After the finish line during the opening Pro Mod session at zMAX Dragway, Laughlin’s DIXXON-backed 1968 Camaro lost both parachutes and suddenly became more survival exercise than qualifying run. What started as a fast trip downtrack quickly became a driver’s test of instinct, braking judgment, and nerve.
With no parachutes deployed, Alex Laughlin went for the brakes. The car locked the tires, rotated, and slid from the middle of Lane 3 toward Lane 4 before Laughlin corrected it back left.
The Camaro then scrubbed the retaining wall with everything but the wheelie bar and right rear spill plates before coming to a stop. Just as important, Mike Thielen had shut off early in Lane 4 and was nowhere near the incident.
“The parachutes didn’t come out,” Laughlin explained. “I could tell after about a second, second-and-a-half that they weren’t there. You try to be as easy on the progression of the brakes as you can.”
That is easier said than done in a Pro Mod approaching 250 mph.
“There is not a lot you can do once the carbon brakes get hot and it starts hopping,” Laughlin said. “It ended up locking the tires up and spinning around backwards.”
Then came the line of the day, delivered like a racer who had already processed the danger and moved on.
“I just pretended like I was on road course last weekend on the go-kart,” Laughlin said. “I J-turned back into it.”
That quick correction likely kept the incident from becoming much worse.
Once a race car rotates at speed with no parachutes and overheated brakes, the driver often becomes a passenger. Laughlin instead drove through the moment, got the car pointed back in line, and minimized the damage.
“It got the wheelie bar,” Laughlin said. “But I don’t see any reason why we can’t be back up there for next round.”
That attitude is common in race trailers and almost nowhere else. Fix it, inspect it, get back in line.
The surprise was not over.
Laughlin was then informed the run still produced a 5.738-second pass at 249.76 mph, good enough at the time for the provisional top spot. His mood changed instantly.
“Woo!” Laughlin shouted.
By the end of the session, Laughlin sat third behind Mike Stavrinos at 5.717 and Justin Bond at 5.719.
The team elected to sit out the second qualifying session to make repairs, a smart call after contact with the wall and the kind of stress the chassis endured during the slide.
Even with one session lost, Laughlin remained sixth heading into Saturday. Bond moved to the overall lead with a 5.661.
That leaves Laughlin with a repaired car, another qualifying day ahead, and a reminder that versatile drivers earn their keep when plans fail.
Anybody can celebrate a clean pass. Friday, Laughlin showed the harder skill.
“It don’t know what it ran, but it felt fantastic.”
