Millican vaults to a special No. 1 at NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals

Top Fuel veteran Clay Millican made the quickest pass on Friday at Bristol Dragway, racing to the provisional No. 1 qualifier at the 23rd annual Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. Austin Prock (Funny Car), Erica Enders (Pro Stock) and Matt …

Top Fuel veteran Clay Millican made the quickest pass on Friday at Bristol Dragway, racing to the provisional No. 1 qualifier at the 23rd annual Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.

Austin Prock (Funny Car), Erica Enders (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) are also the provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the eighth of 20 races during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season.

Millican went 3.786s at 325.06mph in his Parts Plus/Rick Ware Racing dragster in Thunder Valley, holding off points leader Justin Ashley under the lights to take the top spot. Millican, whose first career NHRA win came at Bristol Dragway in 2017, is seeking his first No. 1 qualifier of 2024 and 26th in his career. Friday also marked another special moment at Millican’s favorite and home track on the NHRA tour.

“It’s always something at this place,” Millican said. “This team has absolutely been incredible. We were struggling a little after testing, and then the next thing you know we start going rounds, go to a final at Charlotte, go to the semis last week. I’m excited to do this for a lot of reasons. When you qualify No. 1 against the monsters that we’re racing against these days you’ve accomplished something. But this is the first time I’ve qualified No. 1 with Mr. Rick Ware present. We are here because this guy loves drag racing. The biggest thing he hasn’t been a part of yet is a win on Sunday, so that’s on my agenda, just in case you’re wondering.

“I would love to be the No. 1 qualifier right here at Bristol. That would be awesome. When it comes to race day, last year I would have told you I wanted it hot on race day, but I think we have a car now that it doesn’t matter.”

Points leader Ashley also dipped into the 3.70s with a 3.795s at 322.42mph, putting him second, and Antron Brown’s 3.809s at 321.27mph slots him third.

Austin Prock continued to roll in qualifying, blasting to the top of the Funny Car field with an impressive run under the lights, going 3.958s at 317.34mph in his Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS. Should that hold, the Funny Car points leader would gain his sixth No. 1 qualifier in the first eight races, a remarkable feat for the first-year Funny Car driver. He advanced to the final round last weekend in Epping, finishing as runner-up to his boss, John Force, and moving to the points lead in the process.

Prock made two strong runs on Friday and can continue that momentum on Saturday with the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge.

“This place is very tough to navigate, for sure. It’s kind of a driver’s racetrack. You have to be on your game all the way to pulling the parachutes,” Prock said. “This is up another level, stressful for the crew chiefs, but if you’re a race car driver you sure do enjoy a place like this.

“When I heard a [3.95s] over the radio, that was the number they were calling and it ended up being good enough. It ended up working out for us, and the entire day was great for this Cornwell Camaro. We have the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge tomorrow, so we’ll be focused. We want to win that medal at the end of the day for sure.”

Alexis DeJoria jumped to the second spot with a 3.973s at 319.90mph and Ron Capps, who has won back-to-back races in Bristol, is third after going 3.976s at 320.74mph.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1430]

In Pro Stock, Erica Enders returned to the site of her 2023 turnaround and put on a show, going low in each session, including a 6.631s at 206.92mph that put her Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Melling Performance/Scag Power Equipment car in the top spot. Enders, the defending event winner in Bristol, is now on track to put up her second straight top qualifier and fourth this season, and she hopes to break through with her 50th national event victory as well.

Thunder Valley might be the perfect place to do it, as Enders’ turnaround last year came in Bristol. She went on to win her sixth world championship and she’ll look to win for the 50th time this weekend.

“I feel like we’re getting a better handle on our race car,” Enders said. “It was a nice run and was better on the graph. I like the four-qualifying run format better, you can track more things, purse is a little bigger on Sunday. I had a very fast race car and that’s translating to here so far as well.

“I love what I do and the people that I do it with. These moments don’t last forever, so you have to take advantage of them. I realize how blessed I am that I get to do what I love for a living and have done pretty well at it. I feel like we have a lot more left to accomplish.”

Greg Anderson is currently second thanks to his run of 6.636s at 206.45mph and Jeg Coughlin Jr. is right behind with his 6.639s at 206.45mph.

