NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Compiled from team reports

The Top Fuel championship could be decided this weekend, but it’s a bit of a long shot. Shawn Langdon leads teammate Doug Kalitta by 139 points and would need to lead by more than the 191 points available at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals in Pomona. That means an early exit for Kalitta and a final-round appearance by Langdon, crew chief Brian Husen, and the Kalitta Air team.

Langdon, who won the Oakley Motorsports Super Quick Series event at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park last weekend, where he also was runner-up in Super Comp, is looking for his second Top Fuel championship (2013) and fourth overall after back-to-back Super Comp championships in 2007 and 2008, but he’s keeping a lid on his emotions.

“It’s one run at a time; it has to be that way,” he said. “We know the goals and what we like to do, but we just have to keep working. We’ve seen what can happen. In the middle of the year, we had a big lead, and that went away quickly. It has to be one run at a time, and we have to keep getting those little points. The results are going to be what they’re going to be, but we keep trying to do the best we can."

Kalitta and his Mac Tools team have experience in erasing points deficits. Entering the race in Sonoma in July, Langdon led Kalitta by 150 points with three races remaining in the regular season. Kalitta won the next three races and entered the final race of the regular season, the Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals, leading Langdon by 67 points. The reigning and two-time Top Fuel champion will need a similar effort in the season’s last two races to catch his teammate.  

“We still have a shot at this thing, but it’ll have to be perfect. I know my guys will do everything they can to make it happen, but we’ll need a little help from Shawn and Brian with what they’ve got going on. At this point, the goal is to just try to win those last two and see where it leads us. Things went pretty well with the testing in Dallas, so I think we’re in pretty good shape heading to Vegas for sure.  

“The good news for this Mac Tools team is that the last two tracks have been really good to us over the years, so it should be interesting. My guys are hungry and looking forward to it. The guys are making sure everything is ready to go for Vegas."

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Antron Brown, who sits third in points with an ultra-slim but not realistic chance of winning a fifth world championship, recorded a career-best speed of 340.03 mph during qualifying at the Texas NHRA FallNationals. Brown also became one of the first drivers to surpass 300 mph at the eighth-mile mark, reaching 301.22 mph.

“We're third in the points, and we're going to keep striving to get closer,” he said. “The championship is still a far reach away, but you never give up until they say you're not in it to win it. We're going to give it everything we've got this weekend.”

Brown’s teammate, Angelle Sampey, will continue her Top Fuel licensing efforts on Monday after the race.

"This weekend means a lot to me because of my dad,” said Sampey, who won twice in Pro Stock Motorcycle at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. “Before he passed, I asked him if there was anything he wished he could have done or seen, and he told me the one thing he wanted was to watch me drive a Top Fuel car. He passed away five days before I got behind the wheel of Antron's [Brown] car for the first time. I'll definitely have my dad in my heart with me throughout the weekend.”

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Alexis DeJoria will debut a special silver and black scheme ahead of Q1 in celebration of Bandero Premium Tequila's new multiyear partnership with the Las Vegas Raiders. DeJoria will carry this livery through the end of the 2026 NHRA season. “I’m also going to get to check out Metallica at The Sphere while I’m in town, so there’s a lot to look forward to this weekend,” she said.

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Funny Car points leader Matt Hagan boasts 56 career round-wins at LVMS (his most at any venue outside of Pomona) and seven final-round appearances in his last nine starts at the fall event. He’s 98 points up on Jordan Vandergriff in the hunt for his fifth world championship and no realistic chance of clinching this weekend.

The Strip at Las Vegas is an important facility in Vandergriff's drag racing career. It was there that he made his first test runs in Top Alcohol Dragster (2017), Top Fuel (2018), and Funny Car (2024 in John Force’s car).

“Now that we have two races left, I find myself still in second place with one man to chase, Matt Hagan,” said Vandergriff. “I really could care less who’s in third, fourth, and fifth. It’s really just us versus Hagan. That’s the way I’m approaching it.”

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Hagan’s Tony Stewart racing teammate, Leah Pruett, is one of a handful of drivers in NHRA history to reach the final round at The Strip across three or more separate categories: Top Fuel (2018 runner-up), Factory Stock Showdown (2021 runner-up), and Pro Modified (2011 winner).

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With only two events remaining in the season, Elite Motorsports holds a formidable presence at the top of the Pro Stock standings. Leading the multicar stable's charge is veteran Greg Stanfield, who sits second in the championship standings — just 14 points out of first place — as the pressure intensifies heading into the desert.

For Stanfield, a four-time world champion in Super Stock and a one-time Factory X champ, the strategy during these crucial late-season rounds centers on execution and focus.

