Drag racing is all about momentum – and Justin Ashley just gave his team a huge boost.
Using a better reaction time to dash away from Tony Stewart, Ashley won the prestigious 71st annual Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis for the first time in his career Monday.
In the finals, Ashley, who pilots the SCAG Racing Toyota Top Fuel dragster, clocked a 3.839-second elapsed time at 326.16 mph to defeat the quicker Stewart, who covered the distance at 3.815, 321.88.
The difference was at the starting line. Ashley, known for his consistently stellar reaction times, had a .027-second RT compared to Stewart’s .053. The margin of victory was a mere 15 inches.
“I think I’m still processing everything. I’ve dreamed about this moment over and over and over again, and then to actually live it right now right here is truly special,” Ashley said. “When you win Indy, it’s just something that nobody can take away from you. And the fact that my father won here 18 years ago, and to have him here now and to win this event in Top Fuel, it really is special. It’s just different than any other race. And I tried to do my best all day to just treat it as another race because that probably is really the only thing you can do and not get caught up in the moment. But now to step back and to actually get that victory, you realize how truly incredible it is.”
Mike Ashley earned the U.S. Nationals Funny Car gold in 2007, defeating Jim Head in the final round.
“I certainly hoped so, and that was my goal,” said Justin about wanting to win Indy like his father. “It’s funny, I was just talking to Mike Green in the winner’s circle, and he said, ‘You started the year with two goals, to win Indy and to win the championship.’ … I thought it was possible – anything’s possible. But to actually do it and to actually accomplish it is almost beyond words. As you start to go throughout the day, round one, round two, then all of a sudden you get to round three and you think, ‘Well, maybe this is actually a possibility,’ and all of a sudden you’re in the finals and you’re 1,000 feet away from actually accomplishing history. So, certainly thought it was possible, but to actually accomplish that is another thing.”
Ashley captured his first Top Fuel Wally at the Indianapolis 2 race during the abbreviated 2020 NHRA season due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.
“It’s pretty wild. I remember there was such a long wait. I remember going up there for the final round against T.J. Zizzo and literally, I don’t know what I didn’t know. It was my first final round,” Ashley said. “I was super nervous, tried to stay super calm, and I think I was much more nervous then, for that final, trying to get the first win, than I was today. But to think back to where we were as a team and then obviously myself and then where we are today and myself, I think it’s incredible. Everyone has their own journey, everyone has their own story and it’s not always a straight line. There’s been a lot of ups and downs and everything in between, so to actually get from point A to point B, just like that, it’s something that I’m very proud of.”
Ashley now has won 18 NHRA Top Fuel Wallys and snared his last two via holeshots. Prior to Indy, Ashley defeated Clay Millican on a holeshot in the finals of the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio, on June 29.
“It’s very, very difficult. The hardest thing is not to cut a good light,” Ashley said. “The hardest thing is to cut a good light over and over and over again. And I think for me, what I try and do, what works for me, is not focus on the outcome, but focus on the process. And that process, for me, is what I do during the week physically and mentally to prepare for a race weekend like this. I’ve had to adjust that process multiple times, but obviously so far, so good. It’s definitely satisfying, but no matter how you get a win, it’s still a team win, and every team win is satisfying.”
This was Ashley’s third win of the season. His first came June 22, when he left the American Rebel Light Virginia NHRA Nationals believing he had a runner-up finish to Shawn Langdon. The next day, Ashley was declared the winner when Langdon was disqualified. A post-race safety inspection of Langdon’s dragster discovered some of the bolts were missing on the bell-housing inspection cover after the run.
Ashley enters the six-race Countdown to the Championship right in the mix for a title.
The racers who secured a position in the Countdown to the Championship will have their NHRA Mission Foods points reset after the U.S. Nationals. In Top Fuel and Funny Car, first and second place will be separated by 20 points while each position second through 10 place will be separated by 10 points.
Ashley became only the second Top Fuel driver to win Indy from the No. 12 qualifying position. The first was Larry Dixon in 1995.
It was also just the third time since 1980 that two Top Fuel drivers from the bottom half of the field – Stewart was the No. 10 qualifier – have been in the final round at the U.S. Nationals event. The other two times were 1993 and 2018.
Ashley’s Monday march to victory consisted of wins over reigning champion Antron Brown, 2023 NHRA Top Fuel champion Doug Kalitta, Tripp Tatum, and Stewart.
“It’s no secret, we’ve struggled a little bit the last few races, but I made some pretty drastic changes to the car,” Justin said. “I approach each and every race the same way with the expectation to win. And it’s easy to do that when you have the team that we do with Mike and Tommy [DeLago] and Dustin [Davis] and the guys. So, I wouldn’t say it was improbable – always have confidence in the guys – but it’s certainly … man, a full field, the challenge having to go through Antron, Doug, Tripp, and then Tony Stewart. I’ve heard of that guy. He’s supposed to be a pretty good driver, so it’s really cool.”
Ashley joins the Top Fuel Indy winner’s list that includes legends Don Garlits, Don Prudhomme, Shirley Muldowney, Joe Amato, and Tony Schumacher.
“It’s going to take a few days certainly to process that,” Ashley said. “A few of those guys I have a very good relationship with, Joe Amato being one of them. And when I look back at the history of the sport, and I’ve seen videos of him winning Indy. And then to actually do it right now and do exactly what he did, what Prudhomme did, what Garlits did, all those guys did multiple times. I mean, again, it’s beyond words. It really is special. It’s an absolute dream come true. And I think, I don’t know, what’s Tony Schumacher won this race, like 10 times or something? So, I’m a little bit behind.”
This season Justin has now won at two tracks where his dad was victorious – Norwalk and Indy – and that there’s no question which victory means more.
“This one [Indy] does mean more for sure … just because it’s Indy. And that particular time in 2007, they had a special paint scheme on the car for charity, so that was really a special weekend,” Justin said. “Both Norwalk and Indy were special for a number of different reasons. One of which, because it’s a place where my dad won, but to win at Indy, it’s even more special. To win at Indy at a place where my father won, to have two U.S. Nationals winners in the same family, it’s fantastic. It’s a dream come true.”
A year ago, Ashley finished a career-best third in the season points standings. The 2020 NHRA Rookie of the Year has three career race wins in the Countdown to the Championship, all three in Dallas in 2021, 2022 and 2024.
Up next for Ashley is a quest for his first championship. The six-race Countdown to Championship starts with the Reading NHRA Nationals, set for Sept. 11-14 at Maple Grove Raceway in Mohnton, Pennsylvania.
