Photography: John Force Racing / Gary Nastase / Auto Imagery
BROWNSBURG, Ind (Sept. 10, 2025) – Momentum is a critical element to any team entering the 2025 NHRA Countdown to the Championship and Austin Prock and his Cornwell Tools Chevrolet SS Funny Car team has a truckload of it entering the Sept. 11-14 NHRA Nationals presented by Nitro Fish at Maple Grove Raceway in Mohnton, Pa.
Two weeks ago, Prock and his John Force Racing team clinched the NHRA Funny Car regular season championship, won the PlayNHRA Funny Car All-Star Callout on Sunday and then captured his second consecutive U.S. Nationals title on Labor Day Monday.
He enters Rd. 1 of the Countdown at Maple Grove Raceway, a race he won on his way to the 2024 championship, with a 20-point advantage over JFR teammate Jack Beckman after the playoff points reset.
Notes
- Reading is one of the three races Austin has won in both Top Fuel and Funny Car. The others are the Charlotte Spring 4Wide (2023, 2025) and Seattle (2019, 2024).
- Prock has won 15 on his 34 Funny Car starts, which places him in select company. No Funny Car driver has won at that pace since the ‘90s when John Force won 17 of 34 starts in 1995-96 and matched that total in a 34-event stretch in 1999 and 2000.
- Prock is one of four drivers to have won Countdown races in both Top Fuel and Funny Car (Del Worsham, Shawn Langdon, J.R. Todd). He won twice in 2022, moving from 12th to third in the final standings.
- Eight John Force Racing drivers have won 41 times in Countdown events, 2007-2024. In addition to the three current drivers, other JFR winners were Robert Hight (16), John Force (7), Mike Neff (2), Courtney Force (2) and Ashley Force Hood (1).
- Of JFR’s record 23 series championships, eight have been secured during the Countdown Era that began in 2007. John Force won 14 championships prior to the implementation of the Countdown format and Tony Pedregon won one (2003).
MOST COUNTDOWN RACE WINS (2007-PRESENT)
- FUNNY CAR
- Robert Hight — 16
- Matt Hagan — 16
- Cruz Pedregon — 10
- Ron Capps — 9
- Jack Beckman — 9
- John Force — 7
- Del Worsham — 6
- Tommy Johnson Jr. — 4
- Austin Prock — 3
- Bob Tasca III — 3
- J.R. Todd — 3
- Tim Wilkerson — 3
Austin Prock Quotes
ARE YOU SURPRISED WITH YOUR PERFORMANCE THIS SEASON?
“Last year, we had one of the most dominant performances in Funny Car history and we’ve come out this year and actually had one more win than we did last year to this point. So, yeah, it’s been going really good. You know, the point reset after the U.S. Nationals and everything can change. But we just have to go out there and keep doing what we’ve been doing to get us to this point. That’s what we did last year, and we ended up earning my first World Championship. The car’s in good shape right now so, if we keep our heads down and everyone does their job, we’ll have a good shot at it.”
WHAT’S THE ATTITUDE NOW HEADING INTO THE PLAYOFFS AS REIGNING CHAMPION?
“I always think we have something to prove. You know, our family works really hard at this sport, and this whole team works really hard. putting their life and soul into this sport. I’m just as hungry as I was last year, maybe even more hungry. To win one championship is one thing, but to run it back to back, that’s very difficult to do, and it kind of puts you in a different category of people in the history books. So, yeah, I want to win this championship just as bad as I did last year.”
“We’ve worked really hard to this point, to have the points lead that we did finishing up Indy, winning the U.S. Nationals again. I’m ready to get going. I’m glad that we have three races in a row to start off the Countdown. You can really get it in a groove and make or break your fate. So, I’m looking forward to it.”
Austin Prock at Maple Grove Raceway
| Austin Prock | Race Result | Qualified | Event Round Record |
| 2019 (TF) | Semi-finals | 7th | 2-1 |
| 2020 | DNC | ||
| 2021 | DNC | ||
| 2022 (TF) | Winner | 4th | 6-1 |
| 2023 (TF) | 1st round | 8th | 6-2 |
| 2024 (FC) | Winner | 1st | 10-2 |
Quickest time: 3.849 seconds, Sept. 13, 2024
Fastest speed: 338.43 mph, Sept. 13, 2024
Number starts: 4
No. 1 qualifier: 2
Final rounds: 2
Victories: 2
Won-Lost Record: 10-2
Track records – 3.837 seconds by Ron Capps, Sept. 14, 2019; 339.28 mph by Ron Capps, Sept. 14, 2019
Track & TV Schedules (all times Eastern)
NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series qualifying features two rounds at 2:30 and 5 p.m. ET on Friday, Sept. 12 and the final two rounds of qualifying on Saturday, Sept. 13 at 12:30 and 3 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11 a.m. ET on Sunday, Sept. 14.
Television coverage includes qualifying action on FS1 at 12 p.m. ET on Sunday on FS1, and eliminations at 2 p.m. Sunday on FS1.
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