NHRA: Breaking News, Rumors & Highlights

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WILKERSON SAYS NHRA HAS APPROVED NEW 2026 FUNNY CAR TETHER SYSTEM WITH ROOTS IN HIS OUTLAWED 2013 DESIGN

Tim Wilkerson said he’s secured NHRA Technical Department approval for a new 2026 Funny Car body-tethering system, a move he hopes will reduce the number of bodies launching upward during explosions.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / December 5

HARRIS FIRES FIRST SHOT IN SNOWBIRD OUTLAW NATIONALS PRO MOD QUALIFYING

Jason Harris didn’t need ideal conditions or a full day of testing to set the early tone at the Snowbird Outlaw Nationals. He needed one clean lap, and his Harts Charger-boosted “Party Time” ’69 Camaro delivered it with force.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / December 5

SPENCER MASSEY PURCHASES LAGANA FAMILY TOP FUEL OPERATION, PLANS BUSY 2026 SEASON

No one can say Spencer Massey is afraid to take chances. The veteran Top Fuel driver recently became a Top Fuel team owner when he purchased the Top Fuel dragster operation owned by Dom and his brother Bobby Lagana.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / December 4

AMERICAN DREAM MEETS NITRO: JOON’S FIRST U.S. WIN AND CITIZENSHIP DEFINE A REMARKABLE YEAR

Lex and Gerda Joon never imagined a year where their first Top Fuel national event victory and their American citizenship ceremony would land less than three months apart.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / December 4

CREW CHIEF AARON BROOKS EXPLORING OTHER OPPORTUNITIES

Veteran NHRA crew chief Aaron Brooks confirmed to CompetitionPlus.com that he is now exploring new job opportunities. Brooks was a co-crew chief with Bob Tasca III’s Funny Car team beginning in February 2023, working alongside fellow co-crew chief Todd Okuhara to tune the Ford Mustang Funny Car.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / December 4

DOMAGALA NAMED VICE PRESIDENT OF OPERATIONS AND PARTNERSHIPS AT ELITE MOTORSPORTS

Elite Motorsports has appointed longtime industry figure Michelle Domagala as Vice President of Operations and Partnerships, adding a veteran organizer and relationship-builder to the NHRA’s largest professional team.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / December 3

THE PASSION THAT BROUGHT MODIFIED PRODUCTION BACK TO NHRA COMP

The return of Modified Production to NHRA’s Competition Eliminator category in 2026 is not a rulebook adjustment—it is the culmination of four decades of stubborn passion from racers who refused to let their class die.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / December 2

ALEXIS DEJORIA JOINS JOHN FORCE RACING, COMPLETING FOUR-CAR 2026 LINEUP

Where there’s smoke, there’s usually fire — and the steady burn around John Force Racing this fall pointed to something big. On Tuesday, the 24-time championship organization confirmed the speculation, solidifying what a CompetitionPlus.com rumor mill item first hinted at in early November — that a third Funny Car was being prepared for 2026.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / December 2

AB MOTORSPORTS ADDS ROBOTS DONE RIGHT AS PARTNER FOR WINTER SERIES PRO MOD PROGRAM

AB Motorsports crew chief Brian Corradi and team owner-driver Antron Brown will split the off-season between their Indiana headquarters and Bradenton Motorsports Park after securing a new partnership with Robots Done Right.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / November 30

IN JOHN FORCE’S WORDS: THE HUNGER THAT NEVER LEFT HIM

For more than 40 years, John Force has delivered some of drag racing’s most unforgettable stories — wild, emotional, unfiltered and often larger than life.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / November 30

NHRA STARS SET TO HEADLINE REV N ROLL FUNDRAISER FOR RILEY CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION

A lineup of NHRA standouts including Alexis DeJoria, Cruz Pedregon, Tony Stewart, and Ida Zetterström will help relaunch the “Rev n Roll” charity bowling event benefiting Riley Children’s Foundation on Dec.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / November 29

RALPH SEAGRAVES: THE MAN WHO TOOK DRAG RACING TO THE NEXT LEVEL

His name is rarely is mentioned when talk focuses on those who have advanced drag racing. It was 45 years ago [2020] that a corporate executive named Ralph Seagraves took drag racing to another level when few could envision there was such a destination.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / November 28

RUMOR MILL: WHO’S IN LINE TO FILL THE CORNWELL TOOLS SEAT AT JFR?

Sources close to the situation indicate that the departure of the Prock family from John Force Racing — a story CompetitionPlus.com chronicled as it developed — has created one of the most-watched vacancies in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / November 28

MONTHS LATER, DEFLORIAN IS STILL ON CLOUD NINE AFTER BREAKTHROUGH TITLE

John DeFlorian says the feeling still hasn’t worn off. Months after clinching his long-awaited Mountain Motor Pro Stock championship, he’s still riding the wave he once wondered might never come.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / November 27

WHAT I AM THANKFUL FOR WITH FUNNY CAR BUDDY HULL

To know Buddy Hull is to know the spirit of a Texas racer through and through — bold, determined, loyal, and fueled by a work ethic as strong as the nitro he burns on race day.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / November 27

REMEMBERING FAST COMPANY: THE MOVIE

Former NHRA VP of Operations Graham Light described the summer of 1978 as a lot of fun. Gordie Bonin, the freewheeling Funny car driver who passed in November 2013, felt it was a balanced mix between fun and the absurd.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / November 26

RUMOR MILL: IHRA’S QUIET POWER PLAY GAINS STEAM WITH NEW ATLANTA DRAGWAY REVELATIONS

The more layers that get peeled back from the IHRA’s growing “news onion,” the more this story brings quiet but serious intrigue. Word circulating through reliable channels suggests that on the IHRA’s rumored ten-race 2026 schedule, four of the facilities were on the NHRA tour in 2000, while only two appeared on the IHRA slate that same year.

NHRA News / Competition Plus / November 26

BOBBY BENNETT: TWO PATHS, ONE PURPOSE: WHY NHRA AND IHRA MUST COEXIST FOR DRAG RACING

Drag racing fans can be a fickle bunch. They clamor for change, yet revolt when they get it. For years, many have called for competition to challenge the NHRA’s long-standing dominance.