The Sports Report: Jimmy Hidalgo Jr. chasing history, again
With the 2024 season winding down, Jimmy Hidalgo Jr. is headed to Las Vegas with a rare chance to win a pair of NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Sportsman titles in Super Stock and Stock.
In 2022, Jimmy Hidalgo Jr. won the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Stock world championship at the final event of the season. After a long and exhausting season, Hidalgo managed to hold off two-time champ Brad Burton to win via a tiebreaker, so it…
Remembering Scotty Richardson
From teenage prodigy to five-time NHRA world champion to a dominant figure in high-stakes bracket racing, there was nothing Scotty Richardson couldn’t do, and do well.
In the mid-1980s, Edmond Richardson hit the NHRA scene like a bolt of lightning, winning just about everything in sight, but he typically wasn’t quick to accept much credit. Instead, the talented Texan would often defer praise to younger brother…
The Sports Report: James Hinkle delivers third win of the season in Norwalk
The 2024 season hasn’t yet reached the halfway point, and James Hinkle already has three national event wins in Right Trailers Top Sportsman, and he's in a prime position to contend for a championship.
For most racers, a single NHRA national event win is enough to constitute a successful season, so that means that three wins in less than a half season would be considered extraordinary. That’s exactly the position that James Hinkle finds himself in…
The Sports Report: Gator Bites
NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Sportsman highlights from the 55th annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at historic Gainesville Raceway.
In the summer of 1974, a then 25-year-old Kenny Horne went to the final round of Stock at the Summernationals in Englishtown, where he lost to Kenny Koonce. Six years later, Horne drove to his second final in Gainesville, where he once again…
The Sports Report: Is it Miller’s time? Just maybe.
Brandon Miller is paying his dues in Pro Stock this season, but he’s also a leading contender for the Top Sportsman title with his six-second Chevy S-10 truck.
When it comes to Pro Stock, Brandon Miller readily admits he’s still in the early learning stages of his career, but when it comes to the Right Trailers Top Sportsman class, that’s a different story.
Behind the wheel of his six-second Chevy S-10…
The Sports Report: Winning Indy was so nice, Bo did it twice
Bo Butner accomplished a rare feat when he successfully defended his 2022 Dodge Power Brokers U.S. Nationals Super Gas title
Winning the Dodge Power Brokers U.S. Nationals ranks as one of the most difficult feats in drag racing, particularly for a Lucas Oil Series Sportsman competitor. Huge fields coupled with six grueling days of competition conspire to test even the…
The Sports Report: Lauren Freer’s history-making double
Lauren Freer became the 30th driver to double up at an NHRA national event and the first woman to accomplish the feat when she claimed the Super Comp and Super Gas titles at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk.
There are two events in NHRA Drag Racing that are special but not exceedingly rare and that is female winners and national event doubles. Heading into last week’s Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, there had been 97 women winners and 29 unique…
The Sports Report: Irvin Johns proves that aging is just another word for living
When he turned on the win light in the Super Stock final at the Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 Nationals, Irvin Johns, 79, became NHRA’s oldest national event winner and he's not about to stop anytime soon.
The beauty of NHRA drag racing is that there are almost no restrictions on who can participate, and that’s especially true when it comes to age. Despite the mystery surrounding his age, it’s fairly common knowledge that Chris “the Greek” Karamesines…
Brad Burton’s hot start fuels desire for third NHRA world title
Two-time NHRA Stock champ Brad Burton is an early favorite for the Super Stock title following back-to-back victories in Phoenix and Las Vegas.
As the old saying goes, you can’t win a championship in the first three races of the season, but you certainly can lose one.
Or can you?
If there is any sportsman racer in the entire NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series who is suited to putting…
The Sports Report: Sherman Adcock goes three-for-three in Southeast Division
Two-time world champ Sherman Adcock Jr. takes the early lead in Super Gas after winning the first three Southeast Division Lucas Oil Series events of the season.
NHRA Lucas Oil Series world champions won’t be crowned for nearly eight more months, so any sort of speculation regarding future titles would be premature. That being said, it’s awfully hard to overlook the red-hot start by Division 2 Super Gas…
The Sports Report: Top 10 Alcohol Moments of 2022
Last week, we had some fun with the top NHRA Sportsman racing moments of the 2022 season, and now it's time for the Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car classes.
