NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

For more than five decades, NHRA National Dragster's famed Tricky Tipster has tested his prognosticating skills prior to each national event, putting odds on the top eight racers he thinks have the best shot at victory in Tricky Tipster. This week, Tricky Tipster handicaps the NHRA Summernationals.

TOP FUEL Funny Car | Pro Stock | Pro Stock Motorcycle | Pro Mod
	Antron Brown • Matco Tools Rarely has the quickest car in the field, but he is often the most consistent, and that will get the job done. He’s also playing this one on his home turf. ODDS: 3-1
	Leah Pritchett • Dodge Demon The special-edition Dodge Demon wrap looks fierce, and it’s fitting that the world’s quickest production car should adorn the sport’s quickest Top Fuel dragster. ODDS: 4-1
	Steve Torrence • Capco Contractors Had four great races and then slipped up a bit in Epping. No reason to think the native Texan won’t get right back on the horse. ODDS: 6-1
	Brittany Force • Monster Energy Epping win could not have come at a better time. With four races in four weekends, the Monster team will almost certainly make another final or two before Norwalk. ODDS: 7-1
	Tony Schumacher • U.S. Army Re: Last week’s loss to Smax Smith. Jersey native Bruce Springsteen said it best, “Someday we’ll look back on this, and it will all seem funny.” Clearly he’s going to rebound quickly. ODDS: 8-1
	Doug Kalitta • Mac Tools It’s just a matter of when, not if, the Kalitta team starts winning races again. For multiple reasons, this would be the perfect place for them to start. ODDS: 10-1
	Clay Millican • Parts Plus/Great Clips Debuted a new car in Epping, and it ran quite well. A bit of fine-tuning, and we could easily be looking at NHRA’s next first-time winner. ODDS: 12-1
	Shawn Langdon • Global Electronic Technologies By latest count, he’s 86 points out of the top 10. That’s probably too much to make up in one weekend, but he might well take a big chunk out of it this weekend. ODDS: 15-1
FUNNY CAR
	Ron Capps • NAPA Dodge OK, so the epic four-race win streak ended after 17 rounds. Anyone here think he might string together another four or eight or more win lights? ODDS: 7-2
	Matt Hagan • Mopar Express Lane Dodge Everyone wants to talk about 3.8-second runs and 338-mph speeds, but how about the lights that this guy cuts. He tends to move first in the overwhelming majority of races. ODDS: 3-1
	Courtney Force • Advance Auto Parts Chevy Not sure if Epping was a race to remember or one to forget, but it certainly had its share of highs and lows. Regardless, this is a very quick car that rarely qualifies outside the top four. That helps make Sunday’s much less stressful. ODDS: 4-1
	Robert Hight • Auto Club Chevy Any chance we see the sport’s first 3.7-second Funny Car run this weekend? Maybe, and if it happens, he’s going to be one of the favorites. Oh, and a win isn’t out of the question, either. ODDS: 5-1
	John Force • Peak Chevy The good news is that he’s won Englishtown four times in his career, but the bad news is that the last win came in 1999. Regardless, a fifth victory would come as no surprise. ODDS: 7-1
	Jack Beckman • Infinite Hero Dodge There is a breakthrough weekend coming for this team and no better place for it to happen than here, a place where he’s been the runner-up in two of the last four races. ODDS: 9-1
	Tommy Johnson Jr. • Make-A-Wish Dodge Reached the semifinals in Epping with a solid shot to make the final. This team can run with anyone in the field but hasn’t had the consistency to match Capps and Hagan. ODDS: 11-1
	J.R. Todd • DHL Toyota There are so many good Funny Cars right now we should consider a fan vote to fill the last spot in Tipster. Seriously, how do you handicap eight cars when there are 14 great ones? ODDS: 15-1
PRO STOCK
	Erica Enders • Elite Camaro Up to the No. 1 spot in Tipster? Why the heck not. She earned it with a strong performance in Epping. Nobody in the class consistently cuts better lights. ODDS: 3-1
	Tanner Gray • Gray Manufacturing Technologies Camaro By now, even the casual fans should realize this kid is exceptionally good. Every now and then, he’s going to take some lumps, but he’ll dish out far more punishment than he takes. ODDS: 4-1
	Bo Butner • Butner Auto Camaro This is arguably the best car in the class, but a .040 light is practically a death sentence these days. Bo’s made big strides so far this year, and that trend needs to continue. ODDS: 6-1
