Last Updated on August 25, 2026 1:26 pm
A look at the most Interesting Drag Racing Stories over the Weekend that may get buried in the News Cycle. The DRN Weekly Roundup is Presented by DragRacing.News.
NHRA Brainerd Nationals (DRN Coverage)
Anthony Troyer Repeats as Top Alcohol Dragster Winner at Brainerd Nationals
The Brainerd Nationals saw a repeat winner in the Top Alcohol Dragster class with Anthony Troyer earning the Brainerd Wally for the second straight season, in an all Team McPhillips Final Round over Melanie Johnson. Anthony struggled in early Qualifying, but threw down a great 5.198 in E3 to end up in the #4 spot. Troyer’s 5.198 was the 2nd Quickest Pass of Q3, just 005 behind his teammate Melanie’s 5.193. This was just the beginning of the Team McPhillips strength. Troyer got by with a pedal job on Saturday night in E1, but in E2 he laid down Low ET of the Round with a 5.165 to defeat Mitch Kalitta. Anthony then went 5.226 to earn lane Choice in the Final over his teammate. In the final, Melanie left first 048 to 053 but the FENDT Dragster of Troyer would get to the stripe first in a great 5.220 to 5.250 battle. Anthony’s first Win of the Season moves him into Sixth in National Points.
Curt Fredrich Top Sportsman Winner Back-to-Back Weekends in Brainerd
Top Sportsman racer Curt Fredrich’s trip to Brainerd paid off Big with 2 Wally’s in 3 Events. Last Weekend, the trip didn’t start off so great with a Round 1 Loss in Race 1 of the Division 5 Double Header. But things quickly took a turn for the better as he cruised through the field in Race 2, and earned the Wally with a Final Round victory over Tom Patterson. The Wisconsin racer kept his momentum going as the Brainerd Nationals got rolling along. He defeated Michael Scott, David Scutt and Wade Kiefer in the opening rounds before earning the Bye Run to the Final Round. This set up a Final Round for Curt versus Chris Roe in the Right Trailers Centrifugal Supercharged Mustang. What was set to be an excellent matchup was over on the Starting Line as Roe let go 001 Red. Curt was solid with a 029 RT and Dead 7 Lap (6.587 on 6.58 Dial). In 4 of 5 Rounds of Eliminations, Fredrich had a 004 Spread in ET (6.583-6.587). Curt’s victories have moved him to 4th Place in the National Points standings with 2 Nationals and One Divisional Event left to improve on.
Cody Lane Makes Competition Eliminator Championship Charge with Brainerd Nationals Victory
Cody Lane earned the Huge Brainerd Nationals Win in Competition Eliminator after making the trip from Washington with his Right Trailers A/EA Bantam Altered. Cody Qualified #4 with a 7.320 to be 58 under setting up a tough E1 Matchup with Division 5 hitter Shaun Vincent. Shaun would let go 012 Red, giving Lane a freebie to start. Lane got another freebie in Round 2 as Kayla Mozeris didn’t make the call. But this set up a monster matchup for Cody against Former World Champ Bruno Massel. Lane was better in RT 006 to 049, and he hangs it out to 62 Under (7.274) to defeat Bruno’s 52 Under Lap. Cody lost 12 Index going into the Final Round. In the Final, Lane faced off with Bruce Schmiedl who is also racing an A/EA. Cody had nearly a tenth of a second advantage in RT (026 to 139) and was able to save some Permanent Index by going 43 Under to Bruce’s 47 Under for the Holeshot Win. This was Cody’s First National Event Wally, and it joins his four Division Wins on the Season. He now is within striking distance of Joe Carnasicale, but will need to be near perfect in his Final 3 Races and take advantage of the remaining races that will have 5 Rounds.
NHRA Division 1 LODRS @ New England Dragway (DRN Coverage)
Noonan and Cox Earn Top Alcohol Wally’s in Epping
The Top Alcohol classes participated in the Eastern Regional Event at New England Dragway, and there were some cool stories in the Winners Circle on Sunday.
Incoming National Points Leader Jamie Noonan made the long haul to New England to participate in his final Regional Race of the Season. Noonan qualified #2, just 004 off the top spot held by Rich Bourke at 5.293. Jamie got by Joe Gerdelmann in Round 1 before lining up for a crucial E2 battle with Jackie Fricke. RT’s were deadly with Noonan having the better bulb 004 to 024, and he would hold his lead to the 1320′ Stripe in a 5.37 to 5.47 decision. This set up a Final Round with the Top 2 Qualifiers, where unfortunately Rich Bourke’s damage from the semi-final round was unable to be fixed & Noonan soloed to the Wally. Jamie’s victory combined with Shawn Cowie & Joey Severance’s early round troubles in Brainerd put him in the Driver’s Seat of the Points Battle as the season continues on.
