Hagan, Force, Glenn, Herrera stay on top at NHRA 4-Wide in Charlotte

 Four-time Funny Car world champion Matt Hagan clinched the top spot Saturday at zMAX Dragway, powering to his second No. 1 qualifier this year for Tony Stewart Racing at the NHRA 4-Wide Carolina Nationals.

Brittany Force (Top Fuel), Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) and Gaige Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) also qualified No. 1 at the 16th of 20 races during the 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season and the second of six races in the Countdown to the Championship playoffs.

Hagan’s Friday run of 3.891s at 329.67mph in his Direct Connection Dodge//SRT Hellcat easily held up as the veteran raced to his 54th career No. 1 qualifier. Currently fifth in points, Hagan is looking for his second win this season and opens Sunday in a loaded quad that also features J.R. Todd, Jack Beckman and John Smith.

“We've been down the racetrack all four times in every lane and I think that's a real positive,” Hagan said. “I'm really happy with the way things are going. I truly feel like maybe we found that problem that's cost us a couple blow blow-ups with the ignition switch, so everything's looking good on the graphs and the crew chief seems to be pretty confident about everything. 

“There’s no gimmes out there. You qualify No. 1, and you look at your quad [which includes Jack Beckman and J.R. Todd] and you're going, ‘Did we qualify No. 1? Or what happened? Why do we have such a tough quad?’ But it's Funny Car racing. We all have ups and downs every weekend, and you just have to make every one of these rounds count.”

Ron Capps made a huge move in the final qualifying session, jumping to second with a 3.899s at 329.67mph. Points leader Austin Prock took third with a run of 3.900s at 327.74mph as he made four runs in the low 3.90s.

In Top Fuel, Force held on to the No. 1 spot, as the two-time world champion clinched her fifth No. 1 qualifier this season and 57th in her career thanks to Friday’s run of 3.698s at 338.85mph in her HendrickCars.com dragster.

As encouraging as that was, Force also made the quickest run of the final session in Saturday’s warmer temperatures, giving her added confidence heading into eliminations on Sunday. Force and her team made a strong run in each session, giving her hope she could make a big move in the points standings as well. Her opening-round matchup also includes Tony Stewart and Shawn Reed.

“Qualifying was outstanding for us this weekend,” Force said. “We had four solid, consistent runs down the dragstrip and we were in the heat both days. The heat is always when we struggle. We're all very happy with that. It's what we plan to come out and do every single weekend. We just haven't been getting there. So, this was just outstanding for our team.

“We always want to qualify top three, top five, which would be awesome, picking up bonus points and really going rounds on race day. Consistency is key. We have a great car this weekend, so I'm feeling confident going into race day.”

Points leader Doug Kalitta qualified second with a 3.700s at 332.18mph and Steve Torrence took third thanks to Friday’s 3.720s at 331.28mph. Reed, who won last weekend in Reading, made two strong runs on Saturday, including the quickest run of the day (3.767s at 329.42mph).

Dallas Glenn continued his hot run in the playoffs with two more strong Pro Stock runs on Saturday, staying on top thanks to Friday’s 6.535s at 209.69mph in his RAD Torque Systems Chevrolet Camaro. It’s the points leader’s second straight No. 1 qualifier and sixth this year, and he was also thrilled with the way his car is running in the playoffs.

His opening quad includes Aaron and Greg Stanfield, and Troy Coughlin as Glenn looks to really separate himself from a majority of contenders on Sunday. Glenn is also after a third straight win at zMAX Dragway and a season sweep at the state-of-the-art facility.

"It's been such a fantastic season; this is my sixth No. 1 qualifier and only the 12th of my career, so to get half of my No. 1's in one season shows how good this car is right now,” Glenn said. “I've said it before, that I've felt I was in the best car I've ever been, but I feel like it just keeps stepping up. As long as I don't let the car or the crew chiefs down and keep doing my job, I think it's going to be a pretty tough battle." 

Glenn’s teammate, reigning world champion Greg Anderson, took second with a 6.535s at a slightly slower 209.20mph and Eric Latino qualified third after going 6.538s at 208.01mph on Friday.

Pro Stock Motorcycle’s Gaige Herrera picked up his sixth No. 1 qualifier of the season thanks to Friday’s 6.757s at 201.22mph on his RevZilla/Motul/Vance & Hines Suzuki, ending his day in strong fashion with a run of 6.772s.

His opening quad includes Marc Ingwersen, Chase Van Sant and Marcus Hylton, with Herrera looking to move back into the points lead with another win at zMAX Dragway. On Saturday, he clinched his sixth No. 1 this season and 29th in his career.

“You realize you only have six races left and you’ve got to make them count,” Herrera said. “It brings a different excitement to the riders and the tuners, and it gets the guys all fired up. With the four-wide setup, it’s the first time we've been four-wide in the playoffs. It’s just a different challenge and you have to have a different mindset going into it. You have to go up there and really pay attention.”

Richard Gadson took the second spot thanks to Friday’s 6.768 at 201.01 and Matt Smith, a six-time world champion, qualified third with a 6.768s at 201.01mph.

Eliminations for the NHRA 4-Wide Carolina Nationals begin at 11:30 a.m. ET on Sunday at zMAX Dragway.