Melanie Johnson
Speedmaster McPhillips Racing Top Alcohol Dragster
NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series
NHRA JEGS Allstars
Oct. 16-18 | Ennis, Texas
Event Recap
Melanie Johnson, driver of the Speedmaster McPhillips Racing Top Alcohol Dragster:
- Earned No. 1 qualifying position in Q1 on Friday (5.236 ET at 275.97 mph)
- Secured No. 2 qualifying position based off of Friday’s Q1 run. In Q2 on Friday, Johnson ran a 5.274 ET at 277.42 mph.
- Advanced to the JEGS Allstars Finals on Saturday:
- Round 1: 5.230 ET at 278.14 mph, defeated Joey Severance (no time)
- Semifinals: 5.174 ET at 277.35 mph, defeated Jamie Noonan (5.225 ET at 278.74 mph)
- Finals: 5.218 ET at 278.90 mph, defeated Jackie Fricke (5.211 ET at 270.09 mph)
Notes of Interest
- The NHRA JEGS Allstars marked Johnson’s first appearance in the event. She earned the victory with a holeshot over Jackie Fricke.
- Johnson represented the Central Region in the Top Alcohol Dragster division. With her win, the Central Region got the team win for the JEGS Allstars Top Alcohol classes.
- Johnson’s late uncle, Blaine Johnson, won the JEGS Allstars event 33 years ago.
- 2026 marked the first JEGS Allstar event win for McPhillips Racing.
- Johnson represented Speedmaster on her Top Alcohol Dragster. Founded in 1979, Speedmaster designs, engineers, and manufactures performance and aftermarket parts across three continents. From individual components to complete assembled systems and built-to-order vehicles.
- The NHRA JEGS Allstars program allows the best racers in ten categories from each of NHRA’s three geographic regions (East, Central and West) to compete for individual honors and share of the $124,000 purse. Racers accumulate points for the event at NHRA Lucas Oil divisional races prior to the competition.
Melanie Johnson, Driver of the Speedmaster McPhillips Racing Top Alcohol Dragster
“It’s unbelievable to be here. The JEGS Allstars program is awesome to be a part of. Texas Motorplex is an incredible place to race and I’m out here with a ton of great racers. It feels like such a huge accomplishment to come out with my team and do so well. We pretty much dominated last weekend in the regional race and lost in a close final. We lost another close race in first round this weekend, so to come out and win this race, it means everything. I was struggling with my lights all weekend, but I told myself this final was our round. We came back after first round and got our stuff together. I’m so proud of my guys. They’ve had this hot rod running quick all weekend. This win goes to them. Thank you to McPhillips Racing, Speedmaster, and AJPE (Alan Johnson Performance Engineering) for powering this car. We got a new bullet put in last week and it’s hauling.”
Rich McPhillips Sr., Team Owner
“I’m proud of Melanie and everyone at McPhillips Racing for their effort in the JEGS Allstars event. We’ve been on the back side of some good drag races, so it was nice to get this win and Melanie did a great job on the tree. Thank you to Speedmaster, NGK Spark Plugs, Lucas Oil, ARP, Boninfante Friction, VP Racing Fuels, Goodyear, Alan Johnson Performance Engineering, the Kessler family, and all of our partners for their continued support. We’re looking forward to heading west for the final three events of the season.”
Next Up
Johnson will be back behind the wheel of the Speedmaster McPhillips Racing Top Alcohol Dragster in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series at the NHRA Las Vegas Nationals October 30-November 1 at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nevada.
