Funny Car points leader Austin Prock made the fastest run in his career on Friday at Maple Grove Raceway, powering to the provisional No. 1 spot for John Force Racing at the 39th annual Pep Boys NHRA Nationals.
Justin Ashley (Top Fuel), Erica Enders (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) are also the provisional No. 1 qualifiers at the 15th of 20 races during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season. It is also the first of six races in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs.
Prock, who has been the No. 1 qualifier 10 times in the first 14 races this season, went 3.849s at 338.43mph in his Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS, posting a career-best speed and just missing out on the track record. Prock opens the Countdown to the Championship playoffs in the points lead, looking for his sixth win of the season. He comes in on a good note after winning the U.S. Nationals in Indy and put on a spectacular show on Friday at Maple Grove Raceway.
“That was some classic Reading drag racing right there,” Prock said. “This place is always fast, lot of trees around here, the air is always pretty [good] and they gave us a great racetrack tonight. That was pretty stout to go No. 1 again and run a career-best speed. It definitely got all of it. I’m really proud of this team, and it was a heck of a way to start the playoffs today.
“I knew it left hard, and just past the Christmas tree I felt the tire just a hair and it cleared up. I probably got about 200 feet out and I started feeling it trying to make that move inside and I had quite a bit of wheel turning left all the way down the [track]. When I tossed the laundry, my brother (Thomas) got on the radio, they were going nuts and that was really special. It was great to hear and the team is really proud of that today.”
Alexis DeJoria enjoyed a strong pair of qualifying sessions, qualifying second with a 3.867s at 336.40mph, while Prock’s JFR teammate, Jack Beckman, is third after his pass of 3.869s at 330.80mph.
Racing close to home, Top Fuel’s Justin Ashley put on an impressive show under the lights on Friday, bolting to the provisional No. 1 spot with a run of 3.713s at 333.49mph in his Scag Power Equipment/Toyota dragster. If that holds, it would be Ashley’s first No. 1 qualifier of the season and the sixth in his career. Ashley enters the Countdown to the Championship second in points and with plenty of momentum, winning recently in Brainerd. He’s also eager to push on a show this weekend in front of plenty of family and friends.
“I think we did a good job during Q1 of positioning ourselves to a point where we could be a little more aggressive in Q2. That was the key,” Ashley said. “When you go out there that first run, you want to set that baseline so you have the ability to be a little more aggressive and go after that No. 1 spot. We stayed after Indy, we did some testing; we did some testing after Brainerd.
“The whole team has just been chipping away at it for this reason, for this very moment. We want to make sure we’re prepared when the Countdown comes. It’s day one of the Countdown, but we feel good about where we’re at with everything. Maybe it will hold tomorrow, maybe it won’t, but those three bonus points were critical.”
Tony Schumacher made a big jump to second after going 3.733s at 328.70mph and points leader Doug Kalitta is third with a run of 3.736s at 335.73mph.
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In Pro Stock, Erica Enders made a strong opening statement at Maple Grove Raceway, taking the provisional No. 1 spot with a run of 6.535s at 210.34mph in her Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Melling Performance/Scag Power Equipment car. The defending world champion is after her sixth No. 1 qualifier this season and the 40th in her career, but Enders, a six-time world champ, has her eyes on the bigger prize. She’s after her first victory of the season since the opener in Gainesville – which would also be her 50th national event win – as Enders aims to win a seventh world title and third in a row.
“I’m feeling confident after Indy last week. We didn’t win. Our team went to the finals and raced each other, I lost in the semis and I was 0.014s on the tree,” Enders said. “I feel like my driving has been a lot better and we have a great race car. We’ve had one all year.
“We put a new bullet in for today and we went right to the top right off the trailer, and it held through the second session. That’s extremely encouraging. Everybody wants to start the Countdown off on the right foot. If you get in too big of a hole it’s hard to dig yourself out. There’s a lot of racing to go, a lot of points to accumulate, and a lot of tough competition, but definitely [on] the right foot and I’m proud to be there.”
Greg Anderson moved to second with a run of 6.537s at 209.23mph and points leader Dallas Glenn went to third after going 6.540s at 208.91mph.
A year after winning at Maple Grove Raceway to open the playoffs, Pro Stock Motorcycle’s Matt Smith is off to a strong start this year, going 6.801s on both passes and posting a top speed of 199.49mph on his Denso Auto Parts Buell. That puts him in the provisional No. 1 position as the six-time world champion looks to claim his fifth No. 1 spot this season. Smith, who has three career wins at Reading, has come on strong at a key time in the season, winning in Sonoma, and was pleased with his first runs in the Countdown to the Championship on Friday.
“The first run was pretty good and the second run, we should have run 6.79s, maybe a high 6.78s but the bike got stuck in fourth gear out there,” Smith said. “All in all, we had a great run and I can’t say enough. We got everything turned up. We got the high-side rev limiter turned way up or I’d have hit the limiter there. It’s one of them deals, it’s the Countdown. We’re going for seven [championships], and we’ve got to throw everything we’ve got at it.
“We brought everything we’ve got for our Denso Buell and we’re going to keep digging, try to keep going, and we’ll see. I think we might put another motor in for tomorrow. We have a brand-new piece that’s really, really good on the dyno and I need to get some tune-ups on it and try to get it right for the Countdown.”
Points leader and defending world champion Gaige Herrera is currently second after going 6.804s at 198.55mph and his teammate, Richard Gadson, is in third with a run of 6.807s at 197.45mph.
Qualifying continues at 12 p.m. ET on Saturday at the Pep Boys NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway.