Purses and payouts are what drive all professional levels of racing. Sure, the pride of being first to the finish line is incalculable but the addition of funding sure makes competitive juices flow more readily. In NHRA, the recent additions of All-Star Callouts for each professional Mission Foods Drag Racing Series class – Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle – has benefited the racers and enticed fans, as have Mission’s regular season #2Fast2Tasty Challenges.
With a total of $25 million up for grabs in this year’s 20-race calendar, NHRA has elected to financially reward its “regular season” champions in all four classes with more than the extra points its given those at the top of their categories after the fist 14 contests are complete. For the first time in its history, NHRA will be paying out nearly $400,000 of additional purse to regular season champions in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle following the 71st annual Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park outside Indianapolis.
“It is always our goal to incentivize our amazing racers at all levels, and we’ve been intently focused on introducing new ways to reward our drivers and teams,” said Glen Cromwell, NHRA president. “We’re excited to award $25 million to these incredible teams and competitors who race at such a high level and put on a tremendous show for our fans across the country.” While Cromwell and his executive team realize that adding this incentive to the regular season helps teams committed to a full campaign, it also “provides added excitement to the regular season and the world’s biggest drag race, the Cornwell Quality Tools U.S. Nationals. From our specialty races and bonus programs, to our battle for regular season and world championships, we are looking forward to a spectacular 2025 season.”
While it’s customary for executives at a sanction to crow about changes that increase purses and payouts, what these added funds might do is condition those that race part-time to consider a full-season assault. On several different occasions during the massively exciting 2024 campaign, one that saw champions crowned on the final day of the early March through mid-November season, there weren’t sufficient cars and motorcycles to make up a full, 16-vehicle grid. While some competitors might relish the “bye” round, most get their thrills by racing a live competitor, not just the clock and the track.
Once the 59th In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals were completed at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip last November, Antron Brown earned his fourth Top Fuel championship and first as a team owner, Austin Prock fulfilled his destiny as a third-generation drag racer in slamming the door on competitors in Funny Car and being the first Flopper driver to exceed 340-mph, Greg Anderson won his sixth Pro Stock title in the class’ fourth and final round, while Gaige Herrera took his second straight Pro Stock Motorcycle championship for Suzuki and Vance & Hines Motorsports.
Strangely only two of those four were regular season titleholders: Prock and Herrera. In Top Fuel, 2023 champion Doug Kalitta sat atop the pylon after 14 races while Anderson’s final round competition – and his teammate – Dallas Glenn earned regular-season nods. They were then rewarded with extra points before heading to Reading and the first of six Countdown to the Championship playoff races. This year will be different.
The regular – and overall – NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season begins March 6-9 with the 56th annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals on Gainesville Raceway’s dragstrip outside the city of the same name. Will these new rules entice more full-season squads to the water box with the carrot of added funding after the first 14 races are complete? In little over another month, we’ll find out.
2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Regular Season
March 6-9: 56th annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, Gainesville Raceway, Gainesville, Fla.
March 21-23: 40th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals, Firebird Motorsports Park, Phoenix
March 27-30: 65th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals, In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip, Pomona, Calif.
April 11-13: 25th annual NHRA 4-Wide Nationals, The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas
April 25-27: 15th annual NHRA 4-Wide Nationals, zMAX Dragway, Charlotte
May 16-18: 25th annual Gerber Collision & Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals presented by PEAK Performance, Route 66 Raceway, Chicago
May 30-June 1: 12th annual NHRA New England Nationals, New England Dragway, Epping, N.H.
June 6-8: 24th annual Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, Bristol Dragway, Bristol, Tenn.
June 20-22: 5th annual Virginia NHRA Nationals, Virginia Motorsports Park, Richmond, Va. This will be a two-day pro event with three qualifying sessions on Saturday.
June 26-29: 19th annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, Summit Motorsports Park, Norwalk, Ohio
July 18-20: 36th annual Muckleshoot Casino Resort NHRA Northwest Nationals, Pacific Raceways, Seattle
July 25-27: 37th annual DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals, Sonoma Raceway, Sonoma, Calif.
Aug. 14-17: 43rd annual Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, Brainerd International Raceway, Brainerd, Minn.
Aug. 27-Sept. 1: 71st annual Cornwell Quality Tools NHRA U.S. Nationals, Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park, Indianapolis.
NHRA COUNTDOWN TO THE CHAMPIONSHIP PLAYOFFS
Sept. 11-14: 40th annual Reading NHRA Nationals, Maple Grove Raceway, Reading, Pa.
Sept. 19-21: 17th annual NHRA 4-Wide Carolina Nationals, zMAX Dragway, Charlotte.
Sept. 26-28: 14th annual NHRA Midwest Nationals, World Wide Technology Raceway, St. Louis
Oct. 9-12: 40th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals, Texas Motorplex, Dallas
Oct. 30-Nov. 2: 25th annual NHRA Nevada Nationals, The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Las Vegas
Nov. 13-16: 60th annual In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals, In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip, Pomona, Calif.
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