NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Pro Stock Q1

The KB Titan team’s recent dominance of Pro Stock continued as the top five qualifiers in Q1 — and the last three event winners — all come from that camp while the rival Elite Performance team works to recover the dominance it has shown over the past decade.

Under cool and cloudy skies, former Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Cory Reed continues to impress, leading the pack with a 6.516 ahead of team leaders Dallas Glenn (6.524) and Greg Anderson (6.524, but at a slower speed than Glenn). Phoenix low qualifier Matt Hartford sits third with a 6.525 just ahead of KB Titan bossman Eric Latino’s 6.530.

Aaron Stanfield’s 6.533, good for No. 6, is the quickest of the Elite team, which continues to struggle with some of its cars on the starting line, including six-time world champ Eria Enders, who had an apparent electrical issue, and rookie Stephen Bell, who shook hard at the green.

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Funny Car Q1

Five days after destroying their primary car in a massive first-round engine explosion/guardwall shunt. Ron Capps and the Dean Antonelli-led NAPA crew raced to a 3.852, their best run in more than a year, to lead the Funny Car parade after one of four sessions. This backup car is their 2022 world championship car, and they had to build a new backup, which is the team’s 2021 championship chassis.

“There was a lot of emotion in that run,” said Capps. “My guys built two cars in two days and haven't had much sleep. So for that car to go down there and make a run like that like it was no big deal, and take that pressure off me as a driver, was unbelievable.”

There are serious hopes that the great weather this weekend might yield the first all-three-second Funny Car field, and we’re off to a good start with seven drivers in the threes. Behind Capps are Jack Beckman (3.868), Phoenix winner Paul Lee (3.913), J.R. Todd (3.950), Cruz Pedregon (3.961), Jeff Diehl (a career-best 3.963), and Spencer Hyde (3.971).

Hyde, who has failed to make the field in the first two events of his rookie season in the class in Jim Head’s Funny Car, sent an early signal that that won’t be the case in Pomona with that stout 3.971 off the trailer, a major improvement over his official career best on record, a 4.93 recorded last weekend in Phoenix.

Davie Richards, who was plagued on all four qualifying runs in Phoenix by parachute issues, made a solid 4.01 but it, too, had complications ass he rounded the corner at the top with a medium-size fire under the body that was quickly extinguished by the Simpson NHRA Safety Safari.

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Top Fuel Callout round one/Top Fuel Q1

Brittany Force dropped some jaws in the first-round Callout victory over Justin Ashley with a 3.646 to drive around Justin’s Ashley’s holeshot-aided 3.713, but the big news was Force’s 301.67-mph halftrack speed, just the third driver to reach that mark (she also did it at 302 mph during pre-season testing in Gainesville). Her run also held up as the No. 1 qualifier of the session.

Last year’s Callout winner, Antron Brown, also advanced with a 3.695 at 336.65 mph as Shawn Langdon drove into tire smoke after a stout .016 reaction time.

Doug Kalitta moved into the next round with a 3.684 after Clay Millican smoked the tires while Tony Stewart, who was inserted into the Callout field after Tony Schumacher was unable to have his new team ready, took down four-time world champ Steve Torrence, 3.71 to 3.72.

With low e.t. of the round, Force called out Stewart, meaning that Brown will run Kalitta in the other pair.Kalitta's run was second-best of the round, and Brown got the other bonus point.

With the cool air and great traction, a number of teams ran without the "mud flap" air deflectors, as they are allowed to do during a four-race trial period that began last weekend in Phoenix. Eight of the 13 cars ran without them, including five of the eight in the Right Trailers All-Star callout.

Running without deflectors: Antron Brown, Doug Kalitta, Justin Ashley, Shawn Langdon, Brittany Force, Josh Hart, Ida Zetterström, and Shawn Reed

Running with deflectors: Tony Stewart, Steve Torrence, Clay Millican, Scott Palmer, and Jasmine Salinas

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Top Fuel Callout semifinals

With a track temperature of just 80 degrees and air temp of 62, the traction is still very much there for the semifinals of the Right Trailers Top Fuel All-Star Callout. 

