NHRA Wrap-Up: Two Racers Solidify Leads and Two More Close the Gap in Nevada

During the annual NHRA Nevada Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the second-to-last race in the NHRA championship series, the path to the championship became much clearer in two series and murkier in two others.

With one opportunity left this year for NHRA’s best racers to chase championship aspirations, let’s look at how everything stands in this week’s NHRA Wrap-Up.

2023 NHRA Nevada Top Fuel Results

Mike Salinas put his dominance on full display in Vegas, entering eliminations from the No. 1 qualifying spot and racking up multiple 3.6-second passes to reach the final round. His victory included a semifinals win over Josh Hart—who had previously eliminated points leaders Leah Pruett and Doug Kalitta on back-to-back holeshots—followed by a finals run of 3.673 seconds @ 333.16 mph over Justin Ashley.

With his win at The Strip, Salinas moved up to 4^th in the points race behind Pruett, Kalitta, and new leader Steve Torrence.

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2023 NHRA Nevada Pro Stock Results

One week after solidifying her place as the winningest female driver in motorsports history, Erica Enders put more distance between herself and the competition by notching another Pro Stock win in Vegas. The victory—solidified with a final-round 6.557 @ 208.23 mph over rival Greg Anderson—marked her 10^th at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and kept her ahead in the points race by a margin of 114.

This race marked the 11^th time that Enders and Anderson have battled it out in the final round of an event, beginning with Enders’ first Pro Stock win in the 2021 Chicago Route 66 Nationals.

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2023 NHRA Nevada Funny Car Results

Matt Hagan, Robert Hight, Ron Capps and Bob Tasca III entered the Nevada Nationals within 100 points of each other, but Hight’s win effectively made it a three-man race heading into the final event. After helping him to achieve a 3.81-second pass in round one, the 9^th quickest in NHRA Funny Car history, Hight’s Camaro propelled him to his 4^th win of the season and the 65^th of his career.

Capps suffered his second straight first-round elimination, putting him 139 points out of first, while Hight—who dropped Tasca in the finals with a 3.851-second pass—gained ground to come within 17 points of Hagan for the top spot.

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2023 NHRA Nevada Pro Stock Motorcycle Results

Gaige Herrera showed no signs of slowing down in his historically dominant season, achieving a final-round win over his teammate Eddie Krawiec and putting a virtual lock on his first career world championship. Krawiec beat Herrera off the starting line with a .050-second reaction time to .063, but Herrera came out ahead with a 6.755 @ 198.32, setting the track record for elapsed time in the process.

Herrera’s 10^th Pro Stock victory helped him maintain a nearly insurmountable lead over second-place Krawiec in the points race. Leading by 181 points with only 191 left, all he must do to win his world championship at Pomona is make a single qualifying pass.

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THE 2023 NHRA SEASON CONTINUES WITH THE IN-N-OUT BURGER NHRA FINALS, NOV. 9 – 12 AT THE IN-N-OUT BURGER POMONA DRAGSTRIP.

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Current 2023 NHRA Championship Points Standings

PRO STOCK

1. Erica Enders, 2,576
2. Greg Anderson, 2,462
3. Matt Hartford, 2,421
4. Dallas Glenn, 2,397
5. Aaron Stanfield, 2,363
6. Troy Coughlin Jr., 2,362
7. Kyle Koretsky, 2,288
8. Deric Kramer, 2,283
9. Cristian Cuadra, 2,245
10. Camrie Caruso, 2,237

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TOP FUEL

1. Steve Torrence, 2,483
2. Doug Kalitta, 2,468
3. Leah Pruett, 2,449
4. Mike Salinas, 2,407
5. Justin Ashley, 2,401
6. Antron Brown, 2,337
7. Brittany Force, 2,303
8. Austin Prock, 2,256
9. Tony Schumacher, 2,248
10. Clay Millican, 2,227

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FUNNY CAR

1. Matt Hagan, 2,539
2. Bob Tasca III, 2,524
3. Robert Hight, 2,522
4. Ron Capps, 2,400
5. John Force, 2,297
6. J.R. Todd, 2,283
7. Chad Green, 2,275
8. Tim Wilkerson, 2,270
9. Alexis DeJoria, 2,249
10. Alex Laughlin, 2,245

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PRO STOCK MOTORCYCLE

1. Gaige Herrera, 2,690
2. Eddie Krawiec, 2,509
3. Matt Smith, 2,421
4. Hector Arana Jr., 2,419
5. Jianna Evaristo, 2,276
6. Chase Van Sant, 2,254
7. Marc Ingwersen, 2,243
8. Angie Smith, 2,234
9. Steve Johnson, 2,223
10. Kelly Clontz, 2,188