It was great to see Top Alcohol Funny Car standout DJ Cox back in the seat. DJ sold off and was planning on retiring from the class, but the bug bit him again & he’s back on track with a former Bob McCosh/Matt Gill car. Cox struggled in Qualifying, but was able to throw down a strong 5.587 Lap to show the potential of the new ride in E1. This set up a final round matchup for DJ with #1 Qualifier Bruce Mullins. Mullins, who won on the IHRA Tour earlier this season, has a solid A to B tune up & this was looking to be a great battle. When the tree dropped, the red light illuminated on Mullins’ side by 006 shipping the Wally over to DJ Cox and Crew. DJ had trouble at the hit, but the Win Light was shining bright in his lane. Look for both Cox and Mullins to make some noise in the Top Alcohol Funny Car ranks as the season continues on.
Brandon Miller Earns Another Division 1 Top Sportsman Win at Epping
Former Top Sportsman World Champ & part-time Pro Stock Racer Brandon Miller continued his hot streak in TS action with his trademark S-10 at the NHRA Division 1 Epping event. Brandon was absolutely locked in on Race Day with RT’s of 014, 009, 003 and 008 before reaching the Final Round against Ben Schlafman. Miller would have his worst light of the Day (019) and was behind Schlafman’s 004, but he would track down Schlafman by 010 Stripe with a 1 Above (6.921 on 6.91 Dial) to earn his third Divisional Wally of the Season. This win puts Brandon in a great position to earn the Division 1 TS Championship, and opens up the door for a potential late season run at another World Championship.
Super Stock Winner Justin Picillo Earns Third Division 1 Wally of 2026
Speaking of World Championship runs, Justin Picillo is positioning himself as the Favorite to win the Super Stock title this season. Justin rolled through the field in Epping to his 3rd D1 SS victory of the Season in his 4th Final Round. Picillo used a string of consistent 020-030 RT’s to reach the Final Round against Jeffrey Coyne. The Final is where Just let go his best of the Day with a 018 RT and used a 2 Above (9.443 on 9.42 Dial) to lock out Coyne’s 055 Bulb. The Four Final Rounds on the Divisional side combined with his Cecil County SportsNationals win have moved him into the National Points Lead. Even more amazing is that he has only competed in 1 National Event to this point, so he has 2 Clean Events to add to his National total and 3 races beyond that to continue to better his score. Will Justin be crowned Champ when November comes around?
World Fuel Altered Nationals @ Eddyville Raceway Park (DRN Coverage)
Mass Chaos Reigns with the Fuel Altered ‘A’ Victory at Eddyville
The World Fuel Altered Nationals is an Iowa tradition at Eddyville Raceway Park. Last Year’s Nitro Chaos Champion John Umlauf looked to be a favorite heading into WFAN this season with his “Mass Chaos” NItro-burning entry. On the tricky Eddyville surface, John was able to navigate it to a pedaling 3.94 ET in Qualifying to lock in the #2 position heading into Saturday Race Day.
Umlauf had a tough customer in Jody Austin with the Bushwhacker Altered in E1. This was a great race, where John pulled ahead at the Stripe for the win with a 3.772/210MPH lap. This set up a big matchup for Mass Chaos against the Nitro Clown entry piloted by Roger Lechtenberg. Roger would get a big RT edge 082 to 152, but Umlauf would power past for the win at 3.685/221MPH! The ride wouldn’t stop there as John had no Chutes and did a masterful job of getting the car stopped just as it nosed into the Famous Cornfield at the end of Eddyville Raceway Park. The team thrashed to get the Mass Chaos car cleaned up & ready for battle in the Final Round against Cody Chatfield and the Booze Brothers Altered. Cody knocked the tree down 006 to John’s 073, but John did a masterful job of pedaling the Nitro power to a 4.092 to 4.162 by just three-thousandths of a second (003). The Fuel Altereds put on another incredible show in Iowa, where will we see them next?
