Ron Capps secures No. 1 at Rockingham with a 3.870 at 330.40 mph on Friday night, his fourth top spot of 2026, setting up Sunday’s NHRA Nationals eliminations.

The lap is the 41st No. 1 of Capps’ career, underlining sustained pace across the 2026 NHRA season.

He enters the second race of the six-event Countdown fourth in Funny Car points, positioning NAPA Auto Care to pressure the leaders through disciplined, low-risk qualifying.

Friday’s work set the tone. A 3.926 opened qualifying as the second-quickest run, banking five bonus points, before the under-lights 3.870 moved him provisionally to the top.

Saturday demanded restraint as temperatures climbed. Capps delivered a 3.960 at 326.56, then a 3.927 at 330.15, while crew chief Dean “Guido” Antonelli trimmed the car to the window.

With fifteen Funny Cars entered, topping qualifying brings a strategic dividend. Capps takes a first-round bye, protecting parts and preserving lane choice under Sunday’s likely warmer conditions.

The bye awards 20 points and moves him to the quarterfinals to face the winner between points leader Matt Hagan and Dave Richards, helping trim a 63-point deficit.

Capps stresses the value of bonus points. Recent championships turned on single-digit margins, so banking qualifying marks and a bye could prove decisive through the Countdown’s compressed schedule.

Form remains robust. The team paired consistency here with a recent speed record and a forceful US Nationals showing, reinforcing a package that responds predictably to changing tracks.

Eliminations start 11 a.m. ET Sunday. With lane choice banked and a repeating car, Capps can play percentages, echoing his recent semifinal finish, and keep title pressure on Hagan.

Visual Summary

Nicholas Rivera

Nicholas Rivera delivers NHRA Top Fuel and Funny Car news, including eliminator-round results and reaction-time stats. He brings track-side interviews, contender profiles, and championship-point breakdowns straight from drag-racing’s biggest national events.