Daniel Wilkerson and the SCAG Power Equipment Ford Mustang Funny Car team rallied to their fifth semifinal finish of the season Sunday at the Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex. Justin Ashley took the SCAG Toyota dragster to a quarterfinal finish while Dave Richards and the BlueBird Turf / Versatran Ford Mustang found consistency but had a first-round exit.
Wilkerson had a rare misstep in his semifinal battle against three-time world champion Ron Capps. Wilkerson left the starting line late at .127-seconds to Capps’ .072 and wasn’t able to make up enough ground to reach the finish line first. Capps won the round on a holeshot with a 4.019-second pass at 315.81 mph to Wilkerson’s 3.983 at 325.73.
“We continue to have a badass race car in the heat. I just hate being the one that seems to be letting us down every time we have a car that I’m pretty convinced could win the race,” Wilkerson said. “I just somehow got out of my routine. I did something weird when I stuck my foot where I thought it needed to go, and I revved the thing up and it screwed the hole run up. It’s disappointing because I’ve been doing it like that for a while and this time, when it’s important, it screwed us up. But mama said there’d be days like this. Just hate it for my guys; from [crew chief] Tim [Wilkerson], all the way through the whole crew. They gave me a great race car, and I let everybody down. Hopefully we have similar conditions at the next one in Vegas so that we can hit the reset button and kick everybody’s butt there.”
Wilkerson started race day from the No. 7 position with a win against Alexis DeJoria. The SCAG Mustang left the starting line first and never trailed for a 3.924-second pass at 329.28 mph that bettered DeJoria’s 3.958 at 329.60. In the second round, Wilkerson took down veteran Jack Beckman driving for powerhouse John Force Racing. It was a clean side-by-side run but Wilkerson had the starting line advantage and never trailed for a 3.944-second pass at 327.46 mph that defeated Beckman’s 3.993 at 323.14.
Justin Ashley and the SCAG Toyota Top Fuel team left the Texas Motorplex still sitting No. 2 in the points standings after qualifying No. 3 and defeating Doug Foley in the first round of eliminations. Ashley, known for his machine-like accuracy on the tree, left the starting line in .023-seconds and crossed the finish line in 3.723-seconds at 334.25 mph to take down Foley’s 4.857 at 160.19 after he smoked the tires almost immediately.
In the second round, Ashley conceded lane choice to two-time world champion Brittany Force. The SCAG dragster started to haze the tires and then had an engine explosion to go only 3.943 seconds at 292.85 mph. Force had a clean pass at 3.828 and 332.79 to take the win.
“It hurts. But in a weird way I like that feeling. It means there’s something important on the line,” Ashley said. “I am very grateful for the opportunity to have spent time with each SCAG Power Equipment dealer, distributor, and end user that joined us in Dallas this weekend. They make all of this possible. Now we simply shift our focus to Las Vegas. We are a championship team that knows how to win. I’m excited to put everything on the table with these guys for the last two races.”
Dave Richards, who qualified No. 14 on a 4.047-second pass at 316.81 mph, took on Beckman in the first round and kept him honest. Richards had a clean 4.046 run at 318.72 mph, but it wasn’t enough for the 3.911 at 330.57 that Beckman threw down.
“We didn’t get the round win but we’re finding consistency,” Richards said. “With the consistency will come the performance. The car is responding, we’re making solid passes, it’s coming together. This team has been working so hard, and I think it’s starting to show. With each pass we’re learning, and we’ll keep at it, getting quicker and faster. I’m proud of the BlueBird team and can’t thank SCAG enough for their support. We really enjoyed spending time with all the dealers and distributors this weekend. Hope they enjoyed the show.”
The Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series continues with the Dodge NHRA Nevada Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway October 31 to November 2, the fifth of six races in the NHRA Countdown to the Championship.
This story was originally published on October 13, 2025. 
