A season ending salute to NHRA’s 2023 Camping World Championship winning achievers….
A Quarter Decade In the Making!
At long last, Doug Kalitta is a NHRA Top Fuel world champion, a moment that instantly entered the history books on Sunday at In-N-Out Pomona Dragstrip as one of the most memorable in NHRA history.
A championship runner-up six times in an otherwise remarkable 26-year career, Kalitta and his team, led by crew chiefs Alan Johnson and Brian Husen, came through with a clutch run that will be replayed forever, defeating Leah Pruett in a winner-take-all final round at the 58th annual In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals.
Kalitta went 3.673-seconds at 334.98 mph in his 11,000-horsepower Mac Tools/Toyota dragster, handing him the event win and a world title, erasing a career of championship heartbreak and giving the fan-favorite veteran a label that can never be removed: NHRA Top Fuel world champion.
“It definitely has a nice ring to it. It’s going to take a while for that to settle in, but I’m definitely going to be grinning here for quite a while,” Kalitta said. “What a blessing to have Alan (Johnson) on our team. To be one of the guys that has won a championship with him as a crew chief is what I’ve dreamed of, and winning it with Connie (Kalitta, team owner) here was extra special as well.
“It’s incredible to see all the fan support. This is one of the coolest places to run and this is just the pinnacle for me. At the end of the run, I was just so relieved. I’ve been trying to win this thing for so many years and it’s just really hard to believe. It will sink in eventually, but we’ve definitely had a great run.”
Kalitta and his Kalitta Motorsports team battled through adversity and got hot at the ideal time, winning three races in the Countdown to the Championship, including the playoff opener in Reading to pick up his milestone 50th career victory.
It was Doug Kalitta who scored a much overdue and highly earned NHRA Top Fuel World Championship.
After starting the six-race playoffs in sixth, he jumped to third after Reading and then went into the points lead after winning the fall race in Charlotte. Pruett bumped Kalitta out of first with her Dallas win and then Steve Torrence moved ahead of everyone in Las Vegas, setting up a marquee three-car showdown in Pomona to close out the year.
All three advanced to the semifinals, and as the drama and intensity built, Kalitta and his team simply got better. He went 3.706, 3.733 and 3.723 during the first three rounds, defeating Justin Ashley in the semifinals. After Pruett slipped past Torrence in the semifinals, it set up the ultimate Pomona showdown where the race winner would also pick up their first world championship.
In what was the final pass of the 2023 NHRA season, Kalitta let wire-to-wire, setting off an epic celebration on both the starting line and the top end, and creating a legacy-making moment in the process.
“It’s incredible the way the points worked out for it to come down to that last run,” Kalitta said. “I just tried to stay focused and it played out perfectly. Everybody was down there on top end and it was something I’ve been looking forward to my whole life. It was a hell of a drag race and it was just nice to get the win.”
It was a moment that had long eluded Kalitta, long regarded as one of the best drivers ever to sit in a Top Fuel dragster. He was second to Torrence in both 2019 and 2020 – falling in 2019 by a mere three points – also recording runner-up finishes 2016, 2006, 2004 and 2003. The loss to Tony Schumacher in 2006, where Schumacher pulled off a record-breaking run with Johnson as his crew chief in the final round to claim the title, was agonizing, but Kalitta now has his own historic final-round moment in Pomona.
Johnson came in at the start of the 2022 campaign and after struggling last year, Kalitta and his team found their footing at the perfect time. It was never easy, but it all proved to be worth it, as Johnson helped guide Kalitta to Top Fuel immortality and a championship that came down to the final pass of an incredible 2023 season.
“Throughout the year, I just kept thinking I’ve got to get a win,” Kalitta said. “We definitely picked up momentum and I’m really proud of all my guys. We were digging really hard and we had to work for it. The guys really pulled it together and we started making good runs and getting win lights, so hats off to them for sure. It’s a big team effort, but I never really doubted my ability to work with these guys. I knew they had my back.”
Funny Car Elite Level
It wasn’t the exact way Matt Hagan had planned to win his fourth NHRA Funny Car world championship, but it was the final point that showed his championship was about an overall impressive body of work and not just one particular run.
The strong season from start to finish proved to be pivotal, as Hagan took the points lead into the final event of the NHRA season, the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals. It proved to be the difference, too, in a tightly-contested points battle between Hagan, Robert Hight and Bob Tasca III.
The trio was only separated by 17 points heading into the finale, but in a wild turn of events, each lost in the second round on Sunday at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip. That meant the championship belonged to Hagan and his 11,000-horsepower Dodge Direct Connection Charger SRT Hellcat, securing a distinct honor for the longtime standout.
