Multi-Time Top Fuel Champion Pays Homage To Father, Hot Rod and Land Speed Record Innovator Chet Herbert
CONCORD, N.C. (July 28, 2026) – Multi-time NHRA Top Fuel drag racing champion Doug Herbert today announced plans to unveil his latest project, the ‘THE BEAST NextGEN’ at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Windover, Utah on Friday, July 31.
While the streamliner is still under final construction, Herbert will bring it to Bonneville to gain the blessing of the Southern California Timing Association’s (SCTA) technical staff before the machine’s build is completed. Although the THE BEAST NextGEN will not run during the 2026 Bonneville Speedweek, it will preview what piston-powered, wheel-driven fans can expect in the near future when Herbert will pilot his machine to a target of 500 MPH. THE BEAST NextGEN’s specs qualify it for AA/BFS, SCTA’s top-tier piston-driven, supercharged fueled streamliner class.
Spanning The Generations
The story behind THE BEAST NextGEN project may sound familiar. Many father-and-son build projects have dotted hot-rodding history, strengthening relationships across generations. Doug is the son of hot rod innovator Chet Herbert who, beyond his drag racing success in the 1950’s – 1970’s, built record-setters for Bonneville. Many of those creations have shared the name “BEAST.”
“I imagined this latest THE BEAST NextGEN as a final project for me and my aging father to do together,” Doug explains. Discussion and plans were well underway when Chet Herbert passed away in 2009.
Chet’s passing came a short time after the unimaginable loss of Doug’s teenage sons Jon and James, who lost their lives in a tragic car crash. This life-changing event prompted Doug to establish B.R.A.K.E.S. (“Be Responsible And Keep Everyone Safe”), a lifesaving pro-active teen driver training program. Since its inception in 2008, the program has trained more than 175,000 teens and their parents, making U.S. roadways safer and saving countless lives.
“B.R.A.K.E.S. growth has been driven nationally by both local and partner support that run their own calendars,” Herbert says. “We run weekend training sessions throughout the year in cities across the nation. I am pleased that it can now almost run on its own, because we have such a great team in place.
As B.R.A.K.E.S. has grown throughout the years, Doug continued his dream of building and racing The BEAST NextGEN to honor the memory of his father Chet, as well as sons Jon and James.
Assembling a Dream Team Through Racing Industry Support
Although Doug felt the painful loss of both his father and sons in short succession, he quickly realized that he was still surrounded with and warmly supported by his ‘racing family’.
“I was overwhelmed when so many reached out to me at the lowest point in my life” recalls Doug. So many of his friends in racing also stepped in to help him design and build THE BEAST NextGen, NASCAR legend Ray Evernham volunteered to help with expert engineering support. Dr. Eric Warren, Now VP of General Motors racing, performed the aerodynamic analysis, Greg Fornelli, President of Stock Car Steel & Aluminum provided materials, and Jeff ‘Pancho” Weaver has taken on the chassis fabrication along with Sprint Car Champion Brad Noffsinger.
“I am so fortunate to have many great friends and experts involved in my project,” Doug states. “It has been absolutely incredible to work with these extremely talented and dedicated folks. And this car could never have gotten to this point without the help of Tim Rose and Rodger Comstock; it just would have never happened.”
About THE BEAST NextGEN
This brings us to the car presented today. The four-wheel-drive streamliner is 35 feet long, while very narrow at only 36 inches wide. It is powered by twin Dodge Viper, ProCharger-supercharged, V-10 engines, which runs on methanol fed by Fuel Tech EFI. Each will produce an estimated 2,500 HP. They will drive thru twin 6XD Transmissions, custom B&J differentials at the front and rear supplied by Mike Strasburg, with Goodyear racing tires putting the power to the ground. The limited-travel suspension is controlled by JRI shocks, while aerodynamic carbon fiber body panels have been produced at Symmetrix with RevChem composites.
Along the way, the project has also received valuable assistance from David Grubnic and the John Force Racing team, Steve Watt & the Speed Demon team, Wayne Jesel and Jesel Valvetrain, Keith & Jeff Dorton’s Automotive Specialists, and NASCAR Champion Mike Wallace, who loaned the trailer that is transporting the vehicle to Bonneville.
Per SCTA rules, the driver is protected by a steel roll cage. Within that cocoon, a custom fitted seat has been built by Randy Lajoie’s Lajoie of Seating company, and driver restraints will be provided by Trevor Ashline, President of ESS – Engineered Safety Systems.
Passionate about safety, Doug is eager to get the input of the SCTA technical staff, to identify any additional necessary precautions. “Lee Kennedy (SCTA’s Car Technical Committee Chair) encouraged me to bring THE BEAST NextGEN here this week, even if we are not ready to race, to give it a proper inspection, before I got too far along,” he explains.
In addition to attempting to be the world’s fastest in its class, Doug is looking at other ways to deploy The BEAST NextGEN “Perhaps it can contribute to a STEM program to educate young students, or to be displayed at B.R.A.K.E.S. training sessions across the country.” Ultimately Doug would like to find a brand that could take advantage of this incredible opportunity as a marketing program, possibly streaming the record setting event live from Bonneville.
“I believe THE BEAST NextGEN project can have reach beyond just going fast,” he says. “I’m searching for ways it can be used to excite young people about racing and the technology of building things by hand, just as I was, by what my father did years ago.”
