NHRA drag racing is the purest motorsport concept that exists: two vehicles, a straight line, a starting tree of amber lights, and the question of who gets to the other end first. The National Hot Rod Association has been sanctioning professional drag racing since 1951, and the competition it produces is uniquely American. No track positioning, no pit stop strategy, no chicane. Just reaction time, horsepower, traction management, and nerve.

The fastest professional class — Top Fuel — covers the 1,000-foot race distance in under 3.7 seconds. Moreover, Top Fuel dragsters reach speeds exceeding 330 mph before deploying parachutes to slow down. The force a driver experiences during a full-power pass is equivalent to approximately 5G — similar to what a fighter jet pilot sustains in a hard turn. However, a Top Fuel run lasts less than four seconds, so the entire sensory experience is compressed into a single violent blur.

The professional categories race on 1,000 feet — reduced from the traditional quarter mile (1,320 feet) in 2008 for safety reasons after several catastrophic accidents. Therefore, every run you see in the professional classes at a national event is measured to the 1,000-foot mark, not the quarter mile. Additionally, the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series is the sanctioning body’s top professional division, featuring four classes: Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle.

Each professional class at a national event operates on its own elimination bracket, its own fuel type and its own engine configuration. Consequently, a single NHRA race weekend is actually four separate championships running simultaneously on the same strip of asphalt. Understanding what makes each class distinct changes the viewing experience entirely.

The 2026 season opens at the 57th annual NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway in Florida and concludes at the 61st annual In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals at the Pomona Dragstrip in California. Moreover, three brand-new venues join the national event schedule for the first time — including South Georgia Motorsports Park in Adel, Georgia, hosting its first NHRA national event, and Maryland International Raceway near Washington D.C., making its series debut.

🔴 Countdown = NHRA playoff rounds · 🆕 = New venue 2026 · Round 10 (Norwalk) is next · All times on FOX/FS1. Source: NHRA.com official schedule.

Finding NHRA races in 2026 is simpler than in previous seasons because every event airs on a single broadcast family: FOX Sports. All 20 races, plus the NHRA All-Star Callout events, broadcast on either FOX or FS1, as well as the FOX One app. Therefore, regardless of whether you watch on cable, satellite or a streaming service, you only need FOX Sports access to catch every professional session.

What Channel Is NHRA Drag Racing On Today?

Sunday eliminations — the knockout rounds that decide each weekend’s winner — air primarily on FS1 for regular season events. However, select marquee events including the U.S. Nationals, the Potomac Nationals and the Northwest Nationals air on the main FOX broadcast network. Qualifying sessions on Friday and Saturday broadcast on FS1, FS2 and the FOX One app. Check the schedule table above for the confirmed channel for each specific event.

What Time Is NHRA Drag Racing On Today?

NHRA race weekend timing varies by venue and time zone. However, the general pattern remains consistent across the season. Sunday elimination broadcasts typically begin between 3:00 PM and 4:00 PM Eastern Time for Eastern and Central venue events. West Coast events — including Sonoma, Pacific Raceways and Pomona — may push prime-time coverage to 7:00 PM Eastern to accommodate the Pacific time zone.

For qualifying, Friday sessions generally run from mid-morning through the early afternoon. Saturday qualifying features a second attempt plus the All-Star Callout sessions where applicable. Therefore, if you want the full weekend experience beyond Sunday’s televised eliminations, NHRA.tv or the FOX One app with a cable login provides the most comprehensive qualifying coverage.

The “Countdown to the Championship” is the NHRA’s version of a playoff system. It begins immediately after the U.S. Nationals at Indianapolis — the biggest single event on the calendar — which takes place on Labor Day weekend, September 2–7. Therefore, the U.S. Nationals effectively serve as both the season’s prestige event and the boundary between the regular season and the championship sprint.

After Indianapolis, the top 10 drivers in each professional class have their points officially reset. The points leader is given a small mathematical advantage over the rest of the top 10, and the group behind is compressed into a close band. As a result, the final six events of the season become an all-out sprint where a single round loss on a Sunday afternoon can shift the championship picture dramatically.

1. John Force Retires — End of the Most Dominant Funny Car Career Ever

The 2026 season is the first since John Force announced his retirement late in the prior year after more than 40 years as a driver. Force’s retirement leaves a crater in the Funny Car field. He won 16 Funny Car world championships. He changed the sport’s relationship with broadcast television, with corporate sponsorship and with mainstream sports media. Furthermore, his daughter Brittany Force also stepped away to start a family, creating a double departure from John Force Racing. Therefore, 2026 is simultaneously a tribute to the Force legacy and the first chapter of the post-Force era.

2. Tony Stewart’s Return — NASCAR Legend Chasing NHRA History

Tony Stewart himself, as Leah Pruett would return to the Top Fuel seat at TSR after two seasons away. Stewart’s presence in a Top Fuel car is one of the sport’s great crossover experiments. He made his NHRA debut at the 2025 Charlotte event and has spoken openly about the mental adjustment required going from a stock car to a machine that accelerates three times faster. Meanwhile, Leah Pruett’s return to the Top Fuel seat adds another compelling narrative to the same organisation.

3. Josh Hart Debuts at John Force Racing — Replacing Brittany Force

In order to join JFR, Josh Hart sold his Top Fuel team, Josh Hart Racing, to Richard Freeman. Hart stepping into Brittany Force’s seat is one of the most high-profile driver moves of the season. He’s joining the most famous team in the sport at the exact moment that team is rebuilding its identity without its founding driver. Furthermore, the early results at Gainesville — where Hart won the Top Fuel class — suggest the transition has been smoother than expected.

4. Shawn Langdon’s Dominant Start

Shawn Langdon has been the early standout in Top Fuel, winning both the Route 66 Nationals at Joliet and the inaugural Potomac Nationals at Maryland International Raceway. Two wins in the first seven events puts Langdon firmly in the championship conversation heading into the second half of the regular season. His consistency at very different venue types — a traditional Midwest event and a brand-new circuit — suggests his team has found something fundamentally right with their car.

5. The 75th Anniversary Diamond Wally

The 2026 final comes with special 75th anniversary Diamond Wally trophies for all class winners. The Wally — named after NHRA founder Wally Parks — is the sport’s championship trophy, and the diamond edition for the 2026 Finals represents one of the most coveted prizes in the series’ history. Additionally, the season features a tribute to three-time Top Fuel champion Shirley Muldowney at the Gatornationals, one of the most important drivers in the history of American motorsport.

New fans sometimes arrive at an NHRA national event without realising that Friday and Saturday aren’t about winning — they’re about positioning. The race weekend format is one of the most important things to understand for following the sport intelligently.

The 16-car bracket means Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock each run four rounds of eliminations on Sunday — Round 1, Quarterfinals, Semifinals and the Final. In each pairing, the winner advances and the loser goes home. Furthermore, reaction time — measured in thousandths of a second — is factored into the result: a driver who leaves before the light turns green has “red-lighted” and automatically loses, regardless of their elapsed time.

For those tracking when the next NHRA race is or what’s on TV this weekend, both pages are updated throughout the season. Additionally, who won the NHRA race today is updated immediately after each Sunday’s final run.