Winners Matt Smith, Dallas Glenn, Austin Prock and Antron Brown. NHRA photo

Courtesy of the NHRA

CONCORD, N.C. – Three-time Top Fuel world champion Antron Brown moved into the points lead for the first time since 2017, winning his second straight playoff race on Sunday at zMAX Dragway after defeating Doug Foley in the final round of the 16th annual NHRA Carolina Nationals.

Antron Brown, TF winner. NHRA photo

Austin Prock (Funny Car), Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) and Matt Smith (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won the 16th of 20 races during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season and the second of six races in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs.

In the final round, Brown went 3.848-seconds at 319.90 mph in his 11,000-horsepower Matco Tools/Toyota dragster to beat Foley’s 3.862 at 316.08, powering to his fifth victory this season and 79th in his career. It was also his 63rd Top Fuel win, as Brown passed Larry Dixon for the second-most Top Fuel wins in NHRA history.

Antron Brown, TF winner. NHRA photo

After qualifying 10th, Brown put together a workmanlike Sunday, defeating Steve Torrence, Billy Torrence and reigning world champion Doug Kalitta to reach the final round. He then led wire-to-wire against Foley, taking over the points lead for the first time in more than seven years. His points lead stands at 53 and 62 points over Justin Ashley and Shawn Langdon, respectively. Kalitta is 67 points behind.

“When you race somebody like Doug Foley, you don’t falter and say, ‘Well, I can’t mess up.’ That’s when you set yourself up for failure,” Brown said. “We go out there and run what we can run, and give it all we got, and it fell our way. We just keep working hard and digging, no matter what. You’ve got to show up on raceday and we have that mindset to stay humble and stay hungry.

“We still have four races left. Drag racing’s math. There’s 16 rounds left on table to win and our goal is go out there wins many of those rounds as possible. We won the first eight, so we’ve got a third of them.”

Foley reached his second career final round after beating Tony Schumacher, Ashley and Clay Millican.

Austin Prock, FC winner. NHRA photo

Funny Car’s Austin Prock continued his absolute dominant run in the loaded category, winning his third straight race and seventh overall in an incredible 2024 campaign, racing past defending world champion Matt Hagan in the final round with a run of 3.924 at 326.48 in his 11,000-horsepower Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS. There appears to be no stopping Prock, who has opened up a commanding 129-point lead in the Funny Car ranks through the first two playoff races after delivering his 11th career win.

Austin Prock, FC winner. NHRA photo

He reached the championship round on Sunday thanks to wins against Alexis DeJoria, Ron Capps and John Force Racing teammate Jack Beckman. Hagan and Prock then delivered a thriller in the finals, with Hagan leaving first and going 3.958 at 324.98. But Prock was able to track the reigning champ down, adding another monumental performance in a season filled with spectacular runs and victories.

“We left the door open to get beat today a couple times and then my team made wholesale changes going into the semifinals, stuff I would say 95 percent of the crew chiefs wouldn’t change going into a round, and it went up there and flew,” Prock said. “It stuck. It was on a mission, and I did the same thing in the final round.

“I’m just trying to take it one moment at a time, one round at a time. And if you do that, you don’t get caught up in being the leader, being the chaser, just go up there and do the best that you can do, because each person on the team has a specific job to do, and they have to do it perfect to have the success. We’ll celebrate tonight and then get my head back in the game and go and try again, one run at a time.”

Hagan, who qualified No. 1, reached the finals for the ffith time this year and 92nd time in his career with round wins against Dave Richards and Bob Tasca III. Hagan was looking for a sweep of both Charlotte races this year. Tasca is second in points, while Beckman trails his teammate by 136 points.

Dallas Glenn, PS winner. NHRA photo

Pro Stock’s Dallas Glenn, who was the points leader for most of the regular season, jumped back to the top spot on Sunday, slipping past Aaron Stanfield in the finals after going 6.626 at 207.18 in his RAD Torque Systems Camaro. It’s the fourth win of the season in eight trips to the finals for Glenn, who now leads Stanfield by just eight points with four races remaining this season.

