It was hot. It was humid, and it was a day where the No. 1 qualifiers from Friday rested on their laurels. The four professional leaders at the NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio, maintained their top spots headed into Sunday.
Justin Ashley (Top Fuel), Cruz Pedregon (Funny Car), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) qualified No. 1 at the 10th of 20 races during the 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season.
Ashley retained the provisional No. 1 qualifier with a 3.752-second pass at 330.88 mph in his Scag Power Equipment dragster. The run secured his first top qualifier of the season and seventh of his career, and he will face Scott Farley in the first round of eliminations.
Ashley heads into Sunday following a remarkable streak of five final-round appearances in the last six races. “We try to use qualifying the right way, to set ourselves up for Sunday,” he said. “Anybody can win, especially in today’s Top Fuel class.”
Antron Brown took the No. 2 qualifying spot with a 3.755, 333.33 pass. Tony Stewart secured the third berth at 327.11 mph after overcoming an engine explosion earlier in the day.
Pedregon grabbed the provisional top spot after a 3.890-second run at 318.39 mph in his Snap-On Makers and Fixers Dodge Hellcat. The two-time world champion earned his 65th career No. 1 qualifier—his first since early 2023—and will face Buddy Hull in the first round of eliminations.
“I’m confident we’ll get our heads together and make the right adjustments,” Pedregon said. “There’s nothing like turning on win lights on Sundays.” Defending champion and points leader Austin Prock qualified second with a 3.900, 331.28, while Ron Capps secured the third spot at 3.908, 325.06.
Anderson maintained the provisional top qualifier position by improving Saturday with a 6.594-second run at 206.78 mph in his HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro. The four-time No. 1 qualifier this season will take the No. 1 seed into Sunday’s eliminations.
Dallas Glenn qualified second with a 6.596, 207.15, and Matt Hartford landed third at 207.21 mph with a 6.604-second run.
Smith, a six-time world champion, claimed his first No. 1 qualifier of the season in Pro Stock Motorcycle after running a 6.816-second pass at 200.86 mph on his Denso Auto Parts Buell. The effort marked his 59th career top qualifier.
“We qualified five bikes in the top seven,” Smith said. “When the track gets this hot with a lot of humidity, it’s hard to get off the line. I feel like we have the best bike from eighth-mile to finish line.”
Gaige Herrera followed with a 6.820-second effort at 199.11 mph for the No. 2 slot, and John Hall took third with a 6.832-second run at 199.35 mph.
Eliminations for the NHRA Nationals begin at 11 a.m. EDT Sunday, with championship implications building as the season reaches its midpoint in the 20-event season.
