Fresh off a runner-up finish from the NHRA Arizona Nationals one week prior, Alexis DeJoria carried the momentum from her rebound weekend into The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway as she pursued a first four-wide win. The two-time winner at The Strip began eliminations for the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals from the No. 9 position before advancing to the quarterfinals to gain a position in the Funny Car point standings.
DeJoria qualified for the first of two consecutive four-wide events on the strength of her 3.967-second at 317.72 MPH pass, which she recorded aboard the Bandero Premium Tequila Toyota GR Supra during the third round of qualifying. In her first elimination quad on race day, DeJoria faced Austin Prock, Blake Alexander, and Jeff Diehl. The six-time national event winner was quick on the throttle and took her Bandero Supra to the finish line stripe in 3.945 seconds to advance alongside Prock, her final-round opponent from the Phoenix-area race. Round two featured more stout competition for DeJoria and the DC Motorsports team. In addition to Prock, she found herself squaring off against Bob Tasca and Chad Green as the four speedsters battled for a spot in the final elimination quad. The group put on a great show for fans with more than 44,000 horsepower charging down the track simultaneously, and although she clocked a blistering 3.932 E.T., she came up short to Prock and Tasca, who moved on with their 3.907 and 3.922-second passes. By advancing to the quarterfinals, DeJoria secured a spot in the next Mission #2Fast2Tasty Funny Car Challenge, which will be contested at zMAX Dragway when the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series returns to competition for the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals, April 26 – 28.
“We had a good weekend here at the Vegas four-wides,” said DeJoria. “Qualifying went well. We made full runs. They weren’t clean runs, but they were full runs and we learned a little something from each one of them that we were able to apply to eliminations today.
“First quad, went out and ran a good number, had a good light, won that round and it was onto the next one. In round two, we dropped a cylinder down track. We were in the toughest quad possible, up against the quickest and the fastest cars. We all ran excellent. If we were in the other quad, we probably would have advanced, but it is what it is. We don’t get ‘gimmes’ here. We have to fight hard for the wins. That being said, I am not completely discouraged about not winning today. Am I bummed? Yeah, we need hardware, it’s been a long time since we’ve won a race, but the progression is so much better from eight runs ago to now. We’ve got our car back and I’m excited about our next race in Charlotte.”
DeJoria departs Las Vegas ranked seventh in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car point standings.
This story was originally published on April 15, 2024. 
