NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

There appears to be no stopping Jose Gonzalez in the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series, as the points leader drove to his third straight win by knocking off Brandon Snider in the final round at Brainerd International Raceway.

The race, which was presented by Stinar, was the sixth of 11 events during the 2021 E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service season, and Gonzalez strengthened his points lead and championship hopes by picking up his fourth win this year.

Gonzalez put on a show in NHRA Pro Mod’s first trip to Brainerd, finishing off his weekend with a run of 5.790-seconds at 246.03 mph in his ProCharger-powered Q80 Camaro to slip past Snider’s 5.812 at 247.29. Gonzalez was also a stellar .003 on the starting line as he earned his sixth career victory in the class. 

“When you have guys like Brandon Snider, Stevie Jackson and (Justin) Bond, and everybody who races in this class, you have to be on your game,” Gonzalez said. “They’re not going to cut you any (breaks), so as much as I can do, I try to do it for the team. But it’s not me — this win goes on the team. (Tuner) Steve Petty has had this car on rails since day one and it’s just been amazing. It’s amazing how I’m feeling right now.”

Gonzalez, who was also the No. 1 qualifier, reached the final round with victories against Doug Winters and Jackson, posting a .009 reaction time against Winters. With the class now in the second half of its 2021 season, Gonzalez inched closer to his first career NHRA Pro Mod world title.

Snider defeated Chad Green and Justin Bond to reach the final round for the second time this year and the fourth time in his career. He moved to second in points but trails Gonzalez by 93 points with five races remaining.

The E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service returns to action Sept. 1-5 as part of the Dodge//SRT NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis.