EVENT RESULTS EVENT NOTEBOOK POINTS AFTER EVENT ROUND-BY-ROUND RESULTS FINAL SPORTSMAN RESULTS

FRI. VIDEO RECAP

 

 

 

SATURDAY NOTEBOOK - A TALE OF TWO SESSIONS WHEN MOTHER NATURE GETS INVOLVED

 

1 - PROCK, BROWN CONTINUE DOMINATING WAYS - One cannot blame a man for saving his best for last, but that's precisely what Funny Car rookie/phenom Austin Prock did on the last Funny Car run of the day at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals. 

Prock killed two birds with one stone as he thundered to his sixth straight Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge victory of the season, all the while securing the No. 1 qualifying position. 

Antron Brown (Top Fuel) and Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) joined Prock as the winners in the specialty event. One more of these races remains this season.

Prock was a machine when he needed to be, and ran a 3.860-second elapsed time at 334.07 mph to win the specialty race against Ron Capps. It gives Prock an incredible seven victories in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, which is the most in the history of the program that started a year ago. Prock has earned 23 bonus championship points as a result of his Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty success.

“It was impressive, but the conditions were coming to everybody,” Prock said. “Safety Safari did an outstanding job of getting the race track back into tip-top shape" after a rain delay. "I'm really proud of the team. We had a great day and were low in both sessions.
 
Brown successfully defended his Top Fuel #2Fast2Tasty crown in Brainerd by stopping No. 1 qualifier Steve Torrence in the final round. 

“It’s always been a plan in motion to try to peak at the right time,” Brown said. “Our car has been running exceptionally well. That's just a tribute to our team. They've been working really hard at this. We've got a good combination. This weekend, we've just been dropping holes a little bit, so we didn't qualify where we wanted to qualify by any means, but we've been running strong enough to get a couple round wins in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge and make it down the track. We've been down the track every run. When you do that, you set yourself up for success. It gives you a chance to win.”

Brown led the race from start to finish, getting off the starting line first and stopping the clocks with a 3.842, 314.17. Torrence had engine issues and lifted early, coasting to a 4.357.

To reach the final round, Brown stopped a resurgent Brittany Force, who gained three bonus points for the best run in Q4.

Torrence got into the #2Fast2Tasty event as an alternate when Ron August didn't make the trip to Brainerd. Torrence was the quickest quarterfinal runner-up in Sonoma, earning his alternate status in the specialty race, and he made the most of the moment by stopping Tony Stewart. 

Anderson scored his third win in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, taking down KB Titan Racing teammate Cory Reed in the final of the bonus race with a run of 6.618 at 204.79. Anderson last won at his home track in Brainerd in 2011.

“It was definitely a great day," Anderson said. "You have to stick it out. Nobody cares how it happened, they just know who won, period, so you have to find a way to win. We did. It was a great race in the final with my new teammate, Cory Reed. He's obviously going to be a special racer. I'm very proud of the boy, and I dodged a bullet. We'll see what the Good Lord brings tomorrow.

"Today was a great day," Anderson said. I love racing on Saturday, and as I've said many times before, after a great win on Sunday, I sure wish we could race tomorrow, and, man, we get to race tomorrow. I'm very happy about that, and I can't wait to get to it. I think tomorrow is going to be smooth. It should be a great day, and hopefully, we can find a way to show off in front of the hometown fans."

2 - TORRENCE GETS HIS FIRST CAREER BRAINERD NO. 1 - Steve Torrence secured his first career Brainerd No. 1 qualifier on the strength of his Friday run of 3.688 seconds at 335.32 miles per hour, finishing ahead of motorsports icon Tony Stewart, who recorded an identical elapsed time but came up short on the mile-per-hour tiebreaker.   

