| 2019 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series season | |
| League: | NHRA |
| Sport: | Drag racing |
| League Champs: | Steve Torrence (TF) Robert Hight (FC) Erica Enders-Stevens (PS) Andrew Hines (PSM) |
| League Champ Name: | Champions |
| Seasonslistnames: | NHRA |
| Prevseason Link: | 2018 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series |
| Prevseason Year: | 2018 |
| Nextseason Link: | 2020 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series |
| Nextseason Year: | 2020 |
The 2019 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Season was announced on July 25, 2018.[1]
It was the 64th season of the National Hot Rod Association's top drag racing competition. There were 24 Top Fuel and Funny Car events, 22 Pro Stock events (18 Championship NHRA Formula and 4 Non-Championship Mountain Motor Formula), and 16 Pro Stock Motorcycle events.
| 2019 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Schedule[2] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Race | Site | TV | Winners | ||||
| Top Fuel | Funny Car | Pro Stock | PS Motorcycle | |||||
| Feb 7–11 | Pomona, CA | FS1 | Doug Kalitta (1) | Robert Hight (1) | Bo Butner (1) | N/A | ||
| Feb 22–24 | MagicDry Organic Absorbent NHRA Arizona Nationals | Chandler, AZ | FS1* | Billy Torrence (1) | Matt Hagan (1) | Jeg Coughlin, Jr. (1) | N/A | |
| Mar 14–17 | 50th Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals | Gainesville, FL | FS1* | Richie Crampton (1) | Robert Hight (2) | Bo Butner (2) | Andrew Hines (1) | |
| Apr 5–7 | DENSO Auto Parts NHRA Four-Wide Nationals 4 Lanes | Las Vegas, NV | FS1* | Mike Salinas (1) | J.R. Todd (1) | Bo Butner (3) | Hector Arana, Jr. (1) | |
| Apr 12–14 | Mopar Express Lane NHRA SpringNationals presented by Pennzoil | Baytown, TX | Fox | Brittany Force (1) | Robert Hight (3) | John DeFlorian MM | N/A | |
| Apr 26–28 | NGK Spark Plugs NHRA Four-Wide Nationals 4 Lanes | Concord, NC | FS1* | Steve Torrence (1) | Shawn Langdon (1) | Christopher Powers MM | Andrew Hines (2) | |
| May 3–5 | Arby's NHRA Southern Nationals | Commerce, GA | FS1* | Steve Torrence (2) | Ron Capps (1) | N/A | Andrew Hines (3) | |
| May 17–19 | Virginia NHRA Nationals | Petersburg, VA | FS1* | Steve Torrence (3) | Ron Capps (2) | Bo Butner (4) | Andrew Hines (4) | |
| May 30 – Jun 2 | Route 66 NHRA Nationals | Joliet, IL | FS1* | Steve Torrence (4) | Tommy Johnson, Jr. (1) | Deric Kramer (1) | Matt Smith (1) | |
| Jun 7–9 | Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals presented by Minties | Topeka, KS | FS1 | Steve Torrence (5) | Robert Hight (4) | N/A | N/A | |
| Jun 14–16 | NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals | Bristol, TN | FS1 | Mike Salinas (2) | Bob Tasca III (1) | Todd Hoerner MM | N/A | |
| Jun 20–23 | Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals | Norwalk, OH | FS1* | Steve Torrence (6) | Bob Tasca III (2) | Chris McGaha (1) | Andrew Hines (5) | |
| Jul 5–7 | NHRA New England Nationals | Epping, NH | FS1 | Steve Torrence (7) | Matt Hagan (2) | John DeFlorian (2) MM | N/A | |
| Jul 19–21 | Dodge Mile-High NHRA Nationals presented by Pennzoil | Morrison, CO | Fox | Steve Torrence (8) | Tommy Johnson, Jr. (2) | Greg Anderson (1) | Andrew Hines (6) | |
| Jul 26–28 | NHRA Sonoma Nationals | Sonoma, CA | Fox | Billy Torrence (2) | Robert Hight (5) | Greg Anderson (2) | Andrew Hines (7) | |
| Aug 2–4 | MagicDry Organic Absorbent NHRA Northwest Nationals | Kent, WA | Fox | Austin Prock (1) | John Force (1) | Matt Hartford (1) | N/A | |
| Aug 15–18 | Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals presented by General Tire | Brainerd, MN | FS1 | Leah Pritchett (1) | Ron Capps (3) | Jason Line (1) | N/A | |
| Aug 28 – Sep 2 | Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals 1.5 | Brownsburg, IN | Fox | Doug Kalitta (2) | John Force (2) | Alex Laughlin (1) | Jerry Savoie (1) | |
| Countdown to the Championship | ||||||||
| Sep 12–15 | Mopar Express Lane NHRA Nationals presented by Pennzoil | Mohnton, PA | FS1 | Richie Crampton (2) | Jack Beckman (1) | Jason Line (2) | Jerry Savoie (2) | |
| Sep 27–29 | AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals | Madison, IL | FS1 | Billy Torrence (3) | Shawn Langdon (2) | Erica Enders-Stevens (1) | Karen Stoffer (1) | |
| Oct 11–14 | NTK NHRA Carolina Nationals | Concord, NC | FS1* | Steve Torrence (9) | Robert Hight (6) | Deric Kramer (2) | Andrew Hines (8) | |
| Oct 17–20 | AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals | Ennis, TX | FS1* | Billy Torrence (4) | Matt Hagan (3) | Greg Anderson (3) | Jerry Savoie (3) | |
| Oct 31 – Nov 3 | Dodge NHRA Nationals presented by Pennzoil | Las Vegas, NV | FS1 | Brittany Force (2) | Matt Hagan (4) | Erica Enders-Stevens (2) | Matt Smith (2) | |
| Nov 14–17 | Auto Club NHRA Finals 1.5 | Pomona, CA | FS1 | Doug Kalitta (3) | Jack Beckman (2) | Jeg Coughlin, Jr. (2) | Jianna Salinas (1) | |
* Finals televised on tape delay.
