NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

The day has arrived. It's Sunday at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, and the racers and teams of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series are dialed into one thing: winning a trophy at historic Brainerd International Raceway.

Funny Car

Qualifying concluded on a high note for Funny Car's Austin Prock, who had the most success of any driver on Saturday as he drove the Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro to the top of the qualifying heap and claimed the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge title along the way. Incoming points leader Prock has yet to win in Brainerd, but he'll be aiming at a clean sweep when he kicks off the day with a first-round meeting with Jim Campbell.

Jack Beckman, driving the Peak Chevrolet Camaro for John Force, made a strong return to racing after a four-year break and qualified in the No. 6 position. Beckman, who won this race in 2018, will meet with young Bobby Bode in the first round of eliminations. Notably, Bode's father, Bob Bode, won this event in 2010. Pronto-backed Blake Alexander, who was the quickest of all on Friday night, will race Dave Richards and the Bluebird Turf/Versatran Funny Car.

No. 4 qualifier Ron Capps, driver of the Napa Toyota Supra, has won this event more than any other currently competing Funny Car driver. The defending event titlist will begin his chase of an eighth Brainerd trophy with a morning match with reigning world champ and 2021 Lucas Oil Nationals victor Matt Hagan and his American Rebel entry. Motorcraft Quick Lane Ford campaigner Bob III, qualified in the No. 2 position and the No. 2 man in the Funny Car standings, won this race in 2022. He will race Jack Wyatt in round one.

Alexis DeJoria, No. 5 on the qualifying sheet, has made some strong passes so far this weekend representing Bandero Tequila, and she will start her day next to Daniel Wilkerson in the Scag Power Equipment Ford. Snap-On's Cruz Pedregon, the 1992 Funny Car winner in Brainerd, has a first-round match with Chad Green and the BP Fuels Mustang, while the No. 8 and No. 9 qualifiers – FTI Performance-branded Paul Lee and DHL Toyota former Funny Car champ J.R. Todd, who has not yet won this race – round out the Funny Car field.

Top Fuel's No. 1 qualifier, Steve Torrence, has won this race twice before in back-to-back seasons (2021 and 2022). He will wheel the Capco Contractors dragster to the starting line to take on JCM Racing's newest driver, European FIA Top Fuel champion Ida Zetterström, who is making her highly anticipated debut here in Brainerd. With 14 cars in the field, the winner of this round will earn a bye into the semis, and while VP Racing Fuels/Edelbrock/Comp Camps Dodge pilot Zetterström has dreamed of seeing win lights on American soil for a long time, Torrence is currently No. 3 in the points with just this race and the next to climb before the Countdown to the Championship fields are set.

Leatherwood Distillery liveried Tony Schumacher has the most wins of any currently competing Top Fuel driver in Brainerd (three), and he's qualified in the lucky No. 13 position heading into Sunday. His challenger will be Tony Stewart in the Mihandra rail, who was runner-up at the Denso Sonoma Nationals. Stewart, No. 8 in the standings,  would very much like another shot at the trophy, but eight-time world champ Schumacher wants the points that would aid in the championship chase.

Defending event champion Antron Brown won the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge yesterday and the most recent event (Sonoma), so the next logical step would be putting the Matco Tools Toyota in the winner's circle for the seventh time here in Brainerd. He has two previous Top Fuel wins at the Lucas Oil Nationals and four aboard a Pro Stock Motorcycle. Brown will have to get around defending world champ and incoming points leader Doug Kalitta and the Mac Tools rail, however, and Kalitta likely feels he's due – he hasn't won Brainerd since claiming trophies here in 2003 and 2005.

Shawn Langdon, currently No. 2 in the Top Fuel points with his Kalitta Air Careers dragster, will race Shawn Reed and the Reed Trucking and Excavating dragster. It will be 2018 winner Billy Torrence vs championship hopeful Justin Ashley and his Scag car, and Brittany Force is here to fight for a second Brainerd win after collecting a trophy in 2016. She will race her Monster Energy dragster against Parts Plus-backed Clay Millican. Jasmine Salinas qualified her Scrappers Racing entry in the No. 6 position, and after going back-to-back with round wins in Norwalk and Seattle, she'll be looking for more. She's going to race R+L Carriers-partnered Josh Hart, who enters the event just outside the top 10 in the Top Fuel standings.

