Jason Harris completed his “Drive for Five” in style at the ProLine Racing Brian Olson Memorial World Finals presented by ProCharger at Virginia Motorsports Park, taking home the event win in WS Construction Pro Boost presented by P2 Contracting and Ty-Drive and securing an unprecedented fifth world championship in the Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series – his third in Pro Boost, as well as two in Pro Nitrous. It was a fitting end for Harris, who endured a wild 2026 season, full of ups and downs across multiple sanctioning bodies.
“It’s been surreal,” Harris said in the winner’s circle regarding his season. “You know, we raced really hard in the beginning of the season. We were going back and forth between two organizations. PDRA’s always been my home, so I knew I wasn’t gonna leave this one behind. My goal was to win a championship this year and we accomplished that. Right now, it’s all about winning the fifth championship and winning this race is just icing on a cake.”
Harris started off the year strong in his Harts Charger-boosted “Party Time” ’69 Camaro, qualifying in the No. 2 position at the first three races of the season and picking up a win at the PDRA East Coast Nationals at Galot Motorsports Park over Melanie Salemi and her screw-blown “Purple Reign” ’68 Firebird.
Through the middle portion of the season, Harris pushed through what he deemed a “lull,” with two semifinal appearances and a quarterfinal exit, ultimately losing the points lead he’d maintained nearly all season at the second-to-last event of the year to Johnny Camp. He stepped up when it mattered most, however, ending the year with his second win of the season. Harris clinched the points championship with a round-one win over Ethan Steding, combined with Camp’s loss to Carson Perry.
“My team is a testament to that. They are the reason that I can do this,” said Harris. “Brandon Stroud and all he’s done. All my crew, they stuck with me. My dad (Bob Harris), my wife (Crystal Harris), and Paul Paraskevas – he’s been with me through all these championships. We started out really hot and we just had a kind of a lull in the middle there. And if you go back and look at history, that’s kind of my forte. I start out hot and end up hot. I can’t really explain it. It’s just been one of those years, with ups and downs, goods and bads, but at the end of the day, if you can end on a good note, that carries your momentum into the next season.”
While Harris is already well-known as being one of the most skilled drivers in Pro Mod, his nearly perfect performance throughout the rest of eliminations at the World Finals can be partially attributed to him feeling relaxed after capturing the championship. With no added pressure, Harris was simply unbeatable.
“That’s happened in the past, too…I think in 2018, I did the same thing,” Harris said. “You just relax after that. I knew when Johnny went out behind me that it was gonna be close. They (PDRA) couldn’t really confirm, but we sat down with pencils and papers and calculators, and we figured out that it was over, that Ty [Tutterow] couldn’t catch me. Johnny and Ty are super tough competitors, and you just do the best you can and hope at the end of the year you come out on top. I’ve been fortunate enough for this to happen five times. I feel like I’m getting in the presence of Rickie Smith and all his championships. I just hope the Lord allows me to keep continuing and we’ll just keep pushing on.”
The win at Virginia Motorsports Park was also the second consecutive World Finals trophy for Harris, and required him to navigate the largest PDRA Pro Boost field in history with 31 entries vying for just 16 spots.
“Pro Boost is the hardest class in drag racing right now,” said Harris. “You’ve got great tuners, great equipment, and great guys that are driving. Just look at where guys are (on the tree). If you’re .20 and .30, you’re late. I mean, guys slip up, don’t get me wrong, but at the end of the day, you better be on your game no matter who you draw, and there’s no duck from No. 1-16. Different tracks I’m good at and different tracks I’m bad at, and it just seems like Virginia’s always been good to me.”
Camp finished second in the championship points standings with two event wins in his ProCharger-equipped “Hell’s Bells” ’69 Camaro: the rain-delayed PDRA Carolina Nationals which was completed at Galot Motorsports Park, and PDRA Drag Wars, the penultimate race of the season, also at Galot. Tutterow, the 2025 Pro Boost world champion, finished the season with four consecutive No. 1 Qualifier awards on his way to a third-place finish driving the screw-blown Quik Fuel ’68 Camaro owned by Justin Smith. Travis Harvey and Joel Wensley rounded out the top five.
The Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series will celebrate its 2026 world champions at the PDRA Championship Awards Banquet on Friday, Dec. 11 during the Performance Racing Industry (PRI) Show weekend in Indianapolis.
