CONCORD, NC – August 29, 2022 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – The stakes will be raised for the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series’ second race of the season at zMAX Dragway, as a critical Countdown to the Championship victory will be on the line at the upcoming Betway NHRA Carolina Nationals on Sept. 23-25.
It is the second event in the six-race NHRA playoffs, and the playoff action will add an extra layer of intensity to the thrilling nitro-powered action that the 11,000-horsepower Top Fuel and Funny Car machines will bring to the Bellagio of dragstrips.
The pivotal playoff showdown will open with one round of qualifying on Friday in conditions that could lead to track records, a pair of action-packed qualifying sessions on Saturday and eliminations on Sunday as the championship contenders in Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock will look to strike it big at zMAX Dragway.
Josh Hart (Top Fuel), Tim Wilkerson (Funny Car) and Kyle Koretsky (Pro Stock) won last year’s playoff race. This season’s event will be broadcast on Fox Sports 1 (FS1) as the standouts in the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series look to an early win in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs at zMAX Dragway.
Hart’s stellar rookie season in Top Fuel got better in Charlotte, where he upset No. 1 qualifier Brittany Force in the final round, earning his second victory in a wonderful debut campaign. Hart has continued to be solid during his sophomore season and he’ll look for another Charlotte win as he races for a world championship for the first time. Force, meanwhile, is after a second world title and already has four victories to her credit in 2022. She’s the points leader, but there’s plenty of worthy title contenders, including four-time defending world champ Steve Torrence, Mike Salinas, who also has four wins this year, Justin Ashley, Leah Pruett, eight-time world champ Tony Schumacher, Doug Kalitta, Antron Brown, and Clay Millican.
Funny Car veteran Wilkerson was the thorn in everyone’s side a year ago, picking up the victory in Charlotte by knocking off the likes of Bob Tasca III, John Force, Ron Capps, and Cruz Pedregon. It was a memorable day for Wilkerson, and he’ll look to recreate that moment against a loaded Funny Car field. Everyone is chasing points leader Robert Hight, who has returned to form in 2022 after struggling last season. He has six wins this season to pace the class, which also includes Matt Hagan, who has three victories for Tony…
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