After steadily improving in the Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series’ Pro 632 division over the last few seasons, Lexi Tanner is in the middle of what will likely go down as her best season yet. Driving her nitrous-fed, Musi-powered “Thunder” ’16 Camaro, Tanner racked up a No. 1 qualifier award and two runner-up finishes in the first three races of the season, putting her third in points going into the PDRA’s summer break.
Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared in DI #195, the Women of Power Issue, in July/August of 2025.
Tanner and her Tanner Motorsports team – led by parents Andy and Missy Tanner and tuner Jeff Pierce – laid the foundation for the 2025 season late in 2024 when they dropped a Pat Musi Racing Engines-built 632-cubic-inch motor between the frame rails of “Thunder.” That move paid off quickly as Tanner raced to victory at the Brian Olson Memorial World Finals, defeating longtime best friend Amber Denton in the final round.
“I feel like ending the season with a win made me so excited for the next race, and then I had to wait months for it,” Tanner says of closing out the season with a win. “However, it was great motivation to continue preparing for the season knowing it was holding a lot of promise. I also kept busy with graduating college over the winter and beginning a new job as a veterinary technician.”
Performance continued trending in the right direction as the 2025 season kicked off at GALOT Motorsports Park, host of the PDRA East Coast Nationals. Tanner earned her first career No. 1 qualifier award thanks to a 4.201-second pass at 168.58 mph, then raced to the final round, cutting a perfect light along the way. In the final, she matched Walter Lannigan’s .054 reaction time but finished a tick behind his 4.166 with a 4.185. Overall, the weekend was a promising start to Tanner’s 2025 campaign.
“I was so excited to finally get a No. 1 qualifier because it validated all of the hard work my team has done to give me the fastest car possible,” Tanner says. “Going to the finals during the season opener validated that we are continuing to move in the right direction. I am confident that my team will give me a competitive car and know that if I can cut a good reaction time that we will continue to see success.”
Tanner qualified fifth at the next stop on tour, the Mid-Atlantic Showdown at Virginia Motorsports Park, where she lost a quarterfinal match with Lannigan. She then rolled on to Maryland International Raceway, the site of her first career Pro 632 win in 2022. Dealing with hot, humid conditions, she qualified No. 2 and fell to 2023 world champion and points leader Jeff Melnick in the final round.
Strong opposition has prevented Tanner from getting back to the winner’s circle so far this season, but that suits Tanner just fine. She wants to know she earned it when that next win does happen.
“My favorite part about the class is how competitive the rest of the class is,” says Tanner, who hopes to lower her personal best E.T. of 4.112 seconds in the cool fall months of the season. “I know I have to bring my best to each round against these fierce competitors.”
Tanner is all about consistently improving, whether that’s her own performance as a driver or the car’s performance. She finished her rookie season in 2021 ranked No. 14 in the final points standings – she’s since finished fifth, fourth, and sixth, respectively.
Tanner also focuses on her driving abilities so she can eventually join her older brother, Preston, in the Pro Modified ranks. He currently competes in PDRA Pro Boost in a screw-blown Corvette, while he also races in outlaw Pro Mod events like the Drag Illustrated Winter Series races.
“I do have aspirations to run a Pro Mod in the future,” Tanner confirms. “We don’t have a set timeline of when that will be, but I am continuing to improve as a driver so I’m ready when that time comes.”
Before she can really think about moving over to Pro Mod, Tanner is locked in on her ultimate goal in Pro 632: winning the world championship.
“This is the first season I’ve been in the class where that feels within reach at the halfway point of the season,” says Tanner, who shared her appreciation for her parents, her brother, crew member Chad Crawford, and Jeff Pierce and his wife Sam, as well as partners like Red Line Oil, Pat Musi Racing Engines, and M&M Transmission. “I also won the championship in Top Jr. Dragster in 2015, so it would be such a cool moment to bring home another championship 10 years later!”
