The final round of the FuelTech NHRA Pro Mod Series presented by Type A Motorsports Road to the Championship was hosted at The Strip over the weekend. The world’s fastest doorslammer class participated in the 2023 NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series at the 23rd annual NHRA Nevada Nationals at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. This was the tenth of ten races run for one of the sport’s most spectacular and fan-favorite classes.
This year, the National Hot Rod Association introduced the Road to the Championship to determine the 2023 FuelTech NHRA Pro Mod world champion. Pro Mod teams and drivers competed at the first six events of the season to determine the Top Ten drivers to advance to the final four championship rounds at Brainerd, Indianapolis, St. Louis and Las Vegas. The Road to the Championship final round was hosted at The Strip over the weekend.
To sweeten the pot for FuelTech Pro Mod teams and E3 Spark Plugs drag racing fans, competitors received points and half for finale. Mike Castellana posted a 5.740-seconds elapsed time at 249.44 mph to claim Number One qualifier at the two-wide event in Las Vegas. Justin Bond was nipping at his heels and qualified second overall with a 5.749 ET at 247.47 mph. Pro Mod points leader and defending champion Kris Thorne could only manage sixth seed with a 5.800 ET.
Thorne Crashes and Castellana Wins Nevada Nationals
Defending FuelTech NHRA Pro Mod Champion and 2023 Road to the Championship points leader Kris Thorne walked away from a high-speed crash in Round One against Sidnei Frigo when his Bahrain 1 Racing Pro Mod drifted toward the centerline before turning hard left and flipping into the outside wall. That opened the door for Mike Castellana and Justin Bond to fight it out for the 2023 FuelTech NHRA Pro Mod Championship presented by Type A Motorsports.
After the defending Pro Mod champion Thorne was suddenly out of contention, Castellana was set to snatch the FuelTech championship with a win over Dmitry Samorukov in Round Two after Justin Bond lost to Kevin Rivenbark. To make it official, Castellana posted an impressive 5.703-seconds elapsed time at 250.74 mph on Sunday in the Pro Mod Final at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway to clinch his first championship in the 2023 FuelTech NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.
Artwork courtesy of NHRA
UP COMING:
That’s All Folks!
This was the first year for the NHRA Road to Championship for Pro Mod teams competing in the FuelTech NHRA Championship presented by Type A Motorsports. If you’re a racer who wants to compete for Big Prize Money on budget, NHRA Pro Mod is richest doorslammer event with a $350,000 purse payout over the ten-event racing season. Have a safe Holiday and we’ll see you at the track in 2024.
