Scott Palmer suffered a crash behind the wheel of his Nitro-burning Studebaker at Mid-America Raceway in Missouri.

Despite six wins this season and a runaway lead in the Top Fuel championship, Justin Ashley found out on Saturday that even he can still be surprised.

With the Top Fuel field seemingly set entering the final qualifying session Saturday at Brainerd International Raceway, Ashley hit a fastball right out of the park with a blistering 3.746-second lap at 328.14 mph in his Phillip’s Connect dragster on a day where few improved to take a surprise No. 1 at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals.

Greg Anderson will be the first person to admit that this season has been one for the young guns.

With Anderson and Erica Enders -- winners of the last four championships in the Pro Stock category -- struggling during the early part of the schedule, names like Camrie Caruso, Troy Coughlin Jr., Dallas Glenn and Deric Kramer have filled the void, collecting Wallys and dominating the conversation.

But, as they say in life, you can’t keep a good man -- or woman -- down.

Justin Ashley, Ron Capps, and Greg Anderson emerged as the No. 1 qualifiers in their respective categories at the 14th race of the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season. 

Ashley’s dominant performance on Saturday at Brainerd Raceway solidified his position at the top as he blazed down the track in his Phillips Connect/Toyota dragster, clocking an impressive time of 3.746 seconds at 328.14 mph. Despite the expected cooler conditions on raceday, Ashley’s outstanding qualifying run sent a clear message to his rivals. 

“That’s a stout run with the conditions what they were,” Ashley said. “Nothing surprises me with the team that we have, but nonetheless, it was going to be tough to go out there and run as well as we did. It really just speaks volumes of our team. It’s kind of a unique situation because I’m not sure how much you can actually take of that and apply it tomorrow. It’s going to be cooler, much different out there tomorrow. But we positioned ourselves the best we can heading into raceday.

Top Fuel standout Antron Brown secured his long-awaited victory in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, triumphing over defending world champion Brittany Force in the finals of the bonus event at Brainerd International Raceway on Saturday. The race, part of the 41st annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, showcased three first-time winners, including Robert Hight in Funny Car and Erica Enders in Pro Stock.

In an intense final round, Brown piloted his 11,000-horsepower Matco Tools/Toyota dragster to victory with a clocking of 3.840 seconds at 292.01 mph. Earlier in the day, he had already vanquished points leader Justin Ashley before overcoming Force. As a three-time world champion, Brown eyes the opportunity to claim another win on Sunday in Brainerd and clinch his second event victory this season.

The NHRA’s Top Fuel class pulled an end-around on the NHRA during Friday night qualifying for the Lucas Oil Nationals at Brainerd, Minn., deciding not to run the second session in the interest of safety and in the wake of what the teams determined was inaction by sanctioning-body officials.

Crew chiefs and team owners sacrificed the best qualifying conditions of the weekend at Brainerd International Raceway (BIR) and collectively decided not to run on the 1,000-foot course after a 50-minute oildown clean-up robbed them not only of daylight but also a safe racing surface. BIR doesn’t have lighting along its dragstrip.

Ron Capps came ready to race this weekend.

So when an issue with the wheelie bar on his 11,000-horsepower nitro-powered machine forced him to abort his first round of qualifying Friday at Brainerd International Raceway, he was far from happy.

But instead of allowing a poor start to derail the weekend before it ever began, Capps rallied the troops, sat down with crew chief Dean “Guido” Antonelli and decided this was no time to play it safe.

When Doug Kalitta crossed the finish line first in the opening round of qualifying Friday at Brainerd International Raceway, he was pleased, but not satisfied.

This rocket still had more in the tank.

As fate would have it, however, Kalitta and his Mac Tools team would not find out just how much more it had left as an oildown, a quickly setting sun and a facility sans stadium lighting added up to a canceled second session and a largely unexpected No. 1 for Kalitta at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals.

Forty years ago this weekend, an incident transpired that would forever change the life of Pro Stock’s winningest driver Greg Anderson.

A 22-year-old Anderson stood on the starting line as his mentor, Mopar Pro Stock racer John Hagen, barrel-rolled his Dodge Charger at 170 miles per hour. He was the last to interact with Hagen before his death in that crash.

Anderson took note of Hagen’s pre-run rituals as he belted him in the car. 

Ron Capps, the reigning Funny Car world champion, made a strong statement on Friday, securing the provisional No. 1 spot at the 41st annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway. 

Joining Capps, a six-time Lucas Oil Nationals champion, in the provisional No. 1 spots are Doug Kalitta in Top Fuel and Greg Anderson in Pro Stock. The event marks the 14th out of 21 races in the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season.

Capps stopped the clocks at 3.894 seconds at 330.23 mph in his NAPA Auto Parts Toyota GR Supra.  If his position holds, it will mark his second No. 1 qualifier this season and his 38th overall in his career. Only John Force has more victories at Brainerd, making it a significant event for Capps.