With approximately one-third of the 2024 drag racing season in the books, it’s time to take a look at some of the incredible accomplishments by our Canadian straight-line racers.
Quebec’s Dan Mercier and his hometown-style Top Fuel team have performed on the biggest stage like true championship contenders. On June 1, at New England Dragway, Mercier finished runner-up to no less than four-time NHRA world champion Steve Torrence in the Mission Foods #2Fast2tasty Challenge. Making his accomplishment even bigger was the large contingent of Quebec fans who were in attendance, for the New England Nationals.
Mercier has been consistently qualifying in the mid 3.7-second zone, at over 500 KM/H with an in-house tuned race car. Watch for Dan and his gang to return to action in Virginia, Norwalk and Indy. They are currently in 14th in the Top Fuel points.
The Eric Latino / Jim Whitley orchestrated KB Titan Pro Stock team are currently sitting in first and third in the NHRA championship points. Greg Anderson is first, while Dallas Glenn is third. Six-time World and 49-time event winner Erica Enders – the greatest female motorsports racer ever – is sandwiched in between.
Their fellow driver teammates – including Eric himself, Camrie Caruso, Sienna Wildgust, Matt Hartford, Deric Kramer and Brandon Foster – have all shown exceptional commitment both on and off the track.
British Columbia’s Justin Bond and Jordan Lazic are performing admirably at the very top of the Pro Mod class, which consistently fields the most pro entries. They’re also managing to support their category back home, on the west coast.
Alberta’s Aaron Steinkey took Top Sportsman honours at the recent 4-Wide event in Las Vegas. He’s currently featured in the latest issue of National Dragster. Aaron also won the Top Dragster title in 2022 at the same event.
The inaugural John Scotti Eastern Canada Sportsman Series recently debuted at the newly resurfaced racing facility at Toronto Motorsports Park (Cayuga Dragstrip).
All of the NHRA grassroots categories participated and the winners received coveted ‘Wallys’ on both days. In the same issue of National Dragster mentioned above, a full-page feature announces the year-end Summit Drag Racing Championship in Las Vegas will take place during the second-to-last National event of the 2024 season, and specifically our final Canadian qualifying race at Quebec’s Napierville Dragway on Sept. 6-8.
This past weekend, during qualifying for the Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Tennessee’s Bristol Raceway, Top Fuel racer Cody Krohn qualified the Paton Racing family dragster 11th with a 3.901-second pass at over 500 KM/H. He bested Doug Kalitta, Brittany Force and Tony Schumacher with that effort.
Clay Millican, a favourite of Canadian fans largely because he captured his first ever Top Fuel title at Grand Bend Motorplex during the height of IHRA drag racing, led competitors with his 3.786 second at 325 MPH pass.
In Nitro Funny Car action, Austin Prock led the qualifying field with a 3.958-second effort, with John Force’s Q4 run at 4.04-seconds, moving him to seventh, thus avoiding a Round 2 match-up against Prock.
In Pro Stock, KB Titan’s Greg Anderson was the man to beat with a 6.615-second pass at 205 MPH. Unusual swings in temperature, humidity, barometer corrected altitude, and track conditions made for interesting tuning challenges for the naturally aspirated Pro Stocks.
Interestingly, in Pro Stock Bikes, Matt Smith deservedly led qualifying, with class dominator Gaige Herrera in fourth.
Kris Thorne (5.764), J.R. Gray (5.799), Justin Bond (5.806) and an exciting Pro Mod compliment of 23 racers (the largest pro field!) made Saturday evening’s Q4 session perhaps the most exciting in Pro Mod history! As many as a dozen-plus final qualifying positions changed hands, led by Thorne.
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Jumping ahead to Eliminations on Sunday, post-race Pro Mod technical inspection changed the results when #1 qualifier (5.764 seconds @ 250.41 MPH) and former series champion Kris Thorne was declared the event winner when J.R. Ward was DQ’d. Ward drives the Mike Janis prepared Pro Mod.
Ward’s win was taken away with the discovery of a by-passed safety switch which Janis maintained had no performance effect. Janis contends the oversight happened when the team replaced the car’s air regulator system and that all of the vehicle’s safety equipment was functional.
This event was the season’s fifth for the series, which enters The Countdown phase after their next event, in Virginia. Canadians Justin Bond and Jordan Lazic are technically still in title contention.
Tony Schumacher won Top Fuel Eliminator at Bristol; the 87th such victory of his career. The final-round win over defending series champion Doug Kalitta was a ‘pedal-fest.’ Schumacher had qualified 12th in the field.
Austin Prock defeated J.R. Todd in the Funny Car final going 3.989-seconds @ 312 MPH to Todd’s 4.02-second run.
Jeg Coughlin defeated KB Titan’s Greg Anderson in the Pro Stock final when Greg’s great .001 reaction time was negated by severe tire shake.
And in Pro Stock Bike, Gauge Herrara won his record ninth consecutive race, defeating Jianna Evaristo.
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