NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

As the 2023 season recedes into the rear-view mirror, we cast our first glances toward the 2024 NHRA race season and the new and updated race cars and teams that fans can expect to see at the drags in the new year. Teams can submit their news to nhra@nhra.com.

Hertzig/Akers Motorsports has retained NHRA nitro driver Cameron Ferré, to pilot the “Johnnys On Thin Ice” AA/FC for the 2024 NHRA Hot Rod Heritage and Legends of Nitro Racing Series. Ferré has spent the last few years racing in the NHRA Top Fuel dragster ranks but is pleased to get back into a Funny Car for 2024. The team is gearing up for a full schedule of events starting with the Good Vibrations March Meet and plans to attend the full Hot Rod Heritage and Legends of Nitro series events. The funny car will campaign as a team car with Nostalgia Top Fuel standout Bryan Hall,for a double dose of nitro at each event allowing for additional resources for each car. For more on this story, click here.

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Top Sportsman racer Jeff Brooks and the JEB Four Racing team, well known for its Henry J race car, have unveiled a major redesign the team felt was needed to remain competitive in the Right Trailers Top Sportsman class. 

After many successful years, the team chose Jerry Bickel Race Cars for the new chassis design and integration. Kirkman Composites built the full carbon fiber body from Terry Hall's unique mold. Jeff Hoskins executed a flawless new paint scheme by GOS Motorsports Graphics. Kaeser Compressors will continue as the team's major sponsor.

Under the hood, the Henry J is powered by a Sonny Leonard 762-cid Next Generation Hemi engine and is equipped with the Big Stuff 3 EFI system. The transmission is a Powerglide by Weaver's Racing Transmission, paired with a Coan Engineering torque converter.  

Based on the classic 1951 Henry J economy car built by the Kaiser-Frazer Corporation, the JEB Four Henry J is one of the most recognized cars in drag racing and remains the only one of its kind in NHRA competition. JEB Four Racing has been running variations of the Henry J since they started running the Super Gas class 30 years ago. Team founder James Brooks raced an original Henry J in the 1960s. 

Kaeser is proud of its nearly 30-year sponsorship of JEB Four Racing,  and we look forward to their success in 2024 and beyond.
 
With 15 national and divisional event wins, JEB Four is a two-time NHRA Northeast Division champion and finished the 2023 season fourth in the Central Division. 

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Gutierrez Brothers Racing will partner with Maxima Racing Oils for the 2024 NHRA racing season. The Gutierrez brothers, JP and Phil, have been in the Top Alcohol Dragster class since 2012 but they have been racing together for over 25 years.

In the past couple of years, JP, Phil, JP’s wife Kara and JP’s brother-in-law Kevin Kolomyjec have turned their racing operation into a drag racing business that offers tuning, plumbing, custom machining and drag racing performance products that JP designs and manufactures. 

2023 was a breakout season for GBR in which the team made multiple consistent runs in the 5.2-second range ending on a high note with a semifinal finish and No. 2 qualifier at the NHRA US Nationals. 

“We cannot wait for the 2024 season to begin!” said JP Gutierrez. “Maxima Racing Oils is such an amazing company to work with as a dealer so moving into a racing partnership is a real honor. We use Maxima Racing Oils products in the truck, trailer, race car and in the shop. We know and trust this brand in everything we use because it keeps all our parts safe and performing well.  Because GBR designs, manufactures, develops and uses our own products we really believe this helps give us an edge on the track. We want to help make Maxima Racing Oils a chosen product in the drag racing world!”

Added Phil, “We are thrilled to have Maxima Racing Oils as a partner for the 2024 NHRA season. This partnership will give Maxima Racing Oils a strong presence in the highly competitive Top Alcohol Dragster class and will serve as a starting point to showcase all the great products that Maxima Racing Oils has to offer. We are really looking forward to the start of the season and unveiling the new look of GBR/Maxima Racing Oils Top Alcohol Dragster.”

GBR is using this offseason to continue its development of drag racing performance products that are aimed at boosting their on-track performance in 2024. 

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Scott Cousiman of Nitro Mafia Racing has announced that Gary Allen will be driving its brand-new Nitro Mafia 1978 Plymouth Arrow Nostalgia Nitro Funny Car for 2024. Allen will start licensing and testing the first of the year in preparation to join the racing series of NHRA Hot Rod Heritage Series and Legends Nitro Funny Car Series for 2024.

Allen brings 40 plus years of racing, tuning, custom engine design, chassis fabrication, and design, and a lot of experience in drag racing, from the early 1980s when nostalgia racing first started at Fremont Dragstrip, to road racing, motorcycles, drag boats, offshore racers, prototype, R&D machining, and aerospace.