BRISTOL, Tenn. — Leah Pruett picked up her first victory since 2023, defeating points leader Shawn Langdon in the final round of the NHRA New England Nationals presented by bproauto, which were completed Friday at Bristol Dragway.
Jack Beckman also won on Friday in the Epping Funny Car final round, while Pruett, Matt Hagan (Funny Car), Greg Anderson (Pro Stock) and Gaige Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) are the provisional No. 1 qualifiers in Bristol for the Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at the ninth of 20 races during the 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season.
Pruett went 3.794 seconds at 332.43 mph in her 12,000-horsepower Dodge//SRT dragster, slipping past Langdon’s 3.852 at 328.54. It is Pruett’s 13th career victory and first since returning to the sport this season. Pruett stepped out of the seat after the 2023 season to start a family with her husband, Tony Stewart, coming back to the Top Fuel ranks in 2026.
She had performed well through the first seven races, advancing to the final round in Phoenix, but the only thing missing was a victory. That changed on Friday, as Pruett delivered a thrilling run in what could be a massive weekend for the star driver.
The run also puts Pruett as the provisional No. 1 qualifier for this weekend’s Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals in Bristol.
“I’m happier than I thought I would be,” Pruett said. “Now I finally get to take a breath and enjoy it. This race didn’t come by accident. It didn’t come by somebody falling short or smoking the tires. We earned this.
“To see the smiles on my crew and my crew chiefs’ faces — that’s all-time. The Diamond Wally is super cool, but seeing what this means to my team means even more. We’re chipping away at it and that’s what gave us confidence coming into this final round. I think I’m in a better spot than I’ve ever been as a driver.”
Funny Car’s Jack Beckman had to wait an extra week, too, but it was worth it as he cashed in with his first victory of the 2026 season, beating John Force Racing teammate Jordan Vandergriff in the final round of the NHRA New England Nationals presented by brpoauto with a run of 4.017 at 318.55 in his 12,000-horsepower PEAK Chevrolet SS.
Beckman had been working up to this moment over the past handful of races, advancing to his second straight final round. He fell in the Maryland finals to Austin Prock, but has continued to run well, making a clean run on Friday in the Bristol heat. It gives the past world champion his 38th career victory and he becomes the sixth different winner this year in the loaded Funny Car category.
“Before you can be quick, you have to be consistent and to be consistent, you have to be predictable. I think we’re back in that window right now,” Beckman said. “To get a win like this, it was very gratifying.
“I wouldn’t have cared if we ran this final round Friday night or next Tuesday. Our PEAK team left with the trophy and that’s all that matters. We hadn’t won in over a year. We had some struggles, but now we’ve made it down the track on 14 of our last 17 runs. That’s the kind of consistency that wins races. I’ve never raced a final round at a completely different venue a week later. I’ve raced late Sundays and Mondays, but never this. It was definitely unique.”
Hagan took the top spot on Friday with a run of 4.009 at 319.60 in his 12,000-horsepower Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage Dodge Funny Car. The four-time champion is after his first top qualifier of the season and the 55th in his career. Beckman is currently second, while Spencer Hyde is third after going 4.030 at 319.07.
