NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

Justin Lamb and Jody Lang have now combined to win 48 NHRA national event titles following their victories in Super Stock and Stock, respectively, at the NHRA Arizona Nationals. Lamb, the reigning Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series champ in Stock and Super Stock, won for the 19th time in his career, and Lang bagged his 29th career win. The rest of the champions crowned at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park included first-time winners Trevor Harkema (Super Comp), Dave Kiesel (Super Street), and Bryan Warr (Top Sportsman presented by Racing RVs). Todd Barton (Super Gas) and Paul Nero (Top Dragster presented by Racing RVs) also claimed victories.

Lamb didn’t need to win another race to validate his dual world championships, but it didn’t hurt his confidence to pick up an early-season victory. After a disheartening Pomona race that resulted in a pair of early exits, Lamb worked his way through Super Stock eliminations in his Chevy Cobalt, using a string of .01 and .02 lights to reach the final. Facing three-time national event winner Mike Cotten and his GT/KA ’70 Barracuda, Lamb grabbed a sizable lead at the start and collected his third Phoenix title. [Watch video]

There is an art form to racing a lower-class car in Stock, and in the last three decades, Lang has mastered it. Lang won for the fourth time in Phoenix after final-round opponent Brian McClanahan fouled by four-thousandths. Lang, driving his M/SA Malibu station wagon, eased to a 12.328 on his 12.17 dial for the win. Two rounds earlier, Lang ran right on his dial to defeat Gregg Luneack, and he also tripped up two-time world champ Al Corda in the semi’s to earn a spot in his 44th career final. Ironically, Lang lost to Corda in his first final at the 1995 Phoenix event. [Watch video]

Before relocating to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, Harkema made his home in the Phoenix area and got his start racing in the Street class at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park, so it was only fitting that he would return to the track to claim his first national event title in Super Comp. Harkema battled a number of quality opponents, including Trevor Larson and Thomas Bayer, to reach the final, where he faced Glen Kern. Harkema delivered a .013 light and a slowing 8.968 to stop Kern, who missed the Tree and lost in spite of a quicker 8.927. [Watch video]

Super Gas winner Barton was respectable throughout eliminations behind the wheel of his ’55 Chevy, but he shone brightest in the final round, where he coupled a .010 reaction time with a 9.905 to freeze out Val Torres Sr., who broke out by a thousandth with a 9.899. For Barton, the win broke a national event dry spell that goes back to the 2004 season, when he won the Super Comp title at the spring Las Vegas race. [Watch video]

Another first-time winner was Super Street champ Kiesel, who downed Chris Borges in the final round. Kiesel, in his ’76 Vega, used his best light of the weekend, a .005 to help take a double-breakout win over Borges, 10.895 to 10.890. Kiesel, like Super Comp champ Harkema, has his roots in the Phoenix area and won his first Division 7 Lucas Oil Series event at the track in 2015. Earlier in eliminations, Kiesel topped another well-known Phoenix-area Super Street driver, Brian Griffey. [Watch video]

Last year, Nero won the Sonoma event and made a strong push for the world championship in Top Dragster before ultimately finishing second to Lynn Ellison. Now, Nero is ahead of last year’s pace after collecting his third career win. Nero was consistent in eliminations, including a dead-on-the-dial run in the second round to stop J.R. Lobner. In the final, Nero trailed Rodger Comstock’s nearly perfect .002 light at the start but picked up the victory after Comstock broke out by .013-second. [Watch video]

Warr’s path to the win in Top Sportsman began with a narrow win over six-time world champ Jeg Coughlin Jr. and included victories against past Super Gas champ Mike Ferderer and Ed Olpin, who won back-to-back Phoenix titles in 2014-15. The final, which pitted Warr against Bud Preuss, began as a close race with both drivers sharp on the starting line. Downtrack, Pruess’ ’69 Camaro appeared to get loose, and he slowed to a 6.851 on his 6.79 dial, while Warr collected his first career win with a 6.978 on his 6.93 prediction. [Watch video]