TEMECULA, Calif. (Nov. 18, 2024) - First-time world champion Austin Prock was honored Monday evening, along with multi-time world champs Antron Brown, Greg Anderson and Gaige Herrera during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series awards ceremony at the Pechanga Resort Casino in scenic Southern California Wine Country.
The four standout competitors were crowned for their incredible achievements over the course of the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season and awarded their trophies for their championship runs during a memorable Countdown to the Championship playoffs.
After a record-breaking year in his rookie Funny Car season, Prock secured his first world championship on Saturday following qualifying at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals at the historic In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip. Prock entered Pomona with a 188-point lead over his John Force Racing teammate Jack Beckman, who was racing for 16-time champion John Force. With the completion of qualifying at Pomona, Prock's first world championship was a lock for his Cornwell Tools Chevrolet Camaro SS Funny Car team. Throughout the season, Prock was nearly unstoppable and collected eight event wins, including three in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs, as well as 15 No. 1 qualifier positions, the most in Funny Car history. He then powered to NHRA's fastest-ever pass on Sunday in Pomona when he clocked a 341.68 mph run, giving Prock the status of fastest driver in NHRA history.
Brown secured his fourth world championship on Sunday following his semifinal victory over former champion Brittany Force. His Matco Tools Toyota Top Fuel team then went on to win the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals over 2023 champion Doug Kalitta. Brown picked up six wins in 2024, tallying 80 career wins throughout his NHRA tenure. He kicked off his 2024 season with a win at the specialty Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout race at the Gatornationals in Gainesville. He went onto win in Chicago and Sonoma as well as three wins in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs. With this world title, Brown joins an elite group of drivers including Tony Schumacher, Joe Amato and Steve Torrence with four or more Top Fuel championships.
The Pro Stock championship battle came down to the final pass of the 2024 season with a winner-take-all matchup between Anderson and his KB Titan Racing teammate Dallas Glenn, with Anderson coming away with his sixth world championship in his HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro. Throughout the 2024 season, Anderson remained consistent, staying within the top four all year. He picked up a win early at the Arizona Nationals at Firebird Motorsports Park and then went on to win at his home track at zMAX Dragway in Charlotte. He picked up back-to-back final round appearances in the Countdown in Dallas and Las Vegas, before taking home his third win of the year at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals. The NHRA veteran earned his 106th win on Sunday and his 15th at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.
For a second straight year, Herrera dominated the Pro Stock Motorcycle class en route to his second consecutive world championship. Rider of the RevZilla/Mission Foods/Vance & Hines Suzuki, Herrera powered his way to 10 event wins throughout the 2024 season, including the prestigious NHRA U.S. Nationals as well as three wins in the playoffs. Herrera also broke NHRA's most consecutive race win record by getting victories in 11 straight races, dating back to the 2023 campaign.
In one of the closest races in recent history, Top Fuel's Tony Stewart was named NHRA Rookie of the Year after a strong first season. The motorsports legend advanced to a pair of final rounds, four semifinals, a berth in the Countdown to the Championship and a ninth-place finish in Top Fuel points. Pro Stock Motorcycle's Richard Gadson, Top Fuel's Jasmine Salinas, Funny Car's Daniel Wilkerson and Top Fuel's Ida Zetterstrom also received votes in the hotly-contest race.
The Crew of the Year awarded was given to a team in each professional category and was based on a number of statistical categories, including average qualifying position, average eliminations E.T., speed index, average points per race and oildowns. In Top Fuel, the Scag Power Equipment racing team of Justin Ashley earned the award for the first time, while Prock's JFR team was named the top crew in Funny Car.
The team of six-time champ Anderson earned the award in Pro Stock, while the Vance & Hines team for Herrera took home the honors in Pro Stock Motorcycle for the second straight year as well.
The NHRA also recognized a pair of iconic figures for its Lifetime Achievement Award, including 2023 recipient Forrest Lucas, as well as Jim Dunn, who was acknowledged as the 2024 recipient.
For the first time in NHRA history, Toyota won the NHRA's Manufacturers Cup. The award is given to the automaker whose current model year vehicles accumulate the most points during the NHRA season. Among those who enjoyed banner seasons for Toyota were Top Fuel standouts Brown, Doug Kalitta, Ashley, Shawn Langdon, Billy Torrence and Steve Torrence, and Funny Car stars Ron Capps, J.R. Todd and Alexis DeJoria.
Drivers in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series were also recognized as 2024 world champions, including Cody Webber (Top Dragster), Allen Firestone (Top Sportsman), Val Torres (Super Gas), Colby Fuller (Super Comp), Joe Sorensen (Stock), Jimmy Hidalgo Jr. (Super Stock), Cody Lane (Comp), Sean Bellemeur (Top Alcohol Funny Car) and Shawn Cowie (Top Alcohol Dragster).
The 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series begins March 6-9 with the 56th annual NHRA Gatornationals at legendary Gainesville Raceway.
About Mission Foods
MISSION®, owned by GRUMA, S.A.B. de C.V., is the world's leading brand for tortillas and wraps. MISSION® is also globally renowned for flatbreads, dips, salsas and Mexican food products. With presence in over 112 countries, MISSION® products are suited to the lifestyles and the local tastes of each country. With innovation and customer needs in mind, MISSION® focuses on the highest quality, authentic flavors, and providing healthy options that families and friends can enjoy together. For more information, please visit https://www.missionfoods.com/
About NHRA
NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. NHRA presents 20 national events featuring the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series and NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, as well as the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+, NHRA Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown™, NHRA Holley EFI Factory X, Pingel Top Fuel Motorcycle and Johnson's Horsepowered Garage NHRA Mountain Motor Pro Stock at select national events. NHRA provides competition opportunities for drivers of all levels in the NHRA Summit Racing Series and NHRA Street Legal™. NHRA also offers the NHRA Jr. Street® program for teens and the Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League® for youth ages 5 to 17. With 110 Member Tracks, NHRA allows racers to compete at a variety of locations nationally and internationally. NHRA's Youth and Education Services® (YES) Program reaches over 30,000 students annually to ignite their interest in automotive and racing related careers. NHRA's streaming service, NHRA.tv®, allows fans to view all NHRA national events as well as exclusive features of the sport. In addition, NHRA owns and operates three racing facilities: Gainesville Raceway in Florida; Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park; and In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip in Southern California. For more information, log on to www.NHRA.com, or visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.