Not only did it give Tony Stewart Racing its first NHRA world championship, but it also handed Hagan his fourth title, allowing him to a join a group that includes John Force, Don Prudhomme and Kenny Bernstein as the only Funny Car drivers in NHRA history with four or more world titles.
“It’s about our body of work and it paid off,” Hagan said. “You have to reflect on that and it’s just incredible. We won six races and I can’t say enough about my team. They’re all coming back next year and everyone is excited about that.
“It speaks volumes to the group (Tony) has assembled and his ability to lead as a team owner. It’s just unbelievable we were able to do that this year. There’s a lot of heavy hitters out here and it came down to the last day of the last race. It says a lot about our class and this is why we do it.”
Hagan impressed from the outset of the 2023 campaign and never really let up, opening up with early-season wins in Gainesville, Pomona and the four-wide race in Las Vegas. Unlike last year, there was no summer swoon, as Hagan and his team, led by crew chief Dickie Venables, found an ideal tune-up in warm weather, advancing to finals in Norwalk, Denver and Topeka, also winning the final race on Thunder Mountain.
He entered the Countdown to the Championship second in points and after a slow start, Hagan rolled to a pair of critical wins in St. Louis and Dallas. That gave him the lead for good, which proved pivotal when things went haywire for all the top contenders in Pomona.
Driving for Tony Stewart Racing – Matt Hagan roared to his 4th career NHRA Fuel FC Championship title.
“You’ve got to be in these high-pressure situations to grow, and my guys have been blood, sweat and tears all season long,” Hagan said. “I’m just glad to bring this trophy home. It’s super special to me. I’ve surrounded myself with people better than me and that’s why I’m in this position. I’ve settled in with a great group and our body of work speaks for itself.”
Hagan and his team weren’t wildly flashy, only clocking one No. 1 qualifier, but they were remarkably consistent and quick, qualifying second two times, third five times and fourth five more times. The team ran well in a multitude of conditions and Hagan was always on his game, advancing to eight final rounds and picking up 40 round wins this year.
He’s now a win away from 50 career Funny Car victories – after also picking up his 50th career No. 1 qualifier in 2023 – and fully thankful of what he has achieved in the sport and the spot in NHRA Funny Car history he has carved out.
“Looking back, I never set out to be a drag racer,” Hagan said. “It’s just something that happened. I never would have dreamed to make it into a career. It’s just incredible to be in the ranks of those caliber of drivers. It blows my mind and doesn’t even feel real. You get to create those moments and those memories, and that’s exciting.”
Pro Stock Preseverance!
Over the course of winning her six championships in Pro Stock, Erica Enders has known that each of them has a decidedly different feel. From her first title to dominant runs in both 2015 and 2022, each one has had its own unique story.
That was especially true during Enders’ 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season, which was a far cry from last year’s incredible run. This season was steeped in adversity and plenty of perseverance, as a slow start had the veteran 14th in points after six races.
But what started with trying times ended once again in pure joy, as Enders and her Elite Motorsports team turned things around at the perfect time. She took over the points lead at the halfway mark of the Countdown to the Championship, became the winningest female in all of motorsports and finished off a brilliant closing stretch in her Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage/Melling Performance Chevrolet Camaro with her sixth Pro Stock world championship, tying her with Warren Johnson for second all-time in class history.
“I think the word that describes this season is tenacity,” said Enders, who also won her fourth title in the past five years. “Every championship has its story and this season is just another reminder that you don’t give up. You doubt yourself and it’s just digging yourself out of that ditch, and coming back and knowing you can get it done and execute. That’s what this season is about – tenacity and not giving up. These moments make all of that hard work worth it. I get to live my dream and I’m grateful.”
A year after winning 10 races, advancing to 13 finals and clinching the title in Las Vegas in dominant fashion, nothing came easy to open the 2023 campaign. Enders lost in the opening round four times in the first six races, with a holeshot loss to Aaron Stanfield in Chicago dropping her to 14th in points.
Enders reflected about the slow start in Bristol, but also felt confident a turnaround was coming. The team turned the corner in Chicago and she rolled to an impressive win in Thunder Valley, qualifying No. 1 and picking up her first victory of the season. She jumped five places in the standings in one weekend and climbed the rest of the season, moving up at least one place in the points at six of the next eight races, taking over the points lead in St. Louis. It was never easy, but Enders and her team never stopped working.
“Our season started really poorly and it took until Chicago to figure our problem out,” Enders said. “We just kept plugging away at it. We knew we didn’t have a horsepower problem and we rallied and figured it out. It’s all about teamwork. That’s where our season turned, but it was still a dogfight, obviously. I’m really thankful for the position we were in and I talk about it all the time, but when our backs are against the wall, my guys perform and execute, and it makes me so proud to be their driver. It was a crazy year and we took the long way here, but we ended up on top.”
