Back-to-Back Finals

Justin Ashley and the SCAG Power Equipment Toyota Top Fuel team secured a second consecutive runner-up finish at the Gerber Collision and Glass Route 66 NHRA Nationals in Joliet, Illinois, on May 18, 2025. Starting race day from the No. 5 qualifying position with a 3.697-second pass at 337.50 mph, which briefly stood as the track speed record, Ashley advanced through a challenging bracket. He first defeated Brittany Force with a quick .018-second reaction time and a 3.706-second run. In the quarterfinals, he overcame reigning world champion and Toyota teammate Antron Brown, despite needing to pedal his dragster through a difficult run. Ashley then eliminated another former world champion and Toyota teammate, Doug Kalitta, with a 3.816-second pass that earned him a spot in the final round against Tony Stewart. Although Ashley had a slight starting line advantage, his 3.818-second run at 324.12 mph was not enough to hold off Stewart, who won with a 3.777-second pass at 329.10 mph.

This event marked Ashley’s first final round appearance at Route 66 Raceway and his sixth career matchup with Stewart, but it was their first meeting in a final. Ashley now ranks fifth in the Mission Foods NHRA Drag Racing Series Top Fuel standings. Reflecting on the weekend, he emphasized the importance of consistency and building momentum, especially when facing strong competition. “It was a great weekend. We would have loved to seal the deal for everyone at SCAG Power Equipment and Metalcraft of Mayville, but super happy with how things went and feel like things are definitely trending in the right direction. Very proud of our whole team,” Ashley said. “Going rounds like this is super important. A few final rounds, back-to-back runner-up finishes. It’s really good to get momentum. It’s kind of two-fold. The better you do, the more momentum you have. At the same time, the better you do, the more laps you make and the more data you get. All-in-all, it’s good. Once the race is done though, you have to put it in the past, but it’s nice to get some momentum going forward.” He added, “When you look at the gauntlet of people we had to go through today, Brittany Force in the first round, Antron Brown in the second round and Doug Kalitta in the third round, then falling just a little bit short to Tony Stewart in the finals, speaks volumes to the high-level competition and we feel like we’re right there with everybody. Continuing to learn, continuing to grow and continuing to make the necessary changes that’ll help us improve down the road. Super happy and proud of our SCAG Power Equipment Toyota team and we’ll pack it up and get after it in Epping.”