DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals Advance

DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals

July 22-24 | Sonoma, California

Event Overview

Friday, July 22 (Nitro Qualifying, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

• Nitro qualifying session (Q1): 8:10 p.m. PDT/11:10 p.m. EDT

Saturday, July 23 (Nitro Qualifying, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

• Nitro qualifying session (Q2): 1 p.m. PDT/4 p.m. EDT
• Nitro qualifying session (Q3): 4 p.m. PDT/7 p.m. EDT 

Sunday, July 24 (Nitro Eliminations, streamed live on NHRA.TV)

• Round 1: 10:30 a.m. PDT/1:30 p.m. EDT 
• Round 2: 1 p.m. PDT/4 p.m. EDT 
• Semi-Finals: 2:30 p.m. PDT/5:30 p.m. EDT 
• Finals: 3:50 p.m. PDT/6:50 p.m. EDT 

TV coverage 

• Saturday, July 23: Qualifying show recapping Friday’s action (7:30 a.m. PDT/10:30 a.m. EDT on FS1)
• Sunday, July 24: Qualifying show recapping Saturday’s action (10:30 a.m. PDT/1:30 p.m. EDT on FS1)
• Sunday, July 24: Finals show (1 p.m. PDT/4 p.m. EDT on FOX) 

Notes of Interest

• The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series is in the midst of its Western Swing. It kicked off last weekend with the Dodge Power Brokers Mile-High Nationals at Bandimere Speedway in Morrison, Colorado, and continues this weekend with DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals at Sonoma (Calif.) Raceway before culminating with the Flav-R-Pac NHRA Northwest Nationals July 29-31 at Pacific Raceways in Kent, Washington.

• Tony Stewart Racing (TSR) and its two-car lineup – one in Top Fuel for 10-time event winner Leah Pruett and one in Funny Car for three-time Funny Car champion Matt Hagan – comes into Sonoma after a strong weekend at Bandimere. Pruett advanced all the way to the finals and won her second Mile-High Nationals event and Hagan secured the No. 1 qualifying position for the fourth time this season. 

• Pruett and Hagan enter Sonoma representing the Rayce Rudeen Foundation and DieHard, respectively. 

• The Rayce Rudeen Foundation is a non-profit organization that works with organizations and programs to encourage a healthy and productive life that is free of addiction. The designated 501(c)(3) is named in honor of Rayce Rudeen, who at age 26 passed away from an accidental Fentanyl overdose. Since its inception, the Rayce Rudeen Foundation has advocated for creating a supportive community in which everyone can access prevention, treatment, recovery and family-support services, all free from stigma. By collaborating with local universities, researchers, organizations, businesses and community coalitions, the Rayce Rudeen Foundation is leading communities toward a united and compassionate response to addiction by identifying gaps in care and building educational tools. 

• For more than 50 years, DieHard has been one of the automotive industry’s most recognizable brands. As America’s most trusted auto battery, DieHard Batteries are renowned for reliability, durability and starting power in the most extreme weather climates. DieHard is sold at Advance and participating Carquest Auto Parts locations nationwide.

• The DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals will serve as Pruett’s 183^rd career Top Fuel start and her sixth at Sonoma. For Hagan, this will be his 305^th career Funny Car start and his 13^th at Sonoma.   

• Pruett is eyeing her first victory in the DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals. She advanced to the final round last year, where her 3.768 ET at 23.04 mph run was narrowly defeated by Steve Torrence’s 3.757 ET at 327.98 mph run. Pruett has one No. 1 qualifier at the event, which came in 2017 (3.669 ET at 328.38 mph) and set a new track record for the 1,000-foot long dragstrip. 

• Hagan is also seeking his first victory in the DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals. He has advanced to the finals three times – 2012 (5.462 ET at 146.67 mph, lost to Johnny Gray: 4.142 ET at 305.15 mph), 2019 (4.030 ET at 316.60 mph, lost to Robert Hight: 3.973 ET at 325.45 mph) and 2021 (3.991 ET at 324.44 mph, lost to Hight: 3.871 ET at 322.50 mph). Hagan has two No. 1 qualifiers at the event, which came in 2009 (4.068 ET at 307.51 mph) and 2013 (3.986 ET at 320.51 mph).  

