Competition Plus’ random water-cooler topics from the NHRA Denso Sonoma Nationals at Northern California’s Sonoma Raceway
1 – IT’S A FULL SELLOUT – NHRA officials announced a Sunday sellout at Sonoma Raceway, completing a clean sweep of capacity crowds during the three-day Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals presented by PowerEdge.
The 38th annual event, the 11th of 20 races in NHRA’s 75th anniversary season, drew sellout crowds on Friday, Saturday and Sunday as fans packed the facility throughout the weekend.
Fans were treated to a full slate of marquee attractions, including the Deecell After Dark Low Qualifier, the GETTRX Pro Stock Motorcycle All-Star Callout, the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, four qualifying sessions and Sunday’s eliminations in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series.
Overflow crowds filled the facility each day under ideal weather conditions, making Sonoma one of the most attended events of the 2026 season.
The three-day sweep increases NHRA’s total to eight sellout event days during its 75th anniversary campaign. Previous capacity crowds this season were recorded in Gainesville, Valdosta, Maryland, and Epping, underscoring the continued momentum for the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series as the season heads into its second half.
2 – JUST ONE MORE – Jordan Vandergriff spent part of Sunday hoping Daniel Wilkerson would soon earn his first NHRA Funny Car victory. Then the two met in the final round, and those good wishes quickly disappeared.
Vandergriff completed one of the strongest weekends of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season, driving his Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS to a 3.900-second pass at 330.72 mph to defeat Wilkerson and claim his second career Funny Car victory and first at Sonoma Raceway.
The Brea, Calif., driver qualified No. 1 and backed it up with four consistent elimination-round runs after his team made major changes following the race at Norwalk, Ohio, on June 28. Vandergriff defeated Jason Rupert and Matt Hagan before advancing to the final, where he closed out a weekend that moved him to second in the Funny Car points standings.
The turnaround began with a new front half on the race car, a move Vandergriff admitted carried some uncertainty until qualifying began.
“Pretty unbelievable, honestly,” Vandergriff said. “The front half in the car, just because it was timing out. We figured, ‘Might as well just do it.’ We came here and we pushed immediately.”
“That’s a credit to John Force Racing and the fab shop and all those guys back at the shop. We can’t do it without you guys, either, and to get a great race car that we’ve come out here and literally hit the ground running.”
Vandergriff said he entered eliminations knowing his team had the quickest car, but understood everyone else would be chasing them.
“I came in this morning after qualifying and thinking, ‘Okay, it’s our race to lose,'” Vandergriff said. “It was a weird feeling. … Luckily for me, we had some tough battles. Everybody ran good against us.”
The victory answered a question Vandergriff had been asking himself since winning his first Funny Car title earlier this season in Georgia.
“After my first win, I remember sitting home on the couch looking at Wally and I’m thinking, ‘How do I get a second one?’” Vandergriff said. “So I’ve answered that, and now I’m going to go home and look at two Wallys and ask myself how to get the third.”
Facing Wilkerson in the final carried a little irony. Vandergriff admitted he had rooted for Wilkerson during a previous final-round appearance, but not this time.
“When he was in the final in Bristol against Hagan, I was in the stands like, ‘Yeah, it’d be cool if Daniel won one,'” Vandergriff said. “Then found myself lined up against him today. I said, ‘You know what? It’s not going to be that cool if Daniel wins one. No, not today.'”
Vandergriff believes Wilkerson’s first victory is only a matter of time.
“Their time is coming,” he said. “Tim Wilkerson, a legend, a great of this sport, and Daniel is not too far behind him. He’s learned a lot from his dad and they’re coming around.”
3 – KALITTA ADDS TO ALAN JOHNSON MEMORIES – Doug Kalitta has made Sonoma Raceway his personal proving ground, and Sunday the reigning NHRA Top Fuel champion added another chapter to one of the most dominant track records in class history. Before a capacity crowd, Kalitta drove his Aflac dragster to a 3.731-second pass at 339.36 mph, defeating northern California native Jasmine Salinas in the final round to secure his second straight Sonoma victory and a record seventh Top Fuel win at the facility.
