There\u2019s a new car and a new team, but the end goal remains the same for Funny Car standout Austin Prock, who enters the 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season as the back-to-back world champion.<\/p>\n
But there\u2019s been plenty of change for Prock heading into this weekend\u2019s Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville Raceway to kick off NHRA\u2019s 75th anniversary. After winning consecutive championships, Prock and his team are now with Bob Tasca\u2019s Funny Car team and Ford Racing, serving as one of the off-season\u2019s biggest bombshells.<\/p>\n
The team has been hard at work to get ready for Gainesville in their 12,000-horsepower PPG Mustang Dark Horse, but the objective hasn\u2019t changed. After winning 17 times the past two years, Prock and his team have no other plans but to keep their hot streak going.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been a lot of work and a lot of long hours, seven days a week, for most of the off-season and still right now,\u201d Prock said. \u201cWe bit off a huge chunk and we\u2019re just sorting through it. We\u2019ve had a little bit of success in testing, but we\u2019ll keep working and we\u2019ll be ready. All we have to do is qualify and be ready by Sunday. We\u2019ve got a few more days to sort through this and I\u2019ve got the best people in the business working with me.\u201cThere\u2019s no doubt in my mind we\u2019ll be a front-runner this year. We do have to be patient, but I don\u2019t think anybody here wants to be patient. We know what we\u2019re capable of doing and we know we can go out there and win the first race.\u201d<\/p>\n
Last year, Antron Brown (Top Fuel), Chad Green (Funny Car), Dallas Glenn (Pro Stock) and Gaige Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) all won at Gainesville Raceway to open the year. This year\u2019s race will again be broadcast on FS1, including eliminations at 12 p.m. ET on Sunday, March 8.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the first of 20 races during the 2026 season and along with a full slate of racing, fans can expect a multitude of events to celebrate the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals and NHRA\u2019s 75th anniversary, including:<\/p>\n
t\u2019s the first of 20 races during the 2026 season and along with a full slate of racing, fans can expect a multitude of events to celebrate the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals and NHRA\u2019s 75th anniversary, including:<\/p>\n
The Gatornationals remains one of the few races Prock hasn\u2019t conquered the past two years, but doing so during the milestone year would be a memorable moment for the standout.<\/p>\n
He\u2019ll have to deal with the likes of four-time world champ Matt Hagan, three-time champ Ron Capps, Jordan Vandergriff, who is making his Funny Car debut for John Force Racing in Gainesville, Jack Beckman and Daniel Wilkerson.<\/p>\n
Prock knows he\u2019s again being chased, but it hasn\u2019t changed his mindset as he hopes to start the season with one of the biggest wins in his career.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve wanted to win here so bad. My grandfather was in the finals here and I\u2019ve never won here, so to win for the family, that would be cool and to win for Ford Racing and Tasca Racing on our first weekend, that would be a dream come true,\u201d Prock said. \u201cI think everyone would be really excited.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe always want to go out there and dominate, that\u2019s just how this team is. We\u2019ve just got to keep our heads down, stay positive and keep working hard and towards our goal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Top Fuel\u2019s Brown is after a repeat win, taking on reigning world champion Doug Kalitta, the returning Leah Pruett, racing legend Tony Stewart, Shawn Langdon, Justin Ashley, Clay Millican and Tony Schumacher.<\/p>\n
The 2025 Pro Stock season was dominated by KB Titan Racing, with standout star Dallas Glenn earning his first world title. Glenn will take on teammate Greg Anderson, six-time world champ Erica Enders, Jeg Coughlin Jr. and Aaron Stanfield.<\/p>\n
Pro Stock Motorcycle\u2019s Gaige Herrera has never lost in Gainesville. Last year, he won his third straight, defeating rival Matt Smith. He\u2019ll look for four in a row against reigning world champ Richard Gadson, Angie Smith, Steve Johnson and Jianna Evaristo.<\/p>\n
The weekend will also feature thrilling competition in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, Flexjet Factory Showdown and the NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.<\/p>\n
Fans will also be invited all weekend long to the Nitro Alley Stage, which hosts Nitro School, meet and greets, music and more. Race fans in Gainesville can enjoy the special pre-race ceremonies that introduce and celebrate each of the drivers racing for the prestigious Wally on Sunday and includes the fan-favorite SealMaster Track Walk.<\/p>\n
As always, fans get a pit pass to the most powerful and sensory-filled motorsports attraction. Fans have a chance to see teams in action and service their cars between rounds, get autographs from their favorite NHRA drivers and more. Fans can visit NHRA\u2019s Nitro Alley, where sponsors and vendors create an exciting atmosphere that includes interactive displays, merchandise, and food and fun for the entire family.<\/p>\n
NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying features two rounds at 1:30 and 4 p.m. ET on Friday, March 6, and the final two qualifying rounds on Saturday, March 7 at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 10 a.m. ET on Sunday, March 8.<\/p>\n
The first round of the Right Trailers Top Fuel All-Star Callout takes place at 12:15 p.m. on Saturday, with the semifinals slated for 2:15 p.m. and the final round at 3:30 p.m. A special Callout broadcast will also air at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday on FS1.<\/p>\n
To purchase tickets to the 2026 NHRA Gatornationals, fans can visit\u00a0www.NHRA.com\/tickets<\/a>. Children 12 and under are free in general admission areas with the purchase of an adult ticket. For more information about the NHRA, visit\u00a0www.nhra.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n The post After Changes, the Goal Remains the Same for Funny Car\u2019s Austin Prock Heading to Gainesville<\/a> first appeared on Drag Illustrated<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" There\u2019s a new car and a new team, but the end goal remains the same for Funny Car standout Austin Prock, who enters the 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season as the back-to-back world champion. But there\u2019s been plenty of change for Prock heading into this weekend\u2019s Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals at […]<\/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-103154","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103154","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=103154"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103154\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=103154"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=103154"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=103154"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}