Last week, we had some fun with the top NHRA Sportsman racing moments of the 2022 season, and now it's time for the Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car classes. Not surprisingly, there were many memorable moments to consider, and breaking…
The Sports Report: Top 10 Sportsman moments of 2022
With 22 national events, 44 NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series regional and divisional events, plus a JEGS SPORTSnationals and JEGS Allstars thrown in for good measure, it was hard to find a weekend where there wasn’t coast-to-coast action for NHRA’s Sportsman stars. The sheer number of racers and races make it almost impossible to sort through the year’s most memorable events, but we’ve done just that in our annual list of Top 10 Sportsman moments.
With 22 national events, 44 NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series regional and divisional events, plus a JEGS SPORTSnationals and JEGS Allstars thrown in for good measure, it was hard to find a weekend where there wasn’t coast-to-coast action for NHRA’s…
The Sports Report: Locke goes the distance to clinch Super Gas title
Bob Locke needed some coaxing just to get to Pomona, and once he got there, he needed to win the season-ending Auto Club NHRA Finals in order to clinch the 2022 Super Gas championship, and he did just that.
How’s this for a storybook ending? Bob Locke needed nothing less than a victory at the season-ending Auto Club NHRA Finals in order to be crowned the 2022 NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Super Gas champion, and he delivered just that to win the…
The Sports Report: Dan Fletcher becomes NHRA’s second winningest driver
Dan Fletcher is quick to admit that the odds of him catching John Force for the NHRA win record of 155 races (and counting) are slim and none, but he’s known for quite some time that second-place Frank Manzo, who retired with 105 victories, was well within reach.
Dan Fletcher is quick to admit that the odds of him catching John Force for the NHRA win record of 155 races (and counting) are slim and none, but he’s known for quite some time that second-place Frank Manzo, who retired with 105 victories, was well…
Sports Report: Tyler Cassil beats the heat for NHRA’s latest double
When Tyler Cassil claimed the Super Stock and Stock titles at the Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor, he became just the 29th driver to double up at an NHRA national event. The rare feat has been achieved just 43 times since 1991.
The 100-degree heat that enveloped Heartland Motorsports Park during last weekend’s Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor made for challenging conditions for both racers and fans, but the heat appeared to have had little effect on Tyler…
The Sports Report: One man’s quest for an NHRA national record
Sportsman racer and U.S. Air Force veteran Fred “Sarge” Elsass chronicles his quest to set an NHRA national record in Stock Eliminator at the recent Division 3 Lucas Oil Series opener in Indianapolis.
Some stories seem to write themselves and this is certainly one of them. Following last month’s Division 3 Lucas Oil series opener in Indy, longtime class racer and U.S. Air Force veteran Fred “Sarge” Elsass wrote to chronicle his quest to set a…
The Sports Report: Is there another title (or two) in store for John Labbous?
A lot has changed in drag racing over the past few years, but one thing that has remained constant is the ability of John Labbous Jr. to secure his place among NHRA’s best by finishing in the Top 10.
A lot has changed in drag racing over the past few years, but one thing that has remained constant is the ability of John Labbous Jr. to secure his place among NHRA’s best by finishing in the Top 10. Super Comp and Super Gas are two of drag…
The Sports Report: Sitting Priddy
After years as a successful crew chief, Ryan Priddy is finally getting his shot at the big time in Comp eliminator, and so far, he’s making the most of it.
To suggest that Ryan Priddy’s Comp victory at the recent NHRA Four-Wide Nationals in Las Vegas was a long time coming would be a big understatement. Priddy is best known for his role as a longtime crewmember for the SoCal-based Mountain View team,…
The Sports Report: A pair of doubles in the Arizona desert
Leo Glasbrenner and Don Meziere have both kicked off the 2022 Lucas Oil Series season with back-to-back victories in Pomona and Phoenix.
In last week’s Sports Report, we highlighted Top Sportsman racer Don Meziere’s impressive victory at the season-opening Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com. Not that anyone thought it was a fluke, but just to be sure,…
What happens when you’re both lucky and good? Just ask Top Sportsman winner Don Meziere
Top Sportsman racer Don Meziere opened the new season by winning his sixth NHRA national event title at the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com, but it was far from easy
Don Meziere has now won six NHRA national events including three at Auto Club Pomona Raceway and none of them have come easily. In 2014, Meziere won his first national event in Super Comp, but he had to beat Steve Casner in the final by .015-second…
The Sports Report: Stanfield takes his shot at a fifth championship
It’s been 27 years since Greg Stanfield won the last of his four NHRA Super Stock championships but after winning in Bristol, he’s on the verge of another one.
