Spencer Hyde had one race remaining in his sophomore NHRA Funny Car season and a top-10 points finish to protect. Then his daughter arrived last Saturday, and the Canadian driver had a pretty good reason to miss the season finale.
Bobby Bode will take over the Head General Contractors and Engineering Funny Car for this weekend’s In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip. Hyde will remain home with his wife, Courtney, rather than compete in the final race of the 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series.
“With the birth of our daughter last Saturday, I needed to be here with Courtney,” Hyde said. “Of course, I wanted to race the final race of the season and do my best to hold onto our spot in the Top Ten.”
Hyde enters the finale ninth in the Funny Car standings, 35 points behind eighth-place Daniel Wilkerson. His absence puts Bode in the position of trying to preserve the team’s place among the season’s top 10 while competing against drivers with plenty riding on the outcome.
“We appreciate Bobby being available to get into the seat,” Hyde said. “I will be pulling for him and the rest of the Head Racing team.”
Bode brings plenty of experience having competed in Funny Car with his family’s operation and for veteran racer and team owner Del Worsham, reaching his first NHRA national event final at Houston in 2022.
He has made five national event appearances this season, including the U.S. Nationals and Midwest Nationals during the Countdown to the Championship.
“I was not expecting this at all,” Bode said. “I put my plans on hold to help Spencer and the Head Racing team.”
Bode won’t be racing for a championship of his own at Pomona, but that doesn’t mean he can’t influence who wins one.
“I am very grateful to get the chance from Jim Head to fill in for Spencer to close out the season,” Bode said. “It is just cool to get to race at the In-N-Out NHRA Finals because teams will be racing for championships and you never know if we could have a hand in deciding who get the trophy at the end of the season.”
