NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series

The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series (formerly NHRA Powerade Drag Racing Series) is the top competition division of the NHRA. It consist of four classes, Top Fuel Dragster, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle.

History

The NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series is made up of 23 races from February to November and it is second only to NASCAR in terms of most popular forms of racing in America by several objective criteria (ESPN/TNS Sport Fan Poll, Cable TV Ratings, Internet traffic). Winston was the title sponsor of the series from 1970 until 2001, before a new governing rule stated the Master Settlement Agreement restricted R. J. Reynolds to one sponsorship of a sporting event; they chose NASCAR. In 2002, The Coca-Cola Company took over sponsorship of the series, which became known as the NHRA Powerade Drag Racing Series and had the slogan "Very Real Power."

The series has four main professional classes: Top Fuel Dragster, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle. Top Fuel was the first category, with Funny Cars added in 1966, Pro Stock four years later and Pro Stock Motorcycles in 1987. Both Top Fuel and Funny Cars regularly see top speeds in excess of 300 miles per hour (480 km/h) today, and quarter-mile times anywhere from 4.42 to 5 seconds. Both these cars burn fuel consisting of 90% nitromethane and 10% methanol. The Pro Stock record is 211 miles per hour (340 km/h), with times often in the 6.5-6.7 second range and the Pro Stock Motorcycles usually run at 190+ mph (310 km/h), with times in the low 7- to high 6-second range. Top Fuel (class designation: TF/D top fuel dragster) and Fuel Funny Car (class designation: TF/C top fuel coupe) have recently been limited to a 1,000-foot (300 m) track, instead of the historic 1/4 mile [1,320 feet (402 m)], as a means to limit top speeds and increase safety (there had been a number of engine explosions at or near 300 mph resulting in driver injuries and death). Currently, driver and spectator safety has been enhanced even while top speeds often approach and exceed 300 mph.

Some of the popular racers to come through the series include "Big Daddy" Don Garlits, Don "The Snake" Prudhomme, and Shirley Muldowney. Those three gained much attention from the 1960s through 1970s with their speed and personalities, a combination rarely achieved today through the political correctness of sponsorship in today's drivers. Nonetheless there are still colorful characters today, such as 14-time Funny Car world champion John Force and his daughter, 2007 Rookie of the Year Ashley Force Hood, who has made appearances on Good Morning America and The Tonight Show and was voted AOL's Hottest Female Athlete in 2007.^[1]

On April 24, 2008, the NHRA and Coca-Cola announced a change in branding for the series effective 2009, with the professional classes referred NHRA Full Throttle Drag Racing Series, with the new slogan "Go Full Throttle or Go Home." In concert with the re-branding of the series, Coca-Cola extended their deal with NHRA by two years, from 2011 to 2013.

All NHRA Full Throttle Series races are broadcast in high definition in the U.S. on ESPN2. Currently, veteran broadcaster Paul Page anchors the coverage alongside former racer Mike Dunn. Pit and trackside reporters include Gary Gerould, Dave Rieff and John Kernan, some former commentators include Steve Evans, Brock Yates, Bob Frey, and Dave McClelland.

On July 2, 2008, following the death of Funny Car driver Scott Kalitta, the NHRA announced that race distances for Top Fuel and Funny Car classes would temporarily be reduced to 1000 ft from the usual 1/4 mile (1320 ft).^[2] The measure was intended to be temporary while safety solutions were explored; however, the races have remained at 1000 feet since Kalitta's death, with no indication by NHRA officials of any intent of returning to the full quarter-mile format any time soon. An ancillary benefit to Top Fuel and Funny Car teams has been a cost reduction for maintenance of cars between runs, as the engines do not run under full power as long, and thus do not require as extensive a rebuild as the quarter-mile run necessitated. However, as crews learned to compensate for the shorter runs with changes in engine and clutch setups, and speeds once again approach those seen in full quarter-mile passes, those savings have been largely negated.

