Matt Hagan played high school football in southwestern Virginia, and he knows the game is nothing like drag racing. In football, a player can neutralize the opponent and cause a momentum shift. He can tackle the running back on a crucial play, sack the quarterback, or intercept a pass. But in this Funny Car championship chase, points leader Hagan, for instance, can’t just go and tackle Robert Hight, who’s in third place in the standings and starting to cut his margin by winning the event, taking the No. 1 qualifying spot and earning bonus points.

“Oh, I can,” Hagan said with the audacious laugh of a linebacker.

Of course, he won’t. Nor will he flatten No. 2 Bob Tasca III.

The NHRA Pro Stock world is back to a sense of normalcy.

The NHRA announced that Pro Stock will compete at all 21 races next year, marking a return to a full-season schedule for the exciting category. Despite having its schedule reduced to 18 races in 2019, Pro Stock has seen a surge in talent and participation, leading to large fields in recent seasons. In 2024, Pro Stock will rejoin Top Fuel and Funny Car in competing at every NHRA national event.

​Fernando Cuadra says it’s not rocket science. Helping Pro Stock Motorcycle racers protect their feet, and other impact points on their bodies is a mission he has adopted since significant injuries in consecutive events to Angie Smith and Chase Van Sant. And the bootmaker and leather goods crafter from Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico, knows he has the resources to at least help resolve the problem.

“For me, it's easy because that's my business,” Cuadra said.

Cuadra has 34 factories, and he gathered the leaders among his 12,000 employees for a brainstorming session about how collectively they can provide solutions and improve safety for NHRA motorcycle racers.

 Bobby Cottrell has nearly done it all behind the wheel of a Nostalgia Nitro Funny Car. Over the past seven seasons, Cottrell, at the wheel of the Bucky Austin-owned green Bardahl machine, has won countless races, including six consecutive NHRA Heritage Series Funny Car Championships. However, on Sunday at the Nevada Nationals, Cottrell did the impossible and accomplished what nearly every drag racer hopes to do in a season, and that's go undefeated. The six-time champ took home the trophy, winning the Legends Nitro Funny Car division at Las Vegas for the second year in a row, defeating Geoff Monise in the final round to complete his perfect season, not losing a single round of competition all year. 

Competition Plus’ Water-Cooler Topics From The NHRA Nevada Nationals

Needing a big weekend in Vegas to stay in the NHRA nitro Funny Car world championship mix, Robert Hight hit the jackpot sweeping all 130 points available.

The veteran John Force Racing driver qualified No. 1 -- but not without some controversy – and then turned on four win lights at the Nevada Nationals on Sunday at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Hight clocked a 3.851-second elapsed time at 326.79 mph in the final round to defeat Bob Tasca III, who slowed to 4.235-second, 268.28 mph. This is Hight’s 65th career NHRA nitro FC win and his fourth this season.
  
Hight is a three-time world champ – 2009, 2017 and 2019 – and would love to add No. 4 at the season-ending race in Pomona, Calif., on Nov. 9-12. Hight will head to Pomona third in the points standings 17 behind leader Matt Hagan. Tasca is second 15 points out of the lead.

On Friday after capturing the provisional No. 1 qualifying spot at the Nevada Nationals, Mike Salinas believed this was a race he could win – and he was right.

Salinas, from the No. 1 qualifying position, mowed down the competition to claim the title at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Sunday.

In the finals, Salinas clocked a 3.673-second elapsed time at 333.16 mph to defeat Justin Ashley, who slowed to 5.796 seconds, 120.56 mph.

“Basically, we have been working on this car since Gainesville,” Salinas said. “We have had some real special things it has been doing, and it has showed signs of greatness, but the consistency has been evading us. As I was trying to get more consistent running these 60 numbers, today is the best day we have had all year. The car is showing amazing signs. If we can do what we are doing here it will be a great weekend in Pomona and that’s what we are looking at.”

Mike Castellana did his best not to end up in the asterisk category. The veteran Pro Modified driver of over two decades, and from Westbury, New York, didn’t want to join Rob Bruins and Eddie Krawiec as those NHRA professional drag racers who won a world championship despite not having won a race in the season. 

The accolades aren't finished for Erica Enders.

On Sunday at the NHRA Nevada Nationals, Enders scored career national event victory No. 48, beating Greg Anderson and put her in the driver's seat for a fifth Pro Stock world championship.  

At Dallas, Enders celebrated being the winningest female driver in drag racing. Yet, she was still tied with Angelle Sampey in professional drag racing wins. Now, she is the undisputed leader thanks to a weekend where she picked up her 10th career victory at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Life can change in a hurry.

A year ago, Gaige Herrera was asking for any help he could get to keep his dream alive in racing Pro Stock Motorcycle with Karen Stoffer. 

"As much as I hate to ask," the Facebook post from Herrera read. "Anyone interested in partnering/helping out for the last 2 NHRA races of the season? Vegas this weekend and Pomona in 2 weeks? Will be featured on Fox with hundreds of thousands of viewers and spectators at each event. Next season is looking very promising as well, not a full season at the moment unless I find some funding."

Then Herrera got the ultimate invitation to join the band. In January 2023, Herrera was named a rider for the iconic Vance & Hines team, replacing Angelle Sampey.