Champions Crowned at NHRA Lucas Oil Nationals

Sportsman champions from the NHRA Lucas Oil Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway.

BRAINERD, MINN. – Brett Speer made the final round in both Stock Eliminator and Super Stock at the NHRA Lucas Oil Nationals at Brainerd International Raceway. Although he lost the Stock final, Speer returned minutes later to claim the Super Stock victory.

Other winners at the NHRA Lucas Oil Nationals included Chris Knudsen (STK), Gary Stinnett (SC), Vernon Rowland (SG), Larry Demers (TS), Henry Wiebusch (TD), and Jim Greenheck (Comp).

The DragChamp pre-race picks to win fared well at Brainerd. Brett Speer, our Stock pick, won Super Stock and was runner up in Stock. Luke Bogacki had a semifinal finish in Super Comp and a runner up in Top Dragster. Gary Stinnett claimed the Super Comp win. And to wrap it up, Bo Butner made the final in Super Gas. To see more of our pre-race picks, click here.

2019 NHRA Lucas Oil Nationals Sportsman Results

Competition Eliminator – Jim Greenheck wins first

Jim Greenheck claimed his first NHRA national event Wally after defeating class hitter Shaun Vincent in the final round. Greenheck used a near-perfect .007 reaction time and a -.587 under 7.543 to out run Vincent’s -.592 under 8.388.

After saving their index’s throughout eliminations, both racers made their best runs of the weekend in the final round. The win came in Greenheck’s third NHRA national event final round appearance.

In the semifinals, Greenheck used a perfect .000 reaction time to defeat Pat Nahan.

Super Stock – Speer makes two finals

Brett Speer had a huge day at the Lucas Oil Nationals taking runner up honors in Stock before claiming the Super Stock title. The Super Stock win was Speer’s third national event victory.

In the final round, opponent Jason DeForrest grabbed the starting line advantage when his .024 was slightly better than Speer’s .032.

DeForrest hung a fender on Speer at the finish but grabbed a little too much real estate to break out by -.011. Speer’s .022 over 10.162 sealed the win after DeForrest run under.

Stock Eliminator – Knudsen finally wins first

Driving the same stick-shifted ’69 Camaro that his Dad drove to the Brainerd title in 1998, Knudsen finally followed with his first national event victory.

Knudsen was spectacular at the tree throughout eliminations with his worst light coming in the fourth round where he posted a .022.

In the final round, Knudsen dumped the clutch to record a near perfect .002 reaction time. His .002, take .018 was more than enough to turn back Super Stock winner Speer.

Super Comp – Stinnett wins for the 5th time at Brainerd

DragChamp pre-race pick Gary Stinnett rolled to his 25th NHRA national event victory and 5th at BIR. Stinnett combined great reaction times and solid driving at the top end to claim his latest Wally.

In the final, Tyler Bohannon’s .012 take .011 was no good as he broke-out with an 8.894. Stinnett was .007 and one above the 8.90 index to earn his 15th Super Comp title.

A round earlier, Gary took out Luke Bogacki in a battle of sportsman racing legends.

Super Gas – Rowland wins 2nd Wally of 2019

NHRA Spring Nationals Super Comp winner Vernon Rowland earned his second Wally of the year in Brainerd. This time, Rowland drove his ’85 Olds Calais to the winners circle.

After a .046 reaction in round one, Rowland went off on the tree posting four lights between .000 and .011 to reach the final. Waiting for him in the final round was none of than Sonoma Nationals winner and Pro Stock racer Bo Butner.

The final was a great race as both driver’s left together posting .02x lights. Butner’s .021 take .007 came up on the wrong side of the double-breakout affair. Rowland’s .023 light and 9.876 was closer to the index than Butner’s 9.871.

Top Sportsman – Demers claims 2nd Brainerd title

Larry Demers rebounded from a top end accident in 2018, where he was hit by another racer, to earn his second NHRA national event victory. Demers drove his ’10 Cobalt past Curt Fredrich for the win, his second at the Brainerd facility.

Demers was wired to the tree during eliminations posting four reactions of either .008 or .009. The only time he wasn’t .00x at the tree was during his third round encounter with Curt Harshfield where he posted a .024 light.

In the final round, Demers used a .009 light and a .013 over 7.063 to turn back Fredrich’s .022 initiated, .021 over 6.701.

Top Dragster – Wiebusch claims 2nd Brainerd title

Henry Wiebusch took a .002 win over sportsman star Luke Bogacki to claim his second national event win with both coming at BIR. Other than a -.014 red-light in the second round, Wiebusch was fantastic at the tree posting lights ranging from .006 to .016.

In the final round, Wiebusch trailed Bogacki off the line, .014 to .006, but claimed the win after he eclipsed Bogacki by .002 at the stripe. Wiebusch’s dead-on 7.159 was just enough to turn on the electricity against Bogacki’s .019 above 7.369.

Look for full class-by-class articles on each winner from the Lucas Oil Nationals in the coming days on DragChamp.

Congratulations to all of the winners! Visit DragChamp daily for drag race results from every NHRA national event.