The victory wrapped up a weekend in which Kalitta controlled every major storyline. He qualified No. 1, collected the Deecell After Dark Low Qualifier bonus and marched through eliminations with victories over Clay Millican and Antron Brown before closing the deal against Salinas.
Kalitta’s 61st career NHRA national-event victory also tightened the championship picture. The veteran now trails Kalitta Motorsports teammate Shawn Langdon by just 85 points as the Countdown race begins to take shape.
Sonoma has often served as a turning point in Kalitta’s championship pursuits. His victory there a season ago became the catalyst for his 2025 title run, and Sunday’s performance offered another reminder that few drivers know how to capitalize on momentum better than the two-time champion.
Salinas entered the final round looking for the first victory of her Top Fuel career and gave herself every opportunity at the starting line. Her .056-second reaction time beat Kalitta off the line, but the veteran quickly erased the deficit and drove past her 3.815, 319.14.
While the trophy belonged to Kalitta, the day marked another milestone for Salinas. She advanced to her first career final round with victories over Josh Hart, points leader Langdon and Leah Pruett, reinforcing that the Scrappers Racing driver continues to establish herself as a legitimate contender in the category.
Kalitta admitted Sonoma continues to carry special meaning for reasons beyond statistics. The annual stop in Wine Country also brings memories of the late Blaine Johnson, whose legacy remains closely tied to crew chief Alan Johnson.
“This is a very special place for me. We had a little dry spell through the years, but I’m glad that we managed to get the last two wins here,” Kalitta said.
“It’s been 30 years since, unfortunately, we lost Blaine Johnson, and I’m going to have the honor of giving this trophy to Alan this evening once we get done with this. It’s very deserving with everything he’s put into this sport. Blaine was a hell of a driver, so this is going to be an honor. This is the time of the year where it gets really fun because we’re all battling for points. We’re still quite a ways behind Shawn, but we’ve got enough time to do it.”
4 – FLUCTUATING EMOTIONS – Earlier in the day, even after defeating Jason Rupert and No. 2-ranked and four-time champion Matt Hagan, Funny Car rookie Jordan Vandergriff said his emotions have wavered during the past few months.
“I was really confident when the year started and so far the ebbs and flows of my rookie year have kind of caught up with me,” Vandergriff said. “ And before that run, I was talking to Jack [teammate Beckman] about when you have a car that’s running really good, ‘How come I feel a little different?’ I’m supposed to be better when I don’t really need to be. I don’t know. It’s just a weird feeling. You get in your head driving these things, but [that was] a huge round-win and to get it over Matt Hagan … That’s a good team right now, and we’re chasing them in points. So it’s all thank you to Chris Cunningham, Jason Bunker, my Cornwell Quality Tools boys and you dealers out there. Can’t do it without you.”
FOX’s Amanda Busick asked him, “How do you feel drivers perceive you in this class?”
The eventual winner’s reply? “Oh, I don’t know. I hope they think about me a little bit.”
One of his fellow drivers certainly did – the one he raced and eliminated in the semifinal round, Austin Prock.
Before this first meeting in Funny Car competition – they had an entertaining Top Fuel rivalry several years ago – Vandergriff said coyly, “Get your popcorn ready.” And he and Prock made it a popcorn-worthy, side-by-side show fans have anticipated since last December’s announcement that Vandergriff would take over the car and sponsor with which Prock has won the past two championships. At that time, Vandergriff said his intention was to beat Prock with the original “Prock Rocket” he immediately renamed “The Bunker Buster” after his own co-crew chief.
The cars were seven-thousandths apart at the starting line and separated by a mere three-thousandths at the finish line.
“To finish the job I think and win this race, that means more,” Vandergriff responded when asked if that race was one he simply couldn’t lose. “Wins mean more. For myself, Chris Cunningham, Jason Bunker, my guys, we want to win and we feel like we’re one of the best teams out here. We’re trying to prove that. So the win means more, but that semi was cool, too.”
When pressed if the perceived rivalry with Prock is one he wants to avoid answering questions about, he was to the point.
