Competition Plus’ Water-Cooler Topics From The NHRA Midwest Nationals outside of St. Louis.
1 – LANGDON ROLLS ON TOWARD SECOND TITLE – Two-time and reigning Top Fuel champion Doug Kalitta’s first-round elimination emboldened an already confident Shawn Langdon to take down four title contenders for his eighth victory in 17 events so far this season. His fourth consecutive triumph is pure domination not seen since Steve Torrence swept the six-race playoffs in 2018 en route to four straight Top Fuel crowns.
“I feel like I’m living a dream right now,” Langdon said. “But it’s a reality, and it’s great to be a part of it.”
The Kalitta Motorsports class ruler, who claimed the 2013 Top Fuel championship, denied first-time finalist Will Smith in the money round to earn his 30th pro victory in his 62nd final-round appearance. With races left at Dallas, Las Vegas, and Pomona, Calif., Langdon has a 46-9 elimination-round record (83.6 percent).
He advanced past Tony Schumacher, Leah Pruett, and Justin Ashley to meet Smith, who beat Maddi Gordon, Tony Stewart, and Kalitta-conquerer Shawn Reed.
“Each Wally [trophy] that we get, it just continues to grow” in importance, Langdon said after extending his advantage over No. 2-ranked Kalitta from 25 points to 116. “Beginning of the year, we had some goals in mind for our team. We’ve been so dang close the last couple years. We had the equipment, we had the personnel, we had the team to do it to compete for championships, and it just didn’t work in our favor. But I felt like this year, we kept focused on the details, kept focusing on the little points.”
He said crew chief Brian Husen “kept striving, pushing, everybody to strive for perfection. And I think this team’s showing it right now. It’s a great time to be a part of Team Kalitta right now. We’re doing all this for [team owner] Connie Kalitta. He gives us everything we need to live our dreams, have some fun, race a race car, and go 346 miles an hour. To be able to put on performances like this is just a testament to the guys, their hard work, their perfection putting the car together, giving Brian an opportunity to put a great tune up in the car and giving me an opportunity to keep the thing straight and go as fast as I can.
“The car is great right now, and it listens very well. It does what it’s told to do, but the more runs we make, the more confidence we build. We just try to make the best run that we can depending on the conditions,” Langdon said.
But Langdon wouldn’t place the crown on his head just yet. Someone asked him, “Who’s this year’s Top Fuel champion?” He coyly relied, “In three races we’ll know, right?”
2 – PROCK RUSHES INTO FUNNY CAR CHAMPIONSHIP CONVERSATION – If you can’t join ‘em, beat ‘em.
Austin Prock, who in the offseason switched Funny Car teams – from John Force Racing, where he earned two championships, to Bob Tasca Racing, where he struggled early on – eliminated two JFR title contenders in surging back into legitimate title contention.
He continues to write one of the most gripping comeback stories in NHRA history, knocking off the four drivers directly ahead of him in the standings to march from as far back as 17th place early in the season – and sixth place at the start of this weekend – to third.
By defeating Ron Capps, J.R. Todd, then JFR’s Jack Beckman and, finally, his nemesis Jordan Vandergriff, Prock sliced the gap between himself and leader Matt Hagan from 144 points to 106.
Prock said his focus “has been targeted on [a third consecutive championship] all year since we started and DNQ’d in Gainesville [the season-opener]. I knew this race car was going to come along, and I’m just so proud of the effort this team has put in. It is truly unbelievable. I don’t think there’s another team out here that could do what we’ve done in this season, let alone getting this race car together. This is a dream come true, man. I love winning these Wallys and to do it with Tasca Racing. Bob Tasca is the best boss I’ve ever had. I love that family, and I love all these guys.”
Intended or not, it was a swipe at former boss John Force, who parted ways with Prock and his family-anchored team for still-not-fully disclosed reasons and put Prock’s rival, Vandergriff, in the seat of the Funny Car that brought Prock back-to-back championships. Many loyal Force fans have insulted Prock and his crew chief dad Jimmy and brother Thomas in social-media posts since last winter. But Austin Prock said Sunday, “What’s been going on on the Internet, we don’t even pay any attention to that. Those people saying those rude things are not important to our family or this race team.”
