WINNER-TAKE-ALL FINAL ROUNDS ROCK
On Thursday, NHRA’s Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Sportsman racers put on quite a show when racers in Comp, Super Stock, Stock, Super Comp, Super Gas, Right Trailers Top Sportsman, and Right Trailers Top Dragster raced to completion. Comp, Top Sportsman, and Top Dragster got a single qualifying run, while the rest went right into final eliminations.
The drama was highlighted by a pair of winner-take-all final rounds to decide the champions in Super Comp and Top Dragster, as well as championship-clinching drama in other categories. The first winner-take-all final was anticlimactic as Casey Plazier was set to race teammate Aaron Steinkey, but Steinkey was a no-show after he reportedly broke in the semi’s.
The Super Comp final was far more dramatic as Chad Webber, needing nothing less than a victory in order to secure the title, found himself in deep trouble after a .004 light by opponent Doug Johnson. Webber rallied to win with an 8.911 after Johnson broke out. A week earlier, Justin Lamb won his fifth NHRA title with a similar winner-take-all performance in Las Vegas.
Jeff Taylor (Comp), JJ Brock (Super Gas), and Darian Boesch (Top Sportsman) also wrapped up world titles, adding to the nonstop drama of the day.
NEW FACES IN UNFAMILIAR PLACES
If nothing else, the 2025 season helped destroy the myth that the same drivers win year after year. For the second time in three years, NHRA welcomed two new faces among its four NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Pro champs.
Two years ago, Doug Kalitta and Gaige Herrera were honored as first-time champions in Top Fuel and Pro Stock Motorcycle, and there was a similar position this season as Dallas Glenn claimed his first title in Pro Stock while Richard Gadson became the 13th champion in Pro Stock Motorcycle.
Glenn came within a whisper of winning the title last year as he dropped a winner-take-all final round to teammate Greg Anderson in Pomona. This time, Glenn left no doubt as he drove his RAD Torque Systems Camaro to a monster season with eight wins and 13 final rounds in 17 events.
Gadson also improved dramatically over his rookie season in 2024 with four wins on his RevZilla/Vance & Hines Suzuki. A late-season run allowed Gadson to come to Pomona with a 21-point lead over Herrera in the closest battle of any of the four Pro categories.
THE END OF AN ERA (FOR NOW)
When Brittany Force announced that she’d be ending (at least temporarily) her career as a Top Fuel driver, she likely envisioned a fitting finish that included winning her final event. That’s basically what happened, in a roundabout way.
Force, a two-time Top Fuel champ, did indeed win her final event, but that victory came two weeks ago in Las Vegas, where she defeated Shawn Langdon in the final round to win the 19th event of her career.
As much as Force would have loved to race for another Wally in Pomona, she can leave secure in the knowledge that her final run in the Monster Energy dragster was accompanied by a win light. While Force didn’t get a chance to race in Pomona, her team, capably led by David Grubnic, did fire the car up in the pit area for a few ceremonial throttle whacks.
THE END OF AN ERA (PART TWO)
It certainly didn’t slip by unnoticed, but John Force’s official retirement announcement was about as understated as it could be. There was no advance notice and no flashy press conference. Force, after 16 championships and a record 157 wins, called it a career in a brief video clip filmed at his West Coast headquarters in Yorba Linda, Calif.
In the video, Force simply confirmed what many had suspected; that after the injuries he suffered last season in a crash in Richmond, he would not be returning to competition.
As much as it might be tempting to view Force’s retirement as a sad occasion, it’s perhaps better to realize that anyone who got a chance to see Force race, particularly in his prime, had the opportunity to witness an historic level of greatness. What Babe Ruth is to the game of baseball, John Force is to NHRA Drag Racing.
RUNNER-UPS PONDER WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN
Coming to Pomona, Matt Hagan and Greg Anderson were admittedly big long shots to win championships, but both of them would have loved to have a chance to try. The same goes for Gaige Herrera, who had an excellent shot to win a third Pro Stock Motorcycle title.
Four-time Funny Car champ Hagan came to Pomona trailing leader Austin Prock by 101 points, which essentially meant that Prock would need to lose in the opening round while Hagan would need to win the race. Difficult, yes, but not impossible.
Anderson faced a similar scenario as he trailed teammate Dallas Glenn by 92 points, or the equivalent of four rounds. With a solid qualifying performance, Anderson could have trimmed the lead to just three rounds.
And then there was Herrera, who needed to make up just one round on teammate Richard Gadson in order to win a third straight title. All three title contenders were understandably disappointed they didn’t have a shot to take over the lead, but all three also handled the situation with class and dignity. Like Brittany Force, both Hagan and Herrera at least had the satisfaction of raising their class’ final Wallys when they won in Las Vegas.
