifying session on Saturday. Schumacher and Justin Ashley will race in the championship round of the NHRA Winternationals to close out final qualifying.

Driving the car that won at Firebird Motorsports Park a year ago, Funny Car’s Prock ran 3.840 at 334.40 in his Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS to take the provisional No. 1 spot to continue his impressive start to his Funny Car career. If it holds, Prock would already have two Funny Car No. 1 qualifiers in three races this season and also the fifth in his nitro career. Taking over driving duties for Hight in Funny Car this year, Prock has performed well and has confidence this weekend driving for a team that has won the last two years in Phoenix.

“I can see the confidence in the team this weekend,” Prock said. “We have a really good notebook of runs here. The team (with Robert Hight driving) won the last few times they came here and we’re off to another great start.

“It really flew. This place is tricky, you get these crosswinds that really push these cars even though you’re punching a hole through the air and it really moves these cars around, but that’s what I love about Funny Car. So, you got to be ready for that. We love coming here and the fans are always great.”

Bob Tasca III is currently second after going 3.876 at 334.65 and Paul Lee is third thanks to his 3.889 at 329.02.

John Force and J.R. Todd won their matchups in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge on Friday and will meet in the finals of the specialty race in the first qualifying session on Saturday. Force and defending world champion Matt Hagan will meet in the finals of the postponed NHRA Winternationals to close out the last qualifying session.

Qualifying continues at 11:30 a.m. ET on Saturday at the NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird Motorsports Park.

NHRA to run all qualifying sessions on the same day at Virginia

A schedule change has been made for the upcoming Virginia NHRA Nationals, as all three qualifying sessions in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series will now take place on Saturday, June 22, leading into eliminations the following day at Virginia …

The two-day NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series event will feature three qualifying sessions on the same day in the professional categories (Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle) for the first time, leading into Sunday eliminations. Official times for Saturday’s three qualifying sessions and Sunday’s first round of eliminations will be released next week.

This year’s event will mark the first NHRA race at Virginia Motorsports Park — regarded as one of the quickest and fastest tracks on the NHRA circuit — since 2022. It also will feature the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge for the first time during the last two qualifying sessions on Saturday. The Challenge is a unique bonus event that brings competitive racing to Saturday and offers a bonus purse and bonus championship points.

Wet NHRA Winternationals finals postponed to Phoenix

Inclement weather forced the postponement of the final round of the 64th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals on Sunday at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip. The final rounds in Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock will now be completed at the upcoming …

Inclement weather forced the postponement of the final round of the 64th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals on Sunday at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.

The final rounds in Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock will now be completed at the upcoming NHRA Arizona Nationals, which is the next event on the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series circuit and takes place April 5-7 at Firebird Motorsports Park in Phoenix.

In Top Fuel, Tony Schumacher and defending event winner Justin Ashley both advanced to the final round on Sunday. Schumacher reached his first final round this season after defeating Terry Totten, Gainesville winner Shawn Langdon and Billy Torrence. Ashley, meanwhile, is after his third straight win at the Winternationals and reached the finals thanks to victories against Shawn Reed, Steve Torrence and No. 1 qualifier Brittany Force. Ashley has reached the final round at the Winternationals for four straight years.

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Funny Car’s John Force and reigning world champion Matt Hagan powered to the championship round at the second of 20 races during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series. Force will try to pick up his first victory in two years in Phoenix, taking down Jim Campbell, Bobby Bode and Ron Capps. Hagan is after back-to-back Winternationals victories and his 50th career Funny Car win, reaching the finals on Sunday in Pomona with round victories against Buddy Hull, Jeff Diehl and Gainesville winner J.R. Todd.

Defending world champion Erica Enders and No. 1 qualifier Dallas Glenn will meet up in the finals in Pro Stock in Phoenix. Enders, who won the season-opener in Gainesville, took down Fernando Cuadra Jr., Brandon Foster and Greg Anderson to reach the championship round. She will attempt to pick up her 50th career national event win in two weeks at Firebird Motorsports Park. Glenn, the defending Winternationals winner, got by Sienna Wildgust, David Cuadra and Mason McGaha to reach his first final round of the season.

B. Force, Hagan and Glenn lead Winternationals qualifiers

Brittany Force powered to the top spot to close out qualifying on Saturday at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip, earning her first No. 1 qualifier of the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season at the 64th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals. Matt Hagan (Funny Car) and Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) also qualified No. 1 at the second of 20 races during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series.

After a lengthy rain delay, Force put together a run of 3.711-seconds at 335.73 mph in her Mark Christopher Auto Center Chevrolet/Monster Energy dragster. It was the lone qualifying session due to weather and Force claimed her 47th career No. 1 qualifier with the standout run. She’ll open eliminations looking for her first victory since 2022 when she finished the year as world champion.

“That was a good, consistent run and that’s what we’re focused on,” Force said. “We’re in a good place and it’s pretty awesome to have 47 No. 1 qualifiers. That’s (crew chief) David Grubnic and this entire team. But our focus is on raceday and trying to get a win. We’re ready for tomorrow.”