Shifting attention back to what is significant, Prock said, “This is the time to get hot. After everything we’ve been through this year, all the hours we haven’t slept, and seven days a week working at this, it really pays off when you get a win. We’re hot right now, and we’ve been hot for the last 12 races. We just haven’t been able to finish the job.
“We had a really dominant Ford Mustang this weekend. We had to run through a lot of hitters today. Each round was like a final round. Everybody we beat was in front of us in the Countdown. It was an epic way to cap it off. You don’t have days like this very often. When you run through four hitters like that, that’s like winning two races in one, he said. “We’re just over 100 points out of the lead.
“We’re in striking distance now going into Dallas, and I’m really excited for these next three races. I’ve been hammering the Tree, and this Prock Rocket has been running on mean right now.,” he said. Prock was especially proud of prevailing this weekend, considering his tasks “have been final-round quality match-ups.”
With an enhanced points format at the finale at Pomona, Prock said, “With points and a half, there’s no tellin’ [how the standings will shake out]. You could be 100 points out of the lead and still get the job done. NHRA drag racing is so unpredictable – but this Ford Mustang, the ETs it’s running are pretty predictable right now.”
3 – STANFIELD HELPS HIS FATHER, THEN HOLESHOTS HIM – Aaron Stanfield said that when he squared off Sunday against his father, points leader Greg Stanfield, on the quarter-mile racetrack for the eighth time in his career, “I know I got to really get up on the wheel and do my job.” Dad had a 6-1 advantage over him and 1-0 edge in prior final-round meetings.
So, after taking out two of his dad’s challengers, he used a holeshot victory over his dad, cutting a superb reaction time (.018 seconds) to his quicker and faster father’s outstanding one (.028), to balance the score a bit – by one thousandth of a second.
Before his dad rushed over and playfully put him in a headlock, Aaron Stanfield said of Greg Stanfield, “I’m super-proud of him. He’s proven he’s still got a lot left in his tank, and he’s out here racing for a championship. And we were able to help him today and take out some people hot on his tail. And he was able to do a good job today.”
Aaron Stanfield, driving the JHG/Melling Chevrolet Camaro, dismissed Derek Kramer then beat Matt Hartford, his dad’s closest rival in the standings. Proving blood is thicker than racing fuel, Aaron Stanfield beat their Elite Motorsports teammate Troy Coughlin Jr., another top-five driver and the winner at the Countdown opener.
“It’s been an up-and-down year,” Aaron Stanfield, a three-time winner this season, said. “We go from winning to getting beat first round for several races.” But it was his time to shine Sunday.
“It’s hard to get to the final round alone, and to be able to share it with my dad is pretty special,” he said. “He’s taught me absolutely everything I know in a race car. I told him I was fixing to show him what he taught me. We’re going to race as hard as we can possibly race. A thousandth at the stripe — it doesn’t get any better than that.
“At the start of the day, I would definitely say my car kind of pulled me along. As the day went on, I started finding myself on the Tree, and it ended up with me in the final round with my dad. As a whole, the entire Elite team ran really well this weekend. We just need to keep that trajectory,” Aaron Stanfield said.
He’s back in eighth place in the standings, 191 points behind Greg Stanfield, who leads No. 2 Dallas Glenn by 71 points, Hartford by 81, and Greg Anderson by 109.
4 – HERRERA’S ST. LOUIS LOVE STORY CONTINUES – Gaige Herrera, gunning for his third Pro Stock Motorcycle championship in four years, knows his toughest competitor this year is his own RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki teammate, current champion Richard Gadson. And that’s who he beat Sunday to record his fourth consecutive victory at World Wide Technology Raceway.
“Getting this win here in St. Louis means a lot. St. Louis holds a special place for me. I don’t know what it is with this place, but it’s always been very good to me. I wish we had all the races here,” Herrera said.
