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- On Friday, the first 3,000 fans in attendance will receive a free, limited-edition NHRA New England Nationals presented by bproauto flag celebrating NHRA\u2019s 75th anniversary and the 60th anniversary of New England Dragway.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Smith saw nothing but positives from last weekend\u2019s race in Maryland. Taking on fellow rookie Maddi Gordon in the first round, Smith picked up the victory before falling to Leah Pruett a round later. Round wins are tough to come by in the Top Fuel ranks, with the standout class led by points leader Shawn Langdon, who has rolled to three straight wins.<\/p>\n
Then, there\u2019s the likes of reigning world champion Doug Kalitta, racing legend Tony Stewart, Pruett, Gordon, four-time champ Antron Brown, Clay Millican and Smith\u2019s teammate, Justin Ashley. It\u2019s a tall order for anyone, but Smith is feeling good about what his team accomplished in Maryland and is eager to get right back in the car during this stretch of three straight race weekends.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had a great weekend. We\u2019re excited, we\u2019re making progress, and we\u2019re onto Epping this week. We\u2019ll build on what we learned this weekend and try to turn on more win lights this week,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n
In Funny Car, J.R. Todd would love a repeat win as he remains in the thick of the championship hunt. Points leader Ron Capps and Chad Green both have two wins this season, and the loaded class also includes Matt Hagan, Alexis DeJoria and Jordan Vandergriff.<\/p>\n
Six-time Pro Stock world champ Anderson won Epping for the third time last year over his long-time rival Erica Enders. His KB Titan Racing teammate Dallas Glenn claimed the world title in 2026 and is the current points leader, while others to watch include Aaron Stanfield, Hartford and Greg Standfield. A<\/p>\n
The event will also feature standout competition in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, as well as the popular snowmobile categories. Race fans at New England Dragway 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. The final experience of any NHRA event is the winner\u2019s circle celebration on Sunday after racing concludes, where fans are invited to congratulate the event winners.<\/p>\n
As always, fans also get an exclusive pit pass to the most powerful and sensory-filled motorsports attraction on the planet in Epping. This opportunity gives fans a unique chance to see teams in action and service their hot rods between rounds, get autographs from their favorite NHRA drivers, and more. Fans can also visit NHRA\u2019s popular Nitro Alley and Manufacturers Midway, an exciting atmosphere that includes interactive displays, merchandise, food and fun for the entire family.<\/p>\n
NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying features two rounds at 5 and 7:30 p.m. ET on Friday, June 5 and the final two rounds of qualifying on Saturday, June 6 at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 a.m. ET on Sunday, June 7. Television coverage includes qualifying action on FS1 at 8 p.m. ET on Friday and 12 p.m. on Sunday, followed by eliminations from 3-6 p.m. ET on Sunday on FOX.<\/p>\n
To purchase tickets to the NHRA New England Nationals presented by bproauto, fans can visit www.NHRA.com\/tickets<\/a>.\u00a0Children 12 and under are free in general admission with the purchase of an adult ticket. For more information about NHRA, visit\u00a0www.nhra.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n
This story was originally published on June 5, 2026.
![\"Drag](\"https:\/\/dragillustrated.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/DI_flat_red-e1711481551475.png\")
<\/p>\nThe post Recent Progress has Top Fuel\u2019s Will Smith Excited for NHRA New England Nationals Presented by bproauto<\/a> first appeared on Drag Illustrated<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Jumping into a loaded Top Fuel field is never easy, but Will Smith couldn\u2019t be more thrilled with the opportunity and he\u2019s starting to make the most of it heading into this weekend\u2019s 13th annual NHRA New England Nationals presented by bproauto at New England Dragway. This year marks the first chance at a full-time […]<\/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-103810","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103810","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=103810"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/103810\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=103810"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=103810"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=103810"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}