The IHRA opened its Triple Crown on Friday at Darana Raceway in Hebron, Ohio, the first of three races in the big-money series. With a potential $1 million payday on the line in five different classes – Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Mod, Mountain Motor Pro Stock, and Pro Stock – and only two qualifying attempts, the tension was high as drivers simply attempted to make it to race day.
Shawn Reed came out on top in Top Fuel in a Friday night session that saw drivers getting bumped in and out of the field on nearly every pass, running a 3.767 elapsed time at 332.35 mph – both of which were good for new IHRA records. Right behind him in the 3.70’s range were Tripp Tatum and Jasmine Salinas, both of whom ran 3.797. Tatum earned the No. 2 spot via a higher mph.
“I was nervous as heck,” said Reed regarding seeing his qualifying position fall prior to his run. “My wife was watching the scores, and going into it we were No. 2. Everybody kept going quicker, and we got down sitting No. 8, so we knew we were in, but I jumped in there and turned on the happy knobs. It ran about what we thought it would run.”
The most intriguing matchup of round one will feature Salinas, who for the first time in her career will face her father, longtime Top Fuel driver Mike Salinas.
“Oh man, damn,” Jasmine said upon hearing she would be facing her father in the first round. “He’s been waiting for this forever, so I think everyone in our family has been taking bets to see who’s gonna win if we ever lined up against each other, so I’m pretty excited. If I get to run my dad tomorrow, that’s just going to be a dream come true.”
In Funny Car, Dale Creasy Jr. took the top spot with a new IHRA-record pass of 3.962 at 319.15 mph. Bobby Bode was the only other driver to dip into the 3’s with a 3.976, while class standout Del Worsham is No. 3 at 4.010.
“We just need to do what we do, because when we get out of the realm of what we know how to do, that’s when things go wrong,” Creasy said. “This weekend we seem to have it going right.”
Jason Harris continued his torrid streak in 2026, once again qualifying in the No. 1 spot in Pro Mod with a 3.595 at 209.69 mph in his Harts Charger-equipped “Party Time” ’69 Camaro. A pair of screw-blown entries are right behind him, with Jacob McNeal sitting No. 2 with a 3.615 at 207.95 in his orange Cuda, and recent IHRA Pro Mod Mania runner-up Melanie Salemi at No. 3 with her “Purple Reign” ’68 Firebird at 3.618 at 207.18.
“We struggled with new tires in testing trying to scuff ‘em in,” said Harris, who will receive a bye in the first round of the 31-car field. “We went back to our old setup and really thought we had our first run down, but it’s just racing and these cars don’t like hot, greasy racetracks; but Brandon Stroud brought it right back. I’ve got all my friends here. I love it.”
In the ultra-competitive world of Mountain Motor Pro Stock, 26 drivers fought for just 16 spots. In the end, it was John DeFlorian who earned the No. 1 spot with a 4.078 at 176.54 mph in his Total Seal Piston Rings Camaro. Jason Grima and Johnny Pluchino hold the Nos. 2-3 spots respectively, while Richard Cowger snuck in the field at No. 16 with a 4.127. The entire field is separated by just five hundredths, with eight different drivers running a 4.10.
“I feel like a million bucks,” said DeFlorian. “I’ll tell you what, this is a brutal class. We got 26 cars out here, and they’re all badass guys. To come out here and get to that No. 1 qualifying spot, that’s a huge deal. We are beyond happy. My partner in crime, Matt Hartford, he’s been wearing them out over in NHRA, so we’ve gotta try to see if we can do the same thing over here.”
The final class competing for a potential million dollars is Pro Stock, where Taylor Dietsch held off his father, Jason Dietsch, for the No. 1 spot with a 4.908 at 147.54 mph. Jason sits second at 4.927.
In addition to the Triple Crown, a host of supporting classes are also competing in Ohio, including Outlaw Pro Mod, where Bubba Stanton sits atop the field with a blistering 3.534 at 213.17 mph. Unfortunately, he didn’t get the chance to improve upon that number, as he was forced to shut the car off prior to his Q2 run.
“Being lazy on my part not replacing burst panels as normal maintenance. They’ve been on the car since the start of last year,” admitted Stanton. “We should be good going into eliminations tomorrow. I’m very happy with the way the car’s running. It’s hot and the sun has been on the track both days, and the car has been going down every pass. I’m happy to see a full field of Outlaw cars at this race; now I just gotta get the job done on race day.”
Other No. 1 qualifiers on Friday included Jody Austin (Fuel Altered), Jeff Chatterson (Top Alcohol Dragster), Phil Esz (Top Alcohol Funny Car), Larry “Spiderman” McBride (Top Fuel Motorcycle), Bob Malloy (Nitro Harley), and Anthony Rhodes (Hemi Shootout).
Eliminations for the Triple Crown will begin Saturday at 10 a.m. eastern.
This story was originally published on June 20, 2026. 
The post Reed, Creasy Jr., Harris, DeFlorian, and T. Dietsch Earn No. 1 Qualifying Positions at IHRA Triple Crown first appeared on Drag Illustrated.