NHRA LODRS National Championship Update
Top Alcohol Dragster
The Top Alcohol Dragster National Points Chase came into focus after a big weekend with the Brainerd Nationals and Epping East Regional Event happening at the same time. Jamie Noonan extends his lead with the Epping win. He also has 5 National Events left to improve his total, so Noonan is certainly in the Driver’s Seat at this moment. Joey Severance was in position to keep pace in Brainerd as he was looking like the favorite to Win on Sunday until the team was unable to get his car to start for the Semi-Final Matchup versus Anthony Troyer. Defending World Champ Shawn Cowie also looked great in Brainerd qualifying #2 and was atop the sheet 2 of 3 sessions. But he had traction issues at the hit in E1 and was unable to advance. The Top 3 are expected to make the haul to Indy for the US Nationals, which could be a turning point in this Championship battle.
1. Jamie Noonan 810 5/5
2. Joey Severance 711 7/3
3. Shawn Cowie 602 5/2
4. Jackie Fricke 587 6/3
5. Jon Bradford 6/3
Competition Eliminator
The Comp Eliminator Championship battle became even more epic with both contenders winning over the weekend. Cody Lane earned a key victory at the Brainerd Nationals to put him closer to runaway points leader Joe Carnasciale. Cody’s first National Event win of the season joins his four victories on the Division 6 trail. Joe Carnasicale won the Division 1 event in Epping, but his sixth Divisional win of the season did not improve his points total. He would have to win at a 5 Round Event to improve his Division points. It appears that both Joe and Cody may have to travel around looking for 5 Round National and Divisional events to give them the Maximum Points total possible. And don’t forget Competition Eliminator is typically a 6 Round race at the US Nationals. Joe is already entered for Indy, will we see Cody and the Hancock Lane team there as well? This is shaping up to be an epic championship fight down the stretch.
1. Joe Carnasciale 616 4/6
2. Cody Lane 573 4/7
Super Stock
Justin Picillo capped off a sensational Division 1 Season in Super Stock with his Third Win in Four Final Rounds. This victory puts him in the National Points lead sitting in the driver’s seat as well as essentially clinching the Division 1 SS championship. Justin’s victory puts the pressure on the remainder of the Points Contenders to earn at least a couple final rounds in their final races to have any shot at the title. Picillo is currently sitting at 555 Points with only 1 National Event Claim, so if he merely stages for Round 1 at two more Nationals this season he will be at a minimum of 615 Points. 615 is typically enough for a National Championship, but the way this season is going for Justin I’ll bet he ends up well beyond that number.
1. Justin Picillo 555 1/7
2. Jody Lang 533 4/7
3. Joe Santangelo 526 4/7
4. Shane Oakes 526 5/8
5. Rick McKinney 511 3/8
6. Justin Lamb 509 4/6
Stock Eliminator
Another big move in the National Points Race at D1 Epping was in Stock Eliminator with Shane Oakes taking a clutch Final Round win over Nick Rieter. Oakes only has 1 National Event left to claim, but is sitting on a strong 600 Point Total. Michael Brand still has 3 National & 3 Divisional Races left to improve his current 559 Points. These two are in the best position to win the title currently. Will it be Oakes, Brand, or someone else holding the Stock Eliminator National Championship at the end of the season?
1. Shane Oakes 600 5/8
2. Michael Brand 559 3/5
3. Joe Santangelo 536 3/6
4. Cody Lane 530 4/7
Top Dragster
JR Baxter made a big move in the Top Dragster National points race in Brainerd with a Quarter-Final Finish. JR now sits 2nd in Top Dragster National points, just 13 points behind Holden Laris with plenty of racing to go. Holden lost in Round 1 during the Brainerd Nationals, and is down to just 1 National Event claim to boost his points total. The current points picture looks like this will be settled between Laris and Baxter, but there is a lot of racing left and a lot of good racers with plenty of room to improve.
1. Holden Laris 515 4/8
2. JR Baxter 502 3/6
3. Nick Brener 469 4/7
4. Al Kenny 456 3/5
Top Sportsman
The Top Sportsman championship chase is heating up after the weekend in Brainerd and Epping. Curt Fredrich earned the Top Sportsman victory for the second Sunday in a row at Brainerd as he also won TS at the Division 5 event last weekend. This suddenly puts him into Championship contention tied for 3rd place, just 34 Points behind leader Rick McDonough. In the meantime, in Epping Ron Riegel had a big chance to chop into the Points lead. But Ron would have a Round 2 exit, which jumps him into the #2 spot on the points sheet but left a lot of points on the table. Jeff Brooks was also in Epping, and had a disappointing weekend as he lost in Round 1. Jeff is down to his Final Divisional Race and will need to Win the Event with a lot of help to have a shot at the National Title.
1. Rick McDonough 492 4/6
2. Ron Riegel 461 3/7
3. Bryan Warr 458 3/6
3. Curt Fredrich 458 3/7
5. Jeff Brooks 453 5/7
