Celebrating 75 years of speed, power, and the world's fastest motorsport

1997

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1997 TOP FUEL WORLD CHAMPION GARY SCELZI

  • Won first championship
  • Scored five national event victories
  • First champion to also win NHRA Rookie of the Year
  • Replaced late Blaine Johnson in family car
  • Also won the Budweiser Classic specialty event

Top Fuel world champion
Gary Scelzi

Funny Car world champion
John Force

Pro Stock world champion
Jim Yates

Pro Stock Motorcycle world champion
Matt Hines

Top Alcohol Dragster world champion
Rick Santos

Top Alcohol Funny Car world champion
Frank Manzo

Comp eliminator world champion
Andy Manna

Super Stock world champion
Jimmy DeFrank

Stock eliminator world champion
Al Corda

Super Comp world champion
Ed Richardson

Super Gas world champion
Mike Henderson

1997

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

W.J. BREAKS 200-MPH BARRIER

Warren Johnson became the first member of the Speed-Pro 200-mph Pro Stock Club with a 200.13-mph clocking during Friday at the Pennzoil NHRA Nationals in Richmond, Va., and later ran 200.53.

FIRST JAPANESE WINNER

Kenji Okazaki became the first non-North American to win an NHRA national event Wally when he drove Jim Dunn’s Mooneyes Funny Car to victory at the Mopar Parts NHRA Nationals in Englishtown, N.J.

ANOTHER ROOKIE SENSATION

Two-time Top Alcohol Funny Car world champ Randy Anders, son of three-time champ Brad Anderson, won in Atlanta in just his fifth start in nitro Funny Car and then won the next race in Dallas as well.

THE BIG BUD SHAKEUP

Drag racing’s longest-running relationship between a driver/owner and crew chief ended after the NHRA U.S. Nationals when world champion Kenny Bernstein and tuner Dale Armstrong parted company after nearly 16 seasons together.

1997

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

NHRA Photo Scanned from Slide

The former Top Alcohol Dragster and Funny Car winner was tapped by the Johnson family to replace the late Blaine Johnson and won the NHRA Winternationals in his debut and then went on to win the world championship, the first NHRA Rookie of the Year to accomplish this feat.

Road to the Future award: Ron Capps

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