NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

The NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series heads north to Washington for the last of the three consecutive races in the NHRA Western Swing at the 29th annual Protect the Harvest NHRA Northwest Nationals presented by Lucas Oil at Pacific Raceways in Seattle. The stakes will be high as drivers in Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock fight for a spot in the top 10 to compete in the NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship. Adding to the excitement of this year’s race, final eliminations will be televised live on the FOX national broadcasting network. 
 

In 2015, J.R. Todd scored his first victory of the season and first at the Seattle event by defeating Shawn Langdon in the Top Fuel final round. Tommy Johnson Jr. earned his second win of the year when he took out eventual Funny Car world champion Del Worsham in the title round. In Pro Stock, Chris McGaha beat Jeg Coughlin Jr. and collected his second consecutive title that season.
 

Here’s a look at some of this year’s major storylines:
 

After obtaining victories in Denver and Sonoma, 16-time Funny Car champion John Force is focused on continuing his recent hot streak by claiming his third victory of the season and sweeping the Western Swing. Force has one Western Swing sweep in his career, in 1994, and would be the first driver in NHRA history to have swept all three races twice. The most recent driver to have swept the three race series was Antron Brown (Top Fuel) in 2009. Force will also be competing in his 700th career race at the NHRA Northwest Nationals in Seattle this weekend. 
 

With only three events left before the Countdown to the Championship playoffs begin, teams are giving it all they have to make it into one of those top-10 spots in the points while others have already clinched playoff berths. After the most recent event in Sonoma, Top Fuel drivers Steve Torrence and Brittany Force, Funny Car racers Ron Capps and Courtney Force, Pro Stock pilot Bo Butner, and Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Angelle Sampey are the latest drivers to clinch their Countdown berths. Depending upon their performances in Seattle, the next drivers you can most likely see lock down a spot in the playoffs would be Tony Schumacher (Top Fuel), Jack Beckman (Funny Car), and Allen Johnson (Pro Stock).
 

Tequila Patron Funny Car driver Alexis DeJoria is forced to sit out the upcoming Seattle event after she suffered a fractured pelvis in an accident during the first round of eliminations in Sonoma. DeJoria, who won the Las Vegas event earlier this season, is currently No. 10 in the points standings, 150 points ahead of Chad Head, who is in the No. 11 spot. If Head is able to qualify and at least make it to the second round in the next three races, he will have enough points to surpass DeJoria and claim the last spot in the Countdown.
 

What started out as a promising season for Leah Pritchett has become a battle to obtain a ride and keep her current No. 10 spot in the points. Having jumped between three teams and driven several different dragsters, Pritchett, who earned her first Top Fuel title in Phoenix earlier this year, will be able to continue her 2016 campaign with Don Schumacher Racing and will announce a new sponsor this Friday in Seattle. Pritchett is attempting to qualify for the Countdown to the Championship for the first time and is clinging to the No. 10 spot, only 33 points ahead of Terry McMillen. 
 

Just when we thought the KB Racing team’s reign had finally come to an end with Allen Johnson’s win in Denver, Greg Anderson put himself back in the spotlight by collecting his seventh win of the season in Sonoma. Although things aren’t becoming as predictable as they once were throughout the first half of the season, Shane Gray first shook things up by becoming the first non-KB Racing driver to earn the No. 1 qualifying spot in Chicago, and rookie Alex Laughlin recently scored his first career low qualifier position in Denver. We knew the KB streak wasn’t going to last forever, but their performance hasn’t slipped enough to count them out completely. It will be interesting to see how teammates Anderson, Jason Line, and Bo Butner will fare in the upcoming races in the Countdown as the rest of the field continues to gain momentum. 

 

3.727 seconds by Richie Crampton, Aug. 2015

328.30 mph by Spencer Massey, Aug. 2015

 

3.912 seconds by Jack Beckman, Aug. 2015

322.88 mph by Beckman, Aug. 2015

 

6.488 seconds by Chris McGaha, Aug. 2015

213.40 mph by McGaha, Aug. 2015

 

NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature two rounds at 2:30 and 5:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 5, and the final two rounds of qualifying Saturday, Aug. 6, at 1 and 4 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 7.

 

Call (800) 884-NHRA (6472). Tickets may also be purchased online at www.NHRA.com/tickets.

 

Friday, Aug. 5, FOX Sports 1 will televise one hour of qualifying coverage at 10 p.m. (ET).

Sunday, Aug. 7, FOX Sports 1 will televise one hour of qualifying coverage at Noon (ET).

Sunday, Aug. 7, FOX will televise three hours of live finals coverage at 4 p.m. (ET).