Matt Hagan arrived at Brainerd International Raceway fifth in the Funny Car standings. He left Sunday night with the trophy and the points lead.
Hagan defeated No. 1 qualifier Jordan Vandergriff in the final round of the NHRA Brainerd Nationals, running 3.946 seconds at 320.13 mph for his third victory of the season. Doug Kalitta completed a near-perfect weekend with his third consecutive Top Fuel victory, while Greg Anderson won Pro Stock at Brainerd for the second straight year.
Hagan’s victory was the 58th of his career and second at Brainerd, and it came on a day when the four-time champion’s Tony Stewart Racing Dodge hardly moved off its number. Hagan ran in the 3.94-second range over the final three rounds.
“It’s very humbling because you never know what you’re going to get in a Funny Car,” Hagan said. “If you think you’re going to go out there and pound on your chest, these things will kick you in the [butt]. I’m just very grateful that we have such a good group of guys putting a great race car underneath me.
“We definitely could have bracket-raced this car this weekend. It just shows what our team is capable of. Everybody is just working hard and doing what they’re supposed to do. As I was doing the burnout and backing up, it gave me chills, man. The fans were packed in here. NHRA is doing a great job promoting our sport, and our sport is growing every day.”
Hagan worked through Jim Campbell and Chad Green before eliminating 2025 NHRA champion Austin Prock in the semifinals. Vandergriff, making his third final-round appearance of the season, slowed to a 4.038 in the championship round.
The win completed a sizable move through a Funny Car points race that remains crowded heading into the points-and-a-half U.S. Nationals. Hagan leads Vandergriff by seven points, while Ron Capps sits 12 points back and J.R. Todd trails by 22. Jack Beckman is 74 points behind Hagan.
Kalitta didn’t leave much on the table all weekend. The reigning Top Fuel champion was quickest in all four qualifying sessions, qualified No. 1, won Saturday’s Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, and finished the job Sunday by beating rookie Maddi Gordon in the final.
Kalitta’s 3.743 at 333.74 chased down Gordon’s 3.770 at 328.78 after Gordon grabbed the starting-line advantage. It was his fourth victory of the season, 63rd of his career and second consecutive at Brainerd. His margin of victory at the finish was .011 seconds.
“It was definitely an interesting day,” Kalitta said. “My guys did a great job throughout the weekend, through qualifying, the Mission Foods deal, and then being able to go rounds on Sunday and get to the final and beat Maddi. She’s doing a great job and they’re tough.
“Alan [Johnson, crew chief] and those guys had my car running 3.74 like three times. That was enough, even with a little bit of a cushion. It was what we needed to do to get the job done today. The momentum is really good. We’re all really hungry.
“When you get down to those last six races, every round is so important. Today actually felt that way, too. Getting by those first couple rounds, I was like, ‘What a relief,’ because you don’t want to go out early.”
Kalitta defeated Cam Ferre, Antron Brown, and Justin Ashley before meeting Gordon, who reached her second final in her rookie season after beating Scott Palmer, Tony Stewart, and Leah Pruett.
The victory was Kalitta’s third straight after wins at Seattle and Sonoma, and it gave him a 67-point advantage over teammate Shawn Langdon heading to Indianapolis. Kalitta will have an opportunity there to lock up the regular-season Top Fuel championship before points are reset for the Countdown.
Anderson’s Brainerd connection goes back considerably farther than his latest winning streak at the track. The six-time Pro Stock champion grew up racing at Brainerd International Raceway, and he added another trophy Sunday by chasing down first-time finalist Chris Vang with a 6.584 at 208.17.
Anderson’s fifth Brainerd victory is the most in Pro Stock history at the track. It was also his fourth victory of 2026 and the 116th of his career.
The timing couldn’t have been much better for Anderson. KB Titan Racing teammate Dallas Glenn entered eliminations as the No. 1 qualifier but went out in the opening round, giving Anderson an opportunity to put some distance between them in the standings.
Anderson did exactly that. He defeated Mason McGaha, Troy Coughlin Jr., and Greg Stanfield before facing Vang, then erased Vang’s starting-line advantage to win the final. Anderson leaves Brainerd with an 85-point advantage over Glenn with one event remaining in the regular season.
“The world knows this is the place where it all started for me. I wouldn’t be a Pro Stock racer today if it wasn’t for this place and all the people around here,” Anderson said. “My father and John Hagen gave me my start in Pro Stock. It’s been a special place to me since the first time I walked on the grounds.
“It’s pretty cool to win here and apparently have the record for most wins. This place has everything. It’s a great, great event. The prestige of this one never, ever goes away. It’s certainly at the top of my list, and I think it should be at the top of a lot of people’s lists. To come out on top is just an incredible feeling. It never gets old, and I hope it never does. I treat every one like it’s the first because you never know when the last one is going to be the last. They’re all special. I hope this one wasn’t the last, but I’m going to enjoy the hell out of this one tonight.”
Vang’s runner-up was the first final-round appearance of his young Pro Stock career. He reached it by defeating Matt Latino, Jeg Coughlin Jr., and rookie Cody Anderson.
The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series now heads to Indianapolis, where the regular season closes with the 72nd annual NHRA U.S. Nationals, slated Sept. 2-7 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.
