The NHRA Vegas Nationals is the penultimate stop for the 2026 NHRA Championship season and there was quite some Australian influence with Peter and Helen Russo’s ‘Working Class Hero’ Nitro Funny Car back in action, series regulars Jamie Noonan and Richie Crampton in Top Alcohol Dragster and Warren Allen in Competition Eliminator.
After three years away from the track, the Russo Fuel Funny Car team returned with a fully rebuilt “Working Class Hero,” sporting a new body and the team’s retro Australian livery.
Cory Lee took the wheel, with Matt Bynum and Mike Smith calling the shots. But in a 20-car Nitro Funny Car field, with the bump spot in the threes, qualifying for race day proved too big a challenge for the returning team.
Jamie Noonan arrived in Las Vegas on the cusp of the NHRA Top Alcohol Dragster Championship, with the Samsel’s Racing team hoping to clinch the title. Team “rear gunner” Richie Crampton qualified fourth with a 5.261, while Noonan secured sixth with a 5.286.
Crampton’s weekend ended in round one, where Nicholas Januik took the win, 5.403 to 5.530. Noonan, meanwhile, added another crucial step to his title bid with a barnstorming side-by-side victory over Shaunda Blinzler, 5.303 to 5.308. That set up a huge second-round clash with championship rival and reigning champion Shawn Cowie. Noonan came out on top, 5.276 to 5.280, leaving him just one round win from the title.
In the semifinal against Jackie Ficke, Noonan left first, but his 5.342 wasn’t enough to hold off Ficke’s 5.257. The championship battle now heads to the NHRA Finals.
In Pro Stock Shane Tucker qualified 14th on a 6.71 and won through to round two after suffering tyre shake courtesy of a red light from Matt Latino for his first round win of the season. A 6.725 against Troy Coughlin Jr in round two was not enough against a 6.651.
Unfortunately Warren Allen had a rough time of it. Racing his dragster in the C/DA class in ultra-competitive Competition Eliminator the team chased a gremlin after qualifying and found out they had spun a bearing in the 338ci small block Chev, ruling them out of the rest of the event. The drama only making Allen and the team more determined to have a another crack next season.
Photos courtesy of David Ostaszewski (LMLC Media/DragRaceCanada)