Eight-time Top Fuel world champion Tony Schumacher took second with a 3.735 at 331.85, while Billy Torrence took third with a 3.745 at 330.47. Tony Stewart’s run of 3.737 at 328.30 during the second session was ruled invalid due to a timing system malfunction.

Reigning Funny Car world champion Matt Hagan, who won the Winternationals a year ago, made the most of his run on Saturday, going to No. 1 with a run of 3.893 at 330.15 in his Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat for Tony Stewart Racing. It gives the four-time world champion 51 career No. 1 qualifiers and plenty of momentum going into raceday, where Hagan looks to pick up his milestone 50th career victory. He’ll open eliminations against Buddy Hull trying to pick up his first win of the season.

“To do a burnout and still have that many fans in the stands after the weather was pretty cool,” Hagan said. “The track was tricky, so we’ll take that run. All in all, I’m pretty happy with that. We’ve had a lot of success here and to make that run makes me feel confident going into tomorrow. We’ve won a lot of races because Dickie (Venables, crew chief) has been good on Sunday. It would be great to get that 50th (win) in Pomona. It’s such a special place and it’s really magical here. There’s so much history and when you show up here, you get chill bumps. It’s just a cool feeling.”

Ron Capps took the second spot with a 3.893 at 326.71 and Bobby Bode took third after going 3.972 at 292.96.

In Pro Stock, defending event winner Dallas Glenn racked up his fifth career No. 1 qualifier, closing out qualifying with a run of 6.536 at 209.75 in his RAD Torque Systems Chevrolet Camaro. Glenn made a big move to close out the day after the team made wholesale changes leading into the day. They struggled on Friday, but the changes paid off heading into raceday, putting the young standout in a good spot to try and earn his first win of the season. He’ll open eliminations against KB Titan Racing teammate and rookie Sienna Wildgust.

“That was really satisfying,” Glenn said. “We basically rewired my entire car this morning. We changed so much stuff on it. We were not happy with it and it had been doing some crazy stuff. It at least worked for one run and we were pretty happy with it. The run felt amazing and we made a really killer run. Pomona has always been up there as one of my favorite tracks. I’ve always loved coming here and hopefully we have it turned around.”

Defending world champion Erica Enders qualified second with a 6.547 at 210.73 and Camrie Caruso jumped to third thanks with a 6.557 at 208.88.

Only one round of the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge was completed on Saturday due to weather as well. Shawn Langdon and Steve Torrence both won the opening round in Top Fuel, while J.R. Todd and Austin Prock picked up the Funny Car victories. In Pro Stock, Glenn and Enders raced to Challenge wins.

Eliminations for the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals begin at 10 a.m. PT on Sunday at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.

Wilkerson grabs first career provisional No. 1 at NHRA Winternationals

Funny Car rookie Daniel Wilkerson put himself in position for his first career No. 1 qualifier on Friday, racing to the provisional top spot at the 64th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip. Billy Torrence (Top …

Billy Torrence (Top Fuel) and Erica Enders (Pro Stock) are also the provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the second of 20 races during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series.

In a full-time ride for the first time in his career, Daniel Wilkerson made the most of his opportunity on Friday, taking the top spot with a 4.014s at 314.31mph in his Scag Power Equipment Ford Mustang. That puts Wilkerson in line for his first career top qualifier, which would be a huge moment in his career. He stepped into the driver role this year, with his father, Funny Car veteran Tim Wilkerson, calling the shots as crew chief. On Friday, it worked out wonderfully for the father-son duo.

“It was a little squirrely but I got it to the end,” said Wilkerson, who will be competing for NHRA Rookie of the Year honors this year. “It got a little loose coming out of the middle of the track and I was almost yelling at myself steering the car. But it worked out and I was happy with it. All of this, it almost hasn’t set in yet, but it’s been a lot of fun so far.”

Jeff Diehl took the second spot on Friday after going 4.050s at 306.81mph and Chad Green, who won in Pomona last year to end the season, is third with a 4.110s at 302.96mph.

In Top Fuel, Billy Torrence powered to the top on Friday, going 3.745s at 330.47mph in his Capco Contractors dragster. If that holds, Torrence would earn his sixth career No. 1 qualifier, as both Torrence cars made strong runs during the lone qualifying session of the day. His son, Steve, is currently second after the four-time world champ went 3.750s at 328.30mph, giving the team plenty of momentum for the weekend. They also meet tomorrow in the opening round of the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge.

“I was very impressed with that run,” Torrence said. “I thought we could make a good run on the track. The guys have worked really hard on that setup and I really thought Steve would sneak around us and pick our pocket, but he just missed us. Performance-wise, I think the cars are really close. I think we’ve got a good set-up for a solid year.”

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Former world champ Brittany Force is in the third spot thanks to a run of 3.783s at 330.30mph and Gainesville winner Shawn Langdon is right behind with a 3.788s at 318.24mph.

