CONCORD, N.C. – April 26, 2026 – Austin Prock and his Ford Racing Nitro Mustang Funny Car faced a challenging but productive weekend at the 2026 NHRA 4-Wide Nationals at zMAX Dragway, qualifying No. 16 and exiting in the opening round of eliminations on Sunday.
The weekend marked another step forward in the team’s ongoing development of its Funny Car combination. While the result was not what Prock and team were looking for, the weekend provided valuable data as the team continues working to harness the horsepower in their Ford Racing Nitro Mustang.
Prock opened qualifying Friday afternoon with a 4.977-second pass at 176.56 mph after the car dropped a cylinder at the hit and moved hard toward the inside. Prock fought to keep the Mustang under control before the car knocked the tires loose.
In Friday’s second session, Prock’s Ford Racing Mustang left the starting line well with a .873 60-foot time, but the run ended early when the car lost traction, resulting in a 6.596 at 118.45 mph. The pass dropped Prock to 16th in the qualifying order.
“Conditions were gorilla tonight, and I haven’t got very many shots in that hot rod in these conditions,” Prock said after Q2. “But this Ford, it left great and it was heading straight down the track. It was anchored down, but I felt the sidewall quivering a little bit. As soon as it cleared up, it chopped the tires off. I can promise you that this Ford is going to run low ET soon.”
Saturday brought two more qualifying attempts as the team continued working through the setup. In Q3, Prock pedaled the car multiple times before shutting off early, recording a 6.083 at 129.19 mph. The run kept him on the bump spot entering the final session.
In Q4, the Funny Car delivered another challenging and disappointing run, posting a 4.833 at 168.26 mph. The pass secured the No. 16 qualifying position and a spot in Sunday eliminations against No. 1 qualifier Ron Capps, along with Chad Green and Spencer Hyde rounding out the quad.
“We made it in the show, but not by anything extravagant by any means,” Prock said. “Made some headway on the engine program this weekend. Got it running clean and we’re now just trying to harness all this Ford horsepower. In Q4, we made it the furthest down the track than we have all weekend with smoking the tires. I stood on the gas and had a great light, but it put a cylinder out at the hit. The Mustang moved hard right, the cylinder relit, and I got it back on track but smoked the tires around half track. We got a chance to win on Sunday and that’s all that matters.”
In Sunday’s opening round of four-wide eliminations, Prock lined up against Capps, Green, and Hyde. Prock left with a .070 reaction time and was on a solid early run, posting a .877 60-foot time, a 2.245 at 330 feet, and a 3.298 at 211.46 mph to the eighth mile. However, the car blew the tires off just after half-track and slowed to a 4.460 at 191.76 mph.
Capps advanced with the quickest Funny Car run of the weekend, while Green moved on in the second transfer position. Prock finished third in the quad, ending the weekend in the first round.
Despite the early exit, the weekend gave Tasca Racing additional direction as the team continues to build consistency with its Ford Racing Nitro Mustang Funny Car. Prock and the team showed improved early numbers and made progress with the engine program but continued with challenges throughout the weekend.
The Tasca Racing team will leave Charlotte focused on turning the weekend’s data into results as the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series continues next week in Adel, GA for the NHRA Southern Nationals.
