NHRA announces 2025 Drag Racing series schedule

The 2025 NHRA Drag Racing series schedule will feature three races celebrating a 25th anniversary, and culminate with the 60th annual NHRA Finals in Pomona. The 2025 campaign will open at legendary Gainesville Raceway for the third straight year, as the 56th annual NHRA Gatornationals kicks off the NHRA's 74th year of racing on March 6-9. The NHRA will commemorate 25 years of racing during both events at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Route 66 Raceway in Chicago, as well as the 65th anniversary of the Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals in Pomona. There will also be the 40th anniversary at Firebird Motorsports Park in Phoenix, Texas Motorplex in Dallas, and Maple Grove Raceway in Reading — and the 15th anniversary of four-wide racing at state-of-the-art zMAX Dragway in Charlotte. In all, the 2025 schedule currently includes 20 races at standout facilities across the country. Minus the prestigious NHRA U.S. Nationals on Aug. 27-Sept. 1 in Indy, which will feature five qualifying sessions, and the Virginia NHRA Nationals, which will again have three qualifying sessions on Saturday as part of a two-day event. Every other race will include four overall qualifying sessions, with two on Friday and two on Saturday. "It has been a terrific 2024 season, and we're thrilled to continue to build off that momentum and excitement and reveal our dates for the upcoming 2025 season," NHRA President Glen Cromwell said. "We visit so many incredible facilities, and we're so thankful for the amazing fan support we receive at these tracks across the country. "It takes great teamwork to put together our national event schedule, and we appreciate all the race teams, track partners, and sponsors that play a huge role in this process. We've enjoyed a lot of special moments this year, and we look forward to continuing that this year and into our 2025 season as well." After a successful return to Virginia Motorsports Park in 2024, the NHRA will be back to the standout track in 2025 with the fifth annual Virginia NHRA Nationals running on June 20-22. Like the 2024 race, it will be a two-day event on the professional side, with three rounds of qualifying taking place on Saturday and eliminations on Sunday. That leads directly into the popular 19th annual Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals on June 26-29 at Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk. The Maple City will again serve as the halfway point of the season as the 10th of 20 total races. Following the NHRA Gatornationals to start the season, the series heads west for a trio of events, starting with the 40th annual NHRA Arizona Nationals at Firebird Motorsports Park on March 21-23 and continuing the next weekend with the 65th annual Lucas Oil NHRA Winternationals on March 27-30 at Pomona Dragstrip. The world's biggest drag race, the prestigious 71st annual NHRA U.S. Nationals, takes place Aug. 27-Sept. 1 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park. The Big Go represents the pinnacle of drag racing, as racers aim to win a Wally on drag racing's grandest stage. Following the conclusion of the regular season, the Countdown to the Championship playoffs begin with three straight race weekends. That will start with the 40th annual NHRA Nationals on Sept. 11-14 from Maple Grove Raceway. It then moves to zMAX Dragway for the 17th annual NHRA Carolina Nationals on Sept. 19-21. The string of three straight races concludes with an annual stop at popular World Wide Technology Raceway for the 14th annual NHRA Midwest Nationals on Sept. 26-28. Returning to Texas Motorplex for the 40th year, the NHRA will celebrate four decades of racing in Dallas with the 40th annual Texas NHRA FallNationals, as the main event of the track's Stampede of Speed takes place on Oct. 9-12. The Countdown to the Championship finishes up with races in Las Vegas and Pomona, as the 25th annual NHRA Nevada Nationals happens on Oct. 30-Nov. 2 at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. Champions will then be crowned in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle to celebrate six decades of NHRA Finals action on Nov. 13-16 with the NHRA Finals at Pomona Dragstrip. All races during the 2025 NHRA season will be aired exclusively on FOX Sports, with select events on the FOX broadcast network.