After securing the second No. 1 qualifier award of his career, Jerry Tucker and his Outlaw Mile-Hi Light Beer-branded Chevrolet will be looking for a win light against Mason McGaha and the blue Harlow Sammons Racing entry. McGaha made good use of the final qualifying session to bump his way in and earn a shot to chase the trophy.

The Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge title went to Minnesota's own Greg Anderson, driver of the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro, and he's squarely focused on leaving his home track with two triumphs. With three previous wins at Brainerd International Raceway, Anderson has the second-most of any other Pro Stock driver on the ladder. His quest for another will begin with a match against Jeg Coughlin Jr., a driver he has raced many, many times before in the Summit Racing vs. JEGS battle of brands. Coughlin is tied as the most winning driver in Brainerd with four wins (Bruce Allen, Bob Glidden, Kurt Johnson, and Warren Johnson each also have four).

The Cuadra boys are back this weekend after being away for a couple of races to focus on the family business, and they were strong performers throughout qualifying. Elder brother Fernando Cuadra Jr. is No. 4, and twins Cristian and David are fifth and eighth, respectively. Representing Corral Boots/Cuadra, Fernando Jr. will race Elite Motorsports teammate Troy Coughlin Jr., Cristian will match with Rottler/GETTRX-branded Matt Hartford, and David will take on Deric Kramer and the GetBio Fuels entry.

Reigning world champion Erica Enders, a two-time winner at Brainerd, is eager to claim points toward Countdown to the Championship positioning. She's No. 3 entering the event behind No. 2 Anderson and points leader Dallas Glenn. Her day in the JHG/Melling Chevy will begin with a first-round meeting with Chris McGaha, who is the only driver outside of the Elite and KB Titan Racing teams to have recorded top speed of any event this year. He had the best mph in Seattle.

Points leader Glenn scored the Brainerd title last year in his RAD Torque Systems Chevrolet. He's qualified in the No. 7 spot and will meet KB Titan teammate Eric Latino and his GESi machine in round one.  Aaron Stanfield and his Johnson's Horsepowered Garage Chevrolet have won three of the last four events, so he comes to Brainerd with strong expectations. Starting sixth, he's set to meet class newcomer Cory Reed, who is on a bit of a tear himself with a final round in Sonoma at his second career race in a Pro Stock car. He was also runner-up last night in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge driving his J&A Service Camaro out of the KB Titan stable.

2023 EVENT WINNERS: Antron Brown, Top Fuel; Ron Capps, Funny Car; Dallas Glenn, Pro Stock

MOST VICTORIES: Joe Amato, 6, TF; John Force, 11, FC; Bruce Allen, 4, Jeg Coughlin, 4, Bob Glidden, 4, Kurt Johnson, 4, Warren Johnson, 4

TRACK RECORDS

Top Fuel – 3.640 sec. by Leah Pruett, Aug. '17; 338.26 mph by Mike Salinas, Aug. '23

Funny Car – 3.793 sec. by Robert Hight Aug. '17; 338.00 mph by Hight, Aug. '17

Pro Stock – 6.541 sec. by Erica Enders, Aug. '15; 211.39 mph by Shane Gray, Aug. '15

SCHEDULE

SUNDAY, Aug. 18
Pre-race ceremonies, 9:30 a.m. NHRA MISSION FOODS SERIES eliminations at 10:30 a.m.

TELEVISION

SUNDAY, Aug. 18
FS1 will televise one hour of qualifying coverage at 1 p.m. (ET) Sunday, Aug. 18 FOX will televise three hours of live finals coverage at 3 p.m. (ET)

TICKETS

To purchase tickets to the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, click here or call 800-884-6472