	Greg Anderson • Summit Racing Camaro Arguably a bit of a low ranking for a four-time world champ and seven-time Englishtown winner, but if anyone admires brutal honesty, it’s this guy. ODDS: 7-1
	Jeg Coughlin Jr. • JEGS.com Camaro Here’s another guy with multiple Englishtown wins (five) who’d like to erase some bad memories from last week’s Epping event. ODDS: 9-1
	Jason Line • Summit Racing Camaro There’s something amiss with the reigning champ’s Camaro, and until the KB crew finds it, he’s going to be underrated. When the comeback happens, it should be impressive. ODDS: 11-1
	Drew Skillman • Skillman Auto Group Camaro Came within a few thousandths of making it to the final in Epping, and that was after a driveshaft broke during qualifying. He can also get the job done on the starting line when necessary. ODDS: 13-1
	Allen Johnson • Marathon Petroleum Dart He’s still giving up .03-.05 to the leaders, but that’s close enough to make a fight out of it. Clearly, this car is better now than it was at the start of the season. ODDS: 15-1
PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE
	LE Tonglet • Nitro Fish Suzuki Hasn’t lost a round since Gainesville. That was three months ago. No reason to think he can’t make it three in a row this weekend. ODDS: 3-1
	Eddie Krawiec • Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson Set to debut the new Street Rod bike this weekend, and it is expected to be very competitive right off the trailer. Of course, this is also his favorite race. ODDS: 4-1
	Jerry Savoie • White Alligator Suzuki 2015 Englishtown winner is coming off a great final-round showing in Atlanta. His bike is certainly equal to, or even quicker than Tonglet’s. ODDS: 5-1
	Andrew Hines • Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson Debuting a brand-new bike can often be a challenge, but given their history, it won’t take long for the Vance & Hines crew to get up to speed. ODDS: 6-1
	Hector Arana Sr. • Lucas Oil Buell Last week, he ran over 200 mph in testing last weekend. If conditions are right, he could easily eclipse that barrier again this weekend. ODDS: 8-1
	Joey Gladstone • San Marino Excavating Suzuki Not content to let Tanner Gray have all the fun. This is another rookie who figures to win a race or two this season. ODDS: 10-1
	Matt Smith • Polaris Magnum The bike class has had the last month off. Got to figure he’s used that time to dramatically improve his program. Expect to see him challenge the leaders shortly. ODDS: 11-1
	Scotty Pollacheck • Suzuki Extended Protection Suzuki He’s having fun again, and it shows in his results. Top five in the points standings with a legit shot at a race win or two. ODDS: 15-1
PRO MOD
	Mike Castellana • Al-Anabi Performance Camaro It’s bad enough that he’s had his way with the field so far this season, and now the native New Yorker gets to play a home game. Tuner Frank Manzo has a pretty good record in E-town as well. ODDS: 2-1
	Steve Jackson • Bahrain1 Camaro He said he was going to win races this year, and he wasn’t lying. Now, let’s see how much pressure he can put on Castellana in the points battle. ODDS: 7-2
	Rickie Smith • Vallen Camaro Rumor has it that “Trickie Rickie” will be back in the driver’s seat this weekend. No doubt he’ll be eager to make up for lost time. ODDS: 5-1
	Steven Whiteley • J&A Service Cadillac Safe to say he’s found a comfort zone in the Pro Mod class. His results so far have been outstanding, and he’s officially reached “can win any race he enters” status. ODDS: 6-1
	Steve Matusek • Aeromotive Camaro Regardless of what rules get tweaked, a solid starting-line program will always provide the upper hand, and when it comes to reaction times, he’s about as good as it gets. ODDS: 7-1
	Troy Coughlin • JEGS.com Corvette Sooner or later, the turbo cars are going to have their day, and when that happens, this is the leading candidate for a breakout victory. ODDS: 8-1
	Jonathan Gray • Vallen Camaro Apparently, he’ll be driving a second car for Smith for the remainder of the season. That’s not good news for anyone else in the class. This guy can drive. ODDS: 12-1
	Shane Molinari • S&T Truck Repair Firebird If you’re going to tow to New Jersey from Washington state in order to race, you might as well be competitive, and he’s certainly got that base covered. ODDS: 15-1