The long-awaited final round of the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod event that was postponed last month, when rain besieged the Lucas Oil Summernationals at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis, was run on Saturday at the DENSO Spark Plugs U.S. Nationals. Both Chad Green, pilot of the Bond-Coat nitrous-powered Corvette, and Jason Scruggs, driver of the Jerry Bickel-built Camaro, were seeking their first ever class win. After a near dead-even start, Green had to the chase Scruggs down the track and caught the soybean farmer from Tupelo, MS as the two neared the finish line. Green posted a winning run of 5.823-seconds at 250.09 mph after a .047-second reaction time in Bond Coat Corvette snatching the Wally from the hands of Jason Scruggs who had the early advantage following a .049 RT.
Although crashes are inevitable in the high-speed world of drag racing, comebacks do not always happen as planned. Nonetheless, anyone driving in the E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod division of the National Hot Rod Association knows that if you don’t crash, you are likely not trying hard enough. To win the high horsepower doorslammer class where virtually anything goes, a driver must live on the edge for a quarter mile behind the wheel of a purpose-built monster that hits 250 mph from a standing start in 5-plus seconds. Well, that is what should happen assuming everything goes right. Unfortunately for Chad Green, that was not the case at the U.S. Nationals in 2019.
During a qualifying run at the same Lucas Oil Raceway, Green had a clean start opposite Jose Gonzalez, as both men needed a win to make it into the record-breaking field at the 65th Annual Chevrolet Performance NHRA U.S. Nationals. However, soon after leaving the tree at Lucas Oil Speedway Green began to struggle with a lack of traction and lost control of his Pat Musi-tuned nitrous powered ride, as the veteran driver from Midland, Texas approached the halfway mark. When the rear of his Pro Mod Camaro broke loose, the car turned sideways and began a violent roll. The airflow at that speed lifted the car well into air causing the vehicle to do a forward flip.
The horrific high-speed crash ended with a summersault into the outside retaining wall, as Green’s car came crashing back to earth and landed on all fours. When the medical crew arrived at the scene of the incidence, the quiet Texan with a boyish smile was alert but in a great deal of pain due to the spine-crushing impact of the vehicle's landing. Green was transported by ambulance from Lucas Oil Raceway to Indiana University Methodist Hospital for diagnosis and treatment of lower back injuries sustained during the crash. With family by his side, Green underwent back surgery on Monday with many fans assuming they may have witnessed this veteran’s career-ending run. But, Pro Mod drivers have short memories and Greene returned to the scene of his wild ride in 2020 Lucas Oil Raceway with his first Pro Mod victory… just to even the score.