Antron Brown left on Doug Kalitta in the semifinals of the Right Trailers Top Fuel All-Star Callout, but Kalitta battled back, running a seven-cylinder 3.736 after Brown shook hard at 200 feet. Neither car had the deflectors on. With Brown’s loss, we’ll have a new first-time Callout winner.

Brttany Force will have lane choice in the final after powering to a 3.641 at 337.16 to defeat Tony Stewart’s 3.715. It’s the third 3.641 that Force has run, and she still owns the quickest run in history, 3.623. Stewart was running the deflectors.

“It was a miracle my car didn't blow up out there because it had a hole out the whole way; it just usually doesn't like that,” said Kalitta. “It was a lucky round. Obviously, the [Callout] is super high on our priority list today and you know, Alan [Johnson] and my guys, we should be able to run with her.”

The e.t.s from the semifinals of the Callout do not count towards Winternationals qualifying, but the final round will.

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Pro Stock Q2

Just halfway through qualifying, we already have a record-quick Winternationals Pro Stock No. 1 qualifier and a record-quick Winternationals Pro Stock field.

Greg Anderson powered to a 6.495 to grab the No. 1 spot, making him the quickest Pro Stock No. 1 qualifier in Winternationals history, supplanting Erica Enders’ 2015 pole-position run of 6.516. The bump spot is 6.585 held by Chris McGaha, breaking the 11-year-old mark of 6.594 set by Shane Tucker in 2014.

Phoenix low qualifier Matt Hartford sits second with a 6.510, and Aaron Stanfield again has the quickest car in the Elite camp with a 6.515.

Behind the leading trio, first-session leader Cory Reed (6.516), Deric Kramer (6.517), Eric Latino (6.517), Dallas Glenn (6.519), and Greg Stanfield (6.541) round out the top eight.

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Funny Car Q2

The list of three-second runners went from seven in Q1 to 10 after Q2 with Austin Prock’s 3.837 being the early highlight as the world champ took over the No. 1 qualifying spot from Ron Capps. After an NHRA-record 15 No. 1s last season, Prock is looking for his first this year after ranking No. 15 in Gainesville and then No. 2 in Phoenix. 

First-session leader Capps, however, stole the pole right back from Prock with a 3.830 in the final pair of the session.

Behind Capps and Prock, there are three other 3.8-second runners in Jack Beckman (3.855), Cruz Pedregon (3.888), and Phoenix winner Paul Lee (3.889). Beckman’s pass was the third best of the session and kept intact his perfect season if earning qualifying bonus points. The PEAK has earned qualifying bonus points in all eight qualifying sessions this year and was quickest in four of those eight qualifying sessions, twice in cool damp conditions in Florida and twice in hot, dry conditions in Arizona. He was second quick in Q1 here.

Gainesville winner Chad Green (3.92 for the No. 6 spot) and four-time world champ Matt Hagan (3.932 for seventh) were the other two drivers to make their first three-second pass in Q2.

Buddy Hull sits on the bump with a leisurely 4.685, making the dream of an all-three-second field seem distant, but behind Hull on the current DNQ list are three-second-capable Blake Alexander, Bob Tasca III, and Daniel Wilkerson, and ahead of him up to Hyde’s 10th spot are also all three-second runners.

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Top Fuel Callout final/Top Fuel Q2

Doug Kalitta won the Right Trailers Top Fuel All-Star Callout, driving away from Brittany Force for an easy 3.657 to 3.765 victory. It’s Kalitta’s first Callout win and Force’s third Callout runner-up in four starts.

Kalitta’s run carried him to the No. 2 spot while Force held onto the pole position, a familiar spot for Force who’s been the No. 1 qualifier at the Winternationals four of the last five years.

Kalitta’s run was best of the session, but Josh Hart also impressed with his best run in a long time, a 3.675 that has him sitting third.

The top eight is rounded out by Steve Torrence (3.690), Tony Stewart (3.695), Justin Ashley (3.695), Antron Brown )3.695), and Shawn Reed (3.698).