(Photos by Kim Fuller) • Funny Car newcomer Jordan Vandergriff won for the second time this season driving a John Force Racing fuel car in front of a sellout crowd on Sunday at Sonoma Raceway. He defeated Daniel Wilkerson in the final round of the Denso NHRA Sonoma Nationals.
In Top Fuel, Doug Kalitta and Pro Stock’s Greg Stanfield also won at the at this mid-season race during the 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series
Vandergriff ran 3.900-seconds at 330.72 mph in the Force Racing Cornwell Tools-sponsored Chevrolet to power past Wilkerson’s 3.950 at 301.33 in the championship round, netting his first win at Sears Point in Sonoma.
He defeated Jason Rupert, Matt Hagan and reigning world champion Austin Prock in a thrilling side-by-side duel to reach the final round, finishing off a near-flawless weekend with another stellar performance in the final round.
“My team behind me had the car running so well and so and smooth at this race,” Vandergriff said. “Today was one of those days where I got up there, and I knew I was going to go straight and tried and true. Heading into this final round, I knew that we had the car.
There is nobody better in Top Fuel at Sonoma Raceway than Doug Kalitta and that again proved to be true on Sunday in front of a capacity crowd, as the reigning world champion denied Northern California native Jasmine Salinas of her first career victory with an impressive run of 3.731 at 339.36 in the final round in his 12,000-horsepower Aflac dragster for Kalitta Motorsports. It’s the second straight victory in wine country for Kalitta, who now has seven victories at Sonoma Raceway, which is the most in Top Fuel history.
Jasmine Salinas made a valiant effort in the finals, leaving first with an .056 reaction time, but Kalitta quickly tracked her down as she went 3.815 at 319.14. It’s also the 61st career victory for Kalitta, who stayed second in points as he gears up for another championship run. His Sonoma victory last year keyed his 2025 title run and Kalitta is hoping for the same this season.
“This is a very special place for me. We had a little dry spell through the years, but I’m glad that we managed to get the last two wins here,” Kalitta said.
Salinas reached her first career final round in a two-wide matchup thanks to round wins against Josh Hart, points leader Langdon and Leah Pruett. Kalitta pulled to within 85 points of his teammate Langdon in the points standings.
In Pro Stock, Greg Stanfield continued to feel right at home in front of a packed Sonoma Raceway, defeating six-time world champion and Elite Motorsports teammate Erica Enders on a holeshot and a run of 6.551 at 211.30 in his Janac Brothers Racing car.
It’s the second straight victory in Sonoma for Stanfield, who defeated his son, Aaron, in the finals a year ago. It was another all-Elite final round as Stanfield reached the final round this year thanks to victories against his son, Mason McGaha and Jeg Coughlin Jr.
“I’m not sure why I do so well here. It must be the wine. It’s a great place with great fans and I just feel really comfortable here,” Stanfield said. “The Elite cars are fast right now. I’m just proud, excited and thankful to be driving for them.
The next event on the NHRA Schedule is the NHRA Northwest Nationals July 24-26 in Kent, Washington. TV coverage begins on Friday, July 24: Qualifying show (10 p.m. EDT on FS1) Sunday, July 26: Qualifying show, recapping all of Saturday’s action (2:30 p.m. EDT on FS1) Sunday, July 26: Finals show (4 p.m. EDT on FOX)
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