Virginia NHRA Nationals Event Recap

Virginia NHRA Nationals

May 13-15 | North Dinwiddie, Virginia

Event Recap

Leah Pruett, driver of the Mobil 1 Top Fuel Dragster:

●  Earned No. 6 provisional qualifying position in Q1 on Friday (3.754 ET at 318.92 mph).

●  Earned No. 9 qualifying position based off Friday’s Q1 run. In Q2 on Saturday, Pruett ran an 11.192 ET at 67.70 mph. 

●  Secured No. 10 qualifying position based off Friday’s Q1 run. In Q3 on Saturday, Pruett ran an 8.187 ET at 82.96 mph. 

●  Ran a 7.253 ET at 129.35 mph in Round 1 of eliminations on Sunday, lost to Doug Kalitta (5.995 ET at 234.33 mph).

●  Currently 13^th in the Top Fuel championship standings, 363 points behind points leader Brittany Force. 

Matt Hagan, driver of the Smithfield Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car:

●  Earned No. 1 provisional qualifying position in Q1 on Friday (3.914 ET at 335.82 mph).

●  Scored three bonus points for quickest run of the session.

●  Earned No. 2 qualifying position in Q2 on Saturday (3.890 ET at 329.50 mph). 

●  Scored two bonus points for second-quickest run of the session.

●  Secured No. 8 qualifying position in Q3 on Saturday (3.924 ET at 329.34 mph).

●  Scored three bonus points for quickest run of the session.

●  Advanced to Finals on Sunday:

    ●  Round 1: 3.964 ET at 328.38 mph in a bye. 

    ●  Round 2: 3.965 ET at 322.65 mph, defeated Chad Green (4.021 ET at 317.05 mph).

    ●  Semifinal: 3.955 ET at 327.03 mph, defeated John Force (17.817 ET at 60.67 mph).

    ●  Final: 3.948 ET at 327.59 mph, lost to Robert Hight (3.907 ET at 328.86 mph).

●  Currently leads the Funny Car championship standings with a 15-point advantage over Robert Hight.

Notes of Interest

●  The Virginia NHRA Nationals marked Hagan’s milestone 300^th career Funny Car start, and it came in his home state. Hagan is from Christiansburg, Virginia, located 190 miles west of the track.

●  Hagan’s 335.82 mph run in Friday’s qualifying session set a new track speed record by nearly 10 mph. Hight was the previous record holder win a run of 326.32 mph in May 2019.  

●  Hagan’s 3.853 ET run in Saturday’s Q3 session set a new track ET record. Force was the previous record holder with a 3.899 ET in May 2019. 

●  The No. 1 qualifying position Hagan earned on Friday was his second No. 1 spot this season, the 44^th of his career and his first at Virginia Motorsports Park. 

● Hagan’s final round appearance was the 76^th of his career. He has advanced to the finals in five out of the first seven NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series events in 2022. 

● Pruett had a quick .042 of a second reaction time in Round 1 of eliminations, besting the .057 of a second start time of her opponent, Doug Kalitta. Both Pruett and Kalitta immediately began smoking their tires, but it was Kalitta who wound up besting Pruett in the pedalfest.  

● Pruett’s Mobil 1 livery and Hagan’s Smithfield paint scheme incorporated a patriotic theme in support of Military Appreciation Month, which is celebrated every May. Pruett’s Top Fuel dragster also highlighted Sparkling Ice’s Cheers to Heroes program, which is running now through the end of July. Customers can turn Sparkling Ice purchases into donations toward Honor Flight and Homes for Our Troops. TSR salutes all those who serve and have served, and honors the sacrifices made by service members and their families.

Leah Pruett, Driver of the Mobil 1 Top Fuel Dragster

“Once I got off the line, I knew I hit the throttle good and we smoked the tires and going back to the last race when I smoked, I had a different strategy of coming back off and feathering it and feathering it, and I couldn’t regain traction. I’ve got to say, for Mobil 1, Dodge, Tony (Stewart), GEARWRENCH and everyone that’s backing us right now, clearly we are going to get it. That run is frustrating, for sure, but not every run is going to be a record-breaking run. The fans are out here to watch a show. That’s a different type of show, but we’re going to take another deep breath, digest it and keep working on it. I’m happy I’m doing my job and my team is doing their job. Once it comes together, it’s going to be lethal. I guarantee you that.” 

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

“It was another amazing weekend in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series. We had a new sponsor on the car with Smithfield and got those folks crossed over from NASCAR a little bit. We went to the finals again and got to race Robert Hight. It’s going to be a fun season throwing down against him. It was special since it was my 300^th career start, and it came right here in my home state of Virginia. Our car is running great and we’ve been to so many finals already and won two races, so I know there is more to come. We obviously wanted to win this weekend, but we’re going to be back in the Dodge Power Brokers Funny Car soon and be applying that power. I just want to say thank you to the fans for coming out and supporting us. The stands were packed. Thank you all for the love and we’re going to keep working hard to turn on those win lights.”

Next Up

The next event on the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series schedule is the NHRA New England Nationals June 3-5 at New England Dragway in Epping, New Hampshire.