“This is a time where you really get up on your A-game and start working on trying to go win a championship,” Torrence said. “We have here, and Indy left, and then it's Katy bar the door. Everybody is going to be swinging as hard as they can and trying to go out and win a championship. We're right in the thick of things, and we need to capitalize on every opportunity we have to stay a top three car and start the Countdown strong.”

Tony Stewart stayed in the second spot thanks to Friday’s 3.688 at 332.18 and Brittany Force jumped to third in the final qualifying session with her burst of 3.698 at 335.48.

Torrence has a two-for-one first-round match against former FIA European Top Fuel champion Ida Zetterstrom. If he can get past her, he’ll get a bye into the semifinals in his bid for his third win in four years at the Lucas Oil Nationals.

Prock's 3.860-second run at 334.07 mph secured his ninth No. 1 qualifier. Bob Tasca III jumped to second after going 3.868 at 334.98 in the final session, while Blake Alexander took third thanks to Friday’s 3.874, 331.61.

3 - TUCKER GETS HIS SECOND NO. 1 QUALIFIER - Jerry Tucker earned his second career No. 1 qualifier with a 6.612 at 207.78. He’ll face off with Mason McGaha, hoping to pick up his first career win in Pro Stock and give Elite Motorsports its seventh straight victory of the year as well.
 
“We knew we had it in us. We went to Sonoma, and we were probably the fastest car. I let the team down," Tucker said. "We went over to Rock Falls and did some testing, and we were faster than Jeg, TJ, and Erica. Really, in testing, if you're that fast, you've got a good racecar. When the car is that fast, it's a lot of pressure on a guy not to mess up a good deal. Erica drove that car for five years, and there were no issues with that car. It's the fastest car.
  
"The Elite team is something, it's hard to put your finger on. Everyone is pulling in the same direction. Erica Enders has been great to me. Jeg has been right beside me. Anytime you have that many championships trying to keep you in line, it's kind of hard to mess up. My team is good that works on my car, so it's really just up to the driver."
 
Enders is second with a 6.612 at 207.27 and Anderson qualified third.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

8 - THE STRUGGLE IS REAL - Before rains hit Brainerd for the second day in a row, rendering the Saturday schedule useless, a packed house of race fans didn’t see a day conducive to entertainment value through no fault of NHRA, and completely Mother Nature. 

Twenty-four hours can make a difference, as after a lengthy weather delay  Friday, Mission Foods Series racers hit the track with an 89-degree surface temperature. Saturday's third session for fuel was not so ideal, and while it affected the Top Fuel cars somewhat, it paled to the impact it had on the Funny Cars.

"Not a lot of cars have gone down the [left] lane, so 'Guido' [Dean Antonelli] by trying to do things through the ignition map and trying to add power and taking away... when you are driving a car it is moving around," Capps said. "It made a hard move towards the centerline, and I thought maybe a cylinder was out. We needed to get qualified better because we were 14th or 15th. 

"There's a lot of emotions ... and Seattle is in my head. I didn't want to blow it up, and I could hear Matt Hagan."

Capps is competing this weekend in the same car he crashed in Seattle during the first round. He did improve from a 6.44 best Friday to a 3.981, which only moved him up two spots to No. 12. 

Austin Prock, who has been a machine in his rookie season of Funny Car, had one of those moments where his Funny Car was being a not-so-funny car.

Prock's 3.945 kept him at No. 6 on the strength of Friday's 3.916. While Capps was second-quickest of Q3, Prock's run was the best.

"It's hot and humid, and the air is bad," Prock explained. "I think the track is reading a little bit better than it probably is. I had my hands full down there. I took my hand off the wheel to go for the parachutes and that thing started spinning on me -- one hand controlling a 300-mph car when you are in a drift. It was a bunch of fun, but probably ugly from the starting line."

 

 

 

9 - CAPPS TALKS TOP FUEL, AND IT'S NOT HIM DRIVING - Earlier this season, Ron Capps expressed his desire with CompetitionPlus.com that has visions of being a multi-car team owner. On a recent episode of the NHRA Insider podcast with Brian Lohnes, Capps rejuvenated the conversation. 