• On Friday at Sonoma, Pruett will present the Juggers Annual Scholarship to Jacob Reuser, who graduated from nearby Casa Grande High School in Petaluma with a 4.5 GPA. The Juggers Annual Scholarship was formed in San Mateo, California, in 1953, by the 120 members of the Juggers Racing Team who participate primarily in drag racing, land-speed racing and autocross. Their premier program in support of organized drag racing for high school students is their annual scholarship, which awards a certificate and $1,000 in cash. Reuser, this year’s recipient, works a part-time job to pay for car parts while also volunteering at Sack’s Thrift Store, which raises money for Hospice of Petaluma. Reuser started drag racing on Wednesday nights in 2021 and is a contender for this year’s High School Class Championship. He will study mechanical engineering at the University of California at Santa Barbara.

• DYK? The dragstrip at Sonoma is located inside the track’s road course, which annually hosts the NASCAR Cup Series. While Tony Stewart Racing is looking for its first NHRA win at Sonoma, Tony Stewart the owner is already a three-time winner at the track. The NASCAR Hall of Famer won three NASCAR Cup Series races on the 1.99-mile, 10-turn road course – 2001, 2005 and 2016. His victory in 2016 was his 49^th and final NASCAR Cup Series victory as Stewart retired from NASCAR racing at the conclusion of the season. 

Leah Pruett, Driver of the Rayce Rudeen Foundation Top Fuel Dragster 

How important was your victory in last weekend’s Dodge Power Brokers Mile-High Nationals to making consistent runs and collecting valuable points in these five remaining events of the regular season before the Countdown to the Championship begins?

“The Denver race win proved to ourselves that we are the winning team we’ve believed all along, and infuses confidence into each of our crafts. Making eight runs at Bandimere Speedway, with some extreme turnaround times on Sunday, has exposed our team’s small opportunities to improve. It took a Sunday at Bandimere to show us how we can even improve more as we continue the Western Swing.” 

What adjustments do you have to make as a driver and as a team racing at sea level this weekend at Sonoma compared to the 5,800 feet of elevation you experienced last weekend at Bandimere Speedway in Morrison, Colorado? 

“There’s not a deep list of adjustments for a driver. Our deliverables stay the same, but my approach changes only slightly. On the mountain, the less dense air makes mid-track wheelies a thing and something to be extra prepared for. Pulling the fronts on the launch is not as frequent because our initial hit is less, due to less power, via less air. For me, that means there’s a likelihood the car will wash out with the front hiked in the air and become less drivable. Coming to sea level, the car will be at its optimum level of aggressiveness, and I will have to really emphasize the importance of not only square, but straight. Between Denver and Sonoma, the team will give our Top Fueler a complete makeover in regard to jetting changes, blower compensation, clutch adjustments, chassis weight and, of course, the new body that will promote the Rayce Rudeen Foundation and its work with organizations and programs to encourage a healthy and productive life that is free of addiction.”

Matt Hagan, Driver of the DieHard Batteries Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car

What adjustments do you have to make as a driver and as a team racing at sea level this weekend at Sonoma compared to the 5,800 feet of elevation you experienced last weekend at Bandimere Speedway?

“We’ll take everything off the car from Bandimere and put it on the shelf for next year, since the conditions are so different from Sonoma and the other tracks we visit. We’ll be running different rods, rod links and pistons at Sonoma and Seattle. At sea level, everything is crisper and quicker and easier on parts. As a racer, we get back into the groove of what we do on a normal basis. The elevation was tough on us in Denver, so I’m ready to hit the reset button at Sonoma and make more runs.” 

You’ve advanced to the finals three times at Sonoma but you’re still looking your first win at the track. What would it mean to bring home a Wally from wine country? 

“You want to win at every racetrack. Sonoma is one of the tracks that’s eluded me. I feel confident with the changes we’re making following Denver. I know the changes we’re making will allow the car to go back down the racetrack at a high rate of speed. We all pay attention to the championship points hunt, so we want to put this DieHard Batteries Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car in the top spot and have that cushion at the reset of the Countdown. Every qualifying point, and points during the race, make a difference.”