The Countdown

Starting with the 2007 season, the NHRA implemented a "regular season" and "playoff" system to determine the champion in each class, billed as the "Countdown to 1". Each season is divided into two segments of races, with the bulk of the races making up the first segment, and the final events making up the second segment. After the first segment is complete, the drivers in each class at or above the cutoff point in the standings (8th place up to 2007 and 10th place thereafter) become eligible for the championship, while the drivers below the cutoff point are eliminated from championship contention, though they still participate in the remaining race events. The points for the advancing drivers are readjusted so that they are separated by a fixed margin, with first place receiving bonus points. The drivers then compete for the championship over the final races of the season.^[3]

Champions

Before 1974, the season champion was determined by winner of the World Finals event champion. The Professional category contains the divisions of Pro Stock (Automobile), Pro Stock Motorcycle, Top Fuel, and Funny Car, the last two use nitromethane as fuels, while the Pro Stock categories use a special type of racing fuel, which is a derivative of gasoline.

• (*) Bruins and Krawiec won the championship without winning a single finals event
• (**) Edwards took 27 years to win NHRA titles (he won the 1981 Modified title), the longest in history.
• (***) Bernstein, and Scelzi are the only two drivers in NHRA history to win championships in both Top Fuel, and Funny Car.
• (****) Anderson's 2010 title is the last for manufacture Pontiac in auto racing as it ceased to exist after the season
• (#) Shepherd also won the IHRA World Pro Stock Championship that year (1983), becoming the first, and so far, the only driver to do so.
• (%) This season was marred by the break-in at the Wayne County Speed Shops. The drivers of Darrell Alderman, and Scott Geoffrion would be unable to continue for the remainder of the season, after vandals destroyed both the main, and back up engines, and several spare parts to both cars. Unfortunately, this would be the last year of the Wayne County Speed Shops in the NHRA, as they would never be able to recover from the financial devastation. Johnson had one of the biggest comebacks in NHRA history, moving from the bottom of the top 10, gaining over 500 points, with half the season completed, to capture the Pro Stock title.
• (&) Bernstein gave his championship trophy to Alan Johnson, brother, and crew chief of late Top Fuel driver Blaine Johnson, who had died during qualifying at the U.S. nationals that year.
• ($) Schumacher won his record sixth Top Fuel title in 2007, beating the 15 year old record held by retired Top Fuel driver Joe Amato.
• ($$) Force's 11th Championship in 2001 made him the winningest driver in NHRA history, beating the 21 year old record held by Pro Stock driver Bob Glidden(10).
• (^) Hight's win makes John Force the winningest team owner in NHRA history, with 17 Championships (15 on his own, once with Hight, and another with Tony Pedregon).
• (1k) Starting July 2, 2008, fuel classes began racing only to 1,000 feet.
• (p) In 1995, the points system used to determine a winner in each category was revamped, the winner of each event would received 100 points, the second place finisher would receive 90, the 3 rd runner up would receive 80, the other semi finalists would receive 70, the second round competitors would each receive 50, and all qualifiers would receive 10, the new system was similar to the previous one, except the omission of a zero at the end of each total.
• (s) 1997 would see the first, and so far, the only indefinite suspension handed down by the NHRA Board of Directors for use of nitrous oxide in the Pro Stock category, when driver Jerry Eckman's car exploded in the pits of an event early in the season, he had qualified for the event earlier in the day, and was therefore, held accountable for knowledge of a nitrous oxide system in the car, Eckman has attempted several times for an appeal, but has never shown up for the appeal hearings, forcing the NHRA to revoke his competition license, and ban him from ever competing in an NHRA sanctioned event.
• (@) Muldowney was the first female driver to win a championship in any category, when she won the 1977 NHRA Top Fuel Championship.
• (e) In 1972, the engines on a Top Fuel car were moved from in front of the driver, to behind the driver, primarily for safety reasons.
• (d) The 1990 season would start out with the forced retirement of driver Darrell Gwynn, after an accident at a track in England would lead to him losing an arm, he would continue to be a vehicle owner, and is still to this day, involved with the NHRA.

References

External links

• Official website
• Official NHRA Drag Racing Podcasts
• Drag Race Central The Latest NHRA News and Analysis

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