NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

The 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series has reached the halfway mark, and this weekend’s Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals presented by PowerEdge will mark the start of the second half of the 20-race 2026 season.

Heading into the event, Shawn Langdon, Ron Capps, Dallas Glenn, and Richard Gadson are the leaders in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle, respectively. Not surprisingly, all four drivers are former or current world champions.

First launched during a memorable 1988 season, the Sonoma event is normally a highlight of the season for racers and fans alike thanks to its setting in the midst of California Wine Country. The event often produces record-setting performances, especially during Friday’s nighttime Pro qualifying session.

Last year, Doug Kalitta, Austin Prock, Greg Stanfield, and Richard Gadson scored Pro wins in Sonoma, with all but Stanfield going on to win season championships.

The Top Fuel class is particularly interesting because eight drivers have already won at least one of the season’s first 10 races. Langdon, Doug Kalitta, Tony Stewart, Josh Hart, Antron Brown, Leah Pruett, and nitro rookie Maddi Gordon have already won at least one race. There are plenty of other candidates to join that group, including Justin Ashley, Shawn Reed, Clay Millican, Tony Schumacher, and Billy Torrence.

The Funny Car class features nearly the same level of parity as 2026, and winners include Ron Capps, Chad Green, Matt Hagan, Austin Prock, Jack Beckman, and first-time winner Jordan Vandergriff. Once again, there are many qualified candidates who hope to join that group, including Daniel Wilkerson, J.R. Todd, Spencer Hyde, Alexis DeJoria, Cruz Pedregon, Dave Richards, and Hunter Green. There are 18 cars on the pre-entry list for the event, meaning that qualifying will be of the upmost importance.

KB Titan Racing teammates Dallas Glenn and Greg Anderson are once again leading the way in Pro Stock, and they’ve built a sizable advantage in the NHRA Mission Foods standings. Matt Hartford has work to do in order to challenge for the regular-season title, but he has claimed three wins, so the points battle is far from a runaway.

The KB Titan team has won the lion’s share of the special edition 75th anniversary diamond NHRA Wallys, but the rival Elite Motorsports squad has made gains, including two wins by Aaron Stanfield in Chicago and the most recent event in Norwalk to go with a runner-up by Troy Coughlin Jr. in Adel.

The Pro Stock Motorcycle class won’t feature a traditional eliminator in Sonoma, but they will be showcased with the GETTRX NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle All-Star Callout, a special big-money invitational event that will take place on Saturday. The eight riders in the field include Gaige Herrera, Richard Gadson, Matt Smith, Angie Smith, John Hall, Jianna Evaristo, Chase Van Sant, and Steve Johnson, all of whom have won at least one race in Pro Stock Motorcycle competition.

The event also features the following NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series categories: Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, Top Dragster, and Top Sportsman.

DEFENDING EVENT CHAMPIONS
TOP FUEL: Doug Kalitta
FUNNY CAR: Austin Prock
PRO STOCK: Greg Stanfield
PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE: Richard Gadson

MOST WINS
TOP FUEL: Doug Kalitta (6)
FUNNY CAR: John Force (8)
PRO STOCK: Greg Anderson (6)
PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE: LE Tonglet (4).

TRACK RECORDS
Top Fuel - 3.645 sec. by Brittany Force, July '25; 343.16 mph by B. Force, July ‘25.
Funny Car - 3.807 sec. by Robert Hight, July '17; 340.90 mph by Austin Prock, July '25.
Pro Stock - 6.461 sec. by Dallas Glenn, July '25, 213.00 mph byShane Gray, July '15.
Pro Stock Motorcycle - 6.655 sec. by Matt Smith, July '25, 205.04 mph by Matt Smith, July '21.

NATIONAL RECORDS
Top Fuel - 3.623 sec. by Brittany Force, Sept. '19, Reading, Pa.; 345.00 mph by Shawn Langdon, May ‘26, Adel
Funny Car - 3.793 sec. by Robert Hight, Aug. '17, Brainerd; 341.68 mph by Austin Prock, Nov. '24, Pomona
Pro Stock - 6.443 sec. by Greg Anderson, March '25, Gainesville; 215.55 mph by Erica Enders, May '14, Englishtown
Pro Stock Motorcycle - 6.627 sec. by Gaige Herrera, Oct. '23, Dallas; 205.04 mph by Matt Smith, July '21, Sonoma

SCHEDULE
Friday, July 17
NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series eliminations at 9:30 a.m.
Pro Stock qualifying at 4:45 p.m. and 6:45 p.m.
NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series nitro qualifying at 5:30 p.m. and 8:15 p.m.

SATURDAY, July 18
Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series eliminations at 8:30 a.m. 
GETTRX Pro Stock Motorcycle All-Star Callout rounds at 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.
NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying/#2Fast2Tasty Challenge at 11:45 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

SUNDAY, July 19
Pre-race ceremony begins at 10 a.m.
NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series eliminations begin at 11:00 a.m.

TELEVISION
Saturday, July 18, Fox Sports 1 (FS1) will televise 60 minutes of GETTRX Allstar Pro Stock Motorcycle Callout coverage at 8 p.m. (EDT).
Sunday, July 19, Fox Sports 1 (FS1) will televise two hours of qualifying coverage at 10 a.m.
Sunday, July 19, Fox Sports 1 (FS1) will televise three hours of eliminations coverage at 10 p.m. (EDT).