Making the quickest run of both sessions in Pro Stock Motorcycle, six-time world champion Matt Smith made a strong statement on Friday, taking the No. 1 spot with a run of 6.788s at 198.52mph on his Denso Auto Parts/Matt Smith Racing Buell. Smith is attempting to pick up his second No. 1 qualifier this season and the 54th in his career, but Friday’s two stellar runs also give him a strong shot to possibly unseat Gaige Herrera and end his incredible streak.

Herrera has won eight straight races – tied for the most in PSM history – and 31 consecutive rounds, and a win would tie the defending world champion with Bob Glidden for the most consecutive wins (9) and round wins (35) in NHRA history. Smith, though, has other plans.

“I think we showed at Chicago that we’ve been testing a lot and getting our program back better,” Smith said. “It showed here again. I messed up tuning the bike on Sunday in Chicago and came here to redeem myself. My Denso bike is pretty fast, and I’m pretty happy with what we’ve done so far.

“I’m focused, head down. I’m like a hound dog, I’m a hunting dog right now, on the ground trying to find that 60-foot and make it better and better. We are getting better, and we’ll continue to try to work hard and make our bike as fast as possible.”

Chase Van Sant is currently second after going 6.827s at 196.36mph and Herrera is third with a 6.830s at 197.77mph.

Qualifying continues at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway.

Millican fires back to victory lane at NHRA Midwest Nationals

Top Fuel star Clay Millican picked up his third win of the season for Rick Ware Racing on Sunday at World Wide Technology Raceway, defeating a charging Leah Pruett in the final round in front of a huge crowd at the 12th annual NHRA Midwest …

Top Fuel star Clay Millican picked up his third win of the season for Rick Ware Racing on Sunday at World Wide Technology Raceway, defeating a charging Leah Pruett in the final round in front of a huge crowd at the 12th annual NHRA Midwest Nationals.

Matt Hagan (Funny Car), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Gaige Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won the 18th of 21 races during the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season, and the third of six races in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs.

Millican powered to his third win this season and sixth in his career, defeating Pruett in the championship round with a pass of 3.758s at 331.94mph in his Parts Plus/Comp Cams dragster. He jumped up to eighth in points in the process, tying Antron Brown for the second-most wins in Top Fuel in 2023.

He reached the finals by defeating Austin Prock, Mike Salinas and Tony Schumacher, before outrunning Pruett in a thrilling side-by-side duel. It is Millican’s first career victory at World Wide Technology Raceway and the veteran was thrilled with his team’s performance in the heat.

“Man, what a day. This is huge,” Millican said. “He gave us a hot weekend and man, (crew chief) Jim O (Oberhofer) just showed again that when it’s hot out, look out. We got away with a couple, but we outperformed the cars we raced, and I am so proud. I mean, this was huge. Jim O will quickly tell you, give me a track above 90 degrees and look out. Needless to say, with this perspiration on my face here, it’s above 95 degrees out there, and it was all day. I am already talking to the man upstairs, bring on the heat in Dallas, baby.

“Our goal is obviously top 10, as far as we can possibly get. It’s way too big a gap to think about chasing down No. 1, but three wins for this Parts Plus team is huge.”

Leah Pruett advanced the finals for the fourth time this year and the 23rd time in her career, driving past Shawn Langdon, points leader Doug Kalitta and Steve Torrence. She also jumped to second in points, trailing Kalitta by 47 points at the halfway point of the Countdown to the Championship. Torrence is 51 points back of Kalitta and Justin Ashley is 77 points behind.

Hagan went 3.991s at 324.90mph in his American Rebel Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat to slip past Ron Capps’ run of 4.025s at 306.68mph, earning his 48th career win in the process. The three-time world champ also pulled to within less than a round of first, as he now trails Bob Tasca III by just 13 points heading into the final three races of 2023.

It was a clutch performance by Hagan as he defeated Alexis DeJoria, John Force and Tasca to reach the finals. He went 4.016s at 316.38mph to get past Tasca and then held off Capps and his run of 4.025s at 306.68mph to get a much-needed victory.

