NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Matt Hagan and Shane Westerfield join host Brian Lohnes on this episode of the NHRA Insider podcast. The two men are both playing a hot hand with respect to their competition in the nitro and Top Alcohol Funny Car ranks, respectively. 

Hagan is coming off of a victory in Gainesville after making the final round in Phoenix. Westerfield, the 2017 Top Alcohol Funny Car world champion, won the Winternationals and the ensuing NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series regional event in Phoenix. 

The conversation with Hagan centers around his energy in 2022, the signs of success he is seeing at Tony Stewart Racing, the different environment that he is racing in for this NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season, and what exactly it will take to run for a championship over the long stretch of the 2022 season. There's loads of great personal and racing insight here. 

Westerfield talks about racing with team owner Rick Jackson, the stiffness of the competition he is facing, and why he thinks that his team is champion caliber. The conversation runs through the recent small-car counts and what can be done to fix them, along with Westerfield's passion for boat drag racing, which has become a full-time business for him. 

Two champs, two recent winners, and two Funny Car phenoms.