NHRA Great Lakes Nationals: Winners, Wildcards And Championship Contenders

If you were looking for a wild kickoff to the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship playoffs, the Dodge NHRA Great Lakes Nationals at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park delivered.

This was the first time the NHRA visited the track, Mother Nature threw curveballs at the teams, and the race had to be completed on Monday. So, needless to say, this wasn’t your typical opening event for the Countdown. Let’s break down what we learned from this event for each NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series class.

Top Fuel

Kalitta Motorsports teammates Doug Kalitta and Shawn Langdon dominated the Top Fuel regular season, and that continued at the Great Lakes Nationals. They faced off in the semifinal round, where Kalitta smoked the tires, and Langdon hammered his own NHRA speed record with a 346.95 mph rip. In the final, Langdon ran out of Spencer Massey’s life and lit the board with a 346.15 mph pass.

During the regular season, Tony Stewart and Leah Pruett were right behind the Kalitta cars. Coming out of the Great Lakes Nationals, Stewart sits third in points, while Pruett is in fifth after an early exit at the event. They are both within striking distance of points leader Langdon heading into the NHRA Nationals At The Rock.

Sandwiched between Stewart and Pruett in fourth place is Antron Brown. Is this a big problem for Brown? Absolutely not. His team has made a living staying close to the top of the points standings during the regular season and then making a big charge in the Countdown.

Let’s focus on the Top Fuel wildcards after the first Countdown race. Josh Hart won the Gatornationals, then fell under the radar as crew chief David Grubnic tried things during the regular season. Well, Hart went 3.671 at 329 mph to qualify No. 2. Grubnic indicated that was just one run, not a trend, but it showed what the car is capable of.

Billy Torrence and Maddi Gordon didn’t have the race-day performances they were looking for, but that doesn’t mean they can’t get hot and make some noise in the Countdown. Justin Ashley sat out eliminations since they fell on Yom Kippur, which put him in ninth place, but don’t count on him staying there for long. His team has been on a heater and has momentum.

Funny Car

The Funny Car regular season was an absolute battle, with Matt Hagan coming out on top and winning the title at the U.S. Nationals. Hagan took his hard-earned points lead into the Great Lakes Nationals and made it all the way to the final. Even with his runner-up finish, Hagan held on to the points lead heading into Rockingham and showed his Tony Stewart Racing team has plenty left in the tank to push toward an NHRA world championship.

Behind Hagan in the points standings is an absolute hornet’s nest of top-tier drivers who were all in the hunt for the regular-season Funny Car title. Jordan Vandergriff sits second and somehow turned what should have been a disastrous weekend at U.S. 131 into a victory.

Right behind Vandergriff in third place is U.S. Nationals champion and teammate Jack Beckman. The PEAK team turned the burner all the way up in the last few weeks, found consistency, and will more than likely be in the hunt throughout the Countdown.

Ron Capps sits in fourth, just ahead of J.R. Todd. Both of these drivers were a part of the regular-season points battle and didn’t have the weekend they were looking for at the Great Lakes Nationals. Under no circumstances should you count either of these teams out. They are going to be a part of the title fight.

The biggest wildcard after the first Countdown event is obviously two-time and defending Funny Car champion Austin Prock. Prock will be the first one to tell you they struggled during the regular season. However, the team’s flashes of brilliance were white-hot and led to a win at the Potomac Nationals. This team has started to put the pieces together, and if they find consistency during the Countdown, they will change the face of the title fight.

Pro Stock

Dallas Glenn and Greg Anderson locked the Pro Stock regular season down with four wins apiece. After an absolutely insane day of racing at the Great Lakes Nationals, Anderson is in third place, Glenn sits in fourth place, and Matt Hartford leads the points with Greg Stanfield in second place.

Here’s the thing: This shouldn’t be as shocking as it sounds. Hartford and Stanfield each picked up wins during the regular season and were always lurking right behind Glenn and Anderson. When Glenn and Anderson struggled at U.S. 131, they capitalized and took the top two spots in points.

Troy Coughlin Jr. holds down the fifth spot thanks to a gonzo run at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park. Coughlin was riding a 41-race winless streak, won the Great Lakes Nationals, and rocketed into the top half of the standings. If he finds consistency, this points chase could be a battle until the finals at Pomona.

Pro Stock has two wildcards in the form of Jeg Coughlin and Erica Enders. That may be a shocking thing to read, but it shows how tough this class is and how good both these cars can be. Elite Motorsports made the switch to Jerry Haas-built race cars, and the team is still working on getting them fully dialed in. When they get them figured out, you’re going to see this pair of multi-time Pro Stock world champions charge toward the top of the standings. Mark that down.

Pro Stock Motorcycle

Richard Gadson won the Pro Stock Motorcycle regular season, is hunting for another NHRA world title, and leads the points after the Great Lakes Nationals, but it wasn’t a smooth weekend. Gadson lost in the quarterfinals and only has a one-point lead over event winner John Hall. So, if he wants to keep the points lead, he’ll need to bounce back at Rockingham.

While Hall had a great weekend and has set himself up for a great run in the Countdown, he needs to be looking over his shoulder because Matt Smith, in third place, and Angie Smith, in fourth place, are hot on his heels. The Smith family, along with Ryan Oehler, who sits in fifth place, are all more than capable of winning the Countdown as well.

Gaige Herrera is sitting in the sixth spot, and we’re not even going to call him a wildcard. The fact is, Herrera just had a bad day at the office and got shuffled way down in the points standings. He’s not going to be out of the top five for long. That’s a fact.