The 2026 edition of the U.S. Street Nationals presented by M&M Transmission was a historic event for Pro Modified. By any and all measurements of performance and competition, the sport has never seen anything quite like it. Fans were treated to the quickest 32-car Pro Mod field in history, and the first ever all-3.50’s field. Five drivers managed to dip into the 3.50’s and still fail to qualify.
In 2023, Mark Micke qualified No. 1 at the Drag Illustrated World Series of Pro Mod with a 3.598-second run. That same pass would’ve resulted in a DNQ at the U.S. Street Nationals.
Eric Gustafson piloted his ProCharger-equipped, Coast Packing Co. “Lard Machine” ’69 Camaro to the quickest pass in the history of the Drag Illustrated Winter Series presented by J&A Service, a 3.543-second run at 211.30 mph in his first-round victory over No. 1 qualifier Jimmy Taylor.
In total, 70 Pro Mods attempted to qualify for the quickest field in history – screw blower combinations led the way with 34 entries, followed by centrifugal superchargers (24), twin turbos (6), nitrous (5), and one roots blower.
Centrifugal combos paced the field with a 3.607 average e.t. across all entrants. Twin turbos were only one thousandth off the pace, averaging a 3.608. Screw blowers were third at 3.615, followed by Bob Glenn’s lone roots blower (3.641) and nitrous (3.648).
Looking at the 32-car qualified field, screw-blower combinations once again led with 16 participants, an impressive 50% of the field. Centrifugal supercharger-equipped cars were second with 12 qualified drivers (37.5%), followed by three twin turbos (9.37%), and Jim Halsey as the only nitrous participant (3.13%).
Centrifugal combinations produced the quickest average elapsed time of the 32 qualified entries with a 3.569, an e.t. that would’ve placed ninth on the qualifying sheet. Snowbird Outlaw Nationals presented by Motion Raceworks winner Jason Harris led the way with a 3.566-second pass to qualify No. 2 in his Harts Charger-equipped “Party Time” ’69 Camaro.
Twin turbos were second, bolstered by No. 1 qualifier Jimmy Taylor’s 3.555. The average of the three qualified cars – which included 2017 WSOPM champion Mike Bowman and 2024 NPK champion Shawn “Murder Nova” Ellington – was a 3.580, good for the No. 19 qualifying spot.
While screw-blown cars made up half the field, the sheer number of qualified entries bumped their average qualifying e.t. down just a bit to a 3.583, which would’ve qualified No. 20. Event winner Stevie “Fast” Jackson and 2023 WSOPM champion Spencer Hyde were the only two screw blowers that qualified in the top ten: Jackson’s 3.564 placed him sixth, while Hyde was tenth with a 3.570.
Halsey flew the nitrous flag by himself during eliminations, qualifying No. 21 with a 3.585.
During eliminations, performances from “clean runs” – elapsed times under 4.00 seconds and mph over 180 – were nearly identical between centrifugal superchargers and screw blowers. Centrifugal combos averaged a 3.605 e.t. on 25 clean passes, while screw blowers averaged a 3.610 on 22 clean passes – a difference of just five thousandths of a second. Although only making two clean passes in eliminations, twin turbos accounted for the quickest average e.t. (3.602).
Finally, looking back at previous event winners, twin turbos dominated on the mountain, winning all three Drag Illustrated World Series of Pro Mod events at Bandimere Speedway in Denver – Mike Bowman (2017), Carl Stevens (2018), and Scott Oksas (2019). Since moving to Bradenton Motorsports Park in 2023, screw blowers have taken over, winning six of the seven Winter Series events (Spencer Hyde, Derek Ward, Kye Kelley, Ken Quartuccio, Steve King, and Steve Jackson), with 2025 Snowbirds winner Jason Harris being the lone exception (Harts Charger).
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