Jasmine Salinas Snags First Top Fuel Provisional Pole In Seattle
NHRA Northwest Nationals
Event 12 of 20
Pacific Raceways
Kent, Wash.
July 24 – 26, 2026
By: ABM Communications
KENT, Wash. (July 24, 2026) – Jasmine Salinas and the Valley Services/Scrappers Racing Top Fuel team are experiencing what can happen when relentless determination and positive momentum come together. After opting to forgo the first qualifying opportunity of the day, the part-time team with full-time energy rocketed to the provisional No. 1 qualifier spot this evening at the NHRA Northwest Nationals at Pacific Raceways in Kent, Wash.
Coming off of an outstanding performance last week in Sonoma, the Scrappers Racing team, led by co-crew chiefs Todd Okuhara and Adem Cave, decided to save wear and tear on the car by skipping the first qualifying session.
Salinas was in the first pair of the second session and she piloted her 12,000 horsepower dragster to the stripe in 3.794 seconds at 328.38 mph, leaping to the top of the timing sheets. With a special “low qualifier” prize on the line, an Oris watch from Ben Bridge Jewelers, Salinas remained at the top end and watched in anticipation as the rest of the drivers in the Top Fuel field attempted to knock her out of the top spot.
“Sitting out Q1 was definitely the right move,” said Salinas. “We hurt a couple of things in Sonoma when we were going rounds and we are planning to go more rounds this weekend, for the Mission challenge tomorrow and for race day. I wasn’t nervous about the car’s performance, but to go out and do that after sitting out Q1 was pretty awesome. I keep talking about my guys; it really is all of them. They are giving me a great car, and I’m just trying to do my job and show up as a driver.
“Getting to watch everyone else run while I was sitting at the top end was cool. I’ve done other events like this but kept thinking surely someone else was going to get it. I was kind of like, ‘This can’t be happening.’ That’s also how I felt in Sonoma and look where we went. I’m feeling really great and positive about this weekend. Anything can happen, so I try not to look too far back or forward but this is definitely giving us all the pep in the step that we need.”
By racing to a runner-up finish last week, the Scrappers Racing team secured a spot in the Mission #2Fast2Tasty Challenge, a race-within-a-race that will take place when qualifying continues tomorrow at the NHRA Northwest Nationals.