Following the win in Bristol, Enders qualified No. 1 in Denver and then won in Topeka, advancing to the semifinals in Indianapolis to open the playoffs in third.
She qualified No. 1 at the first three races in the Countdown to the Championship, advancing to three straight semifinals. After taking the lead in St. Louis, she all but slammed the door shut with clutch performances in Dallas and Las Vegas, earning her NHRA-record 10th victory at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
Super skilled racer Erica Enders continued her Championship winning ways in NHRA Pro Stock.
The race prior in Dallas, Enders won her 47th career national event, sending her to the all-time lead for wins by a female. It was a thrilling moment for Enders, whose late-season run only strengthened her remarkable Pro Stock legacy. A first-round win at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals clinched a sixth world championship, breaking a tie with Greg Anderson and Jeg Coughlin Jr. It may have not been the spectacular wire-to-wire run to the title from a year ago, but this one was just as important, especially considering the road Enders and her team traveled to reach the ultimate prize.
“I questioned myself, too. It’s easy to get down on yourself and doubt yourself,” Enders said. “It’s easy to be positive when you’re winning. It’s when you’re going through all the troublesome times when you have to fight with all you’ve got. It’s definitely a gut check and something that’s not easy to go through. Going through those moments, we still had our core people and nobody pointed fingers. We just went to work and it just shows you what happens when you don’t give up. We do still have it, it turns out.”
Simply Stellar!
BIKE NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle rider Gaige Herrera simply dominated the field in the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series season. After winning a record-breaking 11 races, Herrera claimed his first world championship at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip, finishing off one of the most incredible seasons in NHRA history.
Herrera, rider of the Mission Foods Vance & Hines Suzuki, locked up his championship during qualifying at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals in Pomona. He banked 14 of 15 No. 1 qualifier positions throughout the season, which set the all-time mark for a single season in the category.
Herrera then ended the season just like he started it – with a victory and adding another single-season PSM record in a simply spectacular year. In fact, it could be considered one of the best in NHRA history, posting an unbelievable win-loss record of 50-4, winning a remarkable 93 percent of his matchups in 2023.
“It doesn’t feel real honestly,” Herrera said. “All the stuff we’ve accomplished this year and wrapping it up and getting the championship has just made for an incredible season. I just have to give all the credit to the guys back at the shop. None of this has been possible without them. It’s not just my championship, it’s everyone on this team. They all deserve this. I can’t put this season into words.”
Gaige Herrera’s Pro Stock Motorcycle Championship season was one of absolute domination!
Herrera’s title gave the Vance & Hines team its 14th overall NHRA world championship. He joins the likes of teammate and four-time champ Eddie Krawiec, and brothers Andrew Hines with six titles, and Matt Hines with three.
“Last year I was out here just trying to have a little bit of fun,” Herrera said. “Then I got a call to ride for these legends. I grew up watching these guys race. Now racing next to them and accomplish what we have this season is very surreal.”
Herrera’s reign of terror in the class kicked off at the season opener at the NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, where he won his race of the season and his first race under the Vance & Hines umbrella. He collected two more back-to-back wins at the Charlotte 4-Wide race and the return of the Chicago event before losing his first round of the season against Steve Johnson when he went red in Bristol in the finals.
He returned to the winner’s circle in Denver at the first stop of the NHRA Western Swing. Herrera then became the first Pro Stock Motorcycle rider in NHRA history to complete the Western Swing Sweep of consecutive race wins in Denver, Seattle and Sonoma. To add to it, Herrera also picked up four wins in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge and won the Pro Stock Motorcycle All-Star Callout in Sonoma.
Matt Smith opened the Countdown to the Championship with a victory at Maple Grove Raceway, momentarily bumping Herrera to second in points for the first time all year. But it was only a small hiccup for Herrera, as he cruised to wins at the final five events of the year in Charlotte, St. Louis, Dallas, Las Vegas and Pomona.
In Dallas, Herrera also made the quickest run in class history, going 6.627-seconds, capping off a run that saw him make nine of the 10 quickest runs in Pro Stock Motorcycle history in 2023. He defeated teammate Krawiec in the final round at each of those final four events, completing a year that may be hard to top for any PSM rider.
“I think it’s only the beginning,” Herrera said. “It’s a big deal for me to ride for this team. What I love to do is race and it’s worked out well for all of us. We were focused on the here and now, and we just kept the ball rolling all season long. It really hasn’t set in yet. The way I look at it, it was a perfect season. I’m going to cherish this whole season and it’s something I’ll never forget.”
The 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series begins March 7-10 with the 55th annual NHRA Gatornationals at historic Gainesville Raceway. For more information about NHRA, including the 2024 schedule, please visit www.NHRA.com.
Posted by NHRA Communications
Photos by Dave DeAngelis
