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News and notes from final eliminations in Bristol at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. Notes, quotes, photos, videos, and more!

There’s a chill in the air at Bristol Dragway, but that’s not the only thing as Thunder Valley prepares to host eliminations for the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals for the first time ever in October.

The NHRA National Dragster photographers were all over Bristol Dragway on Saturday at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, capturing the action on and off the track at the fifth race of the Countdown to the Championship.

Track records went by the wayside on Saturday at Bristol Dragway, as Steve Torrence (Top Fuel), Alexis DeJoria (Funny Car) and Scotty Pollacheck (Pro Stock Motorcycle) all finished No. 1 to close out qualifying at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.

Cruz Pedregon is right in the thick of things in the Funny Car Countdown to the Championship. He entered this weekend’s NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals in third and 113 points back of leader Matt Hagan with three races remaining.

Denso Auto Parts Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Angie Smith will sit out the rest of the 20th NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals after an accident Friday night while doing motor maintenance on her Buell.

It was a thunderous return to Bristol Dragway, capped off by the quickest run in track history, and now we’ll get to see what teams will do for an encore to close out qualifying at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.

Kevin Carter, Kyle Rizzoli, and Jerry Stein led the list of winners as the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Pacific Division was in action at Tucson Dragway.

The NHRA National Dragster photographers were all over Bristol Dragway on the opening day of the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, capturing the action on and off the track at the fifth race of the Countdown to the Championship.

Brittany Force set the track record under the lights in Top Fuel on Friday at the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals. Tim Wilkerson (Funny Car) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) joined her as provisional No. 1 qualifiers at Bristol Dragway.

Team owner Doug Stringer surprised Millican on Friday at Bristol Dragway with a special wrap dedicated to Millican’s late son, Dalton. It’s a nod to the “Blue Thunder” monster truck that Dalton drove, leaving Millican with another special memory in Thunder Valley.

Torrence Racing will join Team Toyota beginning with the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season. The addition of Torrence Racing’s two-team effort expands Toyota’s team partnerships to include five Top Fuel dragsters and two Funny Cars.  

DiPinto International Logistics, a full-service container drayage and warehousing company, will continue its primary support of Jim Dunn Racing for the upcoming 2022 season and beyond.  

TechNet Professional will continue to be a major primary sponsor of Josh Hart’s Top Fuel dragster in the 2022 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series

Tricky Tipster, NHRA’s resident wizard of odds, has gone with points leaders Steve Torrence (Top Fuel), Matt Hagan (Funny Car), and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) as the favorites for this weeks' Bristol event.

Matt Smith has never raced at Bristol Dragway, but he doesn’t have to look far to see the impact his family has had at the fan-favorite facility. Smith’s father, Rickie, was named one of the Legends of Thunder Valley in 2007 and has his name alongside other Bristol legends atop the grandstands. 

Radically different from stepping foot in Thunder Valley over Father’s Day weekend, the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series will head to Bristol Dragway in October and in the thick of the Countdown to the Championship.

Nobody feels more at home in Thunder Valley than Don Schumacher Racing's Ron Capps. The veteran standout in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series has won a Funny Car-best five times at the fan-favorite facility.

Championship-winning racecar driver Tony Stewart is joining the NHRA in 2022. His eponymous team, Tony Stewart Racing (TSR), will field two fulltime entries — one in Top Fuel for nine-time event winner Leah Pruett and one in Funny Car for 39-time event winner Matt Hagan.

Tickets are now on sale for the Mopar Express Lane NHRA SpringNationals presented by Pennzoil, which takes place April 22-24 during the 2022 NHRA season and will mark the final NHRA national event at Houston Raceway Park.

Greg Anderson and Ron Capps join NHRA Insider podcast host Brian Lohnes to talk about their success at the Texas NHRA FallNationals, their championship hopes, and, in the case of Capps, an interesting upcoming weekend at Bristol Dragway. 

There are no ties in drag racing but at the 2012 Bristol race, Allen Johnson and Mike Edwards came darn close in their classic Pro Stock confrontation.

Eight-time Top Fuel world champion Tony Schumacher, the winningest Top Fuel driver in NHRA history, will kick off his campaign for a ninth series title beginning with the 2022 NHRA season opener in Pomona with backing from the Maynard family.

NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series driver Cameron Ferré has linked up with Paton Racing and EMPI Inc. — the largest VW aftermarket manufacturer and wholesaler — for the remaining events on the schedule for 2021.

Josh Hart's TechNet Professional Top Fuel dragster will feature the signage of Brakes for Breasts at the upcoming NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals in Bristol, Oct. 15-17.

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Second-generation drag racer Travis Shumake took another major step forward in pursuing his dream of becoming a professional NHRA Funny Car driver Monday at Texas Motorplex, making several passes under the direction of two-time NHRA world champion driver and crew chief Del Worsham.

From an extra qualifying session, huge qualifying bonuses, extravagant driver introductions under the lights and during pre-race ceremonies, the Stampede of Speed and Texas NHRA FallNationals at Texas Motorplex took the grandiose to new levels. Here's what we learned in Texas.

Justin Ashley pulled off a major upset in the Top Fuel final at the Texas NHRA FallNationals defeating points-leading world champ and homestate favorite Steve Torrence by just .005-second.