The most significant gains in the final day of qualifying came from the Pro Stock divisions, as Greg Anderson set the pace for the quickest Pro Stock field in drag racing history and Gaige Herrera established a new world record in the Pro Stock Motorcycle division. 

Bob Tasca (Funny Car) and Steve Torrence (Top Fuel) remained at the top of the list for the nitro-burning divisions. 

Anderson, the five-time series champion, rocketed to the top of the Pro Stock field with a run of 6.480 at 211.76 in his HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro. The pace-setting run gives Anderson his second No. 1 qualifier of the season and the 123rd of his career. 

“Momentum is obviously worth a lot. You can’t quantify it, but it’s worth a lot,” Anderson said. “To get the No. 1 spot this weekend, this has probably been the toughest four rounds of qualifying that I can remember in my career. There has never been as many cars capable of driving the pole and being No. 1 through No. 10 in any order. Every thousandth meant everything, and that means to us, not only does that car have to be perfect every time down the racetrack, but you have to shift it perfectly.

“It’s that tough out there right now. The bar has been raised in this class and I’m proud to be one of the guys in the mix fighting for a championship and having a chance to fight for the pole like we did this weekend. It’s a lot of fun when you have conditions like this. This is what we live for. It was a great weekend so far in qualifying, and tomorrow will be even better yet; I think you’ll see even faster times, and it’s crazy. There are just so many capable of doing it.”

Troy Coughlin Jr. took the second spot with a 6.482 at 212.05 and points leader Erica Enders is right behind in third after a 6.483 at 211.82. Jerry Tucker, Dallas Glenn, Deric Kramer, Matt Hartford, Kyle Koretsky, and Aaron Stanfield all ran in the 6.40s as well.

Herrera, who continues to raise the bar for the Pro Stock Motorcycle division, did more raising on Saturday as he laid down a monumental run of 6.627 seconds at 204.16 mph on his Mission Foods/Vance & Hines Suzuki. The run eclipsed the record previously held by Matt Smith. 

Herrera has eight wins this year and, with the record run, earned his 12th No. 1 spot. It’s a class record for most No. 1 qualifiers in a season.  

“We didn’t think it would be possible, but it was a picture-perfect run,” Herrera said. “It was so smooth it felt slow. We’re definitely happy about that, and I was actually almost more excited about that than winning a race. It’s just a big accomplishment. I’ve got a fast motorcycle, and I feel if something doesn’t break and I don’t mess up, it’s going to be hard to beat us.

“There has been a lot to take in this season and I really don’t think it’s all set in. I can’t really put into words. A year ago today, I would not have thought I’d be in the position I’m in, especially accomplishing so much that we have so far this season.”

Kelly Clontz made the best run of her career, going 6.705 at 201.99 to make a massive jump to second. Eddie Krawiec took third on the strength of his 6.714 at 203.92.

Torrence’s incredible 3.636, 336.62 run from Friday night stood the test, as he nailed down his third No. 1 qualifier of the season. He’ll open eliminations against Buddy Hull on Sunday. 

“It’s definitely morale boosting to go out and go low ET,” Torrence said. “But more importantly, today we went out and ran (3.66) on the first lap, (3.67) on the second lap,” Torrence said. “When you have a car that’s consistent, it’s always a confidence booster but especially when it’s consistently quick and you’re picking up points and something that very potentially could be the deciding factor in winning or losing a championship.

“At this point, I’m probably more confident in my car than any other time in the season. We’re making really good strides at the right time, and I’m very confident going into tomorrow. It doesn’t hurt that it’s a hometown crowd.”

It was a fast two days of qualifying as 12 cars dipped into the 3.60s. Points leader Kalitta held on to second thanks to his 3.642 at 334.70 on Friday, and Mike Salinas jumped to third Saturday evening with a 3.655 at 333.73.

Funny Car remained the property of Tasca on the strength of his Friday evening 3.822, but his 338.57 blast in the Q-4 session left the drag racing world talking. He will open eliminations against Jack Wyatt.

“We have one of the best cars on the planet right now, so you’ve got a lot of confidence,” Tasca said. “Anyone out there can take out one of these cars easily. But we’ve got a really good car; the guys have a great handle on it. That 338 mph speed was pretty remarkable actually. I got No. 1 and the (personal-best) speed record. That was pretty cool. That was the fastest I’ve ever been in a car, and I tell you one thing, when those parachutes come out four runs in a row at well over 330 mph, I’m a little sore, to be honest with you. 

“I could really hear the motor rev up in the lights and that’s when you think it’s on a big run. The fans got their money’s worth, and they’ll get their money’s worth tomorrow because you’re going to see a lot of those same conditions. Our side of the ladder is pretty stacked. That’s what we want. If you want to win the championship, you want to beat some of the top cars early and try to get ourselves into a position to win this race.”

John Force made a career-best pass to close out qualifying, taking the second spot with a 3.823 at 328.56. Robert Hight, second in points entering the weekend, took third with a 3.832 at 327.75, with Ron Capps and Matt Hagan right behind with runs of 3.844 and 3.848, respectively.

Eliminations for the Texas NHRA FallNationals begin at noon CT on Sunday at the Texas Motorplex.

Sunday's first-round pairings for eliminations for the 38th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex, the 19th of 21 events in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series. Pairings based on results in qualifying, which ended Saturday. DNQs listed below pairings.