CHANDLER, Ariz. (Feb. 24, 2022) – Austin Prock and the Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist dragster team are mixing things up in the NHRA Top Fuel category. Heading to the second race on the Camping World Drag Racing Series tour sitting No. 2 in points, Prock and his team are proving they more than deserve to be amongst the Top Fuel elite.
After nearly two years out of the seat, Prock raised eyebrows on the final day of pre-season testing when his Montana Brand / RMT dragster team made two promising passes, including a 3.685-second pass at 333.66 mph that would be the best of the Top Fuel class. The testing performance was only a prerequisite to what the team would accomplish at the season-opening Winternationals. Prock would qualify No. 4 before taking the Montana Brand/Rocky Mountain Twist dragster to the runner-up finish, only narrowly dropping the final to Justin Ashley in a battle between the 2019 and 2020 winners of the Auto Club’s Road to the Future Award.
“It’s been a great start to the year. This Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team was pulled together quickly but we’ve put in the work and I thought we did an excellent job in Pomona,” Prock said. “I’m really happy with how this year has started. It’s going to be a long, fun year and I’m really looking forward to it. We have some good momentum coming from the last two weekends.”
This will only be Prock’s third competitive appearance at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park, however, Prock made his first pass in a Top Fuel dragster at the facility. Prock earned his Top Fuel license in a frenzy ahead of his rookie 2019 season on the final day of testing in Arizona. In his first competitive try at Wild Horse Pass, Prock would qualifying sixth before making a quarterfinal appearance. In 2020 Prock would have a first-round exit.
“I’m looking forward to Phoenix. It’s a special spot for me, it’s where I got my Top Fuel license in 2019,” Prock said. “Now I’m back, living my dream again and I’m pumped. We’re coming off two really good weekends including testing here. It’s going to be a good weekend. I think this Montana Brand / Rocky Mountain Twist team has a lot of really good weekends in its future.”
Qualifying at the NHRA Arizona Nationals at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park begins Friday with the first session at 5 p.m. and continues Saturday with runs at 1:30 and 4:30 p.m. Eliminations are slated for 11 a.m. on Sunday. Television coverage will be broadcast on FOX Sports 1 (FS1) beginning with qualifying shows Saturday at 11 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. ET. Eliminations will air at 7 p.m. ET on Sunday.
