NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

They say there’s no race quite like Indy, and this year’s Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals will live up to the event’s 70-year tradition, packed with drama on a number of fronts that go beyond who will claim bragging rights at the sport’s oldest and most prestigious event.

The event is the 14th and final race of the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series regular season — and the gateway to the six-race Countdown to the Championship playoffs that will determine the season’s world champions — and the plotlines of both of those stories will factor heavily over Labor Day weekend.

For the first time since NHRA introduced the Countdown playoffs in 2007, NHRA will crown regular-season champions in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle and award almost $400,000 in additional purse to the four points leaders after the U.S. Nationals, part of the $25 million purse for the 2025 season.

With 195 points still on the table under the historic points-and-a-half scoring scheme at the event, very little is sure except that, barring an improbably apocalyptic sequence of events, reigning Funny Car world champ Austin Prock will win the regular-season championship in that class. More on that later.

Winning the regular season is just part of the challenge of winning the season championship at the end of the playoffs, but first drivers will have to make the Countdown fields, which they can do in one of two ways: Drivers will either earn a spot based on finishing in the Top 10 of points standings after the event, or be eligible by having run at least the minimum number of qualifying runs at all regular-season events. The minimum number of qualifying runs required in Indy is three of the five.

Here's a class-by-class breakdown of the battles for the regular-season championships and the berths in the Countdown playoffs.

TOP FUEL

Regular-season championship

2013 Top Fuel world champ Shawn Langdon is in the driver’s seat for the $150,000 championship payout, but Tony Stewart and Langdon’s teammate, 2023 world champ Doug Kalitta, are reaching for the steering wheel.

Langdon’s incoming lead over second-year Top Fuel pilot Stewart is just 45 points, equal to a round and a half of points, but that’s before we ever turn a tire in qualifying, where a maximum of 30 points is available (four points max in each of five sessions plus 10 points to the No. 1 qualifier). Kalitta is just six points behind Stewart.

Justin Ashley, who is fourth, 133 points behind Langdon, would need major failures from the top three and a long elimination day to make up that much ground.

Countdown berths

Nine of the 10 spots in the Countdown have already been secured, and two drivers are left fighting for the final spot. No drivers outside of the Top 10 have run all of the events to earn that exemption.

The following drivers are locked into the Countdown playoffs:

• Shawn Langdon
• Tony Stewart
• Doug Kalitta
• Justin Ashley
• Brittany Force
• Antron Brown
• Clay Millican
• Josh Hart
• Steve Torrence

Shawn Reed, still medically sidelined following his crash in Seattle, currently sits 10th with Jordan Vandergrff again earning him points under the replacement driver policy. Reed owns a 168-point lead over 11th-place Ida Zetterström, the only driver with a chance to pass him. Reed/Vandergriff would have to fail to qualify to give the past European Top Fuel champ a remote shot at a berth, which would also require her to win the event.

FUNNY CAR

Regular-season championship

Short of him not qualifying and also receiving points penalties for repeatedly oiling the track, Prock is a lock to win the regular-season championship. He is 242 points clear of his teammate, second-place Jack Beckman. Face it, folks. It’s a done deal.

Countdown berths

Although only five of the 10 spots in the Countdown have already been secured, nine other drivers will qualify for the Countdown either by finishing in the Top 10 or by making the three required qualifying runs in Indy.

The following drivers are locked into the Countdown playoffs:

• Austin Prock
• Jack Beckman
• Matt Hagan
• Ron Capps
• Paul Lee

The following drivers have all run the minimum number of qualifying runs through Brainerd to earn a spot in the Countdown.

• J.R. Todd
• Daniel WIlkerson
• Spencer Hyde
• Alexis DeJoria
• Bob Tasca III
• Cruz Pedregon
• Chad Green
• Dave Richards
• Buddy Hull

Like Reed in Top Fuel, injured Hull is earning points (and qualifying credit) through a replacement driver. In Brainerd, that was Jim Campbell, but Alex Laughlin will take over the cockpit of the Jim Dunn Racing entry in Indy.

PRO STOCK

Regular-season championship

With just nine points separating the two and a 422-point gap to third place, KB Titan Racing teammates Dallas Glenn and Greg Anderson will contend for the regular-season championship.

Glenn’s lead is a slim nine points, easily surpassed in qualifying under the right circumstances, but the championship will be decided during final eliminations on Labor Day, based on who goes the furthest. Given that the two decided the 2024 world championship in the final round on the final day of that season, it could well go down the same way in Indy.

Countdown berths

The following drivers are locked into the Countdown playoffs:

• Dallas Glenn
• Greg Anderson
• Matt Hartford
• Cory Reed
• Aaron Stanfield

Below them, eight of the next 10 drivers have made the requisite qualifying runs to date and will be part of the playoffs if they continue to do so in Indy. Those drivers are:

• Eric Latino
• Jeg Coughlin Jr.
• Greg Stanfield
• Cody Coughlin
• Deric Kramer
• Erica Enders
• Troy Coughlin Jr.
• Kenny Delco

Neither Mason McGaha nor his father, Chris, attended the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in Brainerd and thus will have to finish in the Top 10 in points to make the Countdown. Mason is currently in 11th place, 68 points behind 10th-place Kramer. Chris is 177 back of Kramer in 14th place and, realistically, does not have a chance to make it.

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE

Regular-season championship

Reigning world champ Gaige Herrera leads Vance & Hines teammate Richard Gadson by 70 and six-time world champ Matt Smith by 122, and all three are mathematically in contention for the regular-season championship, although Smith surely has some work to do. Separate from qualifying, Gadson would have to go three rounds further than Herrera to pass him, an unlikely scenario unless Herrera or his bike falters early.

Countdown berths

The following drivers are locked into the Countdown playoffs:

• Gaige Herrera
• Richard Gadson
• Matt Smith
• John Hall
• Angie Smith
• Chase Van Sant

Below them, 10 riders will battle for the final four spots. Only sixth-place Jianna Evaristo has met the qualifying requirements and will be part of the Countdown if she makes at least the minimum three attempts in Indy.

Chris Bostick, Steve Johnson, and Marc Ingwersen round out the current Top 10 with Brayden Davis, Ryan Oehler, Kelly Clontz, Ron Tornow, Hector Arana Jr., and Geno Scali all mathematically capable of catching Ingwersen and maybe Johnson should they falter.

Davis represents the biggest threat as the third Vance & Hines rider has shown flashes of brilliance — including two semifinal finishes — in his limited schedule this year and sits just 34 points behind Ingwersen.

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying will feature one round at 6:15 p.m. ET on Friday, Aug. 29, two rounds at 12:30 and 3:15 p.m. ET on Saturday, Aug. 30, and the final two rounds of qualifying on Sunday, Aug. 31, at noon and 2:45 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 10 a.m. ET on Monday, Sept 1.

Television coverage includes qualifying action on FS1 at 9:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. ET on Sunday, and eliminations at noon on FS1 on Monday, shifting to FOX at 2 p.m.

To purchase tickets to the 71st annual Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals, fans can visit www.NHRA.com/tickets. All children 12 and under will be admitted free in the general admission area with a paid adult.