Defending NHRA Gatornationals Funny Car Champion Chad Green made it two in a row Sunday with an impressive performance in his CGM Bond-Coat Ford Mustang at Gainesville Raceway in the season opener for the 75th anniversary of the NHRA Mission Drag Racing Series.
Green, the Midland, Tex., businessman when he isn’t driving his nitro-burning Funny Car, was an upset winner last March in the Gatornationals, but the veteran racer was a top contender after his stellar 3.926 qualifying run on Friday night. And the popular driver continued that performance through the final round victory over Alexis DeJoria with the quickest time of eliminations at 3.959.
Green opened his winning ways Sunday with a first-round victory over veteran Terry Haddock, 4.022 to 6.650 followed by a “holeshot” win over four-time World Champion Matt Hagan, 3.975 to Hagan’s quicker 3.967. In the semifinals, Chad clocked a 3.980 to defeat Jordan Vandergriff’s 4.068, and then a 3.959 at 329.91 miles per hour to DeJoria’s 5.003.
“It was one of those great days of racing when I never saw another car next to me when I left the starting line,” said Green. “I knew Hagan would be tough in the second round and I cut a good (starting line) light to win on a holeshot. That was a big one. Then the crew gave me a great car for the semi’s and the finals. We had a good testing session a few weeks ago and the crew guys learned a lot about this track. This weekend, though, the track was tricky with hot and humid conditions as well as some rain delays. So, they knew what to do at the right time and that puts us back in the winner’s circle.
“It’s so hard to win any race. But to win the Gatornationals back-to-back is very special. It’s a legendary race on the NHRA national schedule. I thought how nice it would be to win one of those ‘Diamond Wally’ trophies in the 75th year. And now we did right out of the box in the first race. I knew we had the potential to win but we struggled in the heat on Saturday. And our guys studied the conditions and we had a hot rod today. The best deal about racing this weekend is I get to race with my son, Hunter.”
Hunter Green made his first Funny Car appearance at the NHRA Gatornationals in the CGM Bond-Coat Dodge//SRT Hellcat this weekend after being one of the top “rookies” in the pro divisions in 2025. After qualifying tenth at 4.048 on Friday, H. Green had a tough matchup with Daniel Wilkerson in the first round. Hunter’s car lost a cylinder off the starting line and couldn’t beat Wilkerson’s 4.027 to his 4.263 seconds.
“It was a great weekend with my dad winning the Gatornationals and I learned more about our Funny Car too,” said H. Green. “I have a lot more confidence and knowledge with these cars after my first year. These nitro cars are a handful to drive, and I feel I am gaining more experience with each run. Our two-car team is working together very well, and having the team win at the first race is so awesome. We want to continue the success with both cars.”
Chad Green and CGM teammate Blake Alexander will be in the Funny Car lineup in the upcoming FMP Factory Motor Parts Arizona Nationals on March 20-22. Action is scheduled on Friday, March 20, with qualifying rounds at 2:30 and 5 p.m. PDT. Saturday’s (March 21) qualifying will take place at 11:30 a.m. and 2:3 p.m. PDT, with final eliminations on Sunday, March 22, at 11 a.m. PDT. Fox Sports 1 will telecast Sunday’s eliminations at 6:30 p.m. EDT.
