KENT, WA – Erica Enders and the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage / Melling Performance / SCAG Power Equipment Pro Stock team earned their fifth No. 1 qualifying position of the season while Aaron Stanfield and the JHG / Melling / Janac Brothers Racing machine picked up their first Mission Foods #2Fast2Tasty NHRA Challenge Saturday at the NHRA Northwest Nationals and Pacific Raceways.

Enders’ made a stout 6.500 second pass at 209.98 mph on Friday night under the lights that would hold for her 39th career No. 1 and first at Pacific Raceways. She finished qualifying with a 6.571 pass at 209.75 and a 6.561 run at 209.46 to set her up for race day.

“We backed ourselves up against a wall a little bit after that first run on Friday, but my team continues to prove over and over that really doesn’t matter. When their backs are against the wall, when the pressure is on them, they always seem to do really great, so I’m very proud of them.  They have given me a good race car all weekend and really all year long,” said Enders who will race against Val Smeland in the first round of eliminations. “We’ve had some really great success here in the past, so I’m hopeful that trend continues, and we can finally get that 50th win off our back. It’s a huge milestone for me and for women but I just want to get back in the winner’s circle. That’s my main goal.” Continue reading →

WYNNEWOOD, OK – The Texas Sports Hall of Fame Selection Committee has nominated six-time NHRA Pro Stock world champion Erica Enders to their 2025 primary ballot.

Enders, a Houston native, has been competing in drag racing since she was eight-years-old. With 50 national event wins, 49 in the Pro Stock category, she is the winningest professional female driver in all of motorsports’ history and one of the most decorated drag racers of all time.

“If you’ve ever listened to me talk, you know how much pride I have in being from Texas. So, to see my name on the list of nominees for the Texas Sports Hall of Fame was pretty exciting,” Enders said. “This is the first time I’ve been nominated for a hall of fame, I feel like my team has accomplished a lot over the years and we’ve always been hopeful to be hall of fame worthy. It’s humbling to know that our efforts are being noticed.” Continue reading →

KENT, WA – Rookie of the Year candidate Sienna Wildgust will make her debut with Elite Motorsports in a Cuadra branded Pro Stock car at this weekend’s NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways.

“I am feeling very excited and blessed for my first race with Elite,” Wildgust said. “I am excited to work with everyone and thankful for Erica’s help in the whole process. We haven’t gone testing yet so we are excited to see what the car will do that first session.”

Wildgust, a third generation drag racer, will be competing in her seventh race of the 2024 Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series season. Through her first six races, she qualified for race day at the Winternationals and both Four-Wide events in Las Vegas and Charlotte. Wildgust, who is from Ontario, Canada, will be making her first pass down Pacific Raceways Friday afternoon.

“I have never raced at Seattle before. I am excited to see another racetrack and see another state that I have never been to,” Wildgust said. “There’s going to be a lot that is new this weekend. Luckily, I’ve had the chance to be in the Elite pits the last couple races. I’ve loved watching their team dynamic, they all work so well together and really support each other” Continue reading →

NORWALK, OH – Aaron Stanfield and the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage / Melling Performance / Janac Brothers Racing powered to their second victory of the season Sunday at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Summit Motorsports Park.

Stanfield, who won the Virginia Nationals just seven days ago, rallied to the 10th Pro Stock victory of his career, first at Summit Motorsports Park with a 6.539-second pass at 208.91 mph defeating rival Dallas Glenn after he rattled the tires and coasted to a 16.851 at 69.89.

“All I’ve got to say is I just had a really good car in Pro Stock today. It was bad fast and I didn’t drive as good as I did last weekend but I guess I drove good enough to get the job done. Definitely hats off to all my guys,” Stanfield said. “Mark Ingersoll, Tim Freeman, Jake Hairston, Kyla Bates, they really put their heads together and figured out what my car has been lacking. They figured it out during the semifinals in Virginia and it’s been bad fast since. Hopefully we can keep that momentum and keep it rolling.” Continue reading →

NORWALK, OH – Jeg Coughlin Jr. and his nephew Troy Coughlin Jr., who are both Central Ohio natives, will battle it out this weekend at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals at Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park as they each chase their first Pro Stock victory at the facility.

Jeg Jr., a six time-world champion with five in Pro Stock, has won at all but two tracks on the current Mission Foods NHRA schedule, Summit Motorsports Park and New England Dragway. While he hasn’t gotten the job done on race day, Jeg Jr. has been No. 1 qualifier at the Summit NHRA Nationals back in 2018. Entering the weekend sitting fourth in points with the SCAG Power Equipment / Outlaw Mile Hi Light Beer team, he’ll be looking for his 68th career Pro Stock victory, third this season.

“Here we are in the Buckeye State racing at what we consider our hometown racetrack, Summit Racing Equipment Motorsports Park, just an hour and a half away. The fun part about that is we have a lot of family and friends coming out and associates from JEGS will be attending the event. It adds a fun element to the weekend,” Jeg Jr. said. “We haven’t had that first national event win in Norwlak yet. We did win the K&N Horsepower Challenge a while back, which might be worth two national events now a-days. At any rate, I’d love to win on Sunday race day. It’s going to be a fun weekend, the weather looks like it should cooperate for most of the weekend with upper70s to low 80s. It’ll be a great weekend. Continue reading →

COLUMBUS, OH – Troy Coughlin Jr., driver of the JEGS.com / White Castle Pro Stock car for Elite Motorsports, was inducted into the White Castle Cravers Hall of Fame Wednesday at the White Castle Headquarters in Columbus, Ohio.

