The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series continues its West Coast swing at Pacific Raceways, where Leah Pruett and Matt Hagan will look to strengthen their championship positions during the Muckleshoot Casino Resort NHRA Northwest Nationals.
Pruett enters the Seattle event third in the Top Fuel standings after building one of the most consistent seasons in the category. Hagan arrives fourth in Funny Car points as the defending event winner, hoping to repeat at a track where he has already collected two victories.
Both drivers have already reached the winner’s circle in 2026, but with the regular season moving into its final stretch, Pacific Raceways provides another important opportunity to collect points and build momentum before the Countdown to the Championship.
Leah Pruett Continues Consistent Top Fuel Campaign
Pruett has quickly returned to championship-contending form after stepping back into the American Rebel Light Beer Top Fuel dragster.
The 13-time NHRA national event winner and 2023 Top Fuel championship runner-up earned her first victory of the season when the postponed NHRA New England Nationals was completed during the Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway. It was also her first win since returning to competition after becoming a mother.
Pruett has added No. 1 qualifying performances at the Arizona Nationals and Thunder Valley Nationals while avoiding the early-round problems that can quickly derail a championship season.
Through the first 11 events, she has recorded only one first-round loss and has qualified in the top half of the field at all but one race. She enters Seattle after qualifying ninth and advancing to the semifinals at the Sonoma Nationals.
Pruett believes the data collected in Sonoma can help the team make another step forward at Pacific Raceways.
“I think Seattle, for us, is going to be an even bigger rebound than what Sonoma was from Norwalk where we exited early on race day,” Pruett said. “All the way around, Seattle should be better. In a season like this where you have 15 cars a lot of the time, including in Seattle, that No. 1 qualifying spot is a well-deserved position with a gift that keeps on giving. What we learned in Sonoma, we’ll be applying to Seattle and hitting it really hard right off the trailer.”
Pruett Ready To Replace Difficult Seattle Memories
Pacific Raceways has not always been kind to Pruett.
Her limited time competing at the facility includes a runner-up finish in 2018, when she lost the final round by just .004 seconds. It also includes some difficult moments that she would prefer to replace with a trip to the winner’s circle.
“Seattle is one of the tracks I’ve spent the least amount of time on as a driver from running with part-time teams for a number of years, but I have also made it to the finals there before,” said Pruett who finished runner-up by only .004-seconds at the event in 2018. “I’ve had some big explosions and concussions of my own at that track, so I’m ready to make some new good memories there. This team has been consistent and trending in the right direction. It’s beautiful up in the Northwest and the forecast looks fast, so I’m excited and optimistic to get this American Rebel Light Beer car in the winner’s circle. It will be the last time I’ll have this livery, so it would be nice to retire this scheme on a high note.”
A Seattle victory would give Pruett her second win of the season and provide a fitting conclusion for the American Rebel Light Beer design before the team changes liveries.
Matt Hagan Returns As Defending Seattle Winner
Hagan heads back to Pacific Raceways with a much different starting point than he had one year ago.
The four-time NHRA Funny Car world champion earned his first victory of the 2025 season in Seattle by defeating Ron Capps in the final round. That win was also his first with crew chiefs Mike Knudsen and Phil Shuler.
The trio has continued to develop its program since that breakthrough. Across 31 races together, Hagan, Knudsen, and Shuler have earned four victories, including two during the 2026 season.
“Seattle is one of those places that looks great, but we’ve had some challenges to deal with in the past,” Hagan said. “If you look at Seattle, that was our first win last year. We’re already two races ahead of that into the middle stretch of the season. Even last year we were in contention for the championship, so we’re in a good spot this year with two wins for the JHG folks already. That’s no reason for us to let up, though. A bit of a misstep the last two races, but we’re learning a lot. We can’t afford to get two steps behind, we just have to keep plugging away. Hopefully, even if we struggle to find our normal baseline like we sometimes do around Seattle, we can go out there and get it done again. Going back-to-back at Pacific Raceways is the goal, so let’s see what we can do.”
Hagan Chasing Third Victory Of 2026
Hagan opened his 2026 win total at the NHRA Winternationals, the 1,000th Funny Car race in NHRA history. He shared the winner’s circle that weekend with team owner Tony Stewart.
His second victory came at Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage’s home event in Bristol, where he won on the same weekend that Pruett earned her Top Fuel victory.
The results have kept Hagan in the championship conversation, although the last two events have not produced the momentum he wanted. A first-round loss in Ohio was followed by a quarterfinal finish in Sonoma.
Even so, Pacific Raceways remains one of Hagan’s stronger tracks.
He owns a 23-13 career elimination-round record at the facility, with three final-round appearances in 2012, 2013, and 2025. He won the event in 2013 and 2025 and qualified No. 1 in 2018.
Another Seattle victory would give Hagan his third win of the season and could help him climb from fourth in the Funny Car standings.
The Northwest Nationals arrive at a critical point in the regular season.
Pruett is firmly positioned among the Top Fuel championship contenders, but she needs to continue going rounds to stay connected to the leaders. Hagan is also within striking distance in Funny Car and has a proven history of turning Seattle into a successful weekend.
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