BROWNSBURG, Ind. (Aug. 19, 2026) – It’s been almost a month since John Force Racing’s Speedmaster Top Fuel team has competed but driver Josh Hart has his focus set on continuing the momentum gained at Seattle when they arrive at Brainerd (Minn.) International Raceway for the Aug. 20-23 NHRA Brainerd Nationals.
The Speedmaster team grabbed its second No. 1 Qualifier award of the season at Seattle and went on to earn a semifinal finish in eliminations. The team maintained seventh place in the point standings, moving to just 27 points behind Tony Stewart in fifth, with Brainerd and the Cornwell Quality Tools U.S. Nationals (which pays 1.5x points) left in the regular season.
Hart used the three weekends away from the track as an opportunity to take care of his businesses and give back time to his family but he’s already champing at the bit to get back behind wheel of the Speedmaster dragster.
The 2026 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Top Fuel point standings after 12 of 20 races are: 1. Shawn Langdon, 1,107; 2. Doug Kalitta, 1,102; 3. Leah Pruett, 898; 4. Antron Brown, 755; 5. Tony Stewart, 700; 6. Maddi Gordon, 681; 7. Josh Hart, 673; 8. Billy Torrence, 618; 9. Justin Ashley, 535; 10. Clay Millican, 489.
Quotes
Would you rather have stayed racing during this extended time away from the track to continue the momentum gained at Seattle?
“We haven’t lost a thing. If anything, the time off was just a moment to reflect on what we accomplished in Seattle so that we are more focused going into Brainerd. Three weeks is a long time but I needed to focus back home on family and business. We got a lot of things executed, got a couple more that I need to get executed, and then show up to Brainerd ready to do my job. But I love being in the seat. There is no better office that I’d rather be in.”
How do you keep that performance edge after three weekends off?
“It’s a dream job so all I have to do is see a couple social media posts and realize I’m not there and I start kind of thinking about it again. A lot of people call it an addiction. There’s nothing on the planet that you can drive that is going to simulate what happens in that car. I’m one of the lucky ones that gets to experience it. However, it ruins every other car experience you can possibly ever ask for so the only way to feel it again is to get back in that seat. I’ve had people come up to me and say ‘Hey, will you drive this car? It’s got 1200 horsepower’ and I say ‘Yeah, I think I’ll be okay.’”
Are you still working with a personal trainer and, if so, do you see it as helping your performance in the car?
“Every week since the beginning of the year, I’ve said I want to focus on family, finance, fitness, and racing and I’ve been able to do that. I’m down 15 pounds right now, and I believe the new car also lost 15 pounds. We’re doing everything we can to focus on our performance edge, and that’s getting me in tip-top shape and keeping the Speedmaster Top Fuel dragster in tip-top shape. My power-to-weight ratio has gone up significantly so now we’re just trying to add the supercharger. I’m not as pretty as Jordan Vandergriff so I have to do whatever it takes to try to keep up.”
Were you and your family able to do anything special during this extra time off?
“We really do focus on keeping our home life pretty private and we felt, with everything that was going on with the growth of Burnyzz, we kind of failed our kids during the summer break. So, we let them plan a little trip. We went wherever they wanted to go. We did whatever they wanted to do and tried to just soften the blow a little bit before they went back to school. But they’ve been raised in a hot rod shop so I don’t think they even knew there was anything different going on. They love it at Burnyzz. Everybody treats them like the prince and princess. It’s not uncommon to walk out onto the restoration area floor and hear the Frozen soundtrack playing across the PA system, with all the guys dancing to whatever song my daughter is trying to make them dance to. She definitely runs the show and my son is super easygoing 99 percent of the time, he’s always happy. My wife and I were probably the only ones that thought we did them an injustice for summer break.”
Weekend Appearances
Hart will be signing autographs Saturday, Aug. 22, from 9-9:30 a.m. at the Mission Foods display on the midway.
Track Schedule
Qualifying will feature two rounds at 3:30 and 6:00 p.m. CT on Friday, Aug. 21 and the final two rounds of qualifying on Saturday, Aug. 22 at 12:00 and 2:30 p.m. Final eliminations are scheduled for 11:00 a.m. CT on Sunday, Aug. 23.
TV Schedule
Television coverage includes qualifying action on FS1 at 7:00 p.m. ET on Friday and 10:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, and eliminations at 6:30 p.m. ET Sunday.
Race Results
| Brainerd | Race Result | Round by Round Results | Qualified | Event Record |
| 2021 (TF) | Did Not Compete | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 2022 (TF) | 2nd round | Beat Scott Farley; lost to Tony Schumacher | 2nd | 1-1 |
| 2023 (TF) | 1st round | Lost to Brittany Force | 11th | 1-2 |
| 2024 (TF) | Semi-finals | Beat Jasmine Salinas, Clay Millican; lost to Justin Ashley | 9th | 3-3 |
| 2025 (TF) | 1st round | Lost to T. Stewart | 10th | 3-4 |
Wins: 0
No. 1 Qualifiers: 0
Event Record: 3-4
2026 Results
| Event | Qualify | Round by Round | Round Record | Points Position |
| Gainesville | 1 | Beat Dan Mercier, Tripp Tatum, Antron Brown, Doug Kalitta | 4-0 | 1 |
| Phoenix | 10 | Beat Justin Ashley; lost to Leah Pruett | 5-1 | 2 |
| Pomona1 | 2 | Beat Cameron Ferre; lost to Tony Stewart | 6-2 | 4 |
| Charlotte | 4 | Lost in 1st quad | 6-3 | 5 |
| Valdosta | 9 | Lost to Leah Pruett | 6-4 | 5 |
| Chicago | 4 | Beat Justin Ashley, Tony Stewart; lost to Shawn Langdon | 8-5 | 5 |
| Maryland | 7 | Lost to Clay Millican | 8-6 | 5 |
| Epping | 3 | Beat Rit Pustari; lost to Billy Torrence | 9-7 | 4 |
| Bristol | 6 | Lost to Doug Kalitta | 9-8 | 6 |
| Norwalk | 2 | Beat Scott Farley; lost to Clay Millican | 10-9 | 7 |
| Sonoma | 8 | Lost to Jasmine Salinas | 10-10 | 7 |
| Seattle | 1 | Bye, beat Tony Stewart; lost to Leah Pruett | 12-11 | 7 |
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