Justin Bond Rolls to First Career Victory in E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series Action at Houston

BAYTOWN, TX – October 26, 2020 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – Justin Bond won for the first time in his career in the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service, beating first-time finalist Brandon Pesz in the championship round at Houston Raceway Park.

Bond went 5.707-seconds at 249.35 mph in his ProCharger Bahrain 1 Racing Camaro to beat Pesz, claiming his first career NHRA Pro Mod win and also the first ProCharger-powered victory since the power adder was added to the class in 2020.

Bond, who qualified third with a 5.692 at 248.20, knocked off Doug Winters, Jonathan Gray and points leader Brandon Snider to reach his second career final round. He quickly tracked down Pesz and rolled to the win, marking the second straight week for a first-time winner after Snider won in Dallas. Bond also becomes the sixth different winner in six NHRA Pro Mod races in 2020 and the third first-time winner this year, following Snider and Chad Green.

“This car wasn’t here until 9 a.m. Saturday morning,” Bond said. “I decided at 10 p.m. Pacific time on Thursday to be here, and I just can’t thank all my guys enough.”
Pesz reached his first career final round in NHRA Pro Mod action with victories against Green, Alex Laughlin and Rickie Smith.

By advancing to the semifinals, Snider jumped past defending world champ Stevie “Fast” Jackson for the points lead. Heading to the final event of the season in Vegas next weekend, Snider leads Jackson by 26 points. Mike Janis and Khalid alBalooshi are 55 and 56 points behind Snider, respectively.

The E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series finishes its 2020 season Oct. 30-Nov.1 with the Mopar Express Lane NHRA SpringNationals presented by Pennzoil at Houston Raceway Park.

BAYTOWN, TX — Final finish order (1-16) at the 33rd annual Mopar Express Lane NHRA SpringNationals presented by Pennzoil at Houston Raceway Park powered by Pennzoil. The race is the sixth of seven events in the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.

PRO MODIFIED:
1. Justin Bond; 2. Brandon Pesz; 3. Brandon Snider; 4. Rickie Smith; 5. Khalid alBalooshi; 6. Jim Whiteley; 7. Jonathan Gray; 8. Alex Laughlin; 9. Steve Jackson; 10. Mike Janis; 11. Chad Green; 12. Doug Winters; 13. Justin Jones; 14. Paul Daigrepont; 15. Jeff Jones; 16. Kris Thorne.

BAYTOWN, TX — Sunday’s final results from the 33rd annual Mopar Express Lane NHRA SpringNationals presented by Pennzoil at Houston Raceway Park powered by Pennzoil. The race is the sixth of seven events in the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.

Pro Modified — Justin Bond, Chevy Camaro, 5.707, 249.35 def. Brandon Pesz, Camaro, 7.504, 127.58.

BAYTOWN, TX — Final round-by-round results from the 33rd annual Mopar Express Lane NHRA SpringNationals presented by Pennzoil at Houston Raceway Park powered by Pennzoil, the sixth of seven events in the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.

PRO MODIFIED:

ROUND ONE — Alex Laughlin, Chevy Camaro, 5.731, 247.75 def. Steve Jackson, Camaro, 5.746, 247.02; Justin Bond, Camaro, 5.730, 249.63 def. Doug Winters, Chevy Chevelle, 5.936, 245.72; Brandon Snider, Chevy Corvette, 5.858, 247.25 def. Justin Jones, Corvette, 6.028, 243.94; Khalid alBalooshi, Camaro, 5.777, 248.98 def. Paul Daigrepont, Camaro, 6.110, 235.72; Jonathan Gray, Camaro, 5.751, 251.58 def. Kris Thorne, Camaro, 8.335, 133.61; Rickie Smith, Camaro, 5.767, 250.64 def. Mike Janis, Camaro, 5.772, 249.35; Jim Whiteley, Corvette, 5.771, 247.52 def. Jeff Jones, Corvette, 6.203, 228.46; Brandon Pesz, Camaro, 5.742, 248.71 def. Chad Green, Corvette, 5.777, 250.78;

QUARTERFINALS — Bond, 5.721, 249.72 def. Gray, 5.771, 251.53; Smith, 5.748, 251.63 def. alBalooshi, 5.713, 251.30; Snider, 5.721, 249.95 def. Whiteley, 5.758, 247.84; Pesz, 5.740, 249.26 def. Laughlin, Broke;

SEMIFINALS — Pesz, 5.701, 249.67 def. Smith, 5.749, 251.77; Bond, 5.759, 219.90 def. Snider, Foul – Red Light;

FINAL — Bond, 5.707, 249.35 def. Pesz, 7.504, 127.58.

BAYTOWN, TX — Point standings (top 10) following the 33rd annual Mopar Express Lane NHRA SpringNationals presented by Pennzoil at Houston Raceway Park powered by Pennzoil, the sixth of seven events in the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series.

Pro Modified

1. Brandon Snider, 413; 2. Steve Jackson, 387; 3. Mike Janis, 358; 4. Khalid alBalooshi, 357; 5. Jonathan Gray, 339; 6. Chad Green, 320; 7. Rickie Smith, 295; 8. Kris Thorne, 286; 9. Clint Satterfield, 228; 10. Jim Whiteley, 224.

About NHRA

Headquartered in Glendora, Calif., NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. NHRA presents 22 national events featuring the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series, NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, E3 Spark Plugs Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service, SAM Tech.edu Factory Stock Showdown and Mickey Thompson Tires Top Fuel Harley Series. Twice a year, NHRA hosts a ‘race-within-a-race,’ during the JEGS Allstars and Mickey Thompson Tires Pro Bike Battle specialty competitions. NHRA provides competition opportunities for drivers of all levels in the NHRA Summit Racing Series and the NHRA Drags: Street Legal Style. NHRA also offers the NHRA Jr. Street program for teens and the Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League for youth ages 5 to 17. With over 120 Member Tracks, NHRA allows racers to compete at a variety of locations nationally and internationally. NHRA’s Youth and Education Services (YES) Program reaches over 30,000 students annually to ignite their interest in automotive and racing related careers. NHRA’s streaming service, NHRA.tv, allows fans to view all NHRA national events as well as exclusive features of the sport. In addition, NHRA owns and operates four racing facilities: Atlanta Dragway in Georgia; Gainesville Raceway in Florida; Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis; and Auto Club Raceway at Pomona in Southern California. For more information, log on to NHRA.com, or visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. and YouTube.

Source: National Hot Rod Association

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