E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod division of NHRA Mello Yello pro drag racing series is filled with seasoned veterans who already know Erica Enders-Stevens is fast but, in qualifying practice at Norwalk, the two-time NHRA Pro Stock World Champion once again proved she is 260 miles per hour fast. Enders made the most of a bump spot into Friday's Pro Mod field at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk to post a record setting time with a 5.787 ET at 261.22 miles per hour in her Elite Motorsports twin turbo 2019 Chevrolet Camaro.
Unfortunately, as is often the case around the racetrack, it was a bittersweet pass for 35-year old native of Houston, Texas. After a near flawless trip down the pavement at Norwalk, flames began show under the engine compartment of the twin-turbo Camaro filling the interior with a thick blue smoke. The two-time Pro Stock champion did a remarkable job of keeping her Elite Motorsports entry off the concrete barriers as the burning wreckage coasted to a stop. The Safety Safari crew presented by the Auto Club of Southern California extinguished the flames as Enders leaped from her car.
Although the safety crew was promptly on the scene, doorslammers burn quickly with a fire under the hood and the Elite Motorsports Camaro received extensive damage in the process. However, the budding new star of E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod division was able to top her NHRA Pro Mod record of 260.11 mph set earlier this year at the NHRA SpringNationals in her hometown track at Houston Raceway Park. Enders previous record setting run came in a narrow second round loss to defending E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod champion Mike Janis.
Enders won two consecutive championships in the Pro Stock class of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. In 2018, she switched from Pro Stock to Pro Modified driving the Elite Motorsports twin turbo 2019 Camaro. At age 16, Enders advanced to her first national event final at her hometown track at Houston Raceway Park to become the youngest NHRA national event finalist. She was named NHRA Sportsman Rookie of the Year. Enders-Stevens became the thirty-fifth woman in NHRA history to win a national event in Top Gas and the first woman in NHRA history to qualify in the top-half of a Pro Stock field.
With the Elite Motorsports crew unable to repair the badly burned Pro Mod car in time for the start of eliminations, Enders-Stevens opted to drive her Pro Stock car instead. With a Happy Birthday message painted on her rear window, Enders lost a close Round One battle to her teammate and birthday boy, Jeg Coughlin Jr. The ninth race of the twelve-race E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod series presented by J&A Services is scheduled for August 28-September 2 at the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis IN.
Photo courtesy of RPM: Real Pro Mod
Featuring the world’s fastest and most exotic doorslammer racecars, the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service offers something for every kind of drag racing fan. With more than 3,000 horsepower, the "suspended door" Pro Mod cars travel the quarter-mile in less than six seconds at speeds exceeding 250 mph. Visit Real Pro Mod online to learn more.
