Rookie Pro Nitrous racer Tim Paap earned his second No. 1 qualifier of the season on Friday night at the PDRA Northern Nationals. Paap ran 3.624 seconds at 206.61 mph at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park, leading the Pro Nitrous field at the fifth of eight races on the 2025 Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series schedule.
No. 1 qualifier honors went to Randy Weatherford in Pro Boost, Fletcher Cox in Pro Street, Jeremy Huffman in Extreme Pro Stock, and Lexi Tanner in Pro 632. Paap, who won the season opener in his Pro Nitrous debut, said he is working to recover championship points lost when he missed the second event for his son’s wedding.
“I did not know if that 3.62 run was gonna hold up for No. 1,” Paap said. “There’s a lot of tough people in this competitive field. It feels great to be back in the No. 1 spot for the first time since the beginning of the season.”
Weatherford qualified No. 1 in Pro Boost with a 3.578 at 212.06 mph in his WS Construction ’21 Camaro. The run marked the debut of his centrifugal supercharger combination and his first top qualifier award since 2020.
Kurt Steding followed with a 3.596 at 209.69 to qualify second, and Ty Tutterow was third with a 3.597 at 209.40.
Fletcher Cox secured his second straight Pro Street top qualifier with a 3.829 at 192.31 in his nitrous-fed “Training Day” ’69 Camaro.
“Phil makes all the calls and the team gets together on decision making,” Cox said of tuner Phil Shuler. “At the Rookie Pro Nitrous racer Tim Paap earned his second No. 1 qualifier of the season on Friday night at the PDRA Northern Nationals. Paap ran 3.624 seconds at 206.61 mph at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park, leading the Pro Nitrous field at the fifth of eight races on the 2025 Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series schedule.
No. 1 qualifier honors went to Randy Weatherford in Pro Boost, Fletcher Cox in Pro Street, Jeremy Huffman in Extreme Pro Stock, and Lexi Tanner in Pro 632. Paap, who won the season opener in his Pro Nitrous debut, said he is working to recover championship points lost when he missed the second event for his son’s wedding.
“I did not know if that 3.62 run was gonna hold up for No. 1,” Paap said. “There’s a lot of tough people in this competitive field. It feels great to be back in the No. 1 spot for the first time since the beginning of the season.”
Weatherford qualified No. 1 in Pro Boost with a 3.578 at 212.06 mph in his WS Construction ’21 Camaro. The run marked the debut of his centrifugal supercharger combination and his first top qualifier award since 2020.
Kurt Steding followed with a 3.596 at 209.69 to qualify second, and Ty Tutterow was third with a 3.597 at 209.40.
stripe I instantly came on the radio and said, ‘I don’t know what it ran, but it felt really good.’”
Huffman posted a 4.047 at 178.15 in his 3V Performance-powered ’10 Cobalt to take the Extreme Pro Stock No. 1 spot.
“It feels awesome to pick up our first No. 1 qualifier of the year,” Huffman said. “We are very motivated to leave U.S. 131 with a win and the points lead.”
Alan Drinkwater qualified second with a 4.08 at 176.61, and reigning champion Chris Powers was third at 4.109 and 176.82.
Tanner earned her second Pro 632 No. 1 qualifier with a 4.148 at 171.56 in the final session. The Indiana-based driver, who won the 2024 World Finals, is seeking her first win of 2025 at her home event.
Sportsman top qualifiers included Don Klooster in Elite Top Sportsman, Jody Stroud in Elite Top Dragster, Brian Werner in Top Sportsman, and Noah Vislosky in Top Dragster.
Danika Miles provisionally led Paragon Pro Jr. Dragster with a 7.903 on the 7.90 index, while Knox Schween topped Classic Graphix Top Jr. Dragster qualifying with a .007 reaction time.
The Saturday schedule at the Northern Nationals, which also includes a night of Top Fuel, nostalgia Top Fuel, Fuel Altereds, Outlaw Nostalgia Funny Cars, jet cars, and more, starts with Jr. Dragster final qualifying at 9 a.m., while pro eliminations will start around noon. Nitro shows are scheduled for 6 p.m. and 9 p.m.
