The E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service was contested over an 11-race schedule in 2021. Having launched on March 11-14 at the 52nd annual AMALIE Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, it was the first time in the history of drag racing that the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series and the E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod Drag Racing Series started at the same track on the same date. In addition, new stops for the popular doorslammer class included the July 16-18 Dodge Mile-High NHRA Nationals at Denver, CO, the August 19-22 Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals from Brainerd, MN, and the October 15-17 NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals from Bristol Dragway. The E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service features the world’s fastest...

In qualifying for the 21st annual Dodge//SRT NHRA Nationals presented by Pennzoil at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Steve Johnson hoped to make up some ground on Pro Stock Motorcycle points leader Matt Smith. After all, Johnson was in the hauler early at Bristol when he lost to Ron Tornow in the opening round at NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. However, Matt Smith put together an impressive run to close out qualifying with a 6.839 ET at 198.23 mph on the Denso Auto Parts/Stockseth/Matt Smith Racing EBR to move past Johnson who was the provisional Number One qualifier. It was Smith’s fourth Number One qualifier of the season and the forty seventh of his career. The points leader has his eyes on the prize as he moves one step closer to owning back-to-back world...

The National Hot Rod Association celebrated the running of its 1000th national event at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway for the Dodge//SRT NHRA Nationals. A proud history of delivering the world’s fastest racing events began with the first NHRA National Championship Drags in 1955 at the Great Bend Municipal Airport in Kansas. As an official NHRA Pro Class, there have been 930 Top Fuel events, 912 Funny Car events, 898 Pro Stock events, and 472 Pro Stock Motorcycle events since the first race championship race at Great Bend. The class that has competed the most at NHRA national events is Stock Eliminator with a total of 947 times. The growth of the sport prior to the pandemic is supported by the fact that the previous decade hosted 258 national events, the most in history....

Dominican businessman Jose Gonzalez clinched his first career E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service world championship at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals on Sunday. When Gonzalez advanced to the Final Round of eliminations at Bristol Dragway, the 2021 Pro Mod title was his without a win at the tenth of eleven E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod scheduled events. It has been a dominant season Gonzalez who suffered an early-season crash at zMAX Dragway in Charlotte but rebounded at one point by winning three straight Pro Mod events. Gonzalez reached the Finals with round wins against Lyle Barnett, Khalid AlBalooshi and defending Pro Mod world champion Stevie “Fast” Jackson. With five Wallys during the season and Sunday’s second place, the driver...

With NHRA World Championships hanging in the balance, Nitro class race teams rolled into Bristol Dragway for the 18th of the 20-race series for post-pandemic drag racing. Originally built close to the Bristol Motor Speedway in 1965, the track earned its name as “Thunder Valley” due to the resonating sounds created by the high-horsepower engines that power the Pro classes. Celebrating its 20th anniversary, Bristol Dragway features a 3,800-foot drag strip with 700 feet of concrete at 1,475-feet of elevation. Driving the Flav-R-Pac Top Fuel dragster, Brittany Force made the quickest run in track history at Bristol Dragway on Friday, powering to the provisional top qualifier with an impressive run of 3.682 ET. Mike Salinas followed with a blistering 3.668-second elapsed time...

With flames blasting from the header pipes, the NHRA Nitro classes are the world’s fastest and quickest form of motorsports. Funny Cars and Top Fuel dragsters can go 0 to 100 mph in less than half a second and hit top speeds in excess of 330 mph on the 1,000-foot track at Texas Motorplex in Ennis. The all concrete quarter-mile drag racing facility was the first stadium-style venue and the track has hosted NHRA National events since 1986. Many of the legendary drivers in the National Hot Rod Association, such as Big Daddy Don Garlits as well as the Godfather of Funny Car John Force, have competed for Wallys at the Texas FallNationals. The 2021 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series event is the fourth race in the six-race Countdown to the Championship. In conjunction with this...

Whenever Richard Freeman puts together a team to go racing, he expects to win. The most recent trip to victory lane for an Elite Motorsports entry couldn’t have been more popular with drag racing fans, especially those who love a fast doorslammer driver and crew. At Texas Motorplex during the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series, first-year driver Lyle Barnett donned the traditional cowboy hat as the winner of the E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod division at this year’s Texas FallNationals. Having only qualified 12th in the sixteen-car field advancing to the Elimination Rounds, Barnett’s Elite Performance ProCharger Camaro had the speed (251.86 mph), but a 5.844 elapsed time was slow when compared to teammate Rickie Smith’s 5.755 ET. However, anyone who knows Lyle, also...

Pro Stock veteran Greg Anderson made history on Sunday at Texas Motorplex, picking up his 98th career win to become the all-time class wins leader in NHRA history at the 36th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals. Driving the HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro, Anderson earned his sixth victory at Texas Motorplex with a 6.624 ET at 206.32 mph to cap off another brilliant weekend of racing. Recently inducted into the North Carolina Auto Racing Hall of Fame, Anderson carved his way into Pro Stock History as the winningest driver in NHRA history. In a post-race interview, Anderson admitted that he had doubts leaving the leaving the tree and struggled from the moment that he glanced at the scoreboard. Something the four-time world champion said that he never does. Fortunately, Anderson saw...

The Texas Motorplex hosted a special event for race fans on Saturday night of the NHRA FallNationals in Ennis, TX. Historically, “Night Lights” is part of the track’s multiple-day and evening celebrations that is capped off by fans releasing a decorated lantern into the sky as a reminder of how precious special moments are when they are spent together. Thousands participated in this year’s event as fans adorned their lanterns with hopes, dreams, and messages to create a profoundly unforgettable experience. Due to inclement weather, Night Lights was postponed to Saturday, which was good news for ticket holders as they were allowed to attend a pulse pounding evening for the Stampede of Speed Nitro Side Show. With the stars of the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing...

As usual, Leah Pruett (pictured) and Aaron Stanfield  were doing double duty at the NHRA Camping World Midwest Nationals over the weekend just outside St. Louis at the World Wide Technology Raceway. Aaron Stanfield has been the dominant driver in the NHRA Constant Aviation Factory Stock Showdown Series Championship Standings and clinched the 2021 FSS championship during the weekend at the Madison, IL track. Stanfield leads the points with 651 points to David Barton’s 430 and third-place John Cerbone’s 409. Pruett is in sixth place with 366 points. Steve Torrence Claims Ninth Top Fuel Win At the NHRA Camping World Midwest Nationals, Mike Salinas was Number One qualifier over the usual suspect, Brittany Force. As the second fastest in qualifying, Force rebounded in...