"In the past, we have always done well when there is noise in the background," Capps said. "People forget that I am still a single-car team. We have had a lot of people approach us about a multi-car team. We don't want to do another Funny Car, we will do a dragster. It's going to be 2026. We've already been working, and it's going to be really cool. It will surprise a lot of people who is going to partner up with us to come into the sport."

While Capps is tight-lipped about his choice for driver, he's had his eye on one in particular. 

"I have always felt like, and I have had this conversation, that our partner is someone that we put in the seat that doesn't have to bring money. That is someone who is talented. I came up the same way. i never brought money, I was hired because they thought I could do the job on and off the track. We are excited about what is cooking, and will take our time." 

RELATED STORY - CAPPS THE MULTI-TEAM OWNER?

10 - ONE RACE A CRASH, THE NEXT A NO. 1 - When your series sponsor is a private jet service, the term 'crash' isn’t a likely topic one would discuss. However, when it comes to drag racing, Jason Dietsch crashed his Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown Mustang at Norwalk, and this weekend at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals he not only showed his resolve in rebounding from the incident but also put an exclamation mark on his mettle by driving to the No. 1 qualifying position. 

Dietsch, who has been burning the midnight oil in testing as well as competing in NMCA events in the series downtime, made the most of his downtime by driving to the provisional pole in Friday’s qualifying in Brainerd, Minn. but also ratcheted up his efforts in Saturday’s final qualifying session. 

“It’s been pretty special getting to this point,” Dietsch said. “We went through a lot of stuff to get to this point. We wrecked the car earlier this season. I just appreciate that we get the opportunity to race and have a fast hot rod.”

On Friday Dietsch ran a 7.802 second run at 175.59 mph and came back on the second day of the event in challenging conditions to an even stronger 7.781 second, 175.84 mph run.

“I tell you what, we’ve had a lot of work this year,” said Dietsch. “We went to Chicago, and we were 10th and 11th qualifiers. We went to Norwalk, and we were sixth and seventh. We just kept working and working on the motor. We have a whole different combination, and we’re really happy with how we are running right now.”

Deitch, a successful trailer dealership owner, has found a home in the Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown ranks. 

“I just like all the guys in the camaraderie, and it’s fun, you know,” said Dietsch. “We get on each other, kidding each other about what brand they race, and all that stuff. It’s just a lot of fun to come out and race. It will be business as usual when eliminations start. We gotta go out there, because the last-place guy can take you out, that’s how it is, you know. There are so many ways you can lose the race so nothing’s a sure shot.”

 

 

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FRIDAY NOTEBOOK - A LITTLE RAIN AND A LOT OF PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHT FIRST DAY IN BRAINERD

1 - ALEXANDER STRIKES GOLD ON FRIDAY - The thing about Bake Alexander is that you never know when he'll hit it big -- but when he does, it comes with a tremendous splash. The hired gun for veteran team owner Jim Head thundered to the quickest Funny Car run of a breakout Q2 session at Brainerd (Minn.) International Raceway with a 3.874-second elapsed time at 331.61 mph. Both ends of the run represented personal bests for Alexander.

In an abbreviated Friday show due to rain, the top of the qualifying had some unusual suspects, such as Alexis DeJoria (No. 2, 3.882). and Cruz Pedregon (3.894). Two of 2024's top runners were sprinkled in, such as Bob Tasca III at No. 2 (3.884) and perennial overachiever Paul Lee at No. 5 with a 3.912. 

"We know this race car can do that," Alexander said. "I gotta do a better job myself this year. Jim, Dave, and the whole team have been doing a fantastic job. It just really didn't show itself in Sonoma, but that's what happens when you put nitro in the tank. I made a mistake, they made a mistake. It compiles. We are just happy to be here in Brainerd, burning some nitro."

