The stars of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series roll into The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Oct. 30-Nov. 2, for the penultimate race of the 2014 Countdown to the Championship at the 14th annual NHRA Toyota Nationals.
The best in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle will once again battle for the coveted victory at one of the world’s most state-of-the-art dragstrips. Antron Brown (Top Fuel), John Force (Funny Car), Shane Gray (Pro Stock), and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) were last year’s winners of the event that will again be televised nationally on ESPN2.
Celebrating its 14th running, the NHRA Toyota Nationals has provided high-stakes action in a city with a reputation for thrills, glitz, and glamour. The action on the Vegas strip is matched only by the fire and fury of two 10,000-horsepower machines launching side by side down The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway at more than 300 mph.
The event is a critical stop for the teams in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series as they have two races left to prove they have what it takes to be a Mello Yello Series world champion.
Top Fuel pilot Brown, the 2012 world champ, is a two-time winner in Las Vegas. He picked up a victory at the third race of the Countdown in St. Louis, and sitting in fifth place, he needs a strong weekend to keep his championship hopes alive.
Seven-time world champion Tony Schumacher is an eight-time winner at the Strip, including at the spring event this year. Schumacher’s U.S. Army dragster made a major statement this month, taking home Wallys at the two opening races in the Countdown to the Championship and a third at the recent NHRA Nationals in Pennsylvania. Schumacher holds a 134-point lead over his rivals and is again showing the form that has led him to seven world championships. He could clinch the championship in Las Vegas if he finishes the race weekend with a lead of 151 points or more.
Doug Kalitta led the points for most of the regular season but has struggled somewhat in the Countdown in his Mac Tools dragster, falling in the opening rounds in Charlotte and Dallas and the third round in St. Louis. He lost a key semifinal match to Schumacher in Reading, and now Kalitta must make up major ground in Las Vegas to claim his first championship.
Shawn Langdon, the reigning Top Fuel world champ, sits fourth in Top Fuel points, and he is looking for his first Las Vegas win. Others to watch in the Top Fuel field include Atlanta and Topeka winner Spencer Massey, reigning Auto Club of Southern California Road the Future Award winner Brittany Force, who advanced to her fourth final round of the season in Reading, Pomona and Sonoma winner Khalid alBalooshi, Englishtown and Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals winner Richie Crampton, and Denver winner J.R. Todd.
In Funny Car, Matt Hagan was explosively spectacular in moving into the series points lead with his victory at the NHRA Nationals in Reading. His Rocky Boots Dodge Charger’s engine erupted in a fireball as it crossed the finish line ahead of Tommy Johnson Jr. last weekend. It was Hagan’s second Countdown win, and he enters Vegas with a 36-point lead over Force.
Force locked up his 16th world championship when he defeated daughter Courtney Force in the final round at this event last season. Force’s Castrol GTX High Mileage Ford Mustang has been one of the best cars so far this season, and he is continuing his pursuit of his 17th championship. Although he lost in the opening round in Reading, Force is a four-time winner in Las Vegas, including three at the NHRA Toyota Nationals.
Courtney Force is also a top contender for the championship. She earned back-to-back playoff victories in Dallas and St. Louis and sits third in points in her Traxxas Mustang, 72 back of Hagan. She became the first woman to post four wins in a season in Funny Car and the first woman to win back-to-back races in the category. A world championship would be the icing on the cake to a dream season for Force, who claimed the 100th win by a female driver in the Mello Yello Series in Topeka and passed her sister Ashley in Sonoma for the title of winningest female Funny Car driver.
Other pre-race favorites in Funny Car include three-time season winner Alexis DeJoria, Bristol winner and title contender Johnson, Robert Hight, Ron Capps, Tim Wilkerson, Del Worsham, and three-time Las Vegas winner Cruz Pedregon.
In Pro Stock, one of the most intense playoff battles is brewing between as many as five drivers. Jason Line leads the pack in his Summit Racing Equipment Chevy Camaro and is followed by history-chaser Erica Enders-Stevens, a four-time winner this season who is trying to become the first woman to win an NHRA world championship title in Pro Stock. Hot on her heels are Dave Connolly, Gray, and Allen Johnson. All four drivers are within striking range of the leader, and all will look to shake things up in Las Vegas.
Smith was victorious in Pro Stock Motorcycle last season en route to his second championship ring. He has not visited the winner’s circle in 2014 and will be looking to turn that fortune around as the Countdown winds down. Smith’s wife, Angie, has the lone Matt Smith Racing win in 2014, in Epping, when she beat Matt in the final.
Screamin’ Eagle Vance & Hines Harley-Davidson teammates Andrew Hines and Eddie Krawiec were the class of the Pro Stock Motorcycle field during the regular season. Both have won this event three times, and Hines holds a 25-point advantage over Krawiec following the NHRA Nationals.
Hector Arana Jr. has solidly had the third-best bike throughout the season but will need a win soon aboard his Lucas Oil Buell to have a chance to catch up to Hines and Krawiec. Steve Johnson reached the final rounds in both Charlotte and Dallas, and he must also make a move to threaten the Harley-Davidsons. Jerry Savoie, who picked up his first victory in St. Louis and was the No. 1 qualifier in Reading; NHRA Nationals runner-up Scotty Pollacheck; Hector Arana Sr.; and three-time world champ and recent returnee Angelle Sampey all have a chance to make some noise at The Strip in the two-wheel category.
As always, fans will have the opportunity to interact with their favorite drivers as they’re granted an exclusive pit pass to the most powerful and sensory-filled motorsports attraction on the planet. This unique opportunity in motorsports gives fans direct access to the teams, allowing them to see firsthand the highly skilled mechanics service their hot rods between rounds and enjoy cherished face time with and get autographs from their favorite NHRA drivers.
Fans also will want to visit NHRA’s popular Nitro Alley and Manufacturers Midway, where sponsors and race vendors create a carnival atmosphere with interactive displays, simulated competitions, merchandise, food, and fun for the entire family.
The event will also feature thrilling competition in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series and the world-championship round in the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.
Mello Yello Drag Racing Series qualifying begins Friday, Oct. 31, with sessions at 1 and 4 p.m. The final two qualifying sessions will take place Saturday, Nov. 1, at 1 and 4 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 2.
