Points leader Justin Ashley leads the way, but eight Top Fuel standouts remain alive for thrilling finish at 2024 finale
POMONA, CA – November 12, 2024 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – With a thrilling finish all but guaranteed in Top Fuel heading into this weekend’s 59th annual In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals at legendary In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip, it’s Justin Ashley who takes the points lead into the final race of the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season.
But it’s an epic showdown that could go down to the final run of the season for the second straight year, as an incredible eight drivers are still in contention heading to the hallowed grounds of Pomona.
It all comes down to Pomona and the scenarios are nearly endless for a road to the championship in the loaded category. It’s Ashley who leads the way in his 11,000-horseppower Scag Power Equipment/Toyota dragster, as the young standout looks to win his first Top Fuel championship.
Ashley, though, knows it won’t be easy and he’ll need a near-flawless weekend, with Antron Brown only 44 points back and Shawn Langdon just 45 points behind. With Pomona a points-and-a-half race (30 points per round), there’s a host of other stars still in contention, including Steve Torrence and Doug Kalitta, who are both 85 points back, Clay Millican (-93), Vegas winner Brittany Force (-118) and Tony Schumacher (-127).
“Coming into Pomona in this position, it’s exciting and we’re looking forward to it,” said Ashley, who has four wins in 2024. “We have a team that has a lot of championship experience and we’re going to lean on that this weekend. We’re grateful and excited about the opportunity, but we’re definitely going to try to have a near-perfect weekend and hopefully win a championship. As a team, we’re focused on the present. There’s a lot more on the line, but we have to go in with the same mindset we’ve had all year long. It is meaningful to be in this situation and this is why we do what we do, to be in these situations.”
The 2023 In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals saw Doug Kalitta (Top Fuel), Chad Green (Funny Car), Aaron Stanfield (Pro Stock), and Gaige Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) take home event wins, while Kalitta (Top Fuel), Matt Hagan (Funny Car), Erica Enders (Pro Stock) and Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) clinched world titles. The year’s race will again be broadcast on FS1 to close the season in style, including eliminations at 4 p.m. ET on Sunday,…
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