CONCORD, N.C. — The NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series will treat fans to four times the fun and excitement when it returns to zMAX Dragway for the seventh annual NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, April 22-24, the fifth of 24 events during the 2016 season and one of the most unique races on the marquee drag racing touring circuit.

The event is the only one of its kind, allowing fans to witness not two, but four 10,000-horsepower nitro machines powering down the dragway simultaneously at speeds over 300 mph, with winners determined sometimes by the length of an eyelash.

Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle’s best will attempt to conquer the one-of-a-kind all-concrete four-lane dragstrip. Antron Brown (Top Fuel), Jack Beckman (Funny Car), Larry Morgan (Pro Stock) and Andrew Hines (PSM) were last year’s winners. The race will be televised on FOX Sports 1 (FS1), with qualifying highlights on April 23 at 10 p.m. and finals coverage on April 24 at 4:30 p.m.

In its seventh year, the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals will continue to thrill fans with sights and sounds that can’t be experienced anywhere else. Drivers will have to contend with two times their normal competition on each pass. The added pressure boded well for fans last year as they witnessed great performances that produced two track records and a national record.

Reigning Top Fuel champion Brown will be looking for his third consecutive victory at the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals. Last year, his Charlotte win sparked what became a seven victory season en route to his second Top Fuel world championship. After a slow start to his title defense this year, Brown will be on the hunt for that same spark as he pilots his Matco Tools dragster down the dragway.

J.R. Todd, who set the 3.713-second track record at the race last year, season-opening Winternationals winner Steve Torrence, who was last year’s runner-up here, eight-time world champ Tony Schumacher, recent first-time winners Leah Pritchett and Brittany Force, and Mac Tools dragster pilot Doug Kalitta are among the top contenders for the Wally trophy and will be looking for a taste of the Four-Wide glory Brown has recently become accustomed to.

In Funny Car, Beckman ended his 54-race winless streak in Funny Car with his victory here one year ago. Beckman hadn’t won since 2012 in St. Louis, the year he won the championship. The victory at the 2015 Four-Wide Nationals provided the momentum he needed to earn seven wins in the season and finish runner-up behind Del Worsham in a memorable championship battle. Defending world champ Worsham, who lost in the finals to Beckman last year, Winternationals winner Ron Capps, two-time Four-Wide Nationals winner and current points leader Robert Hight and Courtney Force, who will be looking for her first Charlotte win, are a few of the drivers to watch in this year’s Funny Car class.

In Pro Stock, Morgan pulled off an upset win over Greg Anderson here last season to end a dry spell from winner’s circle. Anderson, who was runner-up and also set the track record speed of 215.48 mph and has two wins at the Four-Wide Nationals (’10 and ’11), is riding some early season momentum after winning the season-opening Winternationals and the recent NHRA Gatornationals in Florida. His teammate, Jason Line, who set the national E.T. record here last year but has never won in the spring at Charlotte, has been to the final round in the first three races of the season and is leading the series points standings. Defending world champ Erica Enders, who is looking for her first Four-Wide victory, will also be among the pre-race favorites, along with other young guns Bo Butner, who was No. 1 qualifier in Phoenix, Vincent Nobile, last year’s top rookie Drew Skillman, Gas Monkey Garage Chevy Camaro driver Alex Laughlin and tough Texan Chris McGaha, who posted a runner-up finish in Phoenix.

The sleek new Pro Stock cars feature fuel-injected engines, shorter wheelie bars, flat hoods and a 10,500 RPM rev-limiter.

The NHRA Four-Wide Nationals is the second stop on the Pro Stock Motorcycle schedule. Hines, who won the event last year by outrunning three-time world champion Eddie Krawiec, went on to claim the 2015 series title on his Vance & Hines Screamin’ Eagle Harley-Davidson. Krawiec, who has never won at the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, comes in as the points leader after winning the Gatornationals. Hector Arana Jr., who was the No. 1 qualifier and also set both ends of the track record at last year’s Four-Wide Nationals, along with his father Hector Sr., who was runner-up at the Gatornationals, are also expected to be among the top contenders in the two-wheel category in North Carolina.

As part of NHRA’s 50th anniversary celebration of Funny Car, one legendary Funny Car driver will be honored during pre-race ceremonies.

As always, fans will have the opportunity to interact with their favorite drivers as they’re granted an exclusive pit pass to the most powerful and sensory-filled motorsports attraction on the planet. This unique opportunity in motorsports gives fans direct access to the teams, allowing them to see firsthand the highly-skilled mechanics service their hot rods between rounds, and enjoy some cherished face time with their favorite NHRA drivers.

Fans also will want to visit NHRA’s popular Nitro Alley and Manufacturers Midway, where sponsors and race vendors create a carnival atmosphere, with interactive displays, simulated competitions, merchandise, food and fun for the entire family.