"For me, right now, it's just about not making mistakes, and if it's meant to be, it's gonna happen,” he said. “It's just the right place, the right time. We’ll just see how it goes," Stanfield added. "Every run I make, I just try to be the best I can and see what happens. Really there’s still a lot of racing left, a lot of points left to be captured, a long way to go with this weekend and points and a half in Pomona. We just need to keep our heads down, work hard, do what we’ve been doing all year, and let's see if we come out on top.”

Six-time NHRA Pro Stock world champion Erica Enders stands as the undisputed ruler of the Las Vegas strip. Enders boasts 10 career wins at the facility — the most of any professional NHRA driver, past or present. Her record includes six victories in the fall Las Vegas event and four in the previously contested spring race.

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Steve Johnson comes into the event with plenty of momentum after a strong semifinal finish in Texas. The veteran rider recorded the quickest run of his long career at the Texas NHRA FallNationals with 6.674-second elapsed time at 200.65 mph in a first-round victory over John Hall. It was the first time Johnson had ever dipped into the 6.60s and his first run in excess of 200 mph since the 2022 season. He improved again in the second round with a 6.673 at 201.23 mph to defeat a quicker and faster Gaige Herrera on a holeshot.

“The most exciting roller coaster in the world goes so slow as it’s going uphill, but boy is the ride exciting once it gets over the top,” said Johnson, describing the thrilling feeling after making the quickest run of his storied career. “That’s how I felt after our 6.67 run at 200 mph. Technically, it took me 40 years to make that run, but realistically, it’s been pretty tough since April of 2022.”

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Earlier today, Trey Vetter clinched the 2026 NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Super Comp world championship, his first. We've also got the possibility of clinching championships in Top Alcohol Dragster and Right Trailers Top Dragster this weekend. The remainder of the battles will go into the Division 7 meet here next weekend and the season-ending NHRA Finals in Pomona.

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Mopar will display the Mopar ‘27 Dodge Charger during the race weekend, before the new muscle car takes center stage at the SEMA Show. The annual limited production package from Mopar celebrates the brand's 90th anniversary and combines unique styling, carbon fiber details, and functional performance enhancements to the all-wheel-drive Dodge muscle car.

In addition to the action on the track at The Strip, Mopar and Dodge activities will be featured off the track, including famed TV host and automotive enthusiast Chris Jacobs serving as grand marshal. Jacobs, a longtime Dodge and Mopar fan, has hosted the popular television shows, Overhaulin’ with Chip Foose and Long Lost Family. He has also served as host for NFL Network and several special live broadcasts which have won multiple Emmy Awards. His current duties include hosting Mecum Collector Car Auctions seen on ESPN, as well as serving as brand ambassador for companies like Radford Racing School, Hagerty, and Griot’s Garage.

Joining Jacobs in an honorary participant role in the Mopar NHRA Las Vegas Nationals powered by Dodge will be Doug Habegger, a top dealership service technician from Tom Kelley Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, who will serve as the honorary starter during the four rounds of qualifying and the final eliminations on Sunday.

Habegger earned the opportunity by being a top performer determined through measures that include certified technical training, monthly training requirements, repair performance, repair volume, and Mopar Top Tech program participation.

The Dodge Direct Connection Grudge Match, which began at the Roadkill Night Powered by Dodge event in August will wrap up at The Strip in between Pro qualifying sessions on Saturday. The four final competitors will do battle in their race-modified, SIXPACK-powered Dodge Charger Scat Pack cars to crown the overall Grudge Match winner.

The new 2027 Dodge Charger Super Bee Launch Edition, a SAE-certified 600-horsepower evolution of the SIXPACK-powered Charger that creates the quickest, fastest, and most powerful SIXPACK Charger and the most powerful Dodge Super Bee ever, will also be on display during race weekend. Fans are encouraged to get a “close-up” view of the new Mopar ‘27 Charger and the new Charger Super Bee at the Direct Connection Display in the NHRA Nitro Alley Midway. Charger vehicles will also take part in a pre-race parade to kick off the elimination rounds on Sunday.

Pro Stock Motorcycle Q1

Entering the Las Vegas event, just 85 points separate the top three title contenders with Gaige Herrera, Richard Gadson ,and Matt Smith each in the mix. Gadson, the reigning champ, is the leader while Herrera is 58 points back, and Smith is still in contention for his record seventh crown, but is facing an 85 point deficit.

Given that The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway is an altitude track, it’s apparent that we won’t see the same record setting performances that highlighted the last event in Dallas, but that doesn’t mean the Pro Stock field this week won’t be close and competitive. And, with multiple drivers still in the race for the championship, every point matters, perhaps now more than ever.

Four bikes made runs during the first session before rain interrupted the proceedings. GT Tonglet, who returned after a lengthy absence at the last event in Dallas, was quickest with a 7.005 while Karen Stoffer, Ron Procopio, and Brad Hawkes all shut off early.

We are currently on hold for weather. Stay tuned for updates.