{"id":103032,"date":"2026-02-12T18:44:05","date_gmt":"2026-02-12T18:44:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/drag-racing\/uncategorized\/jacob-mcneal-set-to-join-jeff-diehl-racing-for-2026-season\/"},"modified":"2026-02-12T18:44:05","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T18:44:05","slug":"jacob-mcneal-set-to-join-jeff-diehl-racing-for-2026-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/drag-racing\/uncategorized\/jacob-mcneal-set-to-join-jeff-diehl-racing-for-2026-season\/","title":{"rendered":"Jacob McNeal set to join Jeff Diehl Racing for 2026 Season"},"content":{"rendered":"

Pro Modified standout rookie and NHRA Top Fuel driver Jacob McNeal has been officially named by Jeff Diehl Racing as their Nitro Funny Car driver to compete for a points championship in the 2026 IHRA eight-race points series. Legendary Nitro Funny Car driver\/owner Jeff \u201cThe Surfer\u201d Diehl will continue running at select NHRA races as well as the IHRA Triple Crown series.<\/p>\n

McNeal will bring his forward-focused discipline and intensity to competing in Nitro Funny Car, along with a deep respect for the equipment and team behind it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve worked hard to put myself in a position to compete at this level, and teaming up with Jeff in Funny Car is the next step,\u201d said McNeal. \u201cNitro is unforgiving \u2013 you either execute or you don\u2019t \u2013 and I thrive in that environment. I\u2019m proud to keep our Pro Mod program aggressive while we go all-in on chasing the IHRA championship.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jeff Diehl, from Monterey, California, widely known throughout the sport as \u201cThe Nitro Surfer,\u201d along with his wife, Leeza \u201cGoGo\u201d Diehl, have built one of drag racing\u2019s most respected independent operations together over the last 25 years. The Diehl program is recognized across the motorsports community for its authenticity, perseverance, style and unwavering dedication to Nitro Funny Car racing.<\/p>\n

\u201cJacob represents where the team is headed,\u201d Diehl said. \u201cHe brings professionalism and fresh talent behind the wheel. Leeza and I are proud of where our team has been and fired up about where it\u2019s headed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis team is a tight family unit,\u201d added Leeza. \u201cJacob understands the responsibility that comes with a seat on our team and we are excited to go racing together.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
Luke Nieuwhof photo<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

McNeal, who finished second in points during his 2025 rookie season in Pro Mod running the Midwest Drag Racing Series, says he\u2019s not giving up on the class that got him here. He\u2019ll be pulling double duty, piloting his Larry Jeffers-built, screw-blown \u201971 Cuda for the full IHRA season alongside Diehl\u2019s Funny Car. He will also compete at select NHRA events in Funny Car and MWDRS races in Pro Mod.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cGetting to run Funny Car with Jeff while still hammering down in Pro Mod is about as good as it gets,\u201d said McNeal. \u201cThat\u2019s a dream season right there. Pro Mod is home for me. That\u2019s where I\u2019ve built my edge, learned how to grind rounds out, and race heads-up with some of the baddest guys in the sport. Funny Car is a whole different animal, and I love that challenge too. Pro Mod keeps me sharp and aggressive, and Nitro Funny Car is just flat-out wild. We\u2019re going to push hard in both lanes and chase that IHRA championship like we mean it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jeff Diehl Racing will enter the 2026 IHRA season with an elevated drive, blending legacy and momentum as they aim to deliver powerful performances, energize fans, and write the next chapter of their program.<\/p>\n

This story was originally published on February 12, 2026. \"Drag<\/p>\n

The post Jacob McNeal set to join Jeff Diehl Racing for 2026 Season<\/a> first appeared on Drag Illustrated<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pro Modified standout rookie and NHRA Top Fuel driver Jacob McNeal has been officially named by Jeff Diehl Racing as their Nitro Funny Car driver to compete for a points championship in the 2026 IHRA eight-race points series. Legendary Nitro Funny Car driver\/owner Jeff \u201cThe Surfer\u201d Diehl will continue running at select NHRA races as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-103032","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103032","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=103032"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103032\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=103032"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=103032"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=103032"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}