With that, Herrera has 31 triumphs in 37 finals. He has a 23-8 showing on race day, posted his third victory this year in five finals, and evened his mark against Gadson to three apiece.
Moreover, this weekend, he reset the track elapsed-time record in qualifying No. 1 (at 6.644 on the quarter-mile), then bested Malcolm Phillips and Ryan Oehler to reach the final round.
Herrera became the third different rider in as many races to win in the Countdown, and he trails Gadson in the standings by a mere 32 points with three races to go.
“The Countdown, the last six races, is when it all matters,” Herrera said. “Racing Richard in the final puts a lot of pressure on me. He’s the man on the Tree. He’s very consistent, and it was awesome to race him in the final. I felt like I was trying to push myself too much the last couple races. This whole weekend, I just reminded myself [that] I’m living the dream. I’m having fun, and that’s what it’s all about.”
Herrera now trails his teammate by just 32 points with three races remaining, which means a thrilling duel between the two teammates who have won the last three world titles could be coming.
“The Countdown, the last six races, is when it all matters,” Herrera said. “Getting this win here in St. Louis means a lot. St. Louis holds a special place for me. I don’t know what it is with this place, but it’s always been very good to me. I wish we had all the races here.”
That’s not the case, but, Herrera said, “This is a big deal for me. Points-wise, we gained a little bit on my teammate. He still has the points lead, but it’s going to be a dogfight.”
Gadson, whose seventh finals appearance of the year helped him retain his points lead, advanced past Chase Van Sant, Matt Smith, and Martin winner John Hall.
5 – DO IT AGAIN – Justin Ashley and Jasmine Salinas had already raced once Sunday at St. Louis. About an hour later, NHRA told them to do it again.
One of the weekend’s more peculiar moments unfolded during the second round of Top Fuel eliminations when a starting-line malfunction erased what appeared to be a Salinas victory.
As the two staged, Salinas’ pre-stage and stage lights worked normally while Ashley’s bulbs flickered. After seven seconds, the Christmas Tree activated, Salinas left and ran 3.815 seconds at 329.99 mph while Ashley never made the run.
For a few minutes, Salinas appeared headed to the semifinals. Approximately five minutes later, NHRA officials determined the race would be rerun.
That created another problem.
Salinas had just made a full 1,000-foot pass at nearly 330 mph, meaning her Scrappers Racing crew needed to perform a complete between-round engine service. Ashley’s car, meanwhile, hadn’t traveled down the track.
About an hour later, they returned to the starting line, and this time there was no ambiguity. Ashley grabbed a .040-to-.094 starting-line advantage and won with a 3.764-second run at 332.75 mph after Salinas smoked the tires immediately.
Ashley advanced to face Shawn Langdon in the semifinals, with the victory officially becoming his 24th career holeshot win.
For Salinas, a 3.815 at nearly 330 mph became little more than an expensive test run.
5B – STEVIE FAST KNOWS RECORDS AND WINNING – Pro Modified spent most of the St. Louis weekend chasing numbers nobody had seen before. Stevie “Fast” Jackson spent Sunday chasing something he hadn’t seen in four years — an NHRA winner’s trophy.
Jackson ended his drought at World Wide Technology Raceway, defeating Stan Shelton in the final round of the JBS Equipment NHRA Pro Mod Series event during the NAPA Auto Parts NHRA Midwest Nationals. The victory was the two-time world champion’s 14th in NHRA competition and his first since 2022.
“It’s really awesome when you go through adversity and get to come out the other side,” Jackson said. “This is a really hard place to win. Seeing these fans out in the grandstands, that’s what gets us fired up and it was awesome this weekend. We’ve had a really good car and have a good handle on it.”
Jackson qualified fourth and eliminated Kevin Rivenbark, Mike Thielen and reigning world champion J.R. Gray before meeting Shelton. The final was decided immediately when Shelton left before the green light.
Jackson wasn’t waiting around for a gift.
