2015 NHRA Schedule Includes 24 Events
Highlighting the schedule once again in 2015 will be the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals, the world’s most prestigious drag race, at Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis, Labor Day weekend, Sept. 2-7.
The season again will open and close at famed Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in Southern California. The season kicks off at Pomona with the NHRA Winternationals, Feb. 5-8, and closes at the historic dragstrip with the final race of the Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship playoffs, the Auto Club NHRA Finals, Nov. 12-15.
Following the season opener, the series returns to Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Phoenix for the CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Nationals, Feb. 20-22. NHRA teams will traverse the country to make it to the traditional East Coast opener at Florida’s Auto-Plus Raceway at Gainesville for the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals, March 12-15.
Three traditional stops will follow: the popular NHRA Four-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway in Charlotte (March 27-29); the SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway (April 10-12); and the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA SpringNationals at Royal Purple Raceway in Houston (April 24-26).
In May, the teams will travel to Atlanta for the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals, May 15-17, and then on to Topeka for the NHRA Kansas Nationals at Heartland Park Topeka, May 22-24.
Teams will compete at three races in three weeks in June, starting with the Toyota NHRA Summernationals at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park in Englishtown (June 4-7), followed by the Auto-Plus NHRA New England Nationals, June 12-14 at New England Dragway in Epping, and the NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals, June 19-21, at Bristol Dragway on Father’s Day weekend.
After a week off, the NHRA Mello Yello Series will make two more stops before the Western Swing. A massive Fourth of July celebration is guaranteed for the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals, July 2-5, in Norwalk. The summer racing parade will continue with the O’Reilly Auto Parts Route 66 NHRA Nationals, which will move to July 9-12 at Route 66 Raceway in Chicago.
The famed Western Swing will begin one week later in 2015 and kicks off with the Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals at scenic Bandimere Speedway in Denver, July 24-26. From there, the teams will trek farther west stopping in Northern California for the NHRA Sonoma Nationals (July 31-Aug. 2) at Sonoma Raceway before finishing the Western Swing in Seattle at Pacific Raceways with the O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Northwest Nationals, Aug. 7-9. NHRA teams will then take another week off before heading to Brainerd for the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals, Aug. 20-23.
The last race in the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series regular season at which the final positions for the NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship can be secured will be the prestigious Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis, Labor Day weekend, Sept. 2-7.
NHRA’s playoffs, the six-race NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship, kicks off two weeks later with three consecutive weeks of racing: the NHRA Carolina Nationals in Charlotte, (Sept. 18-20); the AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals at Gateway Motorsports Park in St. Louis (Sept. 25-27); and the NHRA Nationals at Maple Grove Raceway in Reading (Oct. 1-4).
The AAA Texas NHRA Fall Nationals at the Texas Motorplex in Dallas (Oct. 15-18) will set the stage for the final two Countdown playoff races. The season concludes out West with the NHRA Toyota Nationals in Las Vegas (Oct. 29-Nov. 1) and the Auto Club NHRA Finals at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona, where world champions will be crowned in Southern California Nov. 12-15.
The Pro Stock Motorcycle class will compete in a 16-race schedule, with six of those races in the NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship. The location of the 16th bike race will be announced at a later date.
ESPN2, a part of the ESPN network, will again provide exclusive television coverage on a same-day basis of all NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series events, featuring action from qualifying rounds Saturday and eliminations Sunday.
| 2015 NHRA MELLO YELLO DRAG RACING SERIES SCHEDULE | |||
| NHRA Mello Yello Series Regular Season | |||
| Feb. 5-8 | NHRA Winternationals | Pomona | |
| Feb. 20-22 | CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Nationals | Phoenix | |
| March 12-15 | Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals (PSM) | Gainesville | |
| March 27-29 | NHRA Four-Wide Nationals (PSM) | Charlotte | |
| April 10-12 | SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals | Las Vegas | |
| April 24-26 | O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA SpringNationals | Houston | |
| May 15-17 | Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern Nationals (PSM) | Atlanta | |
| May 22-24 | NHRA Kansas Nationals | Topeka | |
| June 4-7 | Toyota NHRA Summernationals (PSM) | Englishtown | |
| June 12-14 | Auto-Plus NHRA New England Nationals | Epping | |
| June 19-21 | NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals | Bristol | |
| July 2-5 | Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals (PSM) | Norwalk | |
| July 9-12 | O’Reilly Auto Parts Route 66 NHRA Nationals (PSM) | Chicago | |
| July 24-26 | Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals (PSM) | Denver | |
| July 31-Aug. 2 | NHRA Sonoma Nationals (PSM) | Sonoma | |
| Aug. 7-9 | O’Reilly Auto Parts NHRA Northwest Nationals | Seattle | |
| Aug. 20-23 | Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals | Brainerd | |
| Sept. 2-7 | Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals (PSM) | Indianapolis | |
| NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship | |||
| Sept. 18-20 | NHRA Carolina Nationals (PSM) | Charlotte | |
| Sept. 25-27 | AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals (PSM) | St. Louis | |
| Oct. 1-4 | NHRA Nationals (PSM) | Reading | |
| Oct. 15-18 | AAA Texas NHRA Fall Nationals (PSM) | Dallas | |
| Oct. 29-Nov. 1 | NHRA Toyota Nationals (PSM) | Las Vegas | |
| Nov. 12-15 | Auto Club NHRA Finals (PSM) | Pomona | |
| (PSM) – Event will include Pro Stock Motorcycle | |||