CLERMONT, Ind. – On drag racing’s biggest stage, Jeffery Barker picked up his first victory in the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service, racing past back-to-back world champ Stevie Jackson in the final round at the prestigious Dodge//SRT NHRA U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway at Indianapolis.
The Pro Mod race, which was presented by ProCharger, was the seventh of 11 events during the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by J&A Service season.
In a thrilling final round, Jackson left first but Barker tracked him down in his nitrous-powered Bahrain 1 Racing/Lowe Toyota Camry, going 5.742 seconds at 251.67 mph to beat Jackson’s 5.785-second pass at 248.29 mph.
“This is absolutely perfect,” Barker said. “There’s so many people to thank, including Khalid alBalooshi and Stevie Jackson. I would not be here if it wasn’t for Stevie Jackson. This is the best weekend ever.”
Barker reached his first career final round in the class by racing past Doug Winters, Brandon Snider and No. 1 qualifier Rickie Smith.
Jackson, who had won at the U.S. Nationals in two of the previous three years, reached the final round for the fourth time this season and 21st time in his career by knocking off J.R. Gray, Jim Whiteley and Jerico Balduf. Jose Gonzalez maintains the points lead in the class, with Jackson moving to second. He trails Gonzalez by 66 points heading into the final four races of the year.