Troy Jr., a Central Ohio native, was inducted as a “Craver Extraordinaire,” the title White Castle bestows upon well-known people who have demonstrated their passion for and commitment to the White Castle brand.

“I’m beyond honored to be inducted into the White Castle Cravers Hall of Fame,” said Troy Jr., who was inducted in recognition of his life-long love of White Castle. “White Castle is one of my favorite brands in the world, not only because I love their Sliders, but also because it’s based in my hometown of Columbus and it’s a multi-generational, family business that I can relate to. It’s a great recognizable brand with a ton of excitement around it. To get to be inducted and to get to be here at headquarters and ride the slide, it was a majestic day, and it’ll be a day that I remember my entire life.” Continue reading →

DINWIDDIE, VA – Aaron Stanfield and the Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage / Melling Performance / Janac Brothers team powered their way to victory Sunday at the PlayNHRA Virginia Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park.

Stanfield won his ninth career Pro Stock victory, 26th national event win over five different categories and first victory at Virginia Motorsports Park, with a .007-second reaction time and a 6.614-second run at 207.15 mph to defeat Dallas Glenn and his 6.617 at 205.88.

“It was definitely a long hot race day for sure. Dallas has gotten me a couple times here the past couple of races and it was good to get him back right there,” said Stanfield who was runner-up to Glenn in Chicago. “It’s hard to win one of these. This one is special, I have my wife and my baby girl with me this weekend. It’s pretty special she can see why daddy is gone all the time.

“I was blessed with the wonderful opportunity to represent JHG this year. Thank you to Jason and Nikki, it’s good to finally be able to pull off a win representing your brand. Thank you to Melling and Joe Janac and all the guys at Elite. These guys worked their tails off on this hot rod today. It’s hard to put into words. All I can say is these things are hard to win so we’re going to enjoy them while we can.” Continue reading →

DINWIDDIE, VA – Erica Enders and her Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage / Melling Performance / SCAG Power Equipment team picked up their fourth No. 1 qualifying position of the season Saturday at the PlayNHRA Virginia Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park.

Enders’ No. 1 elapsed time of 6.585 seconds at 209.56 mph came in the first of three qualifying sessions on Saturday. The No.1 is the 38th of her career and first at Virginia Motorsports Park.

“We knew the first session was going to be the good one out of the three and so we put a lot of emphasis on it because conditions were only going to get progressively worse throughout the day. Fortunately, my guys are good enough to make sure we make a good hit first round and it stuck as conditions got worse,” Enders said. “We laid down two decent runs after that. There are a couple of pretty fast cars out there and it’s going to be a dog fight tomorrow. These conditions are extremely challenging as far as racing surface goes for our crew chiefs but also as drivers. These heavy fire suits and cockpit temperatures at 150 degrees, granted you’re not in there very long but getting your temperature up that high is not conducive to good decision-making skills. But it’s still fun and we’re going to go out there and do our best, Tomorrow is going to be very challenging.” Continue reading →

WYNNEWOOD, OK – Elite Motorsports has announced the addition of NHRA Rookie of the Year Award candidate, Sienna Wildgust, to their team roster. Wildgust will make her debut with the Elite Motorsports team during the NHRA’s famed “Western Swing” beginning with the NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways July 19-21.

Wildgust, a third generation drag racer, will continue Elite Motorsports’ commitment to fostering the next generation of drag racers with six-time world champion Erica Enders’ mentorship. Though they are a generation apart, Wildgust and Enders both came up through the NHRA Jr. Dragster Racing ranks along with their sisters, Avery Wildgust and Courtney Enders.

“My family has known Richard Freeman for a long time, and I have always looked up to Erica as a driver and as a person. She came up through the Jr. Dragster racing with her sister Courtney same as I did with my sister. I believe I can learn a lot from her. I’m excited to have her as a mentor and have her help me further my career,” said Wildgust. “Elite Motorsports is a family. Racing for me has always been a family sport. I feel, and my family, feels like this is going to be a good fit. With the culture of the team and all the experience, I believe I can learn a lot. I’ve always wanted a career in drag racing, in Pro Stock, joining Elite is going to move my career path forward.” Continue reading →

DINWIDDIE, VA – Bo Butner will make a return to the 500-inch Pro Stock category driving the yellow Corral Boots / Cuadra / Columbia Impex entry while also continuing his pursuit of the first Mountain Motor Pro Stock championship at this weekend’s PlayNHRA Virginia Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park.

Butner, the 2017 Pro Stock world champion, will be driving the Elite Motorsports car normally handled by Fernando Cuadra Jr. The Cuadras, Fernando Jr. and twins David and Cristian, will not be competing this weekend due to business obligations.

“I don’t want to take away from the Mountain Motor program, at all, I’m involved in the engine program over there,” Butner said. “I think I’ll just be showing up in the staging lanes and jumping in Fernando Jr.’s car. It’s a new car, it’s good, just getting some more laps on it. It’s going to be fun. We’ve got a lot of cars on the entry lists, 20 in Pro Stock and there’s 16 in Mountain Motor Pro Stock with only eight spots. We had 14 Mountain Motors in Bristol and we didn’t get my wife, Randi Lyn, qualified, so I need to get that done or it’s going to be a long way home.” Continue reading →