Alexis DeJoria and Del Worsham’s DC Motorsports team took to the track this week for the first time in 2024 to participate in the invitation-only SCAG Power Equipment PRO Superstar Shootout Presented by Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage in Bradenton, Florida.
Prior to the inaugural shootout-style event which saw nitro-powered NHRA teams compete for a $250,000 purse on Saturday afternoon, teams had an opportunity to make test runs before qualifying began on Thursday evening.
With several test passes under their belts, the Bandero Premium Tequila Toyota GR Supra Funny Car team had established a good baseline heading into the first round of qualifying. Under the lights at Bradenton Motorsports Park, DeJoria powered to a stout 3.893-second at 330.80 MPH pass to provisionally place fifth out of the 13 Funny Cars vying for a spot in the eight-car elimination field.
Friday began with a tire-smoker of a run, but DeJoria came back up for Q3 and clocked a 3.963 E.T. as she took her 12,000-horsepower machine to the finish line stripe. DeJoria continued to hold down the No. 5 position until the fourth and final round of qualifying when her machine lost traction, and she was eventually bumped back to the No. 7 seed to start race day. After participating in the event’s unique ‘chip draw’ format to determine race day pairings, DeJoria found herself squaring up against No. 1 qualifier Austin Prock in the first round of eliminations.
With the warmest conditions they had seen all week, the team hit the track on Saturday afternoon ready to take their shot at the grand prize. Unfortunately, their hopes of bringing home the $250,000 purse were short-lived as DeJoria’s machine lost traction while Prock’s car made a clean run in the opposite lane for the win.
“We just wrapped up the inaugural SCAG Power Equipment PRO Superstar Shootout brought to you live by FLO Racing, and I have to say, I was really thrilled about this event from start to finish,” said DeJoria, a six-time NHRA national event champion. “We got some great testing in prior to the race, made some good passes during qualifying, including running that 89 on Thursday night. But first and foremost, just to be invited to this event is such an honor. There were only eight elimination spots available, and we had 13 of the ‘best of the best’ Funny Cars trying to make it in the show, so to qualify in the No. 7 spot was just incredible.
“I hope they continue this event, it’s fantastic, the fans loved it,” she added. “The chip drew threw a fun curveball into the mix for everyone because it doesn’t matter where you qualify, you could end up drawing anyone. We saw some incredible runs this weekend; world record speeds, and the people here in Bradenton have just been incredible. I really hope we get to do this again and I’m looking forward to next year.”
With the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season less than one month away, the DC Motorsports team’s focus will turn to continuing to prepare for the upcoming NHRA Gatornationals where they will have one more shot at making test runs before their quest for a first world championship title begins.
“This week’s event was a really good way to prepare for the upcoming NHRA season. We made a lot of good laps, and it was fun to be able to compete in a specialty race. We have one more test session scheduled in Gainesville before the season starts, and we feel really good.”
The NHRA Gatornationals at historic Gainesville Raceway kicks off with qualifying on Friday, March 8.
Qualified: No. 7 (3.893 E.T. at 330.80 MPH)
Eliminations:
E1: 4.589 E.T. at 185.55 MPH defeated by Austin Prock 3.915 E.T. at 326.79 MPH
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