The future for Australia’s nitro-burning Funny Car contingent received a major boost within the recent announcement from a newly formed primary drag racing series.

Andy Lopez and Nathan Prendergast, the team behind the Burson Auto Parts Australian Top Fuel Championship, have announced the creation of the National Drag Racing Championship (NDRC).

The NDRC is the new, unified national championship for drag racing in Australia – something that most drag racing proponents feel is long overdue.

The NDRC represents a new era for drag racing in Australia, with Top Fuel, Nitro Funny Car, Top Doorslammer, Pro Alcohol, Pro Stock, Top Fuel Motorcycle, Pro Stock Bike, Pro Mod, and Sportsman all having the opportunity to race in one national championship series.

The NDRC calendar will be announced soon — it will feature eleven championship events headlined by either the Burson Auto Parts Australian Top Fuel Championship or the Nitro Funny Car Championship, bringing more nitro racing to Australian drag racing fans than ever before.

The 1st new season will conclude with a marquee single Grand Final event for all professional categories in 2024 at the Winternationals at Willowbank Raceway. 

This mega event sees the Burson Top Fuel Championship and Nitro Funny Cars Championship come together with Group 1 for the first time.

Funny Car driver Morice McMillin from Aeroflow stated, “As both a sponsor and a racer, this is a really good day. With my racing helmet on, I just want to get out on the track and race for a single championship. As a sponsor, Aeroflow loves the Sportsman category as much as we love our Nitro Funny Cars, and I’m really happy to announce our partnership with this new sportsman championship. We’ll also be continuing our Future Stars program which seeks to support the drag racing stars of tomorrow through mentoring in race craft, sponsorship, and other aspects of professional drag racing.”

Post and photos by Bruce Biegler