The last time that Greg Stanfield was crowned an NHRA world champion, there was no World Series due to a baseball player strike, Johnny Carson made his final appearance on The Tonight Show, and the internet was still a mystery to most people. That…
The Sports Report: What Nick Isenhower does for an encore
Less than a month after winning the Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals, Nick Isenhower returned for an encore performance at the NHRA Midwest Nationals in St. Louis.
Winning any race in Super Comp is a ridiculously difficult feat given the level of competition that exists today and winning back-to-back races would appear to be significantly more difficult, especially when one of those events is the Dodge//SRT U.…
The Sports Report: Fletcher on the verge of more history
When Dan Fletcher won the Super Stock title at the DeWalt NHRA Carolina Nationals in Charlotte, it gave him 105 national event victories. He’s got one more to go to pass Frank Manzo for second on NHRA’s all-time wins list.
There was a time when the news of a Dan Fletcher victory would barely register a blip on the drag racing radar screen. For most of his career, Fletcher won often, securing a total of 104 national event wins since his inaugural win at the 1994…
Sports Report: The triumphant return of Edmond Richardson
With back-to-back wins in Bowling Green and Indy, Edmond Richardson has remerged as one of NHRA’s best super class racers and more than 30 years into his career, he’s still got something to prove.
Bad news for anyone who thought Super Gas racing would somehow be easier in 2022.
It won't be.
Edmond Richardson is back, and he plans on sticking around for a while.
Richardson won the Dodge//SRT U.S. Nationals Super Gas title to earn the…
The Sports Report: With latest win, Luke Bogacki closes in on Super Gas title
Luke Bogacki has crested the 700-point mark for the second time in his career following his Super Gas win in Brainerd, and he’s built a massive lead in the race for the championship.
As baseball Hall of Famer Yogi Berra once famously said, “It ain’t over till it’s over,” and in the case of the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Super Gas world championship; it's over.
Over as in finished.
Game, set, match.
Done deal, or…
The Sports Report: A magical moment for the Meyer family
The NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series winners from last weekend’s Menards NHRA Nationals presented by PetArmor included cousins Rachel and Dusty Meyer, and it was an incredibly emotional weekend for both of them.
It’s a simple and undeniable truth that some wins mean more than others, and in the wake of a personal tragedy, it’s hard to imagine any win could mean more to a driver than Dusty Meyer’s recent victory at the Menards NHRA Nationals presented by…
The Sports Report: First-time Super Comp winner Nick Cobb has a story to tell
From mechanical gremlins to lucky breaks, and ultimately a trip to the beach, it's fair to say that Nick Cobb's first NHRA national event win will long be remembered.
Two-time NHRA world champ Sherman Adcock once famously delivered the following take on the finer points of Super Class racing, “It’s just like playing rock, paper, scissors; no matter what you bring, it might not be enough.”
Indeed, truer…
The Sports Report: The ultimate father-daughter weekend
Joe Mozeris and his daughter, Kayla, had a weekend they’ll never forget at the Dodge//SRT NHRA Mile-High Nationals presented by Pennzoil in Denver when they earned national event titles in Comp eliminator and Super Stock, respectively.
Kayla Mozeris won the Super Stock title at the Dodge//SRT NHRA Mile-High Nationals presented by Pennzoil and then watched a few minutes later when her father, Joe, drove to the win in Comp eliminator. It was the sort of day that every family that…
The Sports Report: Anthony Bertozzi nearly runs the table in Norwalk
Anthony Bertozzi has enjoyed a lot of success in his career, but he’s never had a day like the one he had at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, where his team celebrated three wins and a runner-up finish.
Our regular readers will likely recall The Sports Report story we published last February with two-time NHRA world champion Anthony Bertozzi. The story highlighted Bertozzi’s well-known generosity toward others and the amount of enjoyment…
The Sports Report: Remembering Kyle Seipel
It’s painful anytime our tight-knit drag racing community loses one of its own but the plain truth is that some losses hurt more than others and today, it’s hard to imagine anything more painful than having to say goodbye to Kyle Seipel, who lost his long battle with cancer on June 21.
It’s painful anytime our tight-knit drag racing community loses one of its own but the plain truth is that some losses hurt more than others and today, it’s hard to imagine anything more painful than having to say goodbye to Kyle Seipel, who lost…