BRISTOL, Tenn. — In a year of firsts for racing legend Tony Stewart, the Top Fuel points leader added two more on Saturday at Bristol Dragway.
Stewart picked up his first career No. 1 qualifier and winning the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge specialty race for the first time during the 24th annual Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals.
J.R. Todd (Funny Car), Aaron Stanfield (Pro Stock) and Gaige Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also won the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, while Austin Prock (Funny Car), Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) and Brayden Davis (Pro Stock Motorcycle) qualified No. 1 at the eighth of 20 races during the 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season.
In the final of the specialty race against Doug Kalitta, Stewart went a strong 3.803-seconds at 324.05 mph in his 12,000-horsepower Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage dragster to cap off a thrilling day for the NASCAR Hall of Famer. It snapped Kalitta Motorsports’ Top Fuel undefeated streak in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge this year as well, as they had remarkably won the first six of the season.
But Saturday in Thunder Valley belonged to Stewart, as he also qualified No. 1 for the first time in his Top Fuel career, going an impressive 3.755 at 325.77 during the first session of the day. Making a pair of consistent passes could bode well for Sunday, too, as Stewart looks to add to his impressive streak. Along with a pair of wins this year, Stewart has advanced to five straight final rounds and will open eliminations on Sunday against Cody Krohn, looking for his first NHRA win at Bristol.
“This is great, obviously. We’ve been in the final of the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge and haven’t been able to finish it. Now, to win one and get our first low qualifier is big,” Stewart said. “For our team it’s a huge accomplishment. We keep checking boxes off. We’ve got a car that is repeatable and consistent.
“We’ve got tricky conditions out here. I know a lot of work has gone on here of since last year and I appreciate the effort that Bristol has put into it. That plays into our hands. We don’t have a car that can go 3.64 or that runs 340-mph. I’m actually encouraged about last week. In Epping, we were able to throw down and we were respectable. To see what we did in these conditions, we feel like our program is just getting stronger and stronger.”
Justin Ashley qualified second with a 3.762 at 330.80 and Shawn Langdon took the third spot thanks to Friday’s run of 3.800 at 328.54.
In Funny Car, J.R. Todd continued to pick up steam after last weekend’s win in Epping, securing his first victory of the year in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge with a run of 4.004 at 326.24 in his 12,000-horsepower DHL Toyota GR Supra to defeat Jack Beckman. It’s another welcome sign for the former world champion, as Todd and his team, led by crew chief Dickie Venables, made two solid runs on Saturday in ever-changing weather conditions.
He took down Alexis DeJoria in the opening round of the bonus race with a 3.987 and then raced past Beckman in the final as Todd looks to go on a hot streak during a busy stretch in June. It also ensured Kalitta Motorsports has secured a win at every Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge event in 2025.
“I’ve said all along the more runs we make the more data Dickie [Venables] can collect. You can’t learn if you don’t go down the tack. We just didn’t put a time line on it. But the car has been trying to run well for a while going back to Chicago,” Todd said.
“Today, we wanted to run better than 4.00, but stupid things happened, especially yesterday. The car is responding to what Dickie is trying to do with it. This is definitely the track with the most character. You have to fight the car from half-track on. We’ve also had to dodge the weather. Hopefully, tomorrow the weather holds off.”
Bristol Dragway continues to be good to defending event winner Austin Prock, who qualified No. 1 in Thunder Valley for the second straight year in his 12,000-horsepower Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS, going 3.931 at 328.30. It’s the third No. 1 spot of the season for Prock and 21st in his career as he looks for an impressive back-to-back at Bristol.
He made the quickest run in both sessions amidst tricky conditions on Saturday and Prock will open race day against Buddy Hull, who scored the upset win in round one over the defending world champion last weekend in Epping.
“We came out today on a mission and made two nice runs. Our Q3 run was incredible,” Prock said. “The success rate in the right lane was small but we went to the top. We ran low [E.T.] of both sessions, picked up six points, and had low E.T. and that makes us feel good going into Sunday.
“Last week we had more of an edge. This time, there are a lot more cars close to us and the ladder stacking is tight. We had all four seasons here today. The weather changed every five minutes. It’s tricky but I’m looking forward to tomorrow.”
Alexis DeJoria qualified second with a 3.948 at 328.14 and Ron Capps’ 3.960 at 324.51 from Friday puts him third.
Pro Stock’s Aaron Stanfield victory in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge marked another step in Elite Motorsports’ turnaround, as Stanfield went 6.668 at 204.85 in his Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage car to slip past Matt Hartford by a razor-thin margin at the finish line. Hartford was after his fourth specialty race win in the past five events, but Stanfield got the best of him to collect a much-needed victory.
“This does feel good. It’s the first thing we’ve won all year,” Stanfield said. “That was a really good race against Matt and it shows how hard the Elite guys have worked and how much they’ve sacrificed. Hopefully we can get a little momentum rolling. Our guys are getting us to within fighting distance.
“This meant a lot. To win the #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, it looked like we’d won the whole race. We’re close enough to do some damage. We just need to keep working.”
Dallas Glenn stayed in the No. 1 spot, earning the GESi Pro Stock No. 1 Qualifier Award in the process thanks to Friday’s run of 6.645 at 205.60 in his RAD Torque Systems Chevrolet Camaro. It is the seventh career top qualifier for Glenn, who has already won three races this season. He’ll look to make it a fourth, opening eliminations against Fernando Cuadra Jr.
“Our last run was a really nice run but we’re still just picking away at it. The conditions are tricky so it was great to go out on the last one and put down a really solid run. We put about .018-second on the field and that’s pretty substantial in Pro Stock. I knew it was on a good one, and I just tried not to mess it up,” Glenn said.
“After so many runs, you can tell when you’re on a good one. It picks the front end up and sets you back in the seat, and then when you hit the first couple of shift points, which are the most critical, you know it’s going to be good, and that one was.”
Greg Anderson is second with a run of 6.652 at 205.98 and Hartford took third after going an identical 6.652 at 203.98.
Brayden Davis continued his magnificent weekend in Pro Stock Motorcycle, picking up his first career No. 1 qualifier in just his second NHRA start with a standout run of 6.834 at 197.59 on a Powertrain/RevZilla/Vance & Hines Suzuki. He was the best bike on Friday and got challenged on Saturday, but lowered the boom to end the day with a standout run. It was a surreal moment for the young Davis, who showed his skills on an impressive bike.
“It’s hard to even believe to come out here and run with the best of the best,” Davis said. “Coming in here, I knew I had a good bike, and it was left up to me to see how well I could ride. Honestly, before my first run, I was nervous. Me and Andrew [Hines crew chief] are getting closer. Before the last pass, he said it’s going to hit me a little harder, and if it makes it you’re going to the top. I definitely could feel the difference.
“It’s going to be a dogfight tomorrow and I’m ready for it.”
Teammate Richard Gadson is currently second with a 6.859 at 197.62 and Matt Smith is third thanks to a run of 6.871 at 199.46.
Herrera, the back-to-back world champion, won the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge for the second time this season, going 6.891 at 196.30 on his RevZilla/Mission Foods/Vance & Hines Suzuki to defeat Steve Johnson, who ran into trouble almost immediately. He was thrilled with the win, while also enjoying seeing Davis’ success on Saturday as well.
“It’s awesome seeing him doing so well. I might be taking that bike back for tomorrow. He’s young and doing a phenomenal job,” Davis said. “For Brayden to qualify No. 1 and me to get the Mission win, it’s awesome for the whole Vance & Hines team. It’s amazing what our guys are able to do with three different bikes.”