He coupled a .019-second reaction time with a 5.634-second run at 255.48 mph, another stout number during a weekend when Pro Mod performance went into previously unexplored territory.
Chip King provided the biggest number Saturday, qualifying No. 1 with a 5.596 at 257.24 mph to become the first NHRA Pro Mod driver into the 5.50-second range. The series elapsed-time record had fallen during each of the final three qualifying sessions before King finally planted the flag.
The championship standings took a beating, too.
Points leader Mike Stavrinos exited in the opening round, allowing Justin Bond to leave St. Louis with the lead despite losing to Shelton in the semifinals. Bond takes a 17-point advantage over Stavrinos into the season finale at Las Vegas, with Derek Menholt 54 points back and Gray trailing by 67. – Bobby Bennett
6 – ALLEGRUCCI HEADLINES SPORTSMAN WINNERS – Jonathan Allegrucci had already taken care of the big prize at World Wide Technology Raceway in the semifinal round. He had buzzed through Kyle Pawuk, then reached the semifinal when David Janac was a no-show. He used his semifinal mastery of Doug Duell to clinch the first class championship awarded in the NHRA’s 75th anniversary season.
However, a diamond Wally statue still was sitting there for the taking.
After clinching the Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown championship in his Ford Mustang Cobra Jet, Allegrucci completed the sweep by defeating Scott Libersher in the final round – the Scott’s Township, Pa., driver’s seventh of the year and 10th overall.
Libersher grabbed the starting-line advantage with a .040 reaction time but immediately spun the tires. Allegrucci drove away with a 7.640-second pass at 179.92 mph for his fourth victory of the season and fifth of his career.
“This has been a dream season,” Allegrucci told Amanda Busick of FOX. “I have to thank Kim Shirley and Kim Shirley Racing. He is the king. My crew and family have been behind me all season. This was a tough battle with Raymond Nash, Scott Libersher and the rest of the Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown class. Thank you, Flexjet, for sponsoring this class.” – Bobby Bennett
7 – SPORTSMAN RACERS PUT ON STRONG SHOW – Christopher Dodd collected his seventh career national-event victory and first in Competition Eliminator when Scott Linder spun the tires in the final. Dodd, the No. 2 qualifier, ran 8.286 for the victory.
Jimmy Hidalgo Jr. did his damage at the starting line in Super Stock, using a .004 reaction time to defeat Jacob Delaune by .0088 second.
Stock Eliminator supplied the throwback show of the afternoon. Johnny Diekema and Brett Saurbaugh squared off heads-up in a pair of big-block, manual-transmission Corvette Stingrays, with Diekema’s .018 reaction time and 9.719 securing his first Wally in three final-round appearances.
James Glenn won Super Comp by over Michael Holcombe, while Kris Whitfield claimed his sixth career Wally by beating Todd Pullen in Super Gas.
Luke Bogacki completed the Sportsman winners list by defeating Alaia Isenhower in Top Dragster. Bogacki’s .016 reaction time and 6.806-second run delivered career national event victory No. 17. – Bobby Bennett
8 – ‘I DO’ – The Ron Capps Motorsports pit became a wedding chapel of sorts this weekend.
Capps lost to eventual Funny Car winner Austin Prock in the opening round, but he salved his disappointment, knowing he had done something kind for some fans.
“When someone comes into your pit and it’s like, ‘Hey, listen, I’ve got something really serious going on,’ and you are able to help, that does put it in perspective a little bit.”
Capps explained.
“Late Friday, we had somebody that got a diagnosis of cancer, and they thought they were doing better – and then they found out that they weren’t. They were longtime fans of mine, going back to the Don Prudhomme days, and they wanted to get married. And they thought of no better place for them for both than in our pit area. And so Ted [Yerzyk] and Paul [Mecca] and our hospitality group, Joe Maynard and all of them, we opened it up and let them get married Saturday morning,” he said.
