In October of 1922, the Los Angeles County Fair opened in a California sugar beet field and featured “chariot races” like the Circus Maximus hippodrome in ancient Greece. The drag racing facility that was added to the fairgrounds in 1952 by a local police officer named Bud Coons has been providing a place for racers to test their car’s top speed for generations of drag racing fans.
Affectionately known as Pomona Raceway, it is now home to the In-N-Burger Pomona Dragstrip at the Fairplex. The track that prior to the pandemic traditionally hosted the season opener and the NHRA National Finals greeted race teams, drivers and a ton of drag racing fans over the weekend to crown the 2023 NHRA World Champions in Top Fuel and Funny Car nitro classes.
In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip opened seventy years ago and rumors of the facility closing had spread through fan circles in recent years. But, it was announced this time last year that officials had extended the contract with Fairplex from 2028 to 2033. This ensures the NHRA Finals that have been contested at Pomona since 1984 will continue for the next decade.
Doug Kalitta Wins Top Fuel Championship at Pomona
In his pedestrian style, Doug Kalitta raced his way into contention at the twenty-first race of the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series but Austin Prock took Number One qualifier for the In-N-Out Burger National Finals with a 3.635-seconds elapsed time at 332.92 mph in his Montana Brands/Rocky Mountain Twist dragster. Then, Prock was sent packing by a very fast Justin Ashley enroute to his semifinal loss to a very serious Kalitta.
Kalitta had already eliminated Dan Mercer and Josh Hart to claim his spot in World Championship Round at the Pomona Dragstrip. In the bottom bracket, Leah Pruett wheeled her way past an impressive trio of Tony Schumacher, Antron Brown and Steve Torrence. In a winner take all Finals, the six-time championship runner-up posted 3.67 ET to Pruett’s 3.72-seconds elapsed time as a fitting finish to the 2023 season by claiming his first Top Fuel World Championship.
Green Wins Funny Car; Hagan Wins Fourth Championship
Nothing beats qualifying under the lights at Pomona and Robert Hight laid down a 3.844 elapsed time at 331.61 mph in his Automobile Club of Southern California/Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro for his 84th Number One qualifier. That moved the three-time Funny Car world champion to within a dozen points of Matt Hagan heading into Sunday’s elimination rounds.
On Sunday, Hight eliminated Jeff Diehl in round one before smoking the tires and losing to a determined Chad Green enroute to his first National Finals showdown. Hagan clinched his fourth NHRA Funny Car world championship with a round one win over Alex Laughlin. In the other bracket, Tim Wilkerson eliminated three legends Ron Capps, John Force and Cruz Pedregon for a match against Green. Green will long remember his first career Funny Car Wally and chance to share the winner’s stage with son, Hunter, who won in Top Alcohol Dragster.
Artwork courtesy of NHRA
UP COMING:
That’s all folks!
See all our E3 Spark Plugs drag racing fans back at the track next season for all the NHRA Nationals and the Countdown to the Championship for NHRA Pro Stock, Pro Stock Motorcycle, Top Fuel, and Funny Car as well as the NHRA Pro Mod Championship. See you at the track.
