In the nearly 70-year history of NHRA drag racing, no one has ever won 10-straight events, until now. RevZilla/Vance & Hines Suzuki’s Gaige Herrera continued his all-out assault on the record books by winning his 10th consecutive race at Virginia Motorsports Park near Richmond, June 21-23. Herrera defeated teammate Richard Gadson in the final round to remain perfect on the 2024 season. Herrera also broke the longstanding record held by Pro Stock car racer Bob Glidden.
“It’s kind of hard to process all of it,” Herrera said. “The amount of accomplishments that have been achieved in such a short time, I tried to sit back and just think about it, and it’s very hard, because there are so many of them. I have to thank Andrew [Hines, crew chief], basically picking me out of a haystack to ride for them. I’ve got to give it all up to Andrew and all the guys at the shop. None of this is possible without them.
“It’s very surreal. Getting the 10 consecutive wins, I think that’s the biggest thing that really hasn’t set in. Last year, we were feeling like we were doing very good and making everyone else have to step up, so this year, if we go out there and do like we did last year, I think this year is really going to hit us in the face and make us realize what we’re doing right now.”
The Richmond event was a test of survival as temperatures soared into the mid-90s, taxing both riders and crew chiefs, who had to figure out a way to navigate the highest track temperatures seen this year. Herrera and his team seemed to have the least amount of difficulty, as they qualified number one with a 6.70, and then breezed through Sunday’s final eliminations with wins against Chris Bostick, John Hall and Gadson. The final round was delayed several hours due to rain, but that just seemed to prolong the inevitable: Herrera clocked a 6.755 to stop Gadson’s 6.786 as both riders were dead-even off the starting line.
When it comes to making drag racing history, Herrera practically has the market cornered. With his latest win, he also now has 39-straight round wins, setting that record on Sunday as well. Herrera hasn’t lost a race since the Reading, Pennsylvania, event last September and has now won 16 of the last 20 races since joining the Vance & Hines team.
Gadson may well be the favorite to end Herrea’s streak, as he turned in his best performance of the season. After qualifying second with a 6.763, the impressive rookie defeated Eiji Kawakami, Jianna Evaristo and Hector Arana Jr. to reach his first career final.
Six-time champion Matt Smith was able to keep pace with Herrera earlier in the event, but he endured a rare loss in round one at the hands of his wife, Angie, who won using a starting-line holeshot.