“We weren’t in the show. We had a lot going on in my brain and the team,” Capps said, “but it was like, ‘Hold on, this is way bigger.’ And they’re from this area. And that’s one thing about this track. We talk about the racing, the track and everything Chris Blair and his group do, but the fans here, it’s always just the best. Everybody is so polite. They’re so great. They sell the place out. They love their NHRA drag racing, but at the same time, sometimes there’s things larger than what our sport is. And that was a pretty emotional morning, but it was very cool. I think the reason we got in the show was because of the mojo we got from them and the emotion we saw.”
9 – THEY SAID IT –“Everybody in that crew chief lounge and our entire Elite Motorsports team has put their heads together and has been grinding really hard. We just need to keep moving in this same direction. I don’t know what kind of shot I have at winning a championship, but I sure would like to see my dad win one. He’s fought his whole career for this opportunity. I had to beg him to get back in a Pro Stock car, and obviously he’s still got a lot left in the tank.” – Pro Stock winner Aaron Stanfield regarding his father, Pro Stock points leader and Sunday runner-up Greg Stanfield
“I know that it’s going to be a great afternoon with these fire-belching beasts going down the runway at, what, 350 miles an hour. We’ve been 30 years with Cruz [Pedregon], one of the 75 greatest drivers of all time, 75 years of NHRA, and 250 years of the United States of America. It’s a great country. Snap-on’s quite a company, and we do business in 130 countries around the world. I’ve been in many of them. And I can tell you without equivocation, without qualification, without question, that America is still the greatest country in the world and we’re privileged to be here. Snap-on’s been around 106 years, and we like the quality and we like our company, but we like being with Cruz Pedregon – one of the top 75 drivers of all time. We don’t invest in cars. We don’t invest in engines. We invest in people. And he’s a great person. He’s capable, he’s skilled, he’s courageous, and everybody likes him. Who wouldn’t want to be a partner with Cruz Pedregon? Snap-on is proud to be part of that.
[Regarding Snap-on’s salute to The Makers and Fixers.] Actually, why is America the greatest country in the world? Historians will tell you that the Americans are the makers and fixers. They’re the ones who made us great. And here at NHRA, you can see their power on display with the cars and then go into the pit and you see them make it happen, get the cars back out here every 60 minutes.” – Nick Pinchuk, president/CEO/chairman of the board of Snap-on Tools
‘The landscape of points opportunity was there … and we were unable to seize it. Our power just wasn’t there. Overall we gained in completion rate. We are deep-diving into these issues and have no other intentions besides swinging hard in Dallas. Huge thank you to Pellera. Having them on the side of our Top Fuel dragster and out to the track and getting to work with their film crew, it made for an exciting weekend. They are a huge part of our TSR program. Obviously, wish we could have gotten the job done for them and put this beautiful purple Pellera car in the winners circle, but every time we do land a win, it’s with their help.” – Leah Pruett, who eliminated Top Fuel opponent Kyle Wurtzel but fell to eventual winner Shawn Langdon in Round 2
9 – FROM THOSE WHO CAME CLOSE – Thoughts from some key drivers who had a tough day at World Wide Technology Raceway:
Ron Capps – “We didn’t qualify where we needed to qualify, unfortunately, and fortunately for the fans, it was the marquee matchup for a reason. We don’t qualify usually that far down, and we knew we’d have somebody tough. You qualify 13th, 14th, 15th, that area, you’re going to have somebody tough. And then fighting for a championship, it’s going to be a marquee matchup. And that’s what it was. So a good run by Guido [crew chief Dean Antonelli]. We made it down the track. I actually clicked mine off when he crossed the finish line. It might have run a little better, but the fact we got down that left lane, I think was a compliment to Guido. We just need to qualify better.” – Funny Car first-round loser to eventual winner Austin Prock
Doug Kalitta – “I was going down there, and the Gerber car seemed pretty good. But about two-thirds of the way, it smoked the tires and threw the belt off when I pedaled. It’s just one of those deals. With everybody running real close, you definitely have to get to the finish line. Thanks to everyone at Gerber Collision & Glass for being on the car this weekend.” – No. 2-ranked Top Fuel driver who experienced his only first-round loss of the season Sunday against Shawn Reed