“We knew we had to win this race to be in the hunt for this thing,” Hagan said. “It feels like it’s meant to be, and I’m just enjoying the ride. [The team] sat down and looked across from each other, and it’s one of those things where you go, I’m going to dig for you, you dig for me, let’s make this happen. I think that’s what makes it happen, having a core group of guys you want to work hard for. You want to show up for them, and today they all showed up for me, and I felt like I showed up for them.

“The pressure is huge. I was telling (crew chief) Dickie Venables, damn, this is a lot of pressure, but that’s what you want. That’s what we’re here for. If we didn’t have the pressure, that means we didn’t have a shot. The pressure was huge – you just have to find a way to capitalize on it.”

Capps reached the final round for the seventh time in 2023 and the 147th time in his career after defeating Tim Wilkerson, Alex Laughlin and Blake Alexander. Tasca leads Hight by just six points – marking the first time Tasca has held the points lead in the playoffs – with Capps only 33 points back in fourth.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1430]

Greg Anderson’s late-season surge in Pro Stock continued at St. Louis in a major way, as the veteran won for the second straight weekend thanks to a run of 6.552s at 209.92mph in his HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro in the finals against Aaron Stanfield. After struggling for much of the season, Anderson is now second in points – just 25 points behind Erica Enders – picking up his second win of the season and the 103rd in his career. He’s gone from eighth to second in just two races, taking down Jerry Tucker, Deric Kramer and Enders on Sunday to reach the final round.

It was the second straight semifinal win against Enders, as Anderson was 0.002s on the starting line against the defending world champ, also snapping her string of four straight wins in St. Louis. He was great on the starting in the final round, too, going 0.021s to lead wire-to-wire against Stanfield, who went 6.567s at 209.14mph.

“I’m back in the game. I’ve legitimately got a shot at this championship with three races to go, and that’s all you can ask,” Anderson said. “I went to the first race at Reading and lost in the first round, and I’ve said it a million times – you can’t win the championship at the first race of the playoffs, but you can lose it. I was knocking on the door of knocking myself out of it. if I didn’t have a big recovery at the next race, I was out of it. I’m back in the fight, and I have a great hot rod, but there are so many great cars, so many great drivers in this class right now. It’s incredible. These next three races are going to be a bare-knuckled brawl.

“From first round on, it’s like racing the final, every week. Right now, if you don’t do a perfect job round one you go home. There’s no telling what’s going to happen from here on out. I feel fantastic about the way things have gone these past two weeks. With the job my guys have done on my race car and even the job I’ve been able to do behind the wheel, it feels great.”

Stanfield advanced to his first final round of 2023 and 14th in his Pro Stock career by defeating Camrie Caruso, Chris McGaha and Bo Butner. Matt Hartford, who was upset in the first round, is 38 points back of Enders and Dallas Glenn, who also lost in the opening round, trails the defending champ by 64 points.

It was a picture-perfect weekend for Gaige Herrera in Pro Stock Motorcycle, continuing his dominant season with a run of 6.728s at 201.79mph on his Mission Foods/Vance & Hines Suzuki to defeat teammate Eddie Krawiec in the final round. It gives Herrera his eighth victory this season, extending his lead to 99 points over Matt Smith at the halfway mark of the playoffs. After qualifying No. 1 for the 11th time this season – tying the single-season mark in Pro Stock Motorcycle history – Herrera broke the track E.T. record in the first round (6.701s) to defeat Joey Gladstone.

He knocked off rookie Chase Van Sant to reach the final round, where he dispatched Krawiec and his 6.761s at 201.52mph to deny his teammate of his 50th career victory. But in the process, Herrera moved a step closer to his first career NHRA world championship.

“Hopefully, I still have a job after knocking Ed off, but that final round was good for our whole team,” Herrera said. “All day I had a very consistent motorcycle, and first round was probably the most nervous round for me. Racing Joey, he’s always a tough competitor, so I knew he was going to be on it. All day has been really good.

“I can’t give enough credit to the whole Vance & Hines Mission Suzuki team. I still can’t believe I got that phone call almost a year ago now to race for them. It’s been incredible, and I’m proud to be part of it.”

Krawiec reached the final round for the second time this season and the 93rd in his career thanks to round wins against Ryan Oehler, Jianna Evaristo and Smith.

