NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

It was six months later than expected, but the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals presented by ProtectTheHarvest.com proved to be worth the wait, especially for Shawn Cowie and Terry Ruckman, who earned wins in Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car, respectively. Cowie and Ruckman were joined in the winner’s circle by a diverse group of NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Sportsman winners that included Tibor Kadar (Comp), Jimmy DeFrank (Super Stock), Kyle Rizzoli (Stock), Nick Cobb (Super Comp), Mike Wiblishouser (Super Gas), Paul Nero (Top Dragster presented by Vortech Superchargers), and Richard Okerman (Top Sportsman presented by Vortech Superchargers).

Cowie continued to apply pressure to Top Alcohol Dragster points leaders Rachel Meyer and Julie Nataas by winning his fourth race of the season and his second national event. Cowie, who also has three runner-up finishes, was both quick and consistent with a string of low 5.3s in eliminations. The final featured two of the best supercharged cars in the country with Cowie and four-time world champ Joey Severance, and Cowie’s 5.312 prevailed after Severance slowed. Cowie also posted wins against Ron Anderson and Casey Grisel on his way to career win No. 22. [video]

Ruckman won his third national event title on a holeshot after taking a close 5.724 to 5.712 victory against Brian Hough in the Top Alcohol Funny Car final. Ruckman, who was making just his second start of the season, was the low qualifier with a 5.621 and earned wins against Hannes Wernhart and Shane Westerfield to reach the final. Hough topped Ray Martin and reigning world champ Doug Gordon to reach his second final of the season. [video] 

Kadar won his first race in Comp eliminator after scoring a pair of victories in Stock eliminator. In the final, Kadar wheeled his D/EA Cobalt to a win against recent Denver winner and championship contender Joe Mozeris. Kadar was quick in the final with a (-.566) 8.174 that was enough to cover Mozeris’ (-.374) 7.098. Kadar’s path to the final included wins against Cody Lane, Art Hodges, and Kevin Carter. [video] 

In addition to his five world titles, DeFrank has won 20 national events and half of those have come at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona. DeFrank’s latest win in Super Stock in his native Southern California came at the expense of Kyle Rizzoli, who was attempting to double up after winning in Stock. DeFrank was sharp in the final with a .020 light and a 9.006 on his 8.99 dial. Rizzoli had a small chance to turn on the win light but broke out by three-thousandths with a 9.747 in his Jim Whiteley-owned ’69 Camaro. [video]

Rizzoli didn’t leave Pomona empty-handed after winning the Stock title, his 11th career national event win. Wheeling Dave Bridgewater’s Camaro, Rizzoli used a solid .007 light and a .029-over 10.249 to win the final against world champion Brian McClanahan, who wasn’t far behind with a 9.900 on his 9.88 dial. Rizzoli, who went 11-1 over the weekend in elimination rounds, also topped five-time world champ Justin Lamb on his way to the final. [video]

First-time Super Comp champ Cobb won the final against Ryan Hansen with a great package that included a .007 light and an 8.906, but he’ll most likely be remembered for the low-speed trip he took into the Pomona sand trap after the final. Cobb wasn’t hurt, and his dragster wasn’t damaged. In the semifinal round, Cobb was also solid with a .015 light and an 8.904 to stop Mike Cornelius. [video] 

Wiblishouser landed his first Super Gas title in a decade by beating Larry Bradshaw in a one-sided final round. Wiblishouser grabbed a huge lead at the start thanks to a .007 light and was able to slow to a 10.025 to turn on the win light against Bradshaw’s 9.902. Wiblishouser, who now has four national event wins, made it to the final following a .006-second win over Val Torres in the semifinals. [video] 

Nero successfully defended his 2020 Pomona win in Top Dragster presented by Vortech Superchargers when he beat Mike Mendenhall in the final round. Nero, the 2018 Top Dragster champ, won with a 7.141 on his 7.13 dial to hold off Mendenhall by just .021-second. Nero, undefeated in the last 10 rounds in Pomona, also stopped George Prather and Jeff Connelly in eliminations. [video]

The victory in Top Sportsman presented by Vortech Superchargers went to Okerman following a win over Phil Miller in the final round. Okerman drove his Chevy Beretta to a 7.332 on his 7.23 dial after Miller’s Chevy S-10 slowed. Okerman reached the final after a tough battle against Ed Olpin in the semifinal round. [video]