Alexis DeJoria – “I’ve never felt so confident, so charged, so excited about a race weekend as I was about this one. We have such a good car. During qualifying, we had one of the best, if not the best, cars. Friday and Saturday, we got bonus points. It always matters during the Countdown. Every little one matters. We almost got that No. 1 qualifier, but at least it went to my teammate and not some outsiders. My guys, Jonnie Lindberg and Mike Neff, have a handle on this car. We’ve always been consistent, but now we’re fast and consistent. We’re running the numbers we need to be running. We’re getting down to the wire. There are only three races left. And we’ve come so damn close. We’re just going to use this as motivation to light that fire for our next race.” – Funny Car racer who lost to John Force Racing teammate Jordan Vandergriff in the quarterfinals (but gave him a ride back to the pit when his tow vehicle left without him)
Jordan Vandergriff – “Overall, it was a great day for this Cornwell Quality Tools Funny Car. We performed well in qualifying and were happy with where we were coming into race day. We made four solid runs, three of them in the left lane, which seemed to be tricky for a lot of the competitors, and took out the points leader in Matt Hagan. Going to the final was huge, and I think we’re right where we should be in this chase for the championship.” – Funny Car runner-up
Jack Beckman – “Today was a great opportunity to make up ground on Matt Hagan when our teammate, Jordan Vandergriff, took him out in the semis but then we get beat by Austin Prock. I did a good job. Austin did a better job. Both of us ran 3.90 and history’s going to show it as a holeshot loss. I think Austin reacted a little bit better and I think their car probably outran us by a couple of thousandths. It’s a gut punch, but we’ll take a week off, get everything serviced and head to Dallas. We don’t need any more motivation. We have the best car and the best crew. I just need to be the best driver in Dallas.” – Funny Car semifinalist, who lost to eventual winner Austin Prock
Matt Hagan – “The pressure is huge out here. Fortunately, I’m kind of old, I’ve been through it, experienced a lot, won some championships along the way, so you always feel like you can rise to the occasion and try to give your guys the best you can. Today was wild – we saw people out here winning on holeshots, and guys and girls double-stepping. It’s intense, but that’s why we love it. I absolutely just dig in deep and try to work hard for these guys, and they’re doing the same thing, giving me a great car. We had a great weekend in this American Rebel Light Beer Dodge Funny Car, nothing to hang our heads about. We did well in qualifying, picking up points, the last dog standing low qualifier on Friday night. Mike Knudsen, Phil Shuler, and Alex Conaway have this car dialed in. We had to make some changes before that semi-final. I definitely don’t claim to be a crew chief, but we did stick a new supercharger on there, and maybe it had a little bit more meat than we needed it to, and it smoked the tires, didn’t go two feet. But we’re still leaving here with the points lead. This is absolutely one of the toughest championship fights I’ve been in in a long time. It’s going to come down to the last race in Pomona, a dog fight to the end. We’ll see what happens out here. But I know I’m not voting for anybody, I’m going to root for me and this team.” – Funny Car points leader and Sunday’s semifinal finisher against Jordan Vandergriff
10 – ON A MISSION – The SCAG-sponsored team cars sported the pink schemes that demonstrated support for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. And the father-son tandem of Tim and Daniel Wilkerson were all-in.
After breaking into the Funny Car field in his last opportunity, Daniel Wilkerson said, “When we’re doing stuff like this, it seems like the end of the world. I’m sitting in that car, I’m about to puke. I think I’m going to die. But one in eight women will get breast cancer in their life. And we’re doing something bigger than playing with stupid cars this weekend. We’re raising awareness for a serious cause. A lot of women in my life that’s been affected by this, and we want to see it get less and less. So for research awareness, that run’s for you, ladies.”
His crew chief father, Tim Wilkerson, said, “We’re all pretty in pink this weekend. We’re trying to do our deal for breast cancer. And God bless all you girls that went through that. That’s a terrible, terrible thing. So we’re here for you, believe me.”
