When it was all said and done at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Randy Meyer Racing showed up and showed out in the national points with Megan Meyer claiming her second Top Alcohol Dragster championship and Julie Nataas coming in third in the national point standings.
Going into raceday, Megan Meyer lead the Randy Meyer Racing team with a No. 1 qualifying spot with a 5.203-second pass at 271.79 for her first time competing in Las Vegas; Nataas was qualified No. 8 with a 5.360, 268.17.
First round, Meyer had a first-time eliminations matchup against Johnny Ahten. When the tree dropped, Ahten’s dragster did not break the beams and Meyer went straight down the track with a 5.153, 280.02 for the win. Nataas had a first round matchup against Steve Griboski and like Meyer’s pair, this was the first time this duo raced each other in eliminations. Nataas took the win with a 5.367, 260.56 to Griboski’s troubled 9161, 120.34.
Second round, Nataas and Meyer were set to face-off in the quarterfinals but in the previous round, Nataas’ engine broke and with no spare motor to put in, Meyer was given the competition bye. Meyer clicked it off early and coasted to the finish line with a 5.490, 199.85.
In the semifinals, Meyer and competitor Jackie Fricke left almost identical on the tree and with .002-seconds advantage on the tree over Fricke, Meyer never trailed for the win as she clocked in with a 5.201, 278.00 to Fricke’s 5.278, 273.16.
In probably the biggest race of her career, it was a winner-take-all scenario for Megan Meyer as she lined up against Joey Severance. To win the national championship, she needed to win the 20th annual Dodge NHRA Finals presented by Pennzoil or Shawn Cowie would be crowned the new champion.
Coming into the final round with a 5 – 2 advantage over Severance in prior events and tied with two wins each in final rounds, the Randy Meyer-tuned team turned up the wick for all the glory and the championship.
Severance had the starting line advantage over Meyer but when his dragster went silent down track, she turned on the win light and solidified her second world championship all in one go. Meyer clocked in with a 5.200, 281.07 to Severance’s 7.126, 128.70.
This final round victory was Meyer’s third national event win in 2020 and 13th in her career, she is still the winningest female driver in the Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series.
“This Championship is all for my parents, JJ, and Roy who have done so much work to get this NGK Spark Plugs car to be the best it’s ever been!!” said Megan. “These guys do all the work they are the champions they deserve this so much. I’m going to miss the people and the competition the most, the fact that Shawn helped out Joey to get to the finals proves how much we are one big family here. We may fight tooth and nail on the track, but in the pits and after the races are over, we are in this together.
“It was a full circle moment for me getting to race Joey in my final run of my career, being able to race against the guy that has been the Champ almost the entire time I have been racing in Top Alcohol Dragster just goes to show how much progress my team has made over the past couple of years, all the hard work and time and money that they’ve put into this car. I just have so much gratitude for every single person on here, I’m grateful for all the supporters and the people that have become some of my closest friends through racing, and I am especially grateful for my haters, thank you for making me step up my game, thank you for making me better, stronger, faster.
“And for one last time I want to thank NGK Spark Plugs, Lucas Oil Products, Technician.Academy Gunk, Jiffy-Tite Connectors, ARP Bolts, Aeromotive & Waterman fuel pumps, Weld Wheels, and so many more for helping me out along the way. Some have been with me ever since I started racing Junior Dragster 17 years ago. Without their parts and funding it would not be possible at all for us to be the record holder and 2x World Champs. And of course thank you to NHRA and the Safety Safari team for putting on such a great sport for us to compete in, I am very excited about my next season of life and I am grateful for ending it on top. I just want everyone to remember that I am stepping away for my own reasons. I want to give 100% of my time and effort to my marriage and to my future children. I’m just so thankful for all of the opportunities that I’ve had over the years representing the Randy Meyer Racing Team.”
