The Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series looks to be quite healthy for the 2024 season, particularly in the Top Fuel and Funny Car nitro categories. There will be familiar faces at the start lines of 21 races, together with some newcomers and racers who have decided they can afford to go full-time for the first time.
While the straight-line fans of these nitro-powered, tough-to-drive rocket ships are always ready to see success from ageless John Force, winner of 155 national event contests and, yes, 16 world championships in the Funny Car class, we’re also ready to see newcomers to the class and those that haven’t raced a full season before this year.
While hoping that Robert Hight has a short recovery from the illness that is taking him away from his John Force Racing (JFR) Chevrolet Camaro SS, it’ll be great to watch the symmetry in the Prock family as Austin Prock moves from Top Fuel to sub for Hight, the JFR company president. Prock will have his father, Jimmy and brother Thomas turning knobs for him this year and, with all the family history the Procks have in this sport, it’ll be interesting to see the dynamics of a true family operation (within another family’s championship operation).
Austin Prock, of course, is truly excited about keeping it all in the family, as working with his dad and brother has been a top bucket list item for the 28-year-old, who’s been behind a steering wheel of one type or another since he was 10 years old! Prock has achieved four career NHRA Top Fuel victories in eight final rounds, and is looking forward to racing a Funny Car competitively for the first time next week in Bradenton, FL, during the Scag Power Equipment PRO Superstar Shootout at Bradenton Motorsports Park.
Prock joins a stellar list of Funny Car drivers set to compete in this big money race led, of course, by his teammate John Force. Reigning Flopper champ Matt Hagan of Tony Stewart Racing will bring his four titles and Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat to the water ox, as will 2018 champ, Toyota GR Supra racer J.R. Todd of Kalitta Motorsports, Daniel Wilkerson from Scag Wilkerson Racing, who takes over the driving duties from his father Tim in the family’s Ford Mustang.
The driver Daniel Wilkerson tuned to his first career Funny Car victory in the season closer, Chad Green accepted an invite to race his Mustang, as did another Ford stalwart, Bob Tasca III. Toyota’s Alexis DeJoria of DC Motorsports will race her Toyota GR Supra, as will three-time champ and Ron Capps Motorsports owner/driver Ron Capps. Cruz Pedregon, a two-time Funny Car champ will be on hand with his Charger, along with Paul Lee of Paul Lee Racing.
Blake Alexander continues to run for Head Racing in a Mustang and Dave Richards, who has raced part-time in NHRA competition until now, is ready to take on a full schedule that starts with the PRO event. Richards, with brother Paul as team owner, competed in 11 races last season, qualifying eight times and making it to the quarterfinals twice. While not taking part in the PRO event in Florida next week, owner/driver Chris King, a firefighter by trade, intends to return to racing action in his Funny Car in 2024, tabbing veteran tuner Bob Peck as his crew chief. King is hoping to start his season in Gainesville and compete in 6-8 of the 21 scheduled events this year.
Moving from dragsters to a Funny Car, look for Buddy Hull this season in Jim Dunn’s entry. Hull began his NHRA pro career in a dragster, but was racing Funny Car before he delved into TF competition. The 41-year-old power lifter will drive a car that qualified for every race last season with Alex Laughlin driving. Over the past three years, Hull has brought new partners into the sport with his part-time efforts and is looking forward to obtaining his crossover license and racing in all 21 scheduled events this year.
Top Fuel, too, will have new and returning competitors for the 2024 season. Of course, newly crowned champion Doug Kalitta is set to race the PRO Superstar Shootout, along with Kalitta Motorsports teammate and fellow champion (2013) Shawn Langdon. Brittany Force is on the entry list, the sole dragster from her family’s JFR operation, now that Austin Prock is racing the Funny Car normally handled by Robert Hight. She’ll have her eyes set on beating the balance of the PRO dragster field, one that includes eight-time champion Tony Schumacher for JCM Racing and Scag Racing’s Justin Ashley, who had the best results during NHRA’s “regular” season before the Countdown to the Championship crowned Kalitta at the season finale.
Steve Torrence, the four-time TF champion will welcome his father Billy as a full-time competitor, starting with next weekend’s PRO Shootout, as the father-son duo prepare to do battle against their formidable competitors. Billy, after competing in only eight events over the past two seasons, will race the entire Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series in 2024 art the wheel of a second CAPCO Contractors Toyota Top Fuel rail.
After a two-win 2023 season, Clay Millican is on the PRO entry list for Rick Ware Racing, as is the fastest man to 300mph in the eighth, Mike Salinas. In Bradenton, they’ll have to deal with three-time Top Fuel champ Antron Brown, owner/driver of his AB Motorsports rail, as well as Josh Hart of Josh Hart Racing, who won his first ever Top Fuel race two seasons ago in Gainesville, less than an hour away from his Ocala home.
While not racing in Bradenton, Ida Zetterstrom is planning to be ready for springtime competition. As a rookie, she’ll be competing against Jacob McNeal, who intends to race 10 events this year, which makes him eligible for Rookie of the Year honors, along with European Top Fuel titleholder Zetterstrom.
The first in-class father/daughter competitors, Mike Salinas and Jasmine Salinas are ready to compete this year, sharing the same tents and hoping to beat one another. Jasmine, a Top Alcohol Dragster standout, must also contend with another TAD grad, Tony Stewart, looking to add to his trio of NASCAR championships, an INDYCAR title and a variety of asphalt and dirt open wheel championships. Stewart is competing for his self-owned team in support of wife Leah Pruett, who is standing down i order to fulfill the couple’s desire to start their family in 2024.
So the nitro ranks are swelling with quality entrants and many of them will be in central Florida next week in the hopes of taking home Scag’s big bucks before turning their attention to NHRA and its newly minted Mission Foods Drag Racing Series. Drag racing is healthy, particularly in the nitro classes and as their numbers swell, it’s good news for everyone that enjoys straight-line racing
Leave a Reply