Ida Zetterström Makes Historic First NHRA Top Fuel Final at Midwest

Ida Zetterström converts a late entry into a career-first NHRA Top Fuel final at World Wide Technology Raceway, finishing runner-up to Doug Kalitta after race-day tyre haze.

The JCM Racing driver arrives days before the event, yet strings together a disciplined campaign that validates recent testing gains and strengthens the team’s competitive direction.

Her peak qualifying pass is a 3.788s at 328.78mph on Friday, at the St. Louis venue. She follows with 3.820s at 325.30mph before tyre smoke ends Q4, leaving her 14th after all sessions.

From 14th, she eliminates regular-season champion Tony Stewart with a flawless .000s light and a 3.801s at 323.66mph, despite a late head gasket issue.

Round two brings similar execution. A 3.802s at 326.87mph, backed by a clean launch, dispatches Kyle Wurtzel and underscores the car’s repeatability.

The semifinal requires resilience. Early initiative against Antron Brown holds, even as tyre spin near the stripe drags the incrementals to 3.925s at 292.08mph.

[p_fervogear_custom]Zetterström is first off the line in all four rounds on race day.[/p_fervogear_custom]

The final again tilts her way at the tree, but the car hazes the tyres downtrack. Kalitta capitalises, reversing the advantage and taking the win.

Performance trends are clear. The JCM car shows strong early incrementals and improved launch consistency, but the team must widen the setup window to prevent late-run tyre issues.

Operationally, the weekend reflects a sound decision process. Joe and PJ Maynard add the race late after productive testing, giving the crew vital competitive data.

Zetterström highlights pride in execution while acknowledging ongoing refinement. The program targets stability across varying track conditions and is already planning funding for 2026.

The campaign now turns to the Texas NHRA FallNationals on October 10–12 at the Texas Motorplex. Momentum matters in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series, and this run advances that cause.

NHRA’s growth aligns with wider auto racing industry trends, where innovation and format depth reward teams that iterate quickly and convert testing gains into points.

Visual Summary

Nicholas Rivera

Nicholas Rivera delivers NHRA Top Fuel and Funny Car news, including eliminator-round results and reaction-time stats. He brings track-side interviews, contender profiles, and championship-point breakdowns straight from drag-racing’s biggest national events.