FMP NHRA Arizona Nationals Saturday preview
Race teams and race fans are ready to beat the heat again at Firebird Motorsports Park on Day Two of the FMP NHRA Arizona Nationals presented by NGK Spark Plugs.
by Phil Burgess, NHRA National Dragster Editor · NHRARace teams and race fans are ready to beat the heat again at Firebird Motorsports Park on Day Two of the FMP NHRA Arizona Nationals presented by NGK Spark Plugs.
Friday’s race-time temps passed 100 degrees, and the track temperature crept past 140 degrees on a blistering hot day under clear Arizona skies, and more of the same is expected today under the same advanced schedule as NHRA tries to give competitors and fans a break with an early-morning start.
Sportsman racers hit the track at 7:15 a.m., and Pro Stock will kick off Pro qualifying at 9:30, followed by Top Fuel and Funny Car. That cycle will repeat starting at noon.
Top Fuel rookie Maddi Gordon leads the Top Fuel field with her Q1 pass of 3.844, and if that's going to be challenged, it will have to be in Q3 this morning, where the dragsters run ahead of the Funny Cars, but there have been only four three-second Top Fuel runs so far. Last year's Rookie of the Year, Spencer HHyde, fronts the Funny Car field with a 3.97, but Jack Beckman and Matt Hagan were right on his heels. Expect that number to be bettered. Greg Anderson had low e.t. of both Pro Stock sessions Friday, but his 6.552 lead was only .006-second quicker than Greg Stanfield,
Today’s two pro qualifying sessions will also include the year’s first Mission #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge, rematching Gainesville semifinalists against one another in Q3 with the two surviving cars racing in the final in Q4.
TOP FUEL
Antron Brown vs. Josh Hart (Hart won in Gainesville)
Maddi Gordon vs. Doug Kalitta (Kalitta won in Gainesville)
FUNNY CAR
Chad Green vs. Jordan Vandergriff (Green won in Gainesville)
J.R. Todd vs. Alexis DeJoria (DeJoria won in Gainesville)
PRO STOCK
Greg Anderson vs. Erica Enders (Anderson won in Gainesville)
Dallas Glenn vs. Matt Hartford (Hartford won in Gainesville)
Pro Mod and Legacy Funny Car, and another round of Sportsman racing will cap the day.
2025 EVENT WINNERS: Shawn Langdon, Top Fuel; Paul Lee, Funny Car; Greg Anderson, Pro Stock
MOST EVENT VICTORIES: Tony Schumacher, 5, TF; John Force, 8, FC; Bob Glidden, 5, PS.
TELEVISION
SUNDAY, March 22, FS1 will televise one and half hours of qualifying highlights at 12:00 p.m. (ET)
SUNDAY, March 22, FS1 will televise three hours of finals coverage at 6:30 p.m. (ET)
TRACK RECORDS
Top Fuel
3.643 seconds by Brittany Force, Feb. '20; 337.92 mph by B. Force, Feb., ‘20.
Funny Car
3.823 seconds by Matt Hagan, Feb. '22; 337.16 mph by Courtney Force, Feb. '18.
Pro Stock
6.498 seconds by Mike Edwards, Feb. '13; 213.77 mph by Mike Edwards, Feb. '13.
NATIONAL RECORDS
Top Fuel
3.623 sec. by Brittany Force, Sept. ‘19, Reading, Pa.; 343.51 mph by B. Force, Sept. ‘25, Indy
Funny Car
3.793 sec. by Robert Hight, Aug. '17, Brainerd, Minn.; 341.68 mph by Austin Prock, Nov. ’24, Pomona
Pro Stock
6.443 sec. by Greg Anderson, Mar. ’25, Gainesville, Fla.; 215.55 mph by Enders, May ’14,
Englishtown