Spencer Hyde’s incredible rookie campaign continued this past weekend at the NHRA Northwest Nationals, where the Canadian standout powered his Head Inc. Funny Car to yet another semifinal finish – his third of the 2025 season – and reasserted himself as a clear front-runner for NHRA Rookie of the Year honors.
After steadily improving through qualifying, Hyde closed out the final session with his best run of the weekend – a stout 3.958-second pass at 320.81 mph – placing him eighth on the ladder and setting up a round-one showdown with veteran Paul Lee. While not his cleanest lap, Hyde’s 4.181 at 283.79 was enough to turn on the win light and keep his race day alive.
“Beating Paul Lee in the first round was huge, even though it wasn’t our best performance,” Hyde said. “We caught a break there, and you need those sometimes.”
Round two brought a marquee matchup against points leader and reigning world champ Austin Prock. Hyde and the Head Racing crew stepped up in a big way, unleashing a 3.910-second, 329.02-mph blast – their best run of the weekend – to take out Prock and lock in a spot in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge for the upcoming Sonoma Nationals.
“Racing Austin, he’s the points leader and they are a very strong team,” said Hyde. “Any time you can get around them, you’re having a good day. We knew we needed a good run, and we got it.”
The semifinal round proved to be one of the best side-by-side races of the season. Hyde left first with a .089 light and laid down a 3.918-second pass at a blistering 330.39 mph – but came up just short. Ron Capps nipped him at the stripe by a margin of .0014 seconds – about eight inches – with a 3.915 at 328.14 mph.
“The race against Capps was so close,” said Hyde. “We were right there at the finish line and those are the races we need to find a way to win. We have a great team, and we’re running really well. I’m looking forward to Sonoma.”
Hyde’s semifinal appearance also earned him a shot at redemption – he’ll square off with Capps again this weekend during the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge at the DENSO NHRA Sonoma Nationals, July 25-27 at Sonoma Raceway. It will be Hyde’s third entry into the Challenge, which he won earlier this season at the NHRA Four-Wide Nationals in Las Vegas.
“I love competing in the Mission Foods Challenge because it makes qualifying even more exciting for us and the fans,” Hyde added. “Jim Head and the guys keep giving me an awesome race car, so I’m confident we’ll have another great weekend in Sonoma.”
This story was originally published on July 21, 2025. 
