JCM Racing Post-Race Recap: Bristol

Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals

Event 8 of 20

Bristol Dragway

Bristol, Tenn. 

June 6-8, 2025

Alexis DeJoria Continues Gaining Momentum with

JCM Racing

BRISTOL, Tenn. (June 8, 2025) – Bristol Dragway has always held a special significance for Alexis DeJoria, who has earned more round wins at the iconic track than at any other venue on the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series tour. At this year’s Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, the Bandero Café Funny Car driver continued her strong connection to the Tennessee facility by qualifying No. 2—her best starting position since joining JCM Racing.

With new asphalt on the surface of the track at Bristol Dragway, DeJoria’s tires spun on her initial qualifying effort on Friday. In the second hit of the day, she powered her Mike ‘Zippy’ Neff and Todd Smith-tuned Bandero Café Charger to the fastest pass of the session with a 3.948-second run at 328.14 mph, earning the provisional pole and three valuable bonus points. The weather continued causing delays and touchy track conditions throughout the weekend, but DeJoria’s powerful Friday evening run held strong to keep her in the No. 2 spot on the ladder for eliminations, her best qualifying position of the season thus far. 

On race day, DeJoria began eliminations facing No. 15 qualifier Dave Richards. While her impressive qualifying position gave her lane choice, the talented Funny Car driver knew from experience that both lanes could be challenging. She lined up against Richards from the left lane, knowing that she would need to navigate a bumpy transition spot on her way to the finish line. DeJoria had the lead until her car lost traction in that spot and went out of the groove. She had to end her race day sooner than expected as Richards took the early round win.

“It was kind of a wacky weekend," remarked DeJoria. "Between the rain and battling some bumps in the track, we managed to qualify second, with a really good 3.94 that we ran on Friday. That stuck with us all the way through qualifying. We got some bonus points, which was awesome. In the first round, we went out there and we were on a good run. We weren’t trying to rotate the Earth or anything. But it was set to make a good, solid run. And then right where there’s a transition with that bump in the track, we lost traction and smoked the tires. I pedaled the car and I got it to hook back up quickly, but he passed me. By that time, it was all over.

“I wish I could have done better for JCM Racing. This is our team owner’s home track, so it would have been nice to go some rounds. Bristol is definitely a track for slower runs and whoever can manage this race track is going to win. We are holding our heads high and we’re going to keep them high. We’re going to persevere and get ready for the next race.”

DeJoria and the Bandero Café Funny Car team will return to racing action later this month when the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season continues NHRA Virginia Nationals, June 20-22, at Virginia Motorsports Park outside of Richmond. 

Qualified: No. 2 (3.948 E.T. at 328.14 MPH)

Elimination Round Results:

E1: 4.134 E.T. at 250.18 MPH defeated by Dave Richards 4.098 E.T. at 316.90 MPH

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car Point Standings (Unofficial):

1 Austin Prock 596

2. Paul Lee 565

3 Jack Beckman 552

4 Ron Capps 496

5 Matt Hagan 487

6 J.R. Todd 421

7 Dan Wilkerson 394

8 Chad Green 382

9 Alexis DeJoria 362

10 Cruz Pedregon 356

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Ida Zetterström Battles Weather, Track Conditions in First Bristol Appearance

Coming off a major first-round win at the NHRA New England Nationals, Ida Zetterström went into the Super Grip NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway looking to continue building momentum in her JCM Racing Top Fuel dragster. In her Bristol Dragway debut, the 2023 FIA European Top Fuel champion qualified No. 8 before falling to two-time world champion Brittany Force in the opening round of eliminations on Sunday.

Inclement weather made track conditions tricky to navigate and the Top Fuel category only got one qualifying session in the books on Friday. Returning to qualifying action on Saturday, Zetterström made a strong statement when she clocked a sharp run of 3.904 seconds at 322.88 mph to put her in the No. 8 spot on the final qualifying order. That netted Zetterström a first-round match against Force in an international battle between women who’ve won Top Fuel titles on two different continents.

Zetterström and Force rolled under the iconic Bristol Dragway tower as the first pair of Top Fuel dragsters on Sunday race day. They were the two most evenly matched drivers based on qualifying, and NHRA deemed it the Marquee Matchup for Top Fuel. Zetterström left the starting line just a tick behind Force, and while she attempted to pedal the car when it went into early tire smoke, she backed off when she saw Force power past her for the win.

“It's been a tricky weekend,” Zetterstrom said. “Big change from what we had in Epping – the track conditions were completely different. We went into Sunday No. 8, which should be lane choice since we're top half of the field, but it was only 14 cars here, which means that it's not. We had to race No. 7 and we were on the losing end of that. We were the first pair out and we did not get lane choice, which proved to be crucial in the first round of eliminations here. Obviously it's anybody's game, but nobody really made it down in the right lane and we struggled with the same thing as most of the others.”

Bristol was the second consecutive race for Zetterström, who added the recent NHRA New England Nationals to her limited schedule at the last minute and capitalized on the opportunity with a first-round win. Now, she’ll wait until late July to race again as she continues to find the funding to run more races with JCM Racing.

“I feel like we have built up great momentum,” Zetterström said. "It's really sad because Bristol is a home race for our team with JCM being based in Tennessee, so we really wanted to do well for all the JCM employees in the house and all the families here. It's just one of those weekends where it doesn't feel great. I wish we would've had a better performance. The tough part is we won't be out again until Sonoma, so we have about two months off, which is a long time out of the seat.”

The next planned race for Zetterstrom and the JCM Racing Top Fuel team is the NHRA Sonoma Nationals, July 25-27, at Sonoma Raceway in the heart of California wine country.

Qualified: No. 8 (3.904 E.T. at 322.88 MPH)

Elimination Round Results:

E1: 6.840 E.T. at 88.90 MPH defeated by Brittany Force  3.811 E.T. at 330.39 MPH

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