(Words by Darr Hawthorne) • The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) announced today that U.S. 131 Motorsports Park will host a Mission Foods Drag Racing Series event in 2026, with the inaugural NHRA Great Lakes Nationals opening the Countdown to the Championship playoffs.
The new event, scheduled for Sept. 18–20 in Martin, Michigan, will serve as the 15th of 20 races during NHRA’s 75th anniversary season and the first of six playoff rounds. Tickets go on sale February 1, 2026. U.S. 131 Motorsports Park will also host an NHRA national open on July 8-9, leading into a Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series divisional event on July 10-12.

While NHRA framed this announcement as continued growth, the move effectively ends the Keystone Nationals following the IHRA’s acquisition of Maple Grove Raceway, removing one of the sport’s most historic venues from the NHRA national event schedule. 2025 celebrated the 40th annual NHRA Reading Nationals at Maple Grove.
It should be noted that the seating capacity of Maple Grove is upwards of 30,000 while U.S. 131 Motorsports Park reportedly accommodates some 12,000 plus spectators.
The Great Lakes Nationals will mark NHRA’s first national event at U.S. 131 and brings the total to four “new” National Event facilities for 2026. A majority of those tracks were formerly AHRA or IHRA or Outlaw Street sanctions. This shift underscores a changing landscape for NHRA, as expansion into new markets comes at the expense of long-established tracks with large capacity grandstands, raising questions about tradition, territory, and the long-term direction of the national event calendar during NHRA’s milestone 75th Anniversary Season.