Mello Yello Series qualifying begins Friday, April 22, with sessions at 4:30 and 6:30 p.m. The final two qualifying sessions will take place Saturday, April 23, at 2 and 4 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 12 p.m. on Sunday, April 24.

The 2015 NHRA Four-Wide Nationals will also feature thrilling competition in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series.

Be a part of the action all weekend with a Three-Day Pass to the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals starting at $107.  Tickets for children 13 and under are free with any paid adult ticket; to purchase general admission or reserved seats please visit www.zMAXDragway.com or call the box office at (800) 455-FANS (3267). For more information about NHRA, please visit www.NHRA.com.

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NHRA FOUR-WIDE NATIONALS FACT SHEET

WHAT: Sixth annual NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, the fifth of 24 events in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. Drivers in four categories – Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle – earn points leading to 2016 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series world championships.

WHERE: zMAX Dragway- Track is located on Hwy 29 off I-85 at exit 49 (Speedway Blvd.) in the Concord, N.C. area.

WHEN: Friday through Sunday, April 22-24

FORMAT: Qualifying sessions and elimination rounds will be conducted using four lanes in all Mello Yello Series classes; Lanes will be identified from left to right facing downtrack as 1-4; The standard Friday qualifying procedure of a top 12 format will not be in use; Two Christmas trees will be in use, one between each two lanes; The Compulink Autostart system will continue to be utilized and it will not activate until all four vehicles are pre-staged and one vehicle has staged; The ladder structure will feature Race A: qualifiers 1, 8, 9, 16, Race B: qualifiers 4, 5, 12, 13, Race C: qualifiers 2, 7, 10, 15, and Race D: qualifiers 3, 6, 11, 14; Race A and Race B will be on one side of the ladder, while Race C and Race D will be on the other;  Lane choice for eliminations goes to the driver with the quickest E.T., then the second-quickest, and so on; The first two drivers in each elimination round to cross the finish line advance to the second round and final; In the final round, teams will finish in the order they cross the finish line (barring any red-light starts), with winner, runner-up and two semifinalists in that order.

SCHEDULE:        

FRIDAY, April 22 – LUCAS OIL SERIES qualifying

MELLO YELLO SERIES qualifying at 4:30 and 6:30 p.m.

SATURDAY, April 23 – LUCAS OIL SERIES eliminations

MELLO YELLO SERIES qualifying at 2 and 4 p.m.

SUNDAY, April 24 – Pre-race ceremonies, 10:30 a.m.

MELLO YELLO SERIES eliminations begin at noon

TELEVISION:      

Saturday, April 23, FS1 will televise two hours of qualifying highlights at 10 p.m. (ET).

Sunday, April 24, FS1 will televise three hours of finals coverage at 4:30 p.m. (ET).

2015 EVENT WINNERS: Antron Brown, Top Fuel; Jack Beckman, Funny Car; Larry Morgan, Pro Stock; Andrew Hines, Pro Stock Motorcycle.

MOST VICTORIES: Antron Brown, 2, TF; Spencer Massey, 2, TF; Jack Beckman, 2, FC; Robert Hight, 2, FC; Greg Anderson, 2, PS; Mike Edwards, 2, PS; Andrew Hines, 2, PSM.

TRACK RECORDS:            

Top Fuel – 3.713 sec. by J.R. Todd, March ’15; 332.18 mph by Spencer Massey, April ’12.

Funny Car – 3.971 sec. by Tommy Johnson Jr., Sept. ’15; 322.27 mph by Matt Hagan, Sept. ’11.

Pro Stock – 6.455 sec. by Jason Line, March ’15; 215.48 mph by Greg Anderson, March ’15.

Pro Stock Motorcycle – 6.794 sec. and 199.88 mph by Hector Arana Jr., March ’15.

NATIONAL RECORDS:    

Top Fuel – 3.680 sec. by Antron Brown, Aug. ’15, Brainerd, Minn.; 332.75 mph by Spencer Massey, Aug. ’15, Brainerd, Minn.

Funny Car – 3.879 sec. by Jack Beckman, March ‘16, Gainesville, Fla.; 331.45 mph by Matt Hagan, Nov. ’15, Pomona, Calif.

Pro Stock – 6.455 sec. by Jason Line, March ’15, Charlotte, N.C.;  215.55 mph by Erica Enders, May ‘14, Englishtown N.J.

PS Motorcycle – 6.728 sec. by Andrew Hines, Oct. ’12, Reading, Pa.; 199.88 mph by Hector Arana Jr., March ’15, Charlotte, N.C.

TICKETS: Order tickets by phone at (800) 455-FANS. Tickets also are available online at www.zmaxdragway.com.

Story and photo courtesy of the NHRA