Drag racing is a type of motor racing in which automobiles or motorcycles compete, usually two at a time, to be first to cross a set finish line. The race follows a short, straight course from a standing start over a measured distance, most commonly 1⁄4 mi, with a shorter, 1,000 ft distance becoming increasingly popular, as it has become the standard for Top Fuel dragsters and Funny Cars, where some major bracket races and other sanctioning bodies have adopted it as the standard. The 1⁄8 mi is also popular in some circles. Electronic timing and speed sensing systems have been used to record race results since the 1960s.
Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway, is a NASCAR short track located in Bristol, Tennessee. Constructed in 1960, it held its first NASCAR race on July 30, 1961. Bristol is among the most popular tracks on the NASCAR schedule because of its distinct features, which include extraordinarily steep banking, an all-concrete surface, two pit roads, Different turn radii, and stadium-like seating. It has also been named one of the loudest NASCAR tracks.
Ashley Force Hood is a former NHRA Funny Car drag racer for John Force Racing. She is the daughter of 16-time NHRA Top Fuel Funny Car national champion John Force and Laurie Force. She is married to Daniel Hood, who works for John Force Racing. She was on hiatus from racing in 2011 as the couple expected their first child. Since their child's birth, Force Hood has announced her retirement from competitive racing.
World Wide Technology Raceway is a motorsport racing facility in Madison, Illinois, just east of St. Louis, close to the Gateway Arch. It features a 1.250 mi (2.012 km) oval that hosts the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, and the NTT IndyCar Series, a 2.000-mile (3.219 km) infield road course used by SpeedTour TransAm, SCCA, and Porsche Club of America, a quarter-mile NHRA-sanctioned drag strip that hosts the annual NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Midwest Nationals event, and the Kartplex, a state-of-the-art karting facility.
Angelle Sampey is an American Pro Stock Motorcycle racer. She won the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle championship three times (2000-2002). Since her debut in 1996, she has earned an all-time class record 45 top-qualifier awards and 46 event victories, the most wins for any female in both NHRA competition and professional motor sports as a whole. On June 23, 2007 at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown, New Jersey, she scored her 42nd career pole position and more importantly set the national Pro Stock Motorcycle elapsed time record with a 6.871 second run. Following her April 1, 2007 win in Houston, Texas, Sampey was just 5 wins away from setting the all-time Pro Stock Motorcycle wins record, currently held by Dave Schultz. Sampey also holds the active record of 182 consecutive races without a Did not qualify, dating all the way back to her professional debut. She also holds the mark of 364 round wins in 506 competitive rounds, which calculates to a 71.9% win-per-round ratio.
Summit Motorsports Park, formerly Norwalk Raceway Park and Norwalk Dragway, is a drag racing facility located at 1300 State Route 18 near Norwalk, Ohio. It has been a National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) sanctioned facility since 2007 and annually hosts the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals an NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Event and the Cavalcade of Stars, an NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series Regional Event. As well as the national events, the facility holds regular local competition throughout the season.
The Famoso Bakersfield Raceway dragstrip is located in McFarland, California just north of Bakersfield, California, and is known historically as the home to the annual March Meet, also known as the U.S. Fuel and Gas Championships.
Alaska Raceway Park is a motorsports complex conducting races from Mother's Day to Labor Day. It is located in Butte, which is near the Knik River, and Knik Glacier at Mile 10.4 of the Old Glenn Highway, about 41.5 miles northeast of Anchorage, Alaska, US. Nearby 6,398-foot Pioneer Peak looms over the finish line, providing a scenic racing venue recognized worldwide among race fans. The track sits at an elevation of 63 feet above sea level, offering excellent air pressure for racing.
Della Woods is an AA/FC, National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) professional dragster driver. She was the first female driver in the five-second bracket in the funny car class, and the first female driver to go to the semifinals at an NHRA national event. She held the latter record for almost 22 years.
Gainesville Raceway is a quarter-mile dragstrip just outside Gainesville, Florida. It opened in 1969 and is most famous for hosting the NHRA's prestigious Gatornationals event since 1970. Kenny Bernstein became the first drag racer to break the 300 mile-per-hour barrier at the track on March 20, 1992, during qualifying for that year's Gatornationals.
The U.S. Nationals is an NHRA-sanctioned drag racing event, generally considered to be the most prestigious drag racing event in the world due to its history, size, and purse, held annually at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park in Brownsburg, Indiana.
Houston Raceway Park, formerly known as Royal Purple Raceway, was a quarter-mile dragstrip in Baytown, Texas, just outside Houston. Built in 1988, the Park is situated on 500 acres on the eastern edge of the greater Houston metropolitan area and is Houston's only major multi-purpose motorsports venue. The dragstrip has a three-story tower building that incorporates 23 VIP suites, a media center, and race control facilities equipped with timing and scoring equipment. In 2000, Houston Raceway Park opened a new high banked 3/8 mile dirt oval at the facility.
Maple Grove Raceway (MGR) is a quarter-mile dragstrip located near Mohnton, Pennsylvania, just outside Reading. It opened in 1962 as a 1/5-mile dragstrip. It was eventually lengthened to its current quarter-mile length in 1964. The track has been sanctioned by the National Hot Rod Association for most of its existence. It has hosted an NHRA national event since 1985. Uni-Select Auto Plus came aboard as the Nationals sponsor in 2011. Other key events include the American Drag Racing League, the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, the Geezers Reunion at The Grove, the Super Chevy Show, Mopar Action, Fun Ford Weekend and the NHRA Pennsylvania Dutch Classic.
Empire Dragway, formerly known as New York International Raceway Park, is a quarter-mile drag strip just outside Lancaster, New York. It is located just outside of Buffalo.
New England Dragway is a 1⁄4 mile NHRA dragway in Epping, New Hampshire, Rockingham County, United States. The track hosts the New England Nationals event as part of the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series. The track also hosts a regional event as part of the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series.
Alexis DeJoria is an American drag racer who competes in the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) Funny Car category. She previously drove a Toyota Camry for Kalitta Motorsports, sponsored by Patrón Spirits Company. She will return to competitive racing in 2020 with a new team led by crew chiefs Del Worsham and Nicky Boninfante. As of 2019, she was the third richest female athlete in the World, and as of 2022 the second richest with a net worth of $100 million.
Jerry Ruth is a former professional drag racer who raced in the "golden age of drag racing" in the 1960s and 1970s. He was known as drag racing's "King of the Northwest".
Curtis Smith is a second-generation American semi-retired drag racer. He is currently the All Time Winningest IHRA Stock Eliminator driver and the 1996 IHRA Stock World Champion. Smith was the first IHRA Sportsman driver to win 3 national events in a row in 1985.
The 2020 NHRA Drag Racing Series was announced on May 14, 2019.
The 2021 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Season was announced on October 6, 2020.