A strong start continued for reigning Pro Stock world champion Erica Enders on Friday in Pomona, as she went 6.556s at 211.69mph in her Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Melling Performance/Scag Power Equipment car. If it holds, it would give Enders her second straight No. 1 qualifier to start the season. Enders, who also won in Gainesville, is after her 50th career national event victory this weekend, which would add another incredible milestone in her stellar career. Two years ago, Enders won at the Winternationals in what was the 900th race in Pro Stock history.

“It was a little bit of a hairy ride. It made some big moves, but I’m thankful for all the runs I have in these cars,” Enders said. “We’re big on numbers and going after that 50th win is very important to us. Winning my first Winternationals two years ago for the 900th Pro Stock race was pretty spectacular and we’re glad to be back here. Coming off a win at the Gatornationals, we’re just going to try to carry that momentum, but we definitely have a good race car right now.”

Matt Hartford is currently second with a 6.568s at 210.31mph and Jeg Coughlin Jr. is third with a 6.573s at 211.20mph.

Qualifying continues at 11:30 a.m. ET on Saturday at the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals at the In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip

Brittany Force ready for a reset at Pomona

Brittany Force grew up a 35 minute drive up the CA-57 N to Pomona Dragstrip. “I’ve raced Super Comp there, A Fuel, Top Fuel, won two Top Fuel championships there,” said Force, age 37, on the eve of this weekend’s Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals. …

Brittany Force grew up a 35 minute drive up the CA-57 N to Pomona Dragstrip.

“I’ve raced Super Comp there, A Fuel, Top Fuel, won two Top Fuel championships there,” said Force, age 37, on the eve of this weekend’s Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals. “There’s nothing like Pomona.”

Force comes off of a winless 2023 NHRA Top Fuel campaign in which she scored one runner-up finish and four semi-final appearances. The 2017 and 2022 NHRA To Fuel champion, it was the first time in three years that the Californian went without a win. Frustrated and disappointed with 2023, Force and the Monster Energy Chevrolet Top Fuel dragster team coined the expression 2024ORCE for the new race year.

“Yeah it is 2024ORCE this year,” said Force while making an appearance at longtime sponsor Monster Energy’s corporate headquarters in Corona, California. “Last year was a tough season for us. We weren’t performing where we should have been and that was after coming out of a championship year in 2022, so this year we’re going to get back on top and where John Force Racing should be. All of our teams – Austin Prock, my dad and my team – are looking to definitely turn things around and we want to win and we’re going to chase down another championship.”

“It’s tough, but when you get beat weekend after weekend, in those moments, it teaches you a lot about your team. Not once last season did we ever think, ‘Oh, this is out of our reach’ or ‘we can’t win.’ Obviously we’d get frustrated when we got beat again, but there was never an idea in our head where it was like we were going to give up. That speaks very loudly of this team and our character. It’s those tough weekends that prove how strong you are. It’s how you bounce back from those weekends.”

A fortnight back, Force and company yanked up the curtain on the 2024 season at the Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout at Gainesville Raceway in Florida. Force was defeated by Antron Brown in the final round, and while disappointed to not win the Callout, she was enthused to just be back in her dragster.

“I was pumped just to be back in the seat at Gainesville,” said Force, who lost Sunday’s opening round of the NHRA Gatornationals. “It was a long off-season, and again, we didn’t have a great season last year. We want to come back swinging and we want to jump right into it and we want to chase down our first win of the season. So, very anxious just to get back out there and get back into the seat of my car and get into the routine of things and get this season going.”

To optimize performance and creativity, for the 2024 season, Force has the support and collective resources of two crew chiefs in David Grubnic and John Collins.

“It has been great with both of them,” said Force. “David Grubnic, I’ve been with him since 2019. And for this year, John Collins came on board. He came from Cruz Pedregon’s team, so we are excited to have him and I think they’re going to work together really well and I think we’re going to see it on the track very soon.”

Furthermore, Force has her father John Force making sure the JFR Top Fuel house is in order.

“My had has been very up-and-down,” she said. “You never know what you’re going to get with him. But he had a tough season as well in 2023, and that’s something we connected on and shared. It was a hard year for us, but we are ready to be back this year.”

During the off-season Force has spoken about wanting to optimize on race day.

“So our goals going into Pomona, or every event this season, whether we get three qualifying runs or four, we want to take advantage of every single one of those,” she said. “We need to go down the track every single run. We want to see consistency. We need to qualify in the top five to give us the best spot on race day and we need to go rounds and win some races if we want a shot at another championship.

“Pomona is a very important race for us. It’s Pomona, so we usually start our season here and end here, but they changed things a little. This is where we end our season. This is where champions are crowned. It’s a big one. It’s my home track. I’ve been coming here and watching my dad since I was a little kid. When I pull up to that racetrack, it is like, ‘I’m home.’ I love Pomona Raceway. We’ve done a lot at that racetrack and I’m excited to see what we’ll do this weekend.

“We need to qualify well. Starting there this weekend, we need to qualify well to get us set up for race day. We want to go some rounds. Like I said, we didn’t have a win last year. It was a tough season. But again it proved how strong we are. We kept pushing forward. We never gave up. We never lost sight of getting back to that winner’s circle. It just didn’t happen for us. This year, it’s game on. We’re going to go some rounds. We’re ready to get the ball rolling.”