“No, I don’t want to avoid it,” Vandergriff answered. “I don’t really want to avoid it. I think it’s just something that, obviously it doesn’t even need to be stated. Everybody knows what we’re talking about, right? We’re talking about me and Austin Prock and the decision he made to leave this car over the last offseason.
“But, listen, I mean he’s a two-time champion and they earned every bit of it. I just wanted to come in to this car and hold my own and try to be better. Be the best, you got to beat the best. And we beat the best today. So getting this win is great, but look, that’s just the first of many battles and I wanted to win it. I know he wanted to too. If this is the first of many, then I’m glad to get my win.”
5 – I’LL TAKE IT – Greg Stanfield walked away from the starting line after the opening round knowing he had been given a chance he probably shouldn’t have had. By the end of Sunday, the veteran Pro Stock racer had turned that break into his second straight victory at Sonoma Raceway and the seventh professional win of his career.
Stanfield closed the day with a holeshot victory over Elite Motorsports teammate Erica Enders, posting a 6.551-second pass at 211.00 mph with a .015-second reaction-time advantage to collect one of NHRA’s Diamond Wally trophies commemorating the sanctioning body’s 75th anniversary.
The victory was built on surviving one of the toughest elimination ladders of the weekend. Stanfield defeated his son, Aaron Stanfield, then knocked out Mason McGaha and Jeg Coughlin Jr. before meeting Enders in the final.
His opening-round matchup against Aaron nearly ended before it started.
Stanfield admitted an unusual staging sequence worked in his favor, allowing him to steal a race that easily could have gone the other direction.
“First round was absolutely nuts,” Stanfield said. “When I ran Aaron, I didn’t know what happened. I had staged and I seen his light flicker, and I was like … I paused for a second, and I went ahead and matted it. And I think he was easing out on the clutch and the light came back on. So, I won first round on pure luck against Aaron because I should have been beaten right there. So, that was my mulligan of the day.”
Stanfield made sure he didn’t waste that opportunity. He followed with the quickest run of his weekend against McGaha before advancing past Coughlin when the former NHRA champion encountered tire shake in the semifinals.
Facing six-time champion Enders in the final didn’t change his approach.
“Actually, when I race, I really don’t look who’s in the other lane. I really don’t,” Stanfield said. “I just try to focus on my side and what I can do, and try to do the best I can. And the outcome’s going to be what it is.”
The Sonoma victory continued a mid-season surge for Elite Motorsports, which placed all four of its entries in the semifinals.
“I think this team is gaining ground on the KB guys,” Stanfield said. “I think they’ve backed up and we gained a little bit, and I think it’s going to be good for the fans, good for the sport to have an all-out freaking brawl at the end.”
For Stanfield, the victory also carried personal meaning.
“I mean, that’s 75 years of NHRA drag racing, so it’s huge,” Stanfield said of winning the Diamond Wally. “To have one is absolutely just phenomenal. I didn’t think I’d get one this year, but it feels good to have one, for sure.”
At an age when many of his contemporaries have long since retired, Stanfield continues to prove experience still has a place in one of drag racing’s toughest categories.
“So if we can peak at the right time, there’s a lot of good drivers in the Elite camp,” Stanfield said. “I feel like I’m probably the weakest link over there, being the old guy. You just don’t know what you’re going to get with me. So, I think if they can keep these cars moving in the right direction, it’s going to be fun to watch.”
5B – FOUR HUNDRED RACES – Pro Stock runner-up Erica Enders hit the 400-start plateau this weekend.
Heading into this coming weekend’s Muckleshoot Casino Resort NHRA Northwest Nationals, the six-time champion and 50-time Pro Stock winner has a career eliminations-round record of 532-299. On Sunday, she was part of a team achievement. For the first time, her Richard Freeman-owned Elite Motorsports organization boasted all four Pro Stock semifinalists, ensuring an all-Elite final round. And Greg Stanfield, who outran Enders in that final, brought the trophy to the Oklahoma-headquartered team.
6 – PLENTY OF PRO STOCK DRAMA TO GO AROUND – Perhaps the most exciting Round 1 of eliminations in recent memory unfolded Sunday morning. It was at the least the most dramatic from start to finish.
