NHRA - National Hot Rod Association

The weather forecast for this week’s In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals has forced a schedule change which will likely lead to several NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Sportsman titles being decided on Thursday. Here is an update on each category.

Given a challenging forecast for the weekend, NHRA officials made the difficult decision to adjust the schedule for Lucas Oil Series racers, attempting to run Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, Right Trailers Top Dragster, and Right Trailers Top Sportsman to completion on Thursday while also allowing a single qualifying run for racers in Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car.

The revised schedule means that the six Lucas Oil Series championships still up for grabs could all be settled on Thursday. If the event goes according to the revised schedule, five champions will be crowned with the lone exception being the Top Alcohol Dragster battle between defending champ Shawn Cowie and Joey Severance, which will likely drag into final eliminations.

Sean Bellemeur (Top Alcohol Funny Car), Justin Lamb (Super Stock), and Bubba Linke (Stock) have already secured their titles, but the battle for the top spot in Comp, Super Comp, Super Gas, Top Dragster, and Top Sportsman remains open with multiple contenders in several categories.

In the race for the Top Alcohol Dragster title, Cowie holds the upper hand as he can clinch the title by advancing to the semifinal round. If he does not, Severance must win the event.

In Comp, Jeff Taylor took over the lead with a victory in Las Vegas. Taylor can win his fifth world title, and second in Comp, if he can hold off Jeff Lane, who must either advance to the final round or win in Pomona, depending on final car count. If there are 17 or more cars, he can win by reaching the final. If there are 16 or less, he’d need nothing less than a win.

The battle in Super Comp is similar to the one in Comp as Kris Whitfield remains the leader, and he’s being pursued by Chad Webber, who must also win the race in order to secure the title.

In Super Gas, JJ Brock is the leader, and he is not entered in the Pomona event. Brock can still be passed by Val Torres Sr., Bo Butner, and Evan Kowalski, who are in attendance. Torres, Butner, and Kowalski would need to reach the final in order to have a chance. Anything less, and Brock will clinch his first title.

In Right Trailers Top Sportsman, Darian Boesch is the leader, but he’s going to have to sweat out a challenge from David Cook and Dan Lafferty, who won last weekend’s event in Las Vegas. Lafferty has only attended two national events this season, so any points he scores in Pomona will be added to his total. Lafferty and Cook would each need to reach the semifinals in order to pass Boesch.

The race for the Right Trailers Top Dragster title is also going down to the wire, with Boesch leading Jessica Eastburn by just two points coming into Pomona. Casey Plazier is also in the mix for the Top Dragster crown. Eastburn can take over the lead with a single round-win, while Plazier would need to advance to the final in order to have a shot.