The start of the NHRA Countdown to the Championship at Maple Grove Raceway was one of the most topsy-turvy NHRA Mello Yello Series National Events in years. Fernando Cuadra went to the final round in pro stock after having not won a round of competition all year long. John Force flirted with back-to-back wins in nitro funny car, Richie Crampton and Doug Kalitta wowed fans with a killer top fuel final, and Jerry Savoie went back to back for the first time in his career.
The fans at Maple Grove Raceway are insanely dedicated, waiting out water on Friday and Saturday only to be rewarded with the national record in top fuel being blown up on Saturday night by David Grubic and Brittany Force. No one saw that run coming, not because of the quality of the cars and crew, but rather because no one had leaned on their stuff that hard to that point in the evening.
This as a good a race as has been had on the NHRA trail for years. Shocking upsets, amazing performances, championship hopes gained and dashed. It’s all the stuff that any drag racing fan would love to see.
Here’s the video evidence of how the finals went down!