The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series returns to action Oct. 12-15 with the 38th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex in Dallas.

Millican claims second win of 2023 at Bandimere’s NHRA swan song

Clay Millican picked up his second event win of 2023 at the final NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series race at Bandimere Speedway, defeating Doug Kalitta in the final round on Sunday in front of a sellout crowd at the 43rd Dodge Power Brokers NHRA …

Clay Millican picked up his second event win of 2023 at the final NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series race at Bandimere Speedway, defeating Doug Kalitta in the final round on Sunday in front of a sellout crowd at the 43rd Dodge Power Brokers NHRA Mile-High Nationals.

Matt Hagan (Funny Car), Troy Coughlin Jr. (Pro Stock) and Gaige Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) all won the 10th of 21 races during the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season. It was also the third straight sellout crowd to close out racing at Bandimere Speedway.

Millican held off Kalitta in the final round in his 11,000-horsepower Parts Plus/Rick Ware Racing dragster with a run of 3.872s at 299.60mph in the final round. Sunday was only the second time Millican advanced out of the first round this season, but the veteran has won both races when he’s done so, picking up his first win earlier this season in Chicago. He replicated that in Denver in front of a massive crowd during eliminations, starting the Western Swing off with his first career victory at Bandimere Speedway.

He got past Tony Schumacher, Mike Salinas and Shawn Langdon to reach the final round, scoring his fifth career victory and one that will stand with him for a long time. He also moved to 10th in points.

“When you race Doug Kalitta, you can’t leave anything on the table,” Millican said. “Man oh man, what this group has done. We had not won a single round until Chicago. What do we do? We win the race. So when we won first round here, I’m like, ‘We’re winning the race.’

“It’s pretty amazing what (crew chief Jim Oberhofer) has done. When he gets it, he just does it over and over and over. I just can’t believe how good this was. It was exactly like Chicago – the only way for me to lose this race was for me to do something wrong. Thank the man upstairs, I didn’t do anything wrong. It’s just incredible what happens when the first-round win light comes on. You hold a Wally.”

Kalitta, who was seeking his 50th career win, reached his first final round of the year thanks to round wins against Terry Totten, Josh Hart and Steve Torrence. Justin Ashley stayed in the points lead with a 54-point advantage over Torrence.

In Funny Car, after winning the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge specialty race on Saturday, Hagan made it a memorable clean sweep on Thunder Mountain, going 4.135s at 304.25mph in his 11,000-horsepower Dodge Direct Connections Charger SRT Hellcat to defeat Alexis DeJoria. It is Hagan’s fourth victory this season and 47th in his career, as well as his second career win at Bandimere Speedway.

NHRA photo

Hagan knocked off Chris King and defending world champ Ron Capps to reach the final round, getting past DeJoria – which was the same string of opponents he beat in Denver in 2021 – to finish off a truly incredible weekend for the points leader. At his sponsor’s race, Hagan picked up his 50th No. 1 qualifier, won the specialty race on Saturday and made the final winning run down Thunder Mountain on Sunday.

“I guess I need to go buy a lottery ticket honestly, it’s one of those weekends that’s just magical,” said Hagan, whose points lead grew to 45 over Capps. “I’ve been up here close to 15 years racing a fuel Funny Car, and to think that you’re not going to come back here – and then walk away with the Wally and the extra special trophy from the Bandimere family, to have the #2Fast2Tasty check, my 50th No. 1 qualifier. Just so many milestones and things to remember.

“It’s amazing and such an emotional weekend. Just being here and seeing all these fans every time we make a run, it’s something I’ll never forget. It’s just a super special weekend and just incredible. I’m very, very blessed to be here.”

DeJoria reached her third final in 2023 and 15th in her career by defeating Chad Green, Cruz Pedregon and J.R. Todd.

Like Hagan, Coughlin also swept the final weekend in Pro Stock at Bandimere Speedway, thrilling the capacity crowd on Sunday and defeating points leader Dallas Glenn in the final round with a pass of 6.933s at 196.64mph in his JEGS.com Chevrolet Camaro. Coughlin won the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge on Saturday, following it up with a dynamic performance in eliminations, defeating Aaron Stanfield, Greg Anderson and reigning world champ Erica Enders to reach the finals.

