Jack Beckman walked away from the U.S. Nationals with mixed emotions. On one hand, he had just driven his PEAK Squad Chevrolet SS Funny Car to his fourth final round of the season, solidifying his spot as the No. 2 seed entering the NHRA Countdown to the Championship. On the other, he came up short to John Force Racing teammate Austin Prock in an all-JFR showdown on drag racing’s biggest stage.
“There’s no silver lining to this, right?” Beckman said bluntly after the final. “You make it to a final round, you need to capitalize. Nobody gets to the final round and says, ‘Ah, if we lose, it’ll be okay.’ It stings. We did lose to our Cornwell Tools-sponsored teammate at the Cornwell Quality Tools Nationals, so there is some silver lining, but it’s frustrating for us because we have a car good enough to win. And I was driving good today.”
Beckman was the No. 1 qualifier in Indy, defeating Justin Scheifer, Paul Lee, and Alexis DeJoria to reach the final. Prock, meanwhile, rolled through his side of the ladder and continued his remarkable run by winning his second straight U.S. Nationals and his seventh event of the season. For Beckman, the runner-up was a reminder of how small the margins are at this level and how critical every round will be over the next six races.
“This is the time of year where there are no stops you hold back,” Beckman said. “You pull them all out. Every single session matters because I’ve won a championship by two points before. That’s two qualifying positions on a Friday. That’s why I say every run, every round, every little point has to be gobbled up.”
He’s been around long enough to know that nothing comes easy in the Countdown.
“You always want to be in the front, that’s the place to be,” Beckman said. “But personally, I always seem to drive better when my back’s against the wall. I feel like I have something to prove, and I’m chasing someone down. I drive with intent and aggression. Sometimes when I get in the lead, I’ve gotten conservative in the past. So I always want to be up front, but I know myself – I’m more in my element when I’m driving aggressively.”
That aggression will be put to the test right away at Maple Grove Raceway. The 40th Reading Nationals presented by Nitro Fish marks the opening round of the Countdown and will feature the return of the four-wide format for the first time ever in the playoffs. Beckman is a student of the sport and doesn’t mince words about the wrinkle.
“I like the four-wides. I’m a fan of the sport. It’s fine if it’s a regular season race,” he said. “But I don’t think it should be a Countdown race. It’s like giving Major League Baseball a softball for one game. I understand why they do it in the regular season, but this is a playoff. It changes things.”
Regardless of format, Beckman knows what motivates him.
“You ask anybody that races for a period of time, if you ask them honestly how many trophies they want, the correct answer is one less than they want to have,” he said. “You never get one and say, ‘Great, that’s exactly as many as I wanted.’ There’s always that motivation. Every single race gives a trophy away at the end of the day. Every one of them matters. That’s what keeps you hungry.”
Beckman has proven that hunger before. He is already a world champion and a 30-plus-time national event winner, but he still feels like he has more to prove, especially after joining John Force Racing full-time again this year. Indy was his fourth final of 2025, and while the sting of losing to Prock still lingers, it reinforced that the program is in position to challenge for a title.
“We’ll be back here testing all day tomorrow,” Beckman said after the race. “We’re going to unload a brand-new car, which will be our backup. We just want to prove it. We’ll go onto the Countdown maybe a little hungrier.”
The hunger is what defines Beckman at this point. He’s surrounded by teammates who are racking up wins, and he knows the only way to stay in that fight is to keep swinging.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s the U.S. Nationals or Reading or Pomona – you go up there to win,” Beckman said. “Every round matters. Every point matters. We’re going into this Countdown with a car that can win, and I’m driving well. That’s all you can ask for. Now it’s about putting it together.”
Beckman will start the Countdown second in points behind Prock, with Matt Hagan just behind him in third. It’s a familiar position, one that has both pressure and opportunity attached to it. He wouldn’t have it any other way.
“A hungry lion hunts better,” Beckman said. “We’ve got six races to go, and I promise you we’re going to be hunting.”
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