Bob Tasca III Battles Heat and Track at 2025 NHRA Virginia Nationals

Joey Little
Jun 22
2 min read

Tasca Racing rolled into a scorching hot Virginia Motorsports Park for the NHRA Virginia Nationals with a big change and high expectations. After struggling to find consistency through the early part of the season, the team made the bold decision to switch back to the chassis that qualified No. 1 and went to the finals at this same race last year.

PPG nitro Mustang funny car taking off from the starting line at the 2025 NHRA Virginia Nationals

In Friday’s opening session, Bob Tasca III powered the PPG nitro Mustang Dark Horse Funny Car to a smooth 4.113-second run at 310.48 mph. That effort earned the team the 8th spot heading into Saturday.

In Q2, the track got even hotter, but the car delivered again with a clean 4.138 at 307.86 mph, though the team dropped to 11th in the provisional order. Tasca noted the car may have lost a cylinder early in the run, which impacted power.

Q3 brought the strongest run of the weekend. Tasca laid down a 4.047 at 319.75 mph in brutal heat, jumping up to 7th overall and setting the tone for Sunday eliminations. “Almost 320 miles an hour in these conditions—this PPG nitro Mustang is flying,” said Tasca.

In round one of eliminations on Sunday, Tasca faced off against Spencer Hyde. With a sharp 0.089 reaction time and a stout 4.055 pass at 319.14 mph, Tasca secured the win in what he called “a good old-fashioned drag race.”

Round two matched Tasca up against Austin Prock, and on paper, Tasca had the winning run with a 4.141 to Prock’s 4.166. But the victory didn’t hold, Tasca was disqualified after the car spun the tires near 900 feet and drifted just enough to clip the finish line cone with the header. “I tried to get it back in the groove, but it pulled too quick,” Tasca said. “Tough second-round loss for this team.”

The return to the 2024 chassis paid off in performance and consistency. The team made three full qualifying passes and ran strong on race day. Despite the heartbreak in round two, Tasca Racing showed signs of returning to form, and the data collected under extreme conditions gives the crew something to build on as the season heats up.