He posted an impressive 0.015s reaction time against Glenn, slipping past him for his second win this season and fourth in Coughlin’s career.

“What an exciting day to come out here and get a win,” Coughlin said. “You just take it one run at a time. We’ve got the best people in the industry at Elite Motorsports. They all work together and we have excellent power. I just had to stay focused. This is one of my favorite facilities and it’s an absolute honor just to be here.

“The fun part of NHRA championship drag racing is the excitement level like that final, that’s what packs the stands and makes you come back. You hope for situations like that and you practice all the time and it’s an obsession, you love it and you can’t stop.”

Glenn reached his sixth final round this year by driving past Chris McGaha, Kyle Koretsky and Camrie Caruso. His points lead stands at 202 over Matt Hartford.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1430]

Herrera returned to form on Sunday in Pro Stock Motorcycle, picking up his fourth win of the year on his Vance & Hines/Mission Foods Suzuki with a run of 7.103s at 187.73mph to beat Angie Smith in the championship round. After struggling on Friday, Herrera performed at a high level the rest of the weekend, beating Chris Bostick, defending world champ Matt Smith and rookie Chase Van Sant to reach the final round. Angie Smith went red in the finals, but Herrera would have been difficult to beat with his second straight run of 7.10s on Sunday.

After a dominant start to the season, the points leader struggled – at least by his standards – in back-to-back races. But Herrera made another strong statement in his first race ever at a packed Bandimere Speedway.

“I’m glad we bounced back here, especially in front of all these fans at Bandimere Speedway,” said Herrera, who now leads Arana Jr. by 219 points. “These fans are incredible and this whole weekend has been amazing. I’m glad I’m able to add my name to the list of people from Vance & Hines who have won here. It was an adjustment for sure, but the bike was running good all weekend. It makes my job a little easier when you have a bike like that.

“To be able to bounce back from (the last two races) here, of all places, it’s an amazing feeling. It’s a shame to see it go but I’m just glad to put my name as part of the last to ever win here in Pro Stock Motorcycle.”

Angie Smith reached the finals for the second time this year and seventh overall by defeating Jianna Evaristo, Eddie Krawiec and No. 1 qualifier Hector Arana Jr.

The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series returns to action July 21-23 with the second race of the famed Western Swing, the Flav-R-Pac NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways in Seattle.

Millican, Wilkerson, Glenn, Herrera win NHRA Route 66 Nationals

Top Fuel veteran Clay Millican powered to his first win in five years, claiming the victory over Josh Hart on Sunday in the final round of the Gerber Collision & Glass NHRA Route 66 Nationals presented by PEAK Performance at Route 66 Raceway. Tim …

Top Fuel veteran Clay Millican powered to his first win in five years, claiming the victory over Josh Hart on Sunday in the final round of the Gerber Collision & Glass NHRA Route 66 Nationals presented by PEAK Performance at Route 66 Raceway.

Tim Wilkerson (Funny Car) Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) and Gaige Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won at the sixth of 21 races during the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season. It was also NHRA’s first race at Chicago’s Route 66 Raceway since 2019.

Millican delivered a run of 3.801s at 328.94mph in his 11,000-horsepower Parts Plus/Rick Ware Racing dragster to slip past Hart’s 3.808s at 324.28mph, handing the driver his first victory since 2018, which also took place in Chicago, and Rick Ware Racing its first NHRA win. It’s the fourth career win for Millican, who entered the weekend without a round win in 2023 but knocked off Shawn Langdon, Doug Kalitta and defending world champ Brittany Force to reach the final round.

Chicago and Route 66 Raceway continued to be a special place for Millican as he enjoyed every moment of his memorable victory on Sunday.

“I still love my job. I’ve been doing it a long time and I’m not done yet,” said Millican, who was 12th in points entering the weekend. “This is huge for this team. We’ve been struggling and it’s been tough. We got all new parts and pieces from Rick Ware, and they believed in us. For a little while, it looked like we were better with the old stuff, but I think we’ve got it figured it out and hopefully we can go out and get some more of these this year.

“My very first (NHRA Top Fuel) race was at this racetrack and 20 years later I won this race. Now 25 years later, we did it again. This group of people never quit and never stop, and they turned this car around flawlessly today.”

