Event: 2026 NHRA Brainerd Nationals

Date: August 20-23 2026

Location: Brainerd International Raceway

2026 NHRA Brainerd Nationals Recap

Home-Track Heroes Shine at BIR During the 75th Anniversary NHRA Brainerd Nationals

The 2026 NHRA Brainerd Nationals is officially in the books, and what a week it was at BIR.

Following the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series “Pre-Game” Double-Header, the NHRA Brainerd Nationals brought another full weekend of racing action to BIR, with racers battling for the coveted 75th Anniversary Diamond Wally, special BIR National Event Lumberjack Hats, a national-event win, and valuable NHRA points heading into the final stretch of the season.

And while the national stars always draw plenty of attention, there was no shortage of home-track heroes giving the BIR crowd plenty to cheer about.

JDRL SHOOTOUT — THE WALLY & LUMBERJACK HAT STAYS HOME!

One of the most exciting moments of the weekend came during round 1 eliminations in the JDRL Shootout, where eight Jr. Dragster racers competed for a coveted NHRA Wally and the legendary BIR Lumberjack Hat—the same special hat presented to all of the NHRA Brainerd Nationals winners.

The field was made up of four racers who won their respective classes at the Jr. Dragster ET Finals who traveled to BIR from as far away as Colorado, along with four BIR Jr. Dragster racers who earned their spots by leading the season points in their respective classes.

Our four home-track racers were:

• Bodie Carlson

• Jasper Urbick

• Cameron Davis

• Evan Songas

After qualifying, the ladder fell about as perfectly as it could for the home team. The four visiting racers landed on one side of the ladder, while the four BIR racers occupied the opposite side. That meant none of our four local racers would have to face each other in the opening round.

And they took full advantage of it.

A PERFECT ROUND FOR THE HOME TEAM

The BIR racers swept all four opening-round matchups, sending all four home-track Jr. Dragsters into the semifinals and guaranteeing that the JDRL Shootout Wally would stay right here at BIR.

 Evan Songas and Bodie Carlson won their semi final match ups to move on to the finals. 

In the final, Songas left the starting line first with a .016-second reaction-time advantage, and that proved to be the difference.

Both racers ran .058 over their dial, but Songas' better reaction time gave him the edge as he turned on the win light with an 8.038 on a 7.98 dial, defeating Carlson's 8.018 on a 7.96 dial.

 JDRL Shootout Champion — Evan Songas Runner-Up — Bodie Carlson

A huge congratulations to Evan, Bodie, Jasper and Cameron for an incredible showing and to all eight Jr. Dragster racers who competed in the Shootout.

The Wally—and the Lumberjack Hat—stayed home at BIR!

LODRS NATIONAL EVENT WINNERS

The home-track success continued into the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series eliminations, with BIR racers making their presence known throughout the Sportsman classes.

Super Comp

Jeff Cheney defeated Jim Glenn

A pair of strong racers battled it out for the Super Comp title, with Cheney earning the national-event win. Glenn had the reaction-time advantage, .004 to .016, but Cheney was able to turn on the win light by just .0022 seconds.

Super Gas

Greg Maaninga defeated Dale Evans

This one was an all-BIR final, with two familiar BIR racers meeting for a national-event Wally.

Evans left the starting line just a little too early, going -.002 red, handing Maaninga his first NHRA national-event victory.

A huge congratulations to Greg on a milestone win—and to Dale on making the final round.

Super Street

Richard Hill defeated Donnie Durenberger

BIR's own Donnie Durenberger was looking to make it back-to-back NHRA Brainerd Nationals victories after his win here last year.

Durenberger's bid for another Lumberjack Hat came to an end when he went red in the final, giving Richard Hill the win.

Competition Eliminator

Cody Lane defeated Anthony Schmiedl

Super Stock

Jack Beutler defeated Michael Graham

The Super Stock final was a heads-up battle between Beutler and Graham.

Graham had a .035-second reaction-time advantage, but Beutler was able to drive around him to earn his first NHRA national-event victory of his young career.

Stock Eliminator

Jamie Picht defeated Dirk Olson

Picht earned the Stock Eliminator Wally when Olson went -.005 red in the final.

Top Dragster

 Kendra Larson defeated Bob Fischer

Another fantastic BIR story unfolded in Top Dragster as Kendra Larson went trip zip in the finals raced to her third NHRA national-event victory, all at BIR. This final was another all-home-track matchup, with Kendra defeating fellow BIR racer Bob Fischer.

Kendra was driving her husband's dragster after experiencing a massive wheel-stand during Race #1 of the Pre-Game event that bent her car's front A-arms when it came crashing back down.

She climbed into Trevor's dragster, made it through the weekend and finished it by putting another national-event Wally in the Larson family trophy case.

Top Sportsman

Curtis Fredrich defeated Chris Roe

Top Alcohol Funny Car

Shane Westerfield defeated Christine Foster

Top Alcohol Dragster Anthony Troyer defeated Melanie Johnson

Outlaw Snowmobile Anthony Mini defeated John Jacklitch

Mini set the asphalt snowmobile world record, while adding a NHRA Brainerd Nationals victory to his resume.

Outlaw Street Scott Taylor defeated Shawn “Murder Nova” Ellington

Taylor recorded a .004 reaction time and outran Ellington 3.709 to 3.717.

Mission Drag Racing Series Results

Pro Stock Greg Anderson defeated Chris Vang

Vang was making his first national-event final appearance, with Anderson taking the win 6.584 to 6.615.

Funny Car Matt Hagan defeated Jordan Vandergriff

Hagan took the final 3.946 to 4.038.

Top Fuel Doug Kalitta defeated Maddi Gordon

Kalitta took the win with a 3.743, defeating Gordon's 3.770.

 A WEEKEND TO REMEMBER AT BIR

From the 448 entries during the Lucas Oil “Pre-Game” Double-Header to the thousands of fans and racers who came through the gates for the NHRA Brainerd Nationals, it was another memorable week at Brainerd International Raceway.

But for us, some of the best moments came from watching the racers who call BIR their home track step up on the national stage.

Evan Songas put the BIR name on the JDRL Shootout Wally. Greg Maaninga earned his first national-event win. Kendra Larson added another Wally to her growing collection. Jeff Cheney added to his National events win list, Jack Beutler earned his first Nationals win, and all our BIR racers gave the home crowd plenty to cheer about.

And that is what makes the NHRA Brainerd Nationals so special—our home track becomes the national stage, and our racers get the opportunity to race alongside the best in the sport in front of their friends, families and hometown fans.

Congratulations to all of our 2026 NHRA Brainerd Nationals winners, runners-up, finalists and competitors, and a special congratulations to our BIR home-track racers who represented us so well.

The 2026 NHRA Brainerd Nationals are in the books, and the championship battles now move toward the U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis.

The season isn't over yet. There's still plenty of racing—and plenty of points—to be decided.

Brainerd International Raceway (BIR), located in Brainerd, Minnesota, is one of the Midwest’s premier multi-discipline motorsports facilities. Home to the NHRA Nationals, BIR hosts drag racing, road racing, drifting, autocross, performance driving experiences, and grassroots motorsports events throughout the season.

The facility features a championship drag strip, multiple road course configurations, dedicated drift infrastructure, and destination camping that has made BIR a motorsports tradition for generations of racers and fans.

For schedules, tickets, racer information, and event details:https://www.birmn.com