Every year.
Every year!
Every year, the NHRA Lucas Oil Series points chase delivers. Drama. Intrigue. Fairytales. Moonshots… Legends!
Every championship has a story, and this year’s Lucas Oil Series champions are no exception.
Whether it was Bubba Linke clinching his championship with a clutch performance on an otherwise random Thursday in Maple Grove, or Casey Plazier etching his name into the history books in Pomona (which, as it happens, occurred on a fairly random Thursday as well), every title has a story – and each the of stories are pretty incredible in their own right.
2025 certainly didn’t lack drama. Five of the seven world championships in the true sportsman categories weren’t determined until Pomona. Pomona, oh by the way, featured a unique twist: with several days of imminent rain in the forecast, sportsman eliminations were contested on Thursday… without the aid of a single time trial! As if that weren’t dramatic enough, we had not one, but two drivers deliver performances reminiscent of the iconic runs from Bob Locke and Val Torres in recent years. Both Chad Webber (SC) and Casey Plazier (TD) could hoist the world championship trophy with nothing short of an event victory at the NHRA Finals in Pomona; and they both pulled off the unthinkable (much to the dismay of Kris Whitfield (SC) and Jessica Eastburn (TD)).
Jeff Taylor won his fifth NHRA World Championship in dramatic fashion, coming from behind to upend the title hopes of perennial contender Jeff Lane, largely on the strength of back-to-back round wins in head-to-head matchups between the two in Las Vegas.
Darian Boesch was leading both Top Sportsman and Top Dragster coming into Pomona, and watched from home as he was surpassed in TD (first by Eastburn, then ultimately by Plazier as well), before he got the good news that his two championship contenders in Top Sporstman (Dan Lafferty and David Cook, Jr.) were eliminated. That earned Boesch the T/S title, the second of his young career.
J.J. Brock’s situation was similar to that of Boesch. After a clutch performance of his own to end his season in Rockingham, Brock had to sit and wait as no less than a dozen talented Super Gas competitors took their shot at the title (5 drivers still had a chance coming into Pomona)! In the end, Brock prevailed to earn his first national championship.
Despite all that drama, and all of those potential storylines, one stood out. And that was the Super Stock chase, which was actually settled a week prior to Pomona at the Division 7 finale in Las Vegas.
Coming into the event, reigning champion Jimmy Hidalgo, Jr. was the leader in the clubhouse, with a massive 689 point score. Not only was that total higher than the total Hidalgo earned the title with a year prior (655), it was a total that would’ve won the 2025 championship in ANY other sportsman category. And heading into Vegas, it certainly appeared likely that it would hold up for Hidalgo’s second consecutive Super Stock title (and third total; he also won the Stock crown in 2022). Only two drivers could surpass Hidalgo, and either of the two would need nothing less than a victory in Las Vegas to do so. From Hidalgo’s perspective, that was the good news: winning any race is a tall order, much less winning “on demand” to secure a championship!
The bad news? The two drivers in contention had combined for 9 world championships!
As I said on the Daily Driver Podcast, while Hidalgo’s odds looked good on paper, there’s no way he was comfortable knowing that the two drivers with a chance to overtake him were Kevin Helms and Justin Lamb. While Helms’ hopes ended in a tight loss to Brenda Grubbs in round 2, Lamb kept turning on win lights. And in the end, he prevailed, earning the event win and the sixth national championship of his illustrious career. Lamb’s been in some great battles before, but I think it’s safe to say that this triumph was his most dramatic, and also his most spectacular.
What makes it stand out? For one, I don’t think it’s hyperbole to say that Hidalgo and Lamb are the two most dominant Super Stock drivers of the past decade: they’ve combined to win four of the last ten national championships in the category. With the exception of the 2019 season, at least one of the two have finished in the national top ten every season during that time span. Not only are Hidalgo and Lamb the two top performers in the category, they both enjoyed 2025 seasons reflective of their dominance. As noted above, Hidalgo’s 689 point total (on the strength of three victories in five final rounds) would’ve won the championship in any other sportsman category: the duo not only posted the highest two scores in Super Stock, they posted the highest two scores in Lucas Oil Series competition, regardless of class!
To earn the championship, Lamb had to win the Las Vegas Divisional event – he knew that before he staged for round one. Granted, that’s his home track (as I watched the live feed on NHRATV that day, I chuckled when Alan Reinhardt quipped that “When Justin Lamb clicks his heels he says ‘There’s no place like The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway!’”). The Division 7 closer is also (arguably) the most competitive divisional event on the Lucas Oil Series tour – and certainly the most pressure-packed. Lamb conquered a 69-car field, littered with racers who were competing for something of value at their final event of the season: a division championship, a top-ten finish, etc. He did so without the benefit of a bye run. Just one opponent fouled against him at the starting line. Lamb didn’t benefit from any of the chicanery that often goes along with championship battles (in any season): None of his competitors failed to make the call. He didn’t benefit from a family member or friend who took a dive. He squared up against the best racers on the property, and more often than not, took their best shot. And he prevailed.
What else stood out about Lamb’s performance? Oh, I forgot to mention, he won Stock that day as well! His double-up turned into a triple of sorts: Lamb ultimately stood in the winner’s circle amidst event trophies in both Stock and Super Stock, in addition to the national championship Wally.
But Lamb’s story, his competition, even his path to victory pales in comparison to his performance. That, above all else, is what makes Lamb’s title stand out – and it just validates the idea that no one wins six world championships with being made of something uncommon; something special. Lamb staged for round one knowing that the only way he’d win a sixth championship; the only way he’d overtake Jimmy Hidalgo, Jr.; was to turn on seven consecutive win lights and win the entire event.
His first round performance was an omen… He was .001 on the tree and trimmed the finish line to cross first by just .002-of-a-second opposite Nick Shepherd (who, oh-by-the-way, was .001 on the tree himself). In the six rounds to follow, Lamb’s lights varied just .006-of a second, ranging from .015 to .021. He crossed the finish line first in three rounds of competition, taking the stripe by .002, .008, and .008. He allowed opponents to cross the finish line first three times, and matched his dial-in on all three occasions.
All told, it was a masterpiece – Lamb’s Magnum Opus. He didn’t just win, he was unbeatable. And he was unbeatable on what is perhaps the most pressure-packed stage in sportsman drag racing. Everyone watching – both at LVMS and online – knew what was at stake, and the six-time champ delivered… Cool as a cucumber.