The first two pairings were decided on holeshots, with Greg Stanfield beating his son, Aaron, and Eric Latino ousting the reigning series champion and points leader, Dallas Glenn. Next in line was Latino’s son, Matt, against Greg Anderson, the most successful active driver in all pro categories. Matt Latino defeated Anderson, handing him his second straight first-round exit. Immediately afterward, No. 13 starter Jeg Coughlin Jr., an unlikely bottom-half qualifier, upset No. 4-qualified Matt Hartford. The top three drivers in the standings were out of the equation in a matter of minutes.
The surprises continued with Mason McGaha in the next pairing. McGaha, the No. 16 qualifier who had taken off five races to regroup because his team owner/teammate dad said he “was just tired of seeing us getting our teeth kicked in,” beat No. 1 qualifier Chris Vang. Hoping for a better result from his first No. 1 start, Vang lost when his car wouldn’t go into high gear.
McGaha made a bit of history: This was the first time in this class since the early 1990s that the 16th-qualified car defeated No. 1. McGaha said, “Oh, it was a huge relief. I mean, we were down a run after I feel like I screwed up on Monday doing something [in testing] with the idle and turning it down and then the engine dying and we lost that run. So I should have figured out a way to compensate for it better in the car.” He was driving his father’s “Silver Bullet” Camaro, and he said, “I drove this car, but it was a long, long time ago and [I am] just trying to catch back up and get a feel for it and how everything felt in that car. Just, I’m kind of dumbfounded about that. I was dumbfounded that we even qualified, much less won first round, but it’s crazy out there. There was a lot of upsets, and I’m glad I guess I was part of it, as well.”
Eventual runner-up Erica Enders came along and became the round’s first higher-qualified driver to win (against Kenny Delco). But the upsets continued, closing out the session with No. 5 Shane Tucker falling to No. 12 Stephen Bell.
The total first-round fallout: Drivers qualified 1, 2, 4, and 5 were out of the mix, along with four of the top five in the standings.
7 – TOP FUEL ACE OUT IN ROUND 2 – Scrappers Racing assistant crew chief Adem Cave described driver Jasmine Salinas and the operation as “part-time team, full-time energy.” They used that energy well Sunday, defeating Josh Hart in the opening round, then knocking out Shawn Langdon, the points leader, Saturday’s #2Fast2Tasty winner, and four-time winner in seven 2026 final rounds.
After that coup, an emotional Salinas said, “I have been studying everything that the Kalitta team is doing. I’m not going to lie. I definitely got out of that car at the top end with my eyes teary, because that is so hard to do. You know what? This is all because of my guys. Todd Okahara, Adem Cave, Cole Fergen, Chad Fergen. We got C.J. Daniels back with us this weekend. Kyle Mullins, we got the Hicks Boys.
“We’re a small little group of guys running around like crazy, trying to get this car turned around. Let’s just keep having fun, but this is such an awesome experience, and this is why we work so hard. All the days where we feel like we can’t make it and want to give up, this is why.” She said her message to herself is “Just keep on going. Keep believing in yourself.”
After advancing to the final round with her semifinal victory over Leah Pruett, Salinas said, “The only reason I believe in myself is because I got guys that believe in me. That makes a huge difference. This has been such a journey to get here. I’m not really going to say much, except I forgot to include Austin on that last interview. Let’s just do this one more time.”
8 – ANYTHING YOU CAN DO … In Top Fuel, Round 1 saw the low E.T. and top speed of the meet set. Doug Kalitta qualified No. 1 with a 3.714-second elapsed time and 337.07 mph to set the bar. Tony Stewart lowered the best E.T. to 3.712 seconds, which Billy Torrence erased in the next pairing with a 3.707 – and the fastest speed of the weekend, as well, with a 338-mph-flat. Shawn Langdon reset that weekend speed mark with 338.77, in the first round of Sunday’s eliminations.