Sonoma was a forgettable event for the Head team as an engine explosion cost the team not only the powerplant, but a body. The car was repaired but lost early Sunday. 

Despite the Sonoma shortcomings, Alexander is convinced the team is on the way to great things, as evidenced by Friday's provisional No. 1 at the Lucas Oil Nationals.

"We're having the best season we've ever had, really, to be honest with you," Alexander explained. "We just haven't won a race yet. I think that gets lost in the nature of this business as you're only as good as your last run. And that will happen tomorrow, and that will happen on Sunday. But right now, we're happy with where we're at."

 

 

2 - SPEED DELIVERS FOR STEVE TORRENCE - Steve Torrence and Tony Stewart both went a blistering 3.688 seconds during the second qualifying session at Brainerd. Still, Torrence had the faster run, going an impressive 335.32 mph to win the tiebreaker. If that holds, it would be Torrence’s third top spot of the season and the 40th in his career. After winning in Seattle, things continue to come around for Torrence, who is currently third in Top Fuel points.

“We've been working on trying to make power,” Torrence said. “At the end of the day, power is speed, and the high mile an hour is just an exhibition of power and being able to get it down. These conditions are different from many places we go, so it's rather difficult to make power here. I was a little surprised to see .68 being low.
 
“The track is good, everything is good, but people are struggling to make the power they want. We wanted to run quicker than .68, and that's just what it gave us. We were a little closer to it than everybody else, only a little better than 'Smoke' [Stewart]. It's pretty cool to see him come out and do as well as he's done right here. We got lucky, and it’s been a good day.”

3 - THE APPRENTICE RETURNS WITH PROVISIONAL NO. 1 - Greg Anderson learned the Pro Stock ropes early in life under the tutelage of the late Minnesotan drag racer John Hagen. Hagen lost his life at the Brainerd track in 1983 when his race car barrel-rolled in the lights. Sunday will mark 41 years since the tragic accident that killed the man who gave Anderson his start. 

Anderson witnessed the incident and was prepared to walk away from the sport when fellow Minnesotan Warren Johnson convinced him to go back on the road with him. 

The rest is history, as Anderson soaked in the knowledge of Pro Stock, eventually branching out on his own and becoming the eliminator's winningest driver. 

Anderson now calls Mooresville, NC, his home, but for Brainerd, it will always be where he dreamed of making it big.

With big dreams come big aspirations, and Anderson had some for Friday's qualifying, which was shortened to one session due to rain showers. He made the most of his one shot at the track with a 6.641 elapsed time at 207.08 miles per hour. 

"I was hoping we could run a little bit quicker, but the bottom line is we did all we could do today," Anderson admitted. "We got all the points they had to give today. We're No. 1 at the end of Friday, so we won Friday. We'll move in tomorrow as a new day and use that as tuning data. There's definitely a lot of room left in it, so we know we can run better, which is great news. I'm sure other cars can, too, but when you go back from a run like that where you thought you could run a little quicker and you don't see why on the computer, then you're disappointed. But I can certainly see why. So, I think the future looks good for tomorrow."

Anderson says the future looks good for everything but his run holding up to two more qualifying sessions. He's planning to beat it.

"It's going to take better than that tomorrow to be number one, but I know we can run better than that," Anderson said. "Looking forward to tomorrow. I can't wait to get back out here tomorrow. I love racing here at Brainerd. When it's cloudy and cool like this, the racetrack is great, and the bottom line is the racetrack was better than we went up there prepared for, so that's a good problem."

 

 

4 - WELCOME BACK, JACK - It had been 1,384 days since Jack Beckman stomped the throttle in a fuel-burning Funny Car in NHRA. On Friday, he made it look as easy as riding a bike. 