To reach the finals, Glenn had to get past Mason McGaha, Matt Hartford and reigning world champion Erica Enders. That set up a marquee duel with two of the category’s top young standouts, with Glenn posting a .026 reaction time and holding off Stanfield at the finish line.

Dallas Glenn, PS winner. NHRA photo

“Aaron has a fast car and he’s a great driver and doesn’t make mistakes,” Glenn said. “So, it’s a deal where you can’t make a mistake against him. The crew chiefs have to do their job and give me the best car they can. I’m glad that Aaron and I put on a good show for the fans in the final. I hate not having a close race against him.

“In the Countdown, every lap I go up there in eliminations, I’m on kill. I’m trying to do everything I can. I can’t make any mistakes. I’ve got to try to make sure I get every last bit in case it does shake a little bit and I lose whatever performance advantage I have. I’m on kill 100 percent of the time.”

Stanfield, who had won back-to-back races, knocked off Chris McGaha, Jeg Coughlin Jr. and Greg Anderson to reach the finals for the eighth time in 2024 and 23rd time overall. Enders is 53 points back in third, while Anderson trails his KB Titan Racing teammate Glenn by 74 points.

Matt Smith, PSM winner. NHRA photo

In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Matt Smith took a big step towards a possible seventh world championship, picking up his second win of the year on his Denso Auto Parts Buell when rookie Richard Gadson went red in the final round. Smith rolled to a run of 6.846 at 199.35, scooping up his 40th career win and moving into the points lead for the first time this year in the process.

To get to the final round, Smith defeated his wife, Angie, and Matt Smith Racing teammate Jianna Evaristo, clinching the home track win when Gadson left the starting line a touch too soon. He now leads defending world champion Gaige Herrera by 25 points, finishing off a hugely-rewarding weekend that saw Smith also qualify No. 1. He’s now laser-focused on trying to become the first rider in NHRA history to win seven Pro Stock Motorcycle championships.

Matt Smith, PSM winner. NHRA photo

“I was just trying to stay good and tough against Richard and when I went through the lights, I didn’t see my win light and I didn’t know if I won or not,” Smith said. “It’s never a good feeling when you can’t see a win light because you thought you had a good deal, but you don’t ever know. But all in all, what a weekend, what a day.

“I like being under pressure. It doesn’t matter what you do in the regular season. You always have to be good the last six races, and I’ve always been pretty good last six races, and that’s how I won my championships, and that’s how we’re going to continue to race.”

Gadson reached his second straight final round after defeating Ron Tornow, Chase Van Sant and Herrera. He remains third in points, 27 back of Smith.

The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series returns to action Sept. 27-29 with the 13th annual NHRA Midwest Nationals at World Wide Technology Raceway in St. Louis.

CONCORD, N.C. — Final finish order (1-16) at the 16th annual NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMax Dragway. The race is the 16th of 20 events in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series.

TOP FUEL:

1. Antron Brown; 2. Doug Foley; 3. Doug Kalitta; 4. Clay Millican; 5. Billy Torrence; 6. Brittany Force; 7. Shawn Langdon; 8. Justin Ashley; 9. Jasmine Salinas; 10. Steve Torrence; 11. Tony Schumacher; 12. Tony Stewart; 13. Dan Mercier; 14. Ida Zetterstrom; 15. Josh Hart; 16. Shawn Reed.

FUNNY CAR:

1. Austin Prock; 2. Matt Hagan; 3. Bob Tasca III; 4. Jack Beckman; 5. Daniel Wilkerson; 6. John Smith; 7. Ron Capps; 8. J.R. Todd; 9. Dave Richards; 10. Cruz Pedregon; 11. Buddy Hull; 12. Alexis DeJoria; 13. Chad Green; 14. Blake Alexander.

