Daido Metal Performance Bearings will return as the primary sponsor of Paul Lee’s Nitro Funny Car for the season-opening NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway, March 5-8. Mainline Sales also returns as a secondary partner, while PowerEdge joins Paul Lee Racing for the 2026 Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series season.
The Anaheim, California-based manufacturer will headline Lee’s 11,000-horsepower entry at one of the NHRA’s most historic events. The move continues a technical partnership that has grown alongside the team’s rise in the Funny Car ranks.
Daido Metal has worked closely with the PLR crew on bearing development tailored to the demands of Nitro Funny Car competition. The environment subjects components to extreme cylinder pressures and sustained loads that few motorsports platforms can duplicate.
Those race conditions serve as validation for performance, durability and consistency. For Daido Metal, the relationship extends beyond placement on the body panels.
“Daido Metal is proud to renew its commitment to supporting NHRA competition at every level of racing. Our partnership with Paul Lee Racing provides the ultimate proving ground for Daido’s high-performance bearings,” said Ron Brock, Strategic Development Manager. “Nitro Funny Car competition represents one of the most extreme environments in motorsports, and validating our products under these intense conditions reinforces that Daido Metal bearings are engineered to perform at any level. Paul and his team have been tremendous partners in demonstrating to the nitro community that Daido is not just a contender, we are a proven performance leader.”
The collaboration began when SRI introduced Daido Metal to the Paul Lee Racing team as part of its entry into Nitro Funny Car competition. The company worked alongside championship-winning crew chief John Medlen to integrate its products into a nitro program capable of contending on race day.
Testing cycles evolved into elimination-round performance. Over time, the partnership expanded from development support into a primary sponsorship role at select events.
The 2026 Gatornationals marks the latest chapter in that progression. Gainesville traditionally provides an early measuring stick for teams with championship ambitions.
Paul Lee Racing enters the season following a breakout 2025 campaign. Lee earned his first Nitro Funny Car victory, reached multiple final rounds and posted a career-best finish in the championship standings.
That performance shifted the perception of the program within the Funny Car category. Consistency in qualifying and elimination rounds established the team as a regular contender.
Returning partners signal confidence in that trajectory. The addition of PowerEdge further strengthens the program’s commercial base heading into a full season.
PowerEdge will serve as a primary sponsor at select NHRA events throughout 2026. The agreement broadens the team’s partner portfolio while supporting operational growth on and off the track.
Mainline Sales will appear as a secondary partner on the rear quarter panels at Gainesville. Its continued involvement reflects sustained backing of the program’s competitive direction.
Lee said the offseason focus centered on building from the gains made in 2025. He views the renewed and expanded partnerships as critical to maintaining momentum.
“It’s exciting to start the season at the Gatornationals with Daido Metal returning as the primary partner,” said Lee. “Together, we’ve been able to develop, test, and win with their nitro bearings at the highest level. Adding PowerEdge and the return of Mainline Sales to the program for 2026 gives us even more momentum as we build on the progress we made last season.”
Nitro Funny Car remains one of the most competitive categories in professional drag racing. Margins between winning and losing are often measured in thousandths of a second.
In that environment, incremental gains in component reliability can translate into measurable results. Bearing performance under extreme load becomes a factor in consistency across qualifying and eliminations.
For Daido Metal, Gainesville offers another data point under race conditions. For Paul Lee Racing, it represents the opportunity to confirm that last season’s breakthrough was a foundation rather than a peak.
The alignment of technical collaboration and expanded sponsorship gives the team continuity entering the 2026 campaign. The objective now shifts from proving capability to sustaining it across a full season.
Lee believes the groundwork has been laid to do just that.
“It’s exciting to start the season at the Gatornationals with Daido Metal returning as the primary partner,” Lee said. “Together, we’ve been able to develop, test, and win with their nitro bearings at the highest level. Adding PowerEdge and the return of Mainline Sales to the program for 2026 gives us even more momentum as we build on the progress we made last season.”
