The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) is a governing body which sets rules in drag racing and hosts events all over the United States and Canada. With over 40,000 drivers in its rosters, the NHRA claims to be the largest motorsport sanctioning body in the world.
The association was founded by Wally Parks in 1951 in California to provide a governing body to organize and promote the sport of drag racing. NHRA's first Nationals was held in 1955, in Great Bend, Kansas. The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series, the national event series which comprises 24 races each year, is the premier series in drag racing that brings together the best drag racers from across North America and the world. The NHRA U.S. Nationals are now held at Lucas Oil Raceway in Brownsburg, Indiana and are officially called the U.S. Nationals. Winners of national events are awarded a trophy statue in honor of founder Wally Parks. The trophy is commonly referred to by its nickname, "The Wally".
Contents
History
Wally Parks, editor of Hot Rod magazine and a dry lakes racer himself, began the National Hot Rod Association to promote "safety, sportsmanship, and fellowship" among hot rodders. The association gained about 25,000 members in its first year; within six years, it had more than 57,000 members.
Hot Rod magazine and NHRA worked together to convince the general public and especially the police that there was a difference between hot-rodders and reckless street racers, sometimes known as "shot rodders". They encouraged the involvement of adults, such as auto shop teachers and garage owners. The NHRA's efforts to defend the image of the hot-rodder included a series of short films such as The Cool Hot Rod (1953) in which a delinquent teen learns that "a reckless kid in an old junker is not a hot-rodder at all. He's a square."
NHRA initiated the 1954 "Drag Safari", a nationwide tour to encourage organized drag racing with an emphasis on safety. Sponsored by Mobil Oil, the Safari crew would meet with law enforcement and local city officials at each stop to explain their program, involve local car clubs, set up sites, and run drag races. Drag Safari would lead to the 1955 US Nationals for drag racing.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic in the United States, the NHRA cancelled its 2020 and 2021 editions of the Drag Racing Series at the Virginia Motorsports Park. Regular scheduling resumed in 2022, with the events taking place in May of that year.
Currently, there are two headquarters offices, one in San Dimas, California, and the other in Brownsburg, Indiana at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park. The Mission Foods Drag Racing Series offices are held in Brownsburg.
The NHRA is celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2026. A special NHRA 75th anniversary Diamond Wally is only be rewarded to winners in 2026.
Series
NHRA Championship Drag Racing Series
The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series is the top division of the NHRA. It consists of four professional classes:
Top Fuel Dragster
Funny Car
Pro Stock
Pro Stock Motorcycle
List of NHRA champions
NHRA Sportsman Drag Racing Series
There are more than a dozen Sportsman Classes. The classes contested at NHRA Divisional races include Snowmobile, Motorcycle Classes, Super Street, Super Gas, Stock Eliminator, Super Stock, Competition Eliminator, Super Comp, Top Sportsman, Top Dragster, Top Alcohol Funny Car, and Top Alcohol Dragster. All classes except Snowmobile and some Sportsman motorcycle classes are regularly contested at NHRA national events.
NHRA promotes mainly the Professional classes at national events; however, the majority of its participants are Sportsman Racers. Sportsman-class racers must be dues-paying members of NHRA before they are allowed to enter and participate in any NHRA event.
Included in these sportsman events are the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, the Summit Racing Equipment Racing Series and the NHRA Jr. Drag Racing League.
The NHRA Sportsman Drag Racing Series originally consisted of seven divisions: Northeast, Southeast, North Central, South Central, West Central, Northwest, and Pacific. Starting in 2012, the Top Alcohol Dragster and Top Alcohol Funny Car classes competed in four regions: East, North Central, Central and West.
Sportsman racers with multiple championships
Sportsman racers who have won multiple world championships, with the date of their most recent championship.
Top Alcohol Dragster (TAD)
5: Rick Santos (2001), Bill Reichert (2010), Joey Severance (2022)
4: Blaine Johnson (1993)
3: Bill Walsh (1986)
2: Jim Whiteley (2013), Megan Meyer (2020), Shawn Cowie (2025)
Alcohol Funny Car (AFC)
National records
NOTE: Top Fuel and Funny Car records are measured in the 1,000 foot (304.8 meter) increment
National Dragster
The NHRA's official publication is National Dragster, founded in 1960 by Wally Parks, who was also its first editor. Distributed to NHRA members as a membership benefit since its first issue, it began as a weekly newsprint newspaper and is now published monthly.
Venues
NHRA has over 100 member tracks across the United States. It currently leases In N Out Pomona Dragstrip, Gainesville Raceway, and Lucas Oil Raceway. It previously owned National Trail Raceway and Atlanta Dragway.
Safety
The NHRA mandates numerous safety devices and procedures in all competition events.
A five-point safety harness is required for all vehicles. It holds the driver securely in the seat and is equipped with a quick-release latch which can be released in less than a second should the driver need to leave the car due to fire or explosions.
Fire suits are required for all drivers in the alcohol and nitromethane fuel classes and the faster gasoline classes. These suits are full body coveralls and made with seven layers of Nomex fabric, which makes them resistant to fire. The required suit includes Nomex gloves, foot socks, and head sock.
Another NASCAR transplant, which was brought into use after the death of Fireball Roberts, was the fuel cell. This bladder is placed into the fuel tanks of non-nitromethane-fueled vehicles to prevent fuel leaks and explosions.
Third is the use of the HANS device. This device limits the movement of the head and neck in the event of an impact.
Fourth is the titanium shield that must be placed behind the head of all Dragsters and Funny Cars down to the Alcohol ranks. This is to prevent any debris from entering the cockpit and becoming a missile hazard to the driver after the death of Top Fuel racer Darrell Russell.
Fifth is the on-board fire extinguishing system that is required. These systems are directed onto the engine itself and are activated instantly when the engine catches fire, reducing the chance for the car to completely catch fire and endanger the driver. The driver also has a manual activation control available. This has been in place on all cars since 1983, when an engine explosion and fire came very close to killing then-Funny Car driver Mike Dunn. All enclosed body cars must have a five-inch circular opening that will accept the nozzle of a fire extinguisher triggered by safety personnel. All vehicles must have a clearly marked fuel pump cut-off switch on a rear panel, accessible to safety crews.
Safety Safari
Within the safety requirements, there is also a full crew of safety personnel, called the Safety Safari, whose job is to attend to any fires, clean up the track of debris after an accident on the track, and attend to the drivers prior to the arrival of any medical personnel. The Safety Safari has been in place since the late 1960s, after a rash of on-track accidents caused several promising drivers to retire early. Since that time the chance of fatal injuries has been decreased but not eliminated. There is also a full staff of EMTs on hand at any event on the schedule at any given time. These EMTs are usually from the city or county the track is located in, and are compensated by the NHRA for their time and efforts. Aeromedical services are also on hand at the track for airlifting severely injured persons to local hospitals or trauma centers if necessary.
The original "Drag Safari" began their tour across America in 1954. Included were four original members: Bud Coons, Bud Evans, Eric Rickman and Chic Cannon.
Fatalities
Although there are several safety procedures in place to prevent fatal accidents, no amount of safety can completely prevent fatalities on the track. These are notable incidents that took place at NHRA national events or in pre or post race testing after national events.