PRO STOCK:

1. Dallas Glenn; 2. Aaron Stanfield; 3. Greg Anderson; 4. Erica Enders; 5. Matt Hartford; 6. Cristian Cuadra; 7. Jerry Tucker; 8. Jeg Coughlin; 9. Mason McGaha; 10. Chris McGaha; 11. Derrick Reese; 12. Eric Latino; 13. Kenny Delco; 14. Cory Reed; 15. Troy Coughlin Jr.; 16. Camrie Caruso.

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE:

1. Matt Smith; 2. Richard Gadson; 3. Jianna Evaristo; 4. Gaige Herrera; 5. Angie Smith; 6. Chase Van Sant; 7. John Hall; 8. Hector Arana Jr; 9. Marc Ingwersen; 10. Chris Bostick; 11. Geno Scali; 12. Kelly Clontz; 13. Steve Johnson; 14. Ron Tornow; 15. Marcus Hylton.

CONCORD, N.C. — Sunday’s final results from the 16th annual NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMax Dragway. The race is the 16th of 20 in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series:

Top Fuel — Antron Brown, 3.848 seconds, 319.90 mph def. Doug Foley, 3.862 seconds, 316.08 mph.

Funny Car — Austin Prock, Chevy Camaro, 3.924, 326.48 def. Matt Hagan, Dodge Charger, 3.958, 324.98.

Pro Stock — Dallas Glenn, Chevy Camaro, 6.626, 207.18 def. Aaron Stanfield, Camaro, 6.630, 207.75.

Pro Stock Motorcycle — Matt Smith, Buell, 6.846, 199.35 def. Richard Gadson, Suzuki, Foul – Red Light.

Top Alcohol Dragster — Joe Maynard, 5.272, 273.05 def. Julie Nataas, 6.679, 152.97.

Top Alcohol Funny Car — Sean Bellemeur, Chevy Camaro, 5.513, 265.22 def. Bob McCosh, Chevy Camero, 5.529, 261.83.

Competition Eliminator — Larry Pritchett, Pontiac Sunfire, 7.982, 154.92 def. Jared Kimbrough, Dragster, Foul – Red Light.

Super Stock — Logan Belanger, Pontiac Firebird, 10.284, 117.92 def. Monty Bogan, Chevy Camaro, Foul – Red Light.

Stock Eliminator — Tim Barrett, Chevy Camaro, 10.925, 119.47 def. Kenny Anderson, Chevy Nova, 11.094, 117.49.

Super Comp — Ray Miller III, Dragster, 8.934, 173.92 def. Jack Sepanek, Dragster, 8.945, 170.19.

Super Gas — David Morris, Chevy Camaro, 9.915, 165.64 def. Tim Powell, Chevy Corvette, 9.989, 155.74.

Top Sportsman — Tyler Caheely, Chevy Cavalier, 6.955, 199.11 def. Sandy Wilkins, Chevy Camaro, 6.441, 204.35.

Top Dragster — Chad Taylor, Dragster, 7.157, 182.45 def. Chuck Krepela, Dragster, 6.968, 187.99.

Pro Modified — Travis Harvey, Chevy Camaro, 5.786, 247.61 def. Dmitry Samorukov, Camaro, 5.949, 245.18.

Top Fuel Motorcycle — Larry McBride, Suzuki, 4.875, 238.38 def. Mitch Brown, Suzuki, Broke.