Hart reached the final round for the first time this season and fifth time overall with wins against Antron Brown, Jacob McNeal and T.J. Zizzo. Steve Torrence stayed in the points lead in the class.

In Funny Car, Wilkerson picked up his first victory in 33 races, with his run of 3.966s at 325.14mph in his 11,000-horsepower SCAG Power Equipment/ Levi Ray & Shoup Ford Mustang enough to get past defending world champion Ron Capps in the final round. It’s the 23rd career win for the fan-favorite veteran and first since the fall Charlotte race in 2021. The thrilling win also gave JCM Racing its first Funny Car win after Wilkerson joined the organization in the off-season.

He reached the final round by racing past Blake Alexander, Alex Laughlin and John Force, making his best run of eliminations in the final round against Capps. The victory also bumped him to fifth in points, with Matt Hagan maintaining the points lead despite a first-round loss.

“I was just thinking I didn’t need to screw this up again,” Wilkerson said. “We made some nice runs all weekend long and my team did a great job, so I can’t really complain about a thing. We’re very excited about this team.

“To be this close to home; I have so many people out there, so this is very exciting. I didn’t have the best car – Capps had a better car than I did all day long – but it worked out better for us in the finals. I did a lot better job tuning than I did driving, but I was consistent, and that’s what we needed to be able to win this race because the track was tricky.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1430]

Capps, who won the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge on Saturday, defeated Terry Haddock, Bob Tasca III and Chad Green to reach the final round before his chutes deployed at about half-track against Wilkerson. It’s the third final round appearance for Capps in 2023 and the 143rd in his career. He also moved to second in points.

With his car continuing to perform at a high level, Glenn again made the most of it during Pro Stock eliminations, as the points leader got past Deric Kramer in the final round with a pass of 6.562s at 209.95mph in his RAD Torque Systems Chevrolet Camaro. That gives Glenn three wins this season for his KB Titan Racing team and the seventh in his career. After setting a track record to qualify No. 1, Glenn got past Chris McGaha, teammate Greg Anderson and Jerry Tucker on Sunday to reach the final round.

He put together another consistent performance in the final round against Kramer, cruising to another victory and strengthening an already commanding points lead in the loaded Pro Stock category.

“You get a car this good, you just want to capitalize on it,” Glenn said. “I definitely feel like I’ve got a really good car. I didn’t feel like I drove my best today, but luckily it was good enough. It feels good now, but it can change in a heartbeat in this class. We’re just going to try to keep improving because I know all these other teams are trying really hard. We definitely need to step up and keep the hammer down, but I’m definitely enjoying this moment.”

Kramer advanced to his second straight final round this year on the strength of round wins against Mason McGaha, Cristian Cuadra and Aaron Stanfield.

Herrera stayed perfect on the season in Pro Stock Motorcycle, going 6.717s at 201.25mph in the final round on his Vance & Hines / Mission Foods Suzuki to beat Chip Ellis and claim his third straight win. As impressive as his first two winning weekends have been, Herrera was on another level in Chicago, putting together a dominant weekend that included shattering the track record by a huge margin with a run of 6.672s, qualifying No. 1 and winning the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge.

On Sunday, he finished things off with four strong performances, riding past Ron Tornow, Marc Ingwersen and teammate Eddie Krawiec to reach the final round. He raced past Ellis in the finals, building on his points lead and claiming the victory at his home track, where Herrera was making his first career appearance.

“It gives me a whole lot of confidence having a bike like this,” said Herrera, who made the second, third and fourth-quickest runs in class history this weekend. “This whole Vance & Hines team has this bike on rails and it takes a lot of weight off my shoulders. To get a third straight win and do it in front of these friends, it means a lot. I’m so excited about this.

“You couldn’t draw it up any better than this. We’ve got a lot of friends and family here, and it’s a special one. It’s just a dream right now for us.”

Ellis advanced to his 15th career final round thanks to wins against Chris Bostick, rookie Chase Van Sant and Hector Arana Jr.

The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series returns to action June 2-4 with the 10th annual NHRA New England Nationals at New England Dragway in Epping, N.H.