NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series returns to the fabled Pomona dragstrip for the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals, race three of the NHRA 75th Anniversary season.

The last time that the series was at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip was last November, when incessant rain caused the unprecedented cancellation of the event and the de facto end of the season, and, as incredible as it seems, rain may also plague the Winternationals.

Although different weather models show a variety of scenarios, Saturday may be a challenging day, so Friday’s two qualifying sessions will be super important to the teams hoping to make the 16-car fields to race for Sunday’s diamond-themed Wallys.

The spotlight for the weekend assuredly will be on the Funny Car class, which is marking its 1,000th race this weekend as the winner will receive a custom-built replica of the trophy that was handed out at the first Funny Car event, almost 60 years ago at the 1966 World Finals in Tulsa, Okla.

Chad Green, whose first career Funny Car win came in Pomona at the 2022 NHRA Finals, still leads the points after his win at the season opener in Gainesville, Fla., but reigning NHRA Rookie of the Year Spencer Hyde, the runner-up three weeks ago in Phoenix, and Ron Capps, who won the Phoenix event in dramatic fashion after a second-round blower explosion, are nipping at his heels.

Eighteen Funny Cars are entered, including two-time reigning world champ Austin Prock, who failed to qualify in Gainesville and lost in round one in Phoenix as his team acclimates itself to new parts after moving to Tasca Racing over the winter.

The scenario is not as tough in Top Fuel, where 15 cars are entered, meaning that everyone will make it into Sunday’s field and the real battle will be for the No. 1 qualifying spot, which would earn a first-round bye Sunday.

World champ Doug Kalitta has a narrow two-point margin over Gainesville winner Josh Hart, while Kalitta’s teammate, Shawn Langdon, who just won the Phoenix event for the third straight race, will return to his home track in Pomona looking for more success. Another Southern California native, Leah Pruett, returns to Pomona as a driver for the first time since losing a winner-take-all final-round battle for the world championship against Kalitta at the 2023 Finals.

Nineteen Pro Stock cars are entered, looking for a spot in the 16-car field, led by defending world champ Dallas Glenn, who won the Winternationals back-to-back in 2023 and 2024 and was runner-up last year to his KB Titan teammate Greg Anderson.

That duo sits 1-2 in points, but the third-place driver, Phoenix runner-up Cody Coughlin, won’t be in competition this weekend as he attends to personal business at home. Vaunted Pro Stock driver and KB Titan tuner Dave Connolly will take his place behind the wheel.

The rival Elite Motorsports team will be looking for its first win since Erica Enders won the NHRA U.S. Nationals last September to end a seven-race dry spell and turn the tables on their fiercest competitors.

2025 EVENT WINNERS: Clay Millican, Top Fuel; Jack Beckman, Funny Car; Greg Anderson, Pro Stock

MOST EVENT VICTORIES: Don Garlits, 6, TF; Doug Kalitta, 4, TF (active driver); John Force, 8, FC; Matt Hagan and Ron Capps, 4 (active drivers) Bob Glidden, 7, PS; Greg Anderson, 7, PS (active driver).

SCHEDULE

FRIDAY, April 10
Lucas Oil Series qualifying and eliminations at 8:30 a.m.
Top Alcohol qualifying at 12:15 p.m., TAFC 3:20 p.m. and TAD 5:50 p.m.
Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Pro Stock qualifying at 1:30 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.
Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Top Fuel and Funny Car qualifying at 2:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.

SATURDAY, April 11
Lucas Oil Series eliminations at 8:30 a.m.
Top Alcohol qualifying at 2:10 p.m. and eliminations TAD at 5:20 p.m.
Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Top Fuel and Funny Car qualifying at 12:30 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.
Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Pro Stock qualifying at 1:45 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.

SUNDAY, April 12 
Pre-race ceremony, 9:45 a.m.
Mission Foods Drag Racing Series eliminations begin at 11:00 a.m.

TELEVISION

SUNDAY, April 12: FS1 will televise one and half hours of qualifying highlights at 11:30 a.m. (ET)
SUNDAY, April 12: FS1 will televise three hours of finals coverage at 6:30 p.m. (ET)

TRACK RECORDS

Top Fuel - 3.628 seconds by Clay Millican, Feb. '18; 338.94 mph by Brittany Force, Nov. ‘22.
Funny Car - 3.804 seconds by Austin Prock, Nov. '24; 341.68 mph by Prock, Nov. '24
Pro Stock - 6.476 seconds by Greg Anderson, March '25; 213.84 mph by Drew Skillman, Nov. '15.

NATIONAL RECORDS

Top Fuel - 3.623 sec. by Brittany Force, Sept. ‘19, Reading, Pa.; 343.51 mph by B. Force, Sept. ‘25, Indy
Funny Car - 3.793 sec. by Robert Hight, Aug. '17, Brainerd, Minn.; 341.68 mph by Austin Prock, Nov. ’24, Pomona, Calif.
Pro Stock - 6.443 sec. by Greg Anderson, Mar. ’25, Gainesville, Fla.; 215.55 mph by Erica Enders, May ’14, Englishtown N.J.