CONCORD, N.C. — Final round-by-round results from the 16th annual NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMax Dragway, the 16th of 20 events in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series:

TOP FUEL:

ROUND ONE — Clay Millican, 3.814, 326.87 def. Jasmine Salinas, 3.798, 329.42; Doug Foley, 3.780, 325.92 def. Tony Schumacher, 3.834, 320.28; Billy Torrence, 3.884, 302.01 def. Shawn Reed, 6.993, 105.27; Doug Kalitta, 3.894, 306.67 def. Tony Stewart, 4.299, 220.48; Brittany Force, 4.789, 203.58 def. Ida Zetterstrom, 4.896, 147.13; Justin Ashley, 4.498, 306.74 def. Dan Mercier, 4.411, 253.52; Shawn Langdon, 3.775, 327.98 def. Josh Hart, 4.923, 165.97; Antron Brown, 3.829, 325.30 def. Steve Torrence, 3.817, 326.08;

QUARTERFINALS — Brown, 3.869, 321.12 def. B. Torrence, 3.892, 323.97; Foley, 4.709, 227.15 def. Ashley, 5.203, 137.36; Millican, 3.796, 323.04 def. Force, 3.909, 314.53; Kalitta, 3.905, 317.64 def. Langdon, 4.364, 242.19;

SEMIFINALS — Brown, 3.873, 319.07 def. Kalitta, 3.876, 300.73; Foley, 5.314, 127.56 def. Millican, Broke – No Show;

FINAL — Brown, 3.848, 319.90 def. Foley, 3.862, 316.08.

FUNNY CAR:

ROUND ONE — John Smith, Dodge Charger, 5.196, 152.90 def. Blake Alexander, Ford Mustang, 10.110, 76.32; Matt Hagan, Charger, 3.976, 320.97 def. Dave Richards, Mustang, 4.095, 305.36; Austin Prock, Chevy Camaro, 3.965, 319.07 def. Alexis DeJoria, Toyota GR Supra, 4.994, 197.74; Jack Beckman, Camaro, 3.934, 322.81 def. Buddy Hull, Charger, 4.597, 191.95; Bob Tasca III, Mustang, 3.988, 316.15 def. Cruz Pedregon, Charger, 4.361, 209.95; Daniel Wilkerson, Mustang, 3.984, 314.46 def. J.R. Todd, GR Supra, 3.945, 321.50; Ron Capps, GR Supra, 3.933, 319.37 def. Chad Green, Mustang, 7.770, 122.31;

QUARTERFINALS — Tasca III, 4.003, 314.97 def. Smith, 4.149, 281.54; Beckman, 3.937, 323.35 def. Wilkerson, 4.004, 317.64; Prock, 4.029, 292.20 def. Capps, 6.772, 107.92; Hagan, 3.978, 318.77 was unopposed;

SEMIFINALS — Hagan, 4.002, 316.38 def. Tasca III, 4.009, 319.60; Prock, 3.962, 324.36 def. Beckman, 4.016, 320.97;

FINAL — Prock, 3.924, 326.48 def. Hagan, 3.958, 324.98.

PRO STOCK:

ROUND ONE — Jerry Tucker, Chevy Camaro, 6.689, 205.76 def. Troy Coughlin Jr., Camaro, 8.540, 130.94; Cristian Cuadra, Ford Mustang, 6.675, 206.07 def. Cory Reed, Camaro, Foul – Red Light; Jeg Coughlin, Camaro, 6.617, 207.11 def. Eric Latino, Camaro, 6.686, 206.32; Matt Hartford, Camaro, 6.676, 206.57 def. Camrie Caruso, Camaro, 15.994, 52.60; Dallas Glenn, Camaro, 6.596, 206.29 def. Mason McGaha, Camaro, 6.640, 207.53; Greg Anderson, Camaro, 6.596, 207.69 def. Kenny Delco, Camaro, 6.692, 206.61; Aaron Stanfield, Camaro, 6.599, 206.16 def. Chris McGaha, Camaro, 6.661, 207.85; Erica Enders, Camaro, 6.602, 208.42 def. Derrick Reese, Mustang, Foul – Red Light;

QUARTERFINALS — Enders, 6.626, 208.04 def. Tucker, 6.685, 206.10; Stanfield, 6.625, 206.16 def. Coughlin, Foul – Red Light; Glenn, 6.609, 206.42 def. Hartford, 6.644, 206.80; Anderson, 6.603, 207.69 def. Cuadra, 6.664, 206.99;

SEMIFINALS — Glenn, 6.643, 207.27 def. Enders, 6.924, 207.98; Stanfield, 6.622, 207.53 def. Anderson, 6.629, 207.75;

FINAL — Glenn, 6.626, 207.18 def. Stanfield, 6.630, 207.75.

PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE:

ROUND ONE — Angie Smith, Buell, 6.907, 197.88 def. Geno Scali, Suzuki, Foul – Red Light; John Hall, 6.971, 194.86 def. Kelly Clontz, Suzuki, 6.969, 192.82; Chase Van Sant, Suzuki, 6.900, 195.68 def. Marc Ingwersen, 6.922, 194.02; Hector Arana Jr, 6.899, 196.90 def. Chris Bostick, Suzuki, 6.947, 193.60; Jianna Evaristo, Buell, 6.960, 194.10 def. Steve Johnson, Suzuki, 7.002, 190.86; Richard Gadson, Suzuki, 6.846, 197.94 def. Ron Tornow, 7.182, 193.40; Gaige Herrera, Suzuki, 6.852, 197.83 def. Marcus Hylton, 7.189, 184.25; Matt Smith, Buell, 6.833, 199.02 was unopposed;

QUARTERFINALS — Evaristo, 6.996, 194.83 def. Arana Jr, Broke; Herrera, 6.874, 196.73 def. Hall, Foul – Red Light; Gadson, 6.887, 197.39 def. Van Sant, 6.942, 194.91; M. Smith, 6.863, 198.29 def. A. Smith, 6.893, 198.55;

SEMIFINALS — Gadson, 6.890, 196.36 def. Herrera, 8.746, 100.40; M. Smith, 6.903, 196.85 def. Evaristo, 7.046, 192.58;

FINAL — M. Smith, 6.846, 199.35 def. Gadson, Foul – Red Light.

CONCORD, N.C. — Point standings (top 10) following the 16th annual NHRA Carolina Nationals at zMax Dragway, the 16th of 20 events in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series –

Top Fuel

1. Antron Brown, 2,292; 2. Justin Ashley, 2,239; 3. Shawn Langdon, 2,230; 4. Doug Kalitta, 2,225; 5. Clay Millican, 2,174; 6. Steve Torrence, 2,162; 7. Tony Schumacher, 2,119; 8. Tony Stewart, 2,118; 9. Brittany Force, 2,114; 10. Billy Torrence, 2,082.

Funny Car

1. Austin Prock, 2,370; 2. Bob Tasca III, 2,241; 3. John Force/Jack Beckman, 2,234; 4. Matt Hagan, 2,217; 5. Ron Capps, 2,163; 6. J.R. Todd, 2,160; 7. Alexis DeJoria, 2,113; 8. Daniel Wilkerson, 2,108; 9. Blake Alexander, 2,103; 10. Chad Green, 2,100.

Pro Stock

1. Dallas Glenn, 2,317; 2. Aaron Stanfield, 2,309; 3. Erica Enders, 2,264; 4. Greg Anderson, 2,243; 5. Jeg Coughlin, 2,151; 6. Cristian Cuadra, 2,125; 7. Jerry Tucker, 2,118; 8. Troy Coughlin Jr., 2,111; 9. Matt Hartford, 2,088; 10. Eric Latino, 2,074.

Pro Stock Motorcycle

1. Matt Smith, 2,308; 2. Gaige Herrera, 2,283; 3. Richard Gadson, 2,281; 4. Hector Arana Jr, 2,193; 5. Chase Van Sant, 2,154; 6. John Hall, 2,152; 7. Angie Smith, 2,149; 8. Jianna Evaristo, 2,137; 9. Steve Johnson, 2,095; 10. Chris Bostick, 2,064.