SPRY SPRING NATIONALS CALLING FOR SPORTSMAN RACERS
9 October 2026
The Aeroflow Sportsman Championship is set to come to a dramatic head later this month at the SPRY Spring Nationals – the 2026 NDRC season grand finale.
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The Aeroflow Sportsman Championship is set to come to a dramatic head later this month at the SPRY Spring Nationals – the 2026 NDRC season grand finale.
Daniel and Lisa Gregorini’s Top Doorslammer season has been far from perfect — they would acknowledge as much — but the turnaround for Scratch & Match Motorsport has begun in earnest thanks to some positive results at the recent East Coast Nationals at Sydney Dragway.
Father and son Ian and Kobe Ashelford are ready to take on this weekend’s All Bike Nationals (October 10) at Dragway at The Bend, a vital points-scoring opportunity for the two-wheeled racers of both the ANDRA Regional Sportsman Series and the National Drag Racing Championship (NDRC).
Izzy Woolcock made her Nitro Voodoo Junior Drag Bike debut as part of a dual entry campaign at the recent Mildura City Council Sunset Nationals, not only successfully gaining her bike licence, but also claiming a first-round win while clocking personal bests on every single pass.
Lamattina Top Fuel Racing endured a challenging weekend at the Haltech East Coast Nationals, with a series of setbacks ultimately bringing the event to a difficult close, but the team remains firmly in control of the Top Fuel championship standings.
Steve Read has run the quickest pass of his Top Fuel comeback, a 4.037-second, 471.28kph effort in the final Top Fuel run of the Haltech East Coast Nationals.
Fresh off his previous historic round win at the Gulf Western Oil Winternationals Sydneysider Emilio Spinozzi doubled down and won the Haltech East Coast Nationals at his home track Sydney Dragway last weekend. Spinozzi sped the Terra Civil Chevelle to back-to-back round wins in hot and humid conditions and in front of a big crowd along the way earning the Top Doorslammer Championship points lead in the process.
ANDRA is pleased to announce that Extreme Bike will officially join the ANDRA Regional Sportsman Series for the first time, beginning at the All Bike Nationals at Dragway at the Bend on October 10.
For Rob Ashman, chasing an ANDRA Christmas Tree was never really about the trophy, and when the South Australian Drag Racers Association Super Street racer finally claimed his first at the weekend’s Mildura City Council Sunset Nationals, it was his late father Dennis he was thinking of.
After a huge program on Saturday, Sunday morning at Sydney Dragway brought the Haltech East Coast Nationals to a close with an exciting program of Aeroflow Sportsman Championship racing, delivering both NDRC Christmas Trees and critical results ahead of the racers’ upcoming penultimate rounds (All Bike Nationals and Southern Sportsman Slam on October 10).
The Haltech East Coast Nationals has delivered a reshaped NDRC title picture across its five Group 1 brackets, with BLAHST Top Fuel now set for a three-way fight between Phil Lamattina, Damien Harris, and Wayne Newby at the season finale; XPRO Nitro Funny Car leader Josh Leahy surviving stern challenges; Top Doorslammer gaining a new championship leader in Emilio Spinozzi; Pro Stock’s Rob Dekert and Omar Sedmak deadlocking at the top; and Pro Mod champion Zoran Gajic extending his advantage.
After four years away from the track, Jason Stares is ready to return to the driver’s seat, with a heavily rebuilt Pro Mod Corvette and an ambitious national campaign ahead with Quinto Motorsports.
Major progress has been made on the Perth Motorplex drag strip replacement project, with the first lane of concrete successfully poured over last weekend.
Drag racing is set to roar back into life at Perth Motorplex, with the venue unveiling a massive 12-major event, 16-night 2026/27 championship season.
Australian Pro Alcohol racer Cheyne Phillips returned to Randy Meyer Racing last weekend for another tilt at the NHRA Top Alcohol Dragster bracket, competing at the NHRA Great Lakes Nationals at US 131 Motorsports Park.
Chris Soldatos will make his return to Pro Stock competition at the East Coast Nationals, back behind the wheel for the first time since taking the win at last year’s championship finale.
Super Sedan racer Jamie Turner broke through for his first ANDRA Christmas Tree at the weekend’s Mildura City Council Sunset Nationals, and he had to do it the hard way, running five rounds of eliminations as part of the biggest field of the event.
Just over three months after the biggest crash of his career, Jeremy Callaghan will be back behind the wheel of his Luci Civil Camaro this weekend, lining up for the Haltech East Coast Nationals at Sydney Dragway (26-27 September) – the penultimate round of the 2026 NDRC Top Doorslammer championship.
The 2026 National Drag Racing Championship (NDRC) title chase reaches a critical point this weekend, led by six car fields in both BLAHST Top Fuel and XPRO Nitro Funny Car at Sydney Dragway’s Haltech East Coast Nationals.
Last weekend provided valuable last-minute track time for racers looking to fine-tune their combinations ahead of this weekend’s National Drag Racing Championship East Coast Nationals at Sydney Dragway.
John Barbagallo’s consistency throughout the Pro Stock Nationals paid dividends at Willowbank Raceway, with the JB Automotive Ford Escort getting quicker as the weekend progressed before Barbagallo secured the event win.
Ten ANDRA Christmas Trees have been hoisted in Mildura Sunday 20 September as the winners of round three of the 2026/2027 ANDRA Regional Sportsman Series – the Mildura City Council Sunset Nationals – celebrated victory in their respective brackets at the Davison Ford Sunset Strip.
A new Nitro Funny Car livery is ready to hit the Australian drag strip, with XBOX and Rocket Industries unveiling a dedicated Gears of War: E-Day design that brings one of gaming’s most iconic and battle-hardened franchises into the heart of the National Drag Racing Championship (NDRC).
A full day of Mildura City Council Sunset Nationals qualifying has drawn to a close at the Davison Ford Sunset Strip, with the fields now set for Sunday’s racing in round three of the 2026/2027 ANDRA Regional Sportsman Series.
Perth Motorplex, operated by Evolve Facility Management, is pleased to announce the appointment of Rod Britton as the Drag Racing Manager.
Steve Nusbajtel might still be getting used to a new left-hand drive car with a lot more power than anything he has driven before, but it hasn’t stopped the Super Sedan racer from topping qualifying at his last two outings.
For most of the field, the Sunset Nationals means a tow to Mildura. For Madison Sparrow, it means a ten-minute drive.
2026 NDRC Pro Stock Nationals Saturday Photo Gallery courtesy of Drag Photos
Thomas Leake arrived at Willowbank Raceway last Thursday for the Pro Stock Nationals with no engine in his car – two days later, he was racing in his first ever NDRC final, a truly thrilling showdown which came down to just fourteen-thousandths of a second at the line.
The Pro Stock Nationals at Willowbank Raceway delivered record-breaking performances, red lights, upsets and some of the closest racing of the season.
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