What a way to put an exclamation point on Firebird’s 58th season!

Team Firebird standout Duston Wurtz captured the 2026 NHRA Summit Racing Series Super Pro World Championship on Monday, November 2, at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway, earning one of the most prestigious titles in E.T. bracket racing.

Competing against an elite field of 16 Super Pro racers representing NHRA member tracks from across North America, Wurtz delivered a championship-winning performance during the Mopar NHRA Las Vegas Nationals powered by Dodge.

And fittingly, the final round came down to a pair of racers representing NHRA’s Northwest Division 6.

Wurtz squared off against Daniel O’Connor, representing RAD Torque Systems Raceway in Alberta, Canada, in a thrilling championship showdown decided by a razor-thin .002 of a second!

O’Connor grabbed a slight advantage at the starting line, posting a .012 reaction time to Wurtz’s .019. But at the finish line, Wurtz prevailed with a stellar 5.156-second run on his 5.15 dial-in, while O’Connor recorded a 5.735 on his 5.72 prediction.

Talk about a final round worthy of a world championship!

Wurtz earned his invitation to Las Vegas after capturing the Super Pro title at the NHRA Northwest Division E.T. Finals at Qlispé Raceway Park near Spokane, Washington, over Labor Day weekend. The victory in part also earned Firebird Raceway the Manager’s Cup team title during Sunday’s Division 6 “race within a race”.

The 2026 Summit Racing Series presented by Hoosier Tires featured an expanded national championship format, bringing together 64 racers (four overall champions pictured from the nhra.com website) in four categories: Super Pro, Pro, Sportsman and Motorcycle. Sixteen competitors battled for each respective world title during NHRA’s 75th Anniversary season.

Along with the coveted NHRA championship Wally, Wurtz earned $6,000 in prize money and the distinction of carrying the No. 1 on his race car in 2027.

Wurtz becomes just the fourth Idaho racer to claim an NHRA championship, joining Rich Pedraza (2002 Summit Motorcycle), Jackie Alley (2011 Lucas Oil Super Stock) and Zach Meziere (2024 Summit Super Pro).

For the New family, our entire Firebird staff, and everyone associated with Team Firebird, it’s an especially proud moment to see one of our own reach the pinnacle of the NHRA Summit Racing Series.

Congratulations to Duston, his family and crew on a remarkable accomplishment. You’ve given all your friends back home in Idaho plenty to celebrate!

Way to go, Duston — NHRA WORLD CHAMPION!