Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The opening nitro qualifying session at the 68th Bakersfield March Meet set the early pace in Nostalgia Top Fuel at historic Famoso Dragstrip.
Driver Tyler Hilton powered the Great Expectations dragster to the top of the field with a 5.802-second run at 202.61 mph, securing the provisional No. 1 spot after the first qualifying session.
Hilton’s run showed strong potential but ended earlier than planned because of a mechanical issue before the finish line.
“Yeah. We were on a better run than that and it had a little parts failure, so we’re assessing the damage now and going to fix it and get it ready for tomorrow,” Hilton said. “5.80, it just shut off early, it was on a low 60 run, but yeah, we had a little issue, so that’s where we’re at.”
Even with the shortened pass, Hilton’s 5.80 was strong enough to lead the Nostalgia Top Fuel field after the opening session of the historic nitro event.
The early qualifying round also highlighted the realities of racing vintage nitro dragsters, where strong runs often come with mechanical wear as teams search for the right tune-up.
“Well, no one ever likes setbacks, but we’re just rolling with it and going to fix it and have it ready,” Hilton said. “I mean, that’s all we can do, is try as hard as we can and get it ready.”
Hilton said the team remains focused on positioning itself for eliminations rather than chasing a headline-qualifying number.
“And we just get this behind us and tomorrow will be a better day,” Hilton said. “And hopefully we’ll go into it number one after three sessions and try to win this deal, because we’ve run it up three times, and we’re just ready to seal the deal here.”
For more drag racing news and video coverage visit:
👉 competitionplus.com
#DragRacing #TopFuel #NostalgiaTopFuel #MarchMeet #Bakersfield #FamosoDragstrip #Nitro #CompetitionPlusTV #PEAKSquad
The opening nitro qualifying session at the 68th Bakersfield March Meet set the early pace in Nostalgia Top Fuel at historic Famoso Dragstrip.
Driver Tyler Hilton powered the Great Expectations dragster to the top of the field with a 5.802-second run at 202.61 mph, securing the provisional No. 1 spot after the first qualifying session.
Hilton’s run showed strong potential but ended earlier than planned because of a mechanical issue before the finish line.
“Yeah. We were on a better run than that and it had a little parts failure, so we’re assessing the damage now and going to fix it and get it ready for tomorrow,” Hilton said. “5.80, it just shut off early, it was on a low 60 run, but yeah, we had a little issue, so that’s where we’re at.”
Even with the shortened pass, Hilton’s 5.80 was strong enough to lead the Nostalgia Top Fuel field after the opening session of the historic nitro event.
The early qualifying round also highlighted the realities of racing vintage nitro dragsters, where strong runs often come with mechanical wear as teams search for the right tune-up.
“Well, no one ever likes setbacks, but we’re just rolling with it and going to fix it and have it ready,” Hilton said. “I mean, that’s all we can do, is try as hard as we can and get it ready.”
Hilton said the team remains focused on positioning itself for eliminations rather than chasing a headline-qualifying number.
“And we just get this behind us and tomorrow will be a better day,” Hilton said. “And hopefully we’ll go into it number one after three sessions and try to win this deal, because we’ve run it up three times, and we’re just ready to seal the deal here.”
For more drag racing news and video coverage visit:
👉 competitionplus.com
#DragRacing #TopFuel #NostalgiaTopFuel #MarchMeet #Bakersfield #FamosoDragstrip #Nitro #CompetitionPlusTV #PEAKSquad
