After qualifying number one at Gainesville Raceway in March with a speed of 253.80 mph at the 52nd annual Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, Justin Bond saw victory slip through his hands. Veteran Pro Mod driver Jose Gonalez overcame Bond’s .011 reaction time to post the quickest run in E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod history with a 5.631 ET on the Gainesville concrete. In another milestone earlier this year, Bond set a world record during a warm-up pass in the Drag Illustrated Doorslammer Nationals at Orlando, Fl, Bond posted a quarter-mile ET of 5.623 seconds at 253.14 mph. Nonetheless, as the fastest NHRA-legal Pro Mod pass in history, setting records but finishing runner-up at the opening E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod race of the 2021 season definitely left the Canadian hungry for more.
The owner and founder of JBS Equipment, an agricultural machinery manufacturer in Mission, British Columbia, Bond won for the first time in his career at the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service, beating Brandon Pesz in the championship round at Houston Raceway Park in October of last year. Although Bond has been racing since 2010, the Canadian spent much of that time making runs at Mission Raceway Park (MRP) and has only been behind the wheel of a Pro Mod ride for a couple of years. Justin Bond finished the job on Sunday at Atlanta by beating back-to-back world champ Stevie “Fast” Jackson with a holeshot win at the final race to be held at the famed Atlanta Dragway in Commerce, GA. This was the first time the two drivers had faced each other in a final round and Bond heads to Charlotte with one win and one runner-up finish for the 2021 season.
The race, which was presented by Alsum Farms/Wisconsin Potato, is the second event of the 2021 E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod Drag Series and was Bond’s second career victory. The Canadian posted a 5.738 ET at 249.49 mph in his ProCharger-powered Bahrain 1 Racing Camaro to beat Jackson. Driving at his home track, Stevie “Fast” went a quicker 5.724 ET at 252.43 mph but lost the race at the tree. After qualifying in the number three spot, Bond beat Alex Laughlin, Dwayne Wolfe, and Brandon Snider to reach the fourth final round of his career. He posted a .038 RT in the championship finals to hold off one of Pro Mod’s winningest drivers. Although Jackson had failed to qualify at the Gatornationals for the opening round of the Pro Mod 2021 season, he advanced to his 18th career final round appearance by beating Doug Winters, Mike Castellana, and Justin Jones. Castellana had claimed Wallys at the previous two Pro Mod races at Atlanta.
NEXT UP:
NGK NTK NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway
The E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service returns to action May 14-16 as part of the NGK NTK NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway in Charlotte, NC.
