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Fifty years after launching the dream, Pawuk wins second straight championship
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Undefeated season leads McBride to second straight Top Fuel Motorcycle title
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DeFlorian overcomes early season challenges to score first championship
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Lottig captures series title in the second season of Holley EFI Factory X
A year of firsts for Gadson, who collected first win and his first championship
Richard Gadson’s rookie season in 2024 was successful, but nothing he accomplished in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class can compare to what happened this season, where Gadson won his first NHRA race and then went on to win his first championship.
By almost any measure, Richard Gadson’s rookie season in 2024 was successful, but nothing he accomplished in the Pro Stock Motorcycle class can compare to what happened this season, where Gadson won his first NHRA race and then went on to win his…
Cowie overcame tough competition, late-season drama to win second straight title
By any measure, Shawn Cowie has lived through more adversity than most racers will ever face, but he has rebuilt himself, rebuilt his racing program, and rebuilt his place atop one of NHRA’s most grueling Sportsman categories as a back-to-back world champion in Top Alcohol Dragster.
By any measure, Shawn Cowie has lived through more adversity than most racers will ever face. The British Columbia driver, who was terribly hurt in a devastating April 2011 motorcycle accident, has rebuilt himself, rebuilt his racing program, and…
Fifth championship puts ‘Killer Bs’ in rare company in history of TAFC class
Sean Bellemeur never set out to chase history in Top Alcohol Funny Car and certainly never dreamed that one day he would be a five-time world champion who is fast approaching 50 career national event wins.
Sean Bellemeur never set out to chase history in Top Alcohol Funny Car. As a 6-year-old kid, peering into the cockpit of his father’s flopper, he could only imagine what it might be like to actually drive the car.When he did get a chance to drive,…
Taylor/Nickens superteam worked together for Taylor’s fifth championship
Before the season kicked off, Jeff Taylor had already had one of the great careers in NHRA Sportsman-racing history: four world championships and more than 50 national event wins, but he and teammate David Nickens proved that age is no barrier as they won another championship in Comp.
Before the 2025 season even kicked off, Jeff Taylor had already had one of the great careers in NHRA Sportsman-racing history: four world championships, more than 50 national event wins, and a reputation for surgical driving and meticulous engine…
With a stunning performance, Lamb finalizes a sixth world championship
Only a select few racers in the near-75-year history of NHRA have won six or more world titles. After an incredible performance that defied reasonable expectations, Stock and Super Stock ace Justin Lamb became the 15th driver on that revered list.
Only a select few racers in the near-75-year history of NHRA have won six or more world titles. After an incredible performance that defied reasonable expectations, Stock and Super Stock ace Justin Lamb became the 15th driver on that revered list.…
Webber victorious in winner-take-all final round to collect first championship
Heading into the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals, Chad Webber’s mission was clear but also extremely difficult: He had to not only win the race but his closest rivals had to lose early, and that's exactly what transpired to earn him his first Super Comp world championship.
Winning any championship is a memorable achievement, but winning a title as the result of a winner-take-all final round at the end of a long and grueling season just seems to hit a bit harder, and this season, no one knows that better than Chad…
Two wins in four final rounds helped propel Linke to first Stock championship
In a sport where timing is everything, Russ “Bubba” Linke’s timing could not have been better. Thrust in the middle of a battle for the Stock world championship at midseason, Linke finished his season with a win, a runner-up, and a semifinal to clinch his first world championship.
In a sport where timing is everything, Russ “Bubba” Linke’s timing could not have been better. Thrust in the middle of a multiway battle for the Stock world championship at midseason, Linke took the ball and ran with it, finishing his season with a…
Super Gas champ Brock finds his first NHRA world title worth the wait
Bold words from a young friend ignited a spark of determination within JJ Brock, and the spark caught full flame as he raced his way to the 2025 NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Super Gas world championship.
Bold words from a young friend ignited a spark of determination within JJ Brock, and the spark caught full flame as he raced his way to the 2025 NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Super Gas world championship.“I’ll never forget it,” recalled the…
Late-season rally helps Plaizier secure first Top Dragster championship
Casey Plaizier only led the points standings in Right Trailers Top Dragster for one day in 2025, but it was the day that matters most, the final day of the season.
