(Chris Harley file photo)

Mike Janis had a bit of luck and won his first E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service world championship at the season ending event during the NHRA Toyota Nationals.

Janis was the points leaders entering the weekend but was defeated in the first round of eliminations by Marc Caruso (5.762/247.75 to 5.789/247.57). Defending champion Rickie Smith, who was second, advanced to the quarter finals and had an opportunity to win his fourth championship if he advanced to the semifinals. Smith was defeated by Rick Hord (5.756/254.86 to 5/843/247.38), allowing Janis to claim the crown.

Sidnei Frigo won the Pro Mod final.  (Ron Lewis photo)

In the finals Sidnei Frigo faced Mike Castellana for the last victory of the year. Frigo was able to win with a run of 5.756 seconds at 256.50 mph to a 5.861 at 249.49 for Castellana.

“We had a lot of issues with the car at the beginning of the year.” said Frigo. “Now we fixed the car and it runs great. Next year is going to be a good year.”   [10/29/18]

In Funny Car, J.R. Todd powered to his fifth win of the year in his DHL Toyota Camry and in doing so took over the category points lead. He defeated Matt Hagan in the finals with his winning run of 3.921 at 318.39 to Hagan’s 4.087/263.62. He now has a 74-point lead over defending world champion Robert Hight who had a first-round loss at the hands of Todd’s teammate, Shawn Langdon (3.922/325.85 to 4.643/186.41) when Hight’s Camaro had a cylinder out early in the run.

“We still have some unfinished business in Pomona,” said Todd. “Hopefully we can go there and come out of it with two trophies.”

This is the seventh Funny Car win for Todd, the 16th in his career and his second win at the facility this season.  (Ron Lewis photo)   [10/29/18]

Hector Arana Jr. (near lane) took the PSM points lead from Matt Smith (far lane) at Las Vegas. In the second round Smith turned on the red light paving the way for Arana.  (Ron Lewis photo)

In Pro Stock Motorcycle, Hector Arana Jr. was the top qualifier for the Las Vegas event and won his third race of the year when he defeated defending world champion Eddie Krawiec in the finals. On his Lucas Oil Buell he raced to a winning run of 6.885 at 193.35 for this 14th win in his career and his first at the Strip. Krawiec ran 6.911 at 195.05 on his Harley.

"We did a great job qualifying and that sent the tone for today," said Arana. "It gave me the confidence I needed. I had great lights in qualifying and did it again today on race day. Great preparation and everything came back together. We just want to qualify well, win rounds and win races."

With the win, Arana moves to fourth in the points and trails leader Matt Smith by 64 points. Krawiec jumps to second, only four behind Smith and LE Tonglet is third, 61 out of first.

The Pomona race will offer one-and-a-half-times points.   [10/29/18]

Bill Doner, who has been the face of the West Coast-based United Nitro Funny Cars series, was ousted as chairman of the board by the board of directors and replaced with Bucky Austin who is also a UNFC team owner. Doner remains with the organization in another role.

Also joining the UNFC in 2019 is some official capacity will be promoter/racer Jason Bunker and PR specialist Darr Hawthorne. The Agent expects the UNFC series, with sponsorship from Jim Mayer and Good Vibrations, to add more races to the five races the series had this year.

The Agent hears a rumor that yet another Midwest Nostalgia Funny Car racer (John Hale) may be hanging up the firesuit. One of the Agent’s sources reports that the Texas-based team owner/driver has his entire “One Bad Texan” operation up for sale with a $300,000 price tag.   [10/29/18]

Following the lead of other regional and national series such as the IHRA, NHRA and others, the MWPMS series is considering adding Top Sportsman and Top Dragster to their line-up of classes in 2019.   [10/29/18]

Summit Racing Equipment has announced that Scott Peterson has been named President and Chief Operating Officer of the company effective January 1, 2019.

Peterson succeeds longtime President Ray Tatko, who is retiring at the end of 2018. Tatko will remain on Summit Racing Equipment’s Board of Directors and act as an advisor to company officers. Tatko’s leadership over the past 30 years has been one of the keys to Summit Racing’s success, especially his talent to identify and hire the best leaders for the growing company.

Peterson was hired in 1995 as Summit Racing’s Operations Manager. He was instrumental in improving the efficiency of the company’s order fulfillment center, leading to quicker shipping times and order accuracy for its customers even as order volume increased.

Peterson was promoted to General Manager in 2008, and guided Summit Racing Equipment through the turbulent period of the recession, helping it emerge stronger than ever.    [10/29/18]

The 2019 schedule for the thrilling E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service has been announced and will again have 12 stops.

“When we signed on at the beginning of the year one of the things we loved about Pro Mod racing is that it is the pinnacle of sportsman racing,” said Rob Fisher, vice president of motorsports E3 Spark Plugs. “The cars look like actual cars on the street, just stylized and even cooler. Where else are you going to see super chargers, nitrous and turbos going at it in an even platform? The best part about it from our standpoint is you have to get up on the wheel and drive these cars. It is nothing to see a guy working the wheel down the track going sideways and they stay in it. The aggressive performance orientated vibe you get from it really matches well and is what E3 is all about.”

2019 NHRA Pro Mod Schedule

March 14-17: Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, Gainesville, FL

April 12-14: NHRA SpringNationals, Houston

April 26-28: NGK Spark Plugs NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, Charlotte, NC

May 3-5: NHRA Southern Nationals, Atlanta

May 17-19: Virginia NHRA Nationals, Richmond, VA

June 7-9: Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals presented by Minties, Topeka, KS

June 14-16: Fitzgerald NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, Bristol, TN

June 20-23: Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, Norwalk, Ohio

Aug. 28-Sept. 2: Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals, Indianapolis

Sept. 27-29: AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals, St. Louis

Oct. 11-13: NHRA Carolina Nationals, Charlotte, NC

Oct. 24-27: NHRA Las Vegas Nationals, Las Vegas     [10/29/18]