Erica Enders ended a grueling 30-race winless streak in dramatic fashion at the U.S. Nationals, powering past Matt Hartford in the Pro Stock final to earn her 50th career national event victory.
Enders went 6.564 seconds at 209.95 mph in her Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Melling Performance Chevrolet, tracking down Hartford’s quick start to secure her fourth career win at Indianapolis. It marked her first victory since the 2024 season opener and capped a season marked by setbacks and self-doubt.
“That monkey’s been on my back since Gainesville, the season opener 2024, and it’s been grueling,” Enders said. “We left last year doing well collectively as a team, and we came out this year and the scoreboard did not tell us what the dyno is telling us. It’s mentally tough. You lose confidence in yourself and your equipment, but my guys didn’t lose confidence in their abilities or in me.”
Enders qualified third and raced past Greg Stanfield, defending Indy winner Aaron Stanfield with a .014 reaction time, and regular-season champion Dallas Glenn before meeting Hartford in the final. The win moved her from 12th to eighth in the standings entering the Countdown to the Championship.
“Without them, I wouldn’t be here and I kind of wondered if I still had it,” Enders said of her team. “It took a lot of overcoming and a lot of help from my inner circle, my dad, my sister, my family and the boys that stand behind me. We finally got number 50. As a little girl in 1994, rolling under that arch right there for my first final round at the inaugural Junior Dragster Nationals, the feelings are very similar. To get my 50th here at Indy, I don’t know a better book that can be written.”
Hartford reached his second final of the year and 19th overall with wins against David, Cristian and Fernando Cuadra Jr. He will start the playoffs ranked third. Glenn clinched the regular-season title with a second-round win, and Greg Anderson was eliminated in the same round. Glenn will lead the Countdown field with four wins and nine final-round appearances this year.
Enders acknowledged that her struggles over the past season tested her resolve more than earlier in her career. “It sure felt like it took forever,” she said. “It’s about the people that surround you. They’re the most important part of the puzzle. When I joined Richard Freeman at the end of 2013 at Elite Motorsports, I said I’d finish my career here. I finally found my people.”
She credited recent momentum shifts, including a strong showing at the Night Under Fire in Norwalk, Ohio, and improved performance in Brainerd, as a turning point.
“I’m hopeful this is a comeback you guys can write and preach about,” Enders said. “I’m not saying we’re going to go out there and win the world title, but I’m glad our season has made that turn, and we’re going to give it our all.”
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