Casey Plaizier only led the points standings in Right Trailers Top Dragster for one day in 2025, but it was the day that matters most, the final day of the season.And oh, what a final day it was.The weather that eventually forced the cancellation of…
Fifty years after launching the dream, Pawuk wins second straight championship
Mark “Cowboy” Pawuk is amongst the veterans of the sport, and in 2025, that experience parlayed into a second consecutive Flexjet NHRA Factory Stock Showdown championship for the Ohio native.
The world of drag racing is a melting pot of old and new, from the mix of classic and modern-day muscle cars to an eclectic and enormous array of racers from every walk of life and spanning decades of age. Driving his sleek Empaco Dodge Challenger…
Undefeated season leads McBride to second straight Top Fuel Motorcycle title
Larry "Spinderman" McBride went undefeated in the four-race season to claim his second straight Top Fuel Motorcycle world championship.
Let’s face it, most racers wouldn’t have the nerve to even throw a leg over a Top Fuel Motorcycle, much less go out and attempt to win a race, and perhaps that’s what helps make Larry “Spiderman” McBride a rare and special breed.Following the…
Boesch claims Indy win, second Top Sportsman title in five years
This season, Darian Boesch came extremely close to joining the short list of drivers who have won two world championships in a single year, winning the Right Trailers Top Sportsman title and finishing third in Right Trailers Top Dragster.
This season, Darian Boesch came extremely close to joining the short list of drivers who have won two world championships in a single year. The late Scotty Richardson did it first in 1994, and Justin Lamb and Jeff Strickland have since followed suit…
DeFlorian overcomes early season challenges to score first championship
John DeFlorian’s 2025 campaign in Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage NHRA Mountain Motor Pro Stock was all-time for the St. Louis racer. After finishing No. 3 in the series last season, he made remarkable strides in 2025, inking four wins on the way to his first NHRA world championship.
He has been racing for decades, but John DeFlorian’s 2025 campaign in Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage NHRA Mountain Motor Pro Stock was all-time for the St. Louis racer. After finishing No. 3 in the series last season, the driver of the Total Seal…
Lottig captures series title in the second season of Holley EFI Factory X
Lenny Lottig has been there from the first official Holley EFI Factory X race in his Bill Jenkins “Grumpy’s Toy” tribute Camaro and this season came away as the 2025 Holley EFI Factory X champion.
Factory X debuted as an exhibition in 2023, showcasing production-based muscle cars equipped with cutting-edge technology. The class was undeniably exciting, with late-model, factory-style bodies based on the Chevrolet COPO Camaro, Ford Mustang…
A year after title heartbreak, Glenn collects first Pro Stock world championship
After missing out on winning the 2024 Pro Stock championship by just a few thousandths of a second, Dallas Glenn was not going to be denied in 2025, putting together an incredible title-winning season in his RAD Torque Systems Chevrolet Camaro.
Dallas Glenn put together an incredible season in his RAD Torque Systems Chevrolet Camaro powered by KB Titan Racing, but heading into the final six races that make up the Countdown to the Championship, he knew that his footing was anything but…
Prock family goes back-to-back in another dominant championship year
Austin Prock as its latest member of a short list of back-to-back Funny Car world champions after yet another dominating season in the Cornwell Quality Tools Chevrolet tuned by his father, Jimmy, brother Thomas, and Nate Hildahl.
Don Prudhomme. Raymond Beadle. Frank Hawley. Kenny Bernstein. John Force. Ron Capps. Austin Prock.That’s it. That’s the short list of NHRA Funny Car drivers who have been able to win back-to-back NHRA Funny Car world championships, with Prock as its…
Doug Kalitta collects second championship in three years with late-season charge
Doug Kalitta’s long-overdue first NHRA Top Fuel world championship in 2023 was fraught with drama all the way to the final round of the final race; this year, the now two-time world champ's Countdown domination made for a more relaxed finish.
Doug Kalitta’s long-overdue first NHRA Top Fuel world championship in 2023 was fraught with drama all the way to the final round at the season finale, where he emerged victorious in a winner-take-all battle with Leah Pruett to claim the championship…