Multi-Time Champ Rickie Smith Picks Up Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Win in Richmond

DINWIDDIE, VA – June 24, 2024 – (Motor Sports NewsWire) – Legendary multi-time NHRA Pro Mod champ Rickie Smith picked up yet another victory in the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+ on Saturday at Virginia Motorsports Parks, defeating Kris Thorne in the final round as part of this weekend’s PlayNHRA Virginia Nationals.

It was the six of 10 races during the 2024 season and the final race in the regular season in the category. This weekend’s event was also powered by DPFXFIT by GESi.

Smith went 5.702-seconds at 253.37 in his nitrous-powered Ford Mustang, taking down Thorne’s 5.714 at 252.43 with the quickest run of the weekend. It is Smith’s first victory since Brainerd in 2022 and gives the multi-time champ his 18th career NHRA Pro Mod win.

“I never thought I’d win another race at 70 years old,” Smith said. “I’m just so proud of the people who are behind me. I wouldn’t have even made it the last three years without them. It’s awesome. I don’t even know what to say. I’m usually crying and overly excited, but I don’t even know if it’s hit me. Out of all the races I’ve won, I don’t know how I pulled this one off. We weren’t even qualified until the last run.”

To reach the final round, Smith defeated Lyle Barnett, J.R. Gray and Jason Scruggs, taking down Thorne with an impressive run.

Thorne moved into the points lead by advancing to his third final round this season and the 11th in his career, taking down Khalid AlBalooshi, Justin Bond and Kevin Rivenbark.

The Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+ opens its four-race Road to the Championship playoffs at the prestigious 70th annual NHRA U.S. Nationals on Aug. 31-Sept. 2 at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.

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DINWIDDIE, VA — Final finish order (1-16) at the Fourth annual PlayNHRA Virginia Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park. The race is the sixth of 10 events in the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+.

PRO MODIFIED:

1. Rickie Smith; 2. Kris Thorne; 3. Kevin Rivenbark; 4. Jason Scruggs; 5. Ken Quartuccio; 6. Justin Bond; 7. Jordan Lazic; 8. JR Gray; 9. Mike Castellana; 10. Lyle Barnett; 11. Khalid alBalooshi; 12. Dmitry Samorukov; 13. Mason Wright; 14. Mike Stavrinos; 15. Sidnei Frigo; 16. Mike Thielen.

DINWIDDIE, VA — Sunday’s final results from the Fourth annual PlayNHRA Virginia Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park. The race is the sixth of 10 events in the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+.

Pro Modified — Rickie Smith, Ford Mustang, 5.702, 253.37 def. Kris Thorne, Chevy Camaro, 5.714, 252.43.

DINWIDDIE, VA — Final round-by-round results from the Fourth annual PlayNHRA Virginia Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park, the sixth of 10 events in the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+.

PRO MODIFIED:

ROUND ONE — Jordan Lazic, Chevy Camaro, 5.810, 249.35 def. Dmitry Samorukov, Camaro, 5.892, 244.03; Rickie Smith, Ford Mustang, 5.809, 252.57 def. Lyle Barnett, Camaro, 5.870, 247.07; Kris Thorne, Camaro, 5.871, 248.80 def. Khalid alBalooshi, Camaro, 5.870, 247.16; Jason Scruggs, Camaro, 5.788, 250.18 def. Mike Stavrinos, Camaro, 5.987, 241.32; JR Gray, Camaro, 5.885, 248.29 def. Sidnei Frigo, Camaro, 13.213, 96.65; Justin Bond, Camaro, 5.829, 247.29 def. Mason Wright, Camaro, 5.922, 245.09; Kevin Rivenbark, Mustang, 10.992, 88.65 def. Mike Thielen, Camaro, Broke; Ken Quartuccio, Camaro, 5.855, 246.12 def. Mike Castellana, Camaro, 5.857, 247.02;

QUARTERFINALS — Rivenbark, 5.771, 245.76 def. Lazic, 5.871, 233.60; Scruggs, 5.748, 249.49 def. Quartuccio, 5.768, 248.43; Smith, 5.746, 253.71 def. Gray, 6.297, 238.93; Thorne, 5.739, 251.77 def. Bond, 5.769, 248.75;

SEMIFINALS — Smith, 5.745, 252.85 def. Scruggs, 8.149, 115.60; Thorne, 5.721, 252.00 def. Rivenbark, 5.756, 246.17;

FINAL — Smith, 5.702, 253.37 def. Thorne, 5.714, 252.43.

DINWIDDIE, VA — Point standings (top 10) following the Fourth annual PlayNHRA Virginia Nationals at Virginia Motorsports Park, the sixth of 10 events in the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+.

Pro Modified

1. Kris Thorne, 497; 2. Jose Gonzalez, 412; 3. Ken Quartuccio, 405; 4. Kevin Rivenbark, 369; 5. (tie) JR Gray, 334; Mason Wright, 334; 7. Justin Bond, 318; 8. Mike Thielen, 299; 9. Billy Banaka, 275; 10. Jordan Lazic, 264.

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About NHRA

NHRA is the primary sanctioning body for the sport of drag racing in the United States. NHRA presents 20 national events featuring the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series and NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, as well as the Congruity NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by LearnEV+, NHRA Flexjet Factory Stock Showdown™, NHRA Holley EFI Factory X and Johnson’s Horsepowered Garage NHRA Mountain Motor Pro Stock at select national events. NHRA provides competition opportunities for drivers of all levels in the NHRA Summit Racing Series and NHRA Street Legal™. NHRA also offers the NHRA Jr. Street® program for teens and the Summit Racing Jr. Drag Racing League® for youth ages 5 to 17. With 110 Member Tracks, NHRA allows racers to compete at a variety of locations nationally and internationally. NHRA’s Youth and Education Services® (YES) Program reaches over 30,000 students annually to ignite their interest in automotive and racing related careers. NHRA’s streaming service, NHRA.tv®, allows fans to view all NHRA national events as well as exclusive features of the sport. In addition, NHRA owns and operates three racing facilities: Gainesville Raceway in Florida; Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park; and In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip in Southern California. For more information, log on to www.NHRA.com, or visit the official NHRA pages on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Source: National Hot Rod Association

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