FOX Sports Opens East Coast NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series with 51st Gatornationals

Pedregon: Gators a Top-Three Event for All NHRA Drag Racers

First Event of the Season for Pro Stock Motorcycle & Pro Mod Drag Racing Series

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The 51st running of the AMALIE Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals from Gainesville, Fla., brings NHRA hot rodders to the East Coast for the first time in 2020, as FS1 delivers the final rounds on Sunday, March 15 at 9:30 PM ET.

“The Gatornationals is the biggest drag race on the East Coast and has to be a top-three event for all NHRA racers,” said FOX NHRA analyst Tony Pedregon, a two-time NHRA Funny Car champion and a Gatornationals winner in 2002 and 2008. “This is the first race where we see a drop off from better than 1,000 feet in elevation … that means it’s easier for the tuners to make power, and it’s one of the reasons we’ve seen impressive runs and big speeds at this event, including the first 300-mph Top Fuel run (Kenny Bernstein in 1992) and the first 200-mph Pro Stock Motorcycle run (Hector Arana Jr. in 2018).”

Pedregon is joined in the FOX NHRA booth by play-by-play voice Brian Lohnes and reporters Bruno Massel Jr., a two-time NHRA champion, and Jamie Howe.

“This 2020 running of the race is special because we have more than a half dozen racers either debuting or returning to NHRA action across our professional categories,” Lohnes said. “Adding the fact that the cavernous facility is among the largest on the tour, regularly sells out, and the weather is always fast, means you have a recipe that no other drag race on Earth can match. The Gatornationals truly stands as a unique gem on the 24-race NHRA Mello Mello Drag Racing Series tour.”

The Gatornationals also marks the first event of the season for the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle class, as well as the return of the E3 Spark Plugs NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series, which airs April 2 at 8:30 PM ET on FS2.

For the complete Gatornationals TV schedule, visit: https://www.nhra.com/tv-schedule.