LAS VEGAS – With a clutch run in the second round on Sunday at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Stevie Jackson claimed his second straight championship in the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service.
Jackson faced off with Brandon Snider in a thrilling, winner-take-all quarterfinal matchup and he pulled out a dramatic victory with a pass of 5.776 seconds at 248.66 mph in his supercharged Bahrain 1 Racing Camaro. The run edged out Snider’s 5.787-second run at 246.71 mph by less than two feet, handing the championship to Jackson for the second consecutive year in exciting fashion.
Jackson went on to finish his season in impressive style, beating teammate and No. 1 qualifier Khalid alBalooshi in the final round with a run of 5.789 seconds at 247.47 mph to win for the second time this year and 11th time in his career. Jackson dominated a year ago to claim his first world title, clinching the championship before he even reached Las Vegas. It was a much more challenging year in 2020, as six different drivers claimed wins, but it was just as satisfying for the fan favorite.
“When you have a season like this, there’s a lot of team owners that give up on you when you run as bad as we’ve been running,” Jackson said. “You have people that doubt you, but our Bahrain 1 team was never not behind us. I did a decent job of driving today and this means a lot. The first one, I felt was easier, and this one, you had to earn it. That’s the ones that are the most special.”
The race was seventh race in a shortened season and Jackson ended it with a strong statement. He qualified fifth and opened eliminations with a victory against Jim Whiteley. The thrilling win against Snider gave him a bye to the final round, where he led from start to finish against alBalooshi to claim the victory.
alBalooshi reached the final round for the first time this season and eighth time in his career with victories against Chad Green and Justin Bond.