"A real fast bike," Beckman added. "It's managing from the neck up, and some days that's pretty easy, and I find that some days I just have to accept that God put a lot of crap in my head, and I just got to deal with it. It's just going through the steps out there, and then it felt good. That felt like a Funny Car should feel. It started from 200 foot to 500; set me back. When the track gets better, there's another leap for us. But I'm liking the increments now. I'm starting to feel a little bit better. I'm way behind the car in a lot of things. A few more runs, I can get caught up."

Beckman's return netted the second-quickest run of the first session, yielding a 3.920 elapsed time at 318.09 miles per hour. 

Beckman's teammates Brittany Force and Austin Prock admit Beckman was an excellent choice for John Force's substitute, but getting used to seeing someone other than the energetic Force in the Peak firesuit will take some getting used to. 

"It definitely is weird," Brittany said. "That PEAK car, that PEAK team, that PEAK firesuit, I've always seen my dad. And I think the fans agree with it, but there's no better person to put in that car than Jack Beckman. He's doing a great job. We're proud to take him on into John Force Racing and be teamed up with him. I think he's doing a really great job, and I'm excited to see how this weekend will go."

As he did for much of the season to the entire class, Prock stole Beckman's thunder when he went to the top in Q1.

"I tell you what, this is the most normal it's felt since Richmond, having a teammate out here and a great teammate in Jack Beckman," Prock said. "I got to go out and watch him in Norwalk at the Night Under Fire. And that guy's dialed in, he's a machine, and he's going to be great for that PEAK auto team."

 

 

5 - MR. 600 - No other Top Fuel drag racer, no matter how many wins or how iconic of a name, can boast what Doug Kalitta has, which is 600 starts. He made it official Friday by running a 3.703, 326, to land third after the first session. 

“It’s been an interesting ride, and I didn’t realize anybody else had made it to 600 (in Top Fuel). It’s been a cool ride and a great opportunity for me, competing for as long as I have,” Kalitta said. “I still enjoy driving the cars and surrounding myself with great teams and great people. It’s been amazing driving for Connie (Kalitta, team owner), and I’ve been very fortunate to have so many great people around me. I’m still enjoying it, and as long as we can continue to drive up front, that’s what drives me to keep going.”

Doug Kalitta’s storied career began in 1998 and he is still going strong. He has won three races, advanced to five finals rounds, and qualified No. 1 five times in 2024 with two races left in the regular season.

Still, Kalitta knows the challenges will only get more difficult while facing off against a Top Fuel lineup that includes teammate Shawn Langdon, Justin Ashley, Antron Brown, four-time champ Steve Torrence, Tony Schumacher, Clay Millican, Brittany Force and Top Fuel newcomer Tony Stewart.

Kalitta has weathered those challenges this year, proving efficient with crew chief Alan Johnson and the rest of his Kalitta Motorsports team. They’ve lost in the first round on only two occasions.

“It’s definitely a dogfight right now,” Kalitta said. “Brainerd is always a great place to go, and I look forward to it every year. It’s always entertaining, and the place is always packed. It’s just one of those very entertaining races to go. It’s just a special place to race. Our car has been running well; hopefully, we can have another great weekend. It’s been fun to be a part of this, and we’re just keeping our heads down and trying to make it happen. When you catch a wave like this, you want to stay on it as long as you can.”

 

 

 

 

6 - IDA IS I-DEAL IN DEBUT - Ida Zetterstrom, the FIA Top Fuel champion, who made the transition into NHRA competition this weekend, made the move look seamless as she thundered to her personal bests in her first run. 

The Swede ran a 3.809, 326.87 in just her second full pass in the JCM dragster. 

"It feels incredible," Zetteerstrom said after the first run. "It felt great to be able to make that A to B pass. Coming in here and giving the data for the guys that we need so we can go every quick and faster."

Zetterstorm failed to improve in Q2 and, as a result, fell to the No. 13 qualifier. 

Zetterstrom has always been a drag racer and a straight-line competitor, while many of her fellow FIA racers dabbled in other forms of motorsports. In fact, her start in the straight-line sport came on a six-second motorcycle minus wheelie bars. 