4 Lanes: The Four-Wide Nationals in both Las Vegas and Charlotte in the spring will compete with cars on four lanes.
1.5: The U. S. Nationals and Auto Club Finals will have their race points increased by 50% . Drivers who qualify but are eliminated in the first round receive 30 points, and each round win is worth 30 points. The top four receive 10, 9, 8, and 7 points, respectively, for qualifying positions, with the 5–6 drivers receiving 6 points, 7–8 drivers receiving 5 points, 9–12 receiving 4 points, and 13–16 receiving 3 points. Also, the top four, not three, drivers after each session receive points for fastest times in each round (4-3-2-1).
MM: Pro Stock Car at this event is a non-championship race with the Mountain Motor formula.
The race events in Topeka, Kansas and Petersburg, Virginia have switched dates for this year, with the Virginia NHRA Nationals taking place in May and the Menards NHRA Heartland Nationals in June. In the Countdown, the race events in Charlotte, North Carolina and Ennis, Texas have switched weekends for this year in October. All other events during this season remain on the same schedule, although a couple of them either moved up or down a weekend. Scheduling changes made primarily to avoid NASCAR events in the markets.
NHRA Pro Stock Car only raced in 18 events this year, down from 24 events the year prior. Four of the races that they did not participate in featured non-championship exhibition Mountain Motor Pro Stock Cars (over-500 ci engines with carburetors). Those races are Houston, Charlotte 1, Bristol and Epping.[4]
| Pos. | Driver | Points | Points Back | Chassis | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Steve Torrence | 2607 | – | MLR | |
| 2 | Doug Kalitta | 2604 | −3 | Kalitta | |
| 3 | Brittany Force | 2555 | −52 | Force | |
| 4 | Leah Pritchett | 2474 | −133 | DSR (MG) | |
| 5 | Billy Torrence | 2458 | −149 | MLR | |
| 6 | Richie Crampton | 2399 | −208 | Kalitta | |
| 7 | Mike Salinas | 2381 | −226 | Scrappers | |
| 8 | Austin Prock | 2379 | −228 | Force | |
| 9 | Antron Brown | 2329 | −278 | DSR (MG) | |
| 10 | Clay Millican | 2300 | −307 | Hadman |
| Pos. | Driver | Points | Points Back | Make | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Robert Hight | 2637 | – | Chevrolet | |
| 2 | Jack Beckman | 2629 | −8 | Dodge | |
| 3 | Matt Hagan | 2563 | −74 | Dodge | |
| 4 | John Force | 2471 | −166 | Chevrolet | |
| 5 | Bob Tasca III | 2446 | −191 | Ford | |
| 6 | Ron Capps | 2414 | −223 | Dodge | |
| 7 | J.R. Todd | 2391 | −246 | Toyota | |
| 8 | Tommy Johnson, Jr. | 2360 | −277 | Dodge | |
| 9 | Shawn Langdon | 2358 | −279 | Toyota | |
| 10 | Tim Wilkerson | 2283 | −354 | Ford |
| Pos. | Driver | Points | Points Back | Make | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Erica Enders-Stevens | 2635 | – | Chevrolet | |
| 2 | Jeg Coughlin, Jr. | 2614 | −21 | Chevrolet | |
| 3 | Bo Butner | 2524 | −111 | Chevrolet | |
| 4 | Jason Line | 2495 | −140 | Chevrolet | |
| 5 | Matt Hartford | 2448 | −187 | Chevrolet | |
| 6 | Deric Kramer | 2409 | −226 | Chevrolet | |
| 7 | Greg Anderson | 2408 | −227 | Chevrolet | |
| 8 | Alex Laughlin | 2345 | −290 | Chevrolet | |
| 9 | Chris McGaha | 2329 | −306 | Chevrolet | |
| 10 | Val Smeland | 2203 | −432 | Chevrolet |
| Pos. | Driver | Points | Points Back | Make | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andrew Hines | 2599 | – | Harley-Davidson | |
| 2 | Gerald Savoie | 2573 | −26 | Suzuki | |
| 3 | Matt Smith | 2553 | −46 | Buell | |
| 4 | Karen Stoffer | 2534 | −65 | Suzuki | |
| 5 | Eddie Krawiec | 2474 | −125 | Harley-Davidson | |
| 6 | Hector Arana, Jr. | 2389 | −210 | Buell | |
| 7 | Angelle Sampey | 2381 | −218 | Harley-Davidson | |
| 8 | Angie Smith | 2281 | −318 | Buell | |
| 9 | Ryan Oehler | 2271 | −328 | Buell | |
| 10 | Hector Arana | 2209 | −390 | Buell |