9 – SCAG ROLLER COASTER – Funny Car runner-up Daniel Wilkerson carried the SCAG team Sunday as it experienced first disappointment, then elation, then a let-down to end its day. In the opening round, Justin Ashley lost his Top Fuel match-up with Tony Stewart, and Will Smith was a no-show, stuck in his pit trying to solve a problem with the dragster. In Funny Car, Dave Richards encountered a mechanical issue after the burnout and was pushed from the starting line, handing a solo pass to Spencer Hyde. But Wilkerson moved past Hunter Green, Hyde, and Jack Beckman to earn a chance at his first Funny Car victory.
After winning the semifinal race against Beckman, all of a sudden the improbable victory came second to another crowning achievement for the Wilkersons. Daniel pedaled the car to the finish line without exploding the engine.
It’s hard to gauge who was more surprised, the elder Wilkerson or his kid.
“How about dumb luck?” Tim said about the win, and his son’s performance. “We were racing a great car there. We were trying to run a good run and it just didn’t work out. But how about my kid? We’ve been practicing that, believe it or not. And he just got on the radio and he said, ‘I finally did it, Dad. I drove like you.’”
Daniel added, “Funny Cars are freaking cool, dude. I finally figured out how to do that. I sucked at it my whole freaking life. I was good at it with an alcohol car, but as soon as I got in this thing, I could not pedal it to save my life. I finally figured it out, I guess. Holy crap. Dude, I’m on, like a cloud. I’m freaking shaking. I know it’s hard to believe, but this team has persevered through some crap. We sucked for a long time. Now we’re badass again. They should be scared.”
10 – LAMB HEADLINES SPORTSMAN WINNERS – Justin Lamb added another chapter to his decorated career Sunday, leading the list of NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series winners during the DENSO Sonoma Nationals presented by PowerEdge at Sonoma Raceway. Lamb captured the Stock Eliminator title for his 37th career Wally and third victory of the season, highlighting a weekend that also produced first-time national event winners Doug Sedmak and Keith Winters.
Lamb successfully defended his Sonoma title by defeating Darin Grossi in the final. Grossi gained the starting-line advantage, but used too much race track, allowing Lamb to drive to a dead-on 9.312-second pass with a .002 package for his second straight Sonoma triumph.
The victory capped a six-round march that included wins over Pete Oliviero, Brian Beals, Mark Born, John Jerome, and Peter Gray before the final. Lamb qualified sixth and delivered consistent performances throughout eliminations.
Jody Lang claimed the Super Stock crown with a reaction-time advantage over Brad Burton, posting a 10.883-second run on his 10.90 dial to secure his 35th career Wally. The victory was Lang’s second national event win of the 2026 season after advancing through Greg Tackett, Tony Armanino, Ken Motter, and Jim Winslow.
Competition Eliminator featured a battle between two accomplished racers, with Clint Neff edging Steve Graham for his sixth career Wally. Graham left first, but Neff’s 7.639-second run under the J/DA index was enough to overtake Graham at the finish line after wins over Andy Freese, Kevin Carter and a semifinal bye.
Doug Sedmak earned the first national-event victory of his career in dramatic fashion by defeating Brad Pierce in the Super Gas final. Sedmak left with a .004 reaction time and held a margin of victory of just .0105 seconds, roughly 2 feet, to claim a Wally in his first appearance in a national event final.
Trey Vetter also relied on a starting-line edge to capture the Super Comp title over Grant Williamson. Vetter’s .018 reaction time produced a margin of victory of .0106 seconds, approximately 3 feet, giving him the third Wally of his career after eliminating Jake Denton, Nick Cobb, Brian Naber, Jeff Kenny, and Gabriel Torres.
The closest race of the day came in Right Trailers Top Dragster, where Keith Winters defeated Thomas Bayer by just .0013 seconds, approximately 5 inches. Winters earned his first career Wally in his first national event final after defeating Bob Hough, David Bustamante, Troy Wiens, and Chris Thode to reach the championship round.
Ken Ratzloff completed the list of winners by defeating Bryan Warr in the Right Trailers Top Sportsman final. Ratzloff used a starting-line advantage to collect his second career Wally after advancing past Paul Gladden, Brian King, Mike Silvia, and Rick Strohm.