Zetterstrom is racing a patriotic American red, white, and blue theme. 

"I think it looks so cool," she said. "And the red, white, and blue, of course, part of it was this is my American debut, this is me getting to live my American dream coming over here, and we wanted to play off that and get this American Stars and Stripes colors on top of it."

It hasn't taken Zetterstorm long to discover the differences between racing here and back home. The first major one was the style of Top Fuel car she's racing. She tested privately in the days leading up to the event to get used to a new approach. 

"I've always been an open cockpit car," Zetterstrom said. "It does make it a little quieter in this sitting there, and they fired a car up, they close it. You're more in your own bubble in a way than you basically were before in Europe. .. There's so many people watching, and you have big crowds here that's absolutely very cool. 

"But I'll have to say that in Europe, one of the things we get good at, is that there's no way you can go test without having people looking. When I licensed and did my first-ever passes in a Top Fuel car, we had 40,000 people in the grandstand and a live stream with 20,000 people online. So I have been in many situations where it's a lot of pressure and you have a lot of people watching. So that moment with that element of having a lot of people isn't something that really makes my nerves go up and extra. It's just more being here and this being the biggest moment in my life and being the biggest moment in my career; that's what puts pressure on me.

 

 

 

 

8 - FACTORY STOCK SHOWDOWN MAKES BRAINERD DEBUT - There was a time when the Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown Series stuck to the traditional and larger venues on the NHRA tour. This weekend continues the trend of the series stepping outside of the comfort zone. 

The Factory Stock Showdown division, composed of Chevrolet COPO Camaros, Ford Cobra Jets, and Dodge Drag Paks, made its Brainerd International Raceway debut. Points leader Stephen Bell is one of those happy to see the series visit the Minnesota facility.

“I had heard Brainerd is a lot of fun and a great track,” said Bell, 2023 championship runner-up. “Up until Friday, I had never raced here, but when talking with guys, I was told it reminded them of one of the old traditional racetracks. We didn't have any notes or data for when we got on the track Friday for qualifying. It's been a brand-new experience for us.”

Jason Dietsch, who crashed his Mustang in Norwalk, drove to the top spot on Friday's lone session with a 7.802, 175.59.

9 - BRUNO LANDS TWO RACE DEAL FOR BRAINERD, INDY - Four-time NHRA Competition Eliminator champion and current FoxSports NHRA pit reporter Bruno Massel has a new sponsorship to carry him through his final two events of the regular season, the weekend's Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in Brainerd and the Toyota NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis. Outlaw Beer will serve as Massel's primary sponsor to finish the season.

Credit businessman Mark Stockseth with the impetus to keep Massel on track. Stockseth has been instrumental in Massel's Pro Stock effort in the past years. 

"Mark and I had talked early in the season after I had lost my funding to chase the NHRA Comp Eliminator championship," Massel said. "He had inquired about why I wasn't racing, to which I responded, 'It's all about the dollars and cents.'"

Massel confirmed that Stockseth reached out to him recently with the offer for Outlaw Beer sponsorship. 

"It's just a cool thing because I've always wanted to have a beer sponsor," Massel said. "Ever since I was a kid, there was the Beer Wars. I thought, 'What is better than drag racing,?' and then have a beer sponsor on top of it?

"It's the ultimate in cool points. Outlaw Beer is doing a big promotion at Brainerd. They're going to be doing a lot of stuff out in the zoo and a lot of activation stuff that weekend. Being involved with my program will help as a catalyst to further the promotion they're doing here."

10 - MORE COUNTDOWN CLINCHERS - Two Funny Car and two Top Fuel drivers clinched their way into the Mission Foods Countdown to the Championship. On Friday, Matt Hagan, Bob Tasca III, Justin Ashley, and Shawn Langdon signed the big checks into the playoffs. Jeg Coughlin Jr. clinched for the Pro Stockers.