Following a captivating 75th anniversary season, the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series is set to cap off a milestone campaign with the NHRA Awards Ceremony, which is again set for Pechanga Resort Casino in the heart of scenic Southern California Wine Country.
Pechanga Resort Casino will host the special ceremony for the fifth straight year, with the 2026 event set for Monday, Nov. 16. It follows the final race of the season and the Countdown to the Championship playoffs, the 60th annual In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals, which takes place Nov. 12-15 at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip.
Along with serving as the host of the NHRA Awards Ceremony, Pechanga Resort Casino is also the “Official Resort Casino of Pomona Dragstrip,” which has hosted a pair of NHRA events for more than 60 years.
At the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals, Pechanga Resort Casino will have an exclusive resort offer available for fans at the legendary track, as the NHRA finishes off its memorable 2026 season with a spectacular awards ceremony.
“We don’t sponsor things we think are cute. We sponsor things that bring people to this region and keep them here. NHRA fans travel, they stay, and they spend, and that is good business for Pechanga and for Temecula Valley,” said Sean Vasquez, President, Pechanga Development Corporation. “There’s also a reason this partnership feels right. Drag racing is built on taking a machine past what the engineers said it could do. The Pechanga Band built the largest resort casino on the West Coast and more than 4,000 jobs on land people said couldn’t support a gas station. We recognize our own story when we see it.”
The NHRA Awards Ceremony, an invitation-only black-tie affair, will honor and celebrate the 2026 world champions in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Motorcycle. It will also award the 2026 NHRA Rookie of the Year, a Lifetime Achievement Award winner, and the NHRA Crew of the Year Award presented by Red Line Oil in each professional category.
The annual event opens with a pre-event cocktail reception at 5 p.m., followed by a formal sit-down dinner at 6 p.m., and the awards ceremony begins at 7 p.m. The official after-party will conclude the evening’s festivities.
Champions in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series will also be honored at Pechanga Resort Casino, with a ceremony taking place from 3-5 p.m., joining the activities at the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Awards Ceremony, where they will also be recognized.
Located just 60 miles south of In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip, Pechanga Resort Casino is the largest resort/casino on the West Coast and is nestled in Temecula Valley’s picturesque Southern California Wine Country.
Offering the closest experience to Las Vegas any visitor can get, the top-rated resort, which was named the top casino in California and “Best U.S. Casino” by USA Today, offers AAA Four-Diamond comfort and amenities in its 1,100 spacious guest rooms and suites, a wide variety of fine dining options, an award-winning 18-hole golf course, spa services, wine tasting, and more than 3,500 slot machines, tables games and poker rooms.
Highlights from the 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Awards Ceremony will be available on the NHRA YouTube page, as well as photos and interviews on the red carpet before the ceremony across NHRA’s social media pages.
This story was originally published on October 21, 2026.
The post NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Awards Ceremony Returns to Pechanga Resort Casino in Southern California Wine Country first appeared on Drag Illustrated.
