LAS VEGAS - Alexis DeJoria Wrap Up

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Thu, 05 Nov 2026, 15:20 PM

DeJoria Debuts 'Silver and Black' Bandero Funny Car, Shows Strong Pace at NHRA Nevada Nationals

Courtesy of Allison McCormick, ABM Communications

NHRA Las Vegas Nationals
Event 19 of 20
Countdown Event 5 of 6
The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Las Vegas
Oct. 30 - Nov. 1, 2026

LAS VEGAS - Alexis DeJoria and the John Force Racing Bandero Premium Tequila Funny Car team kicked off the NHRA Nevada Nationals with an impressive qualifying performance and a special livery unveil celebrating Bandero's new multi-year partnership as the Official Tequila of the Las Vegas Raiders. After debuting the new 'Silver and Black' scheme, DeJoria rocketed to the top of the timing sheets in the opening qualifying session and ultimately secured the No. 4 starting spot in a historic Funny Car field. Unfortunately, an ignition switch malfunction during Sunday's opening round of eliminations brought the team's promising weekend to an early end.

DeJoria's Nevada Nationals appearance got off to a memorable start on Friday afternoon when iconic Raiders superfans Wayne "Violator" Mabry and Mark Jones, president of the Black Hole fan club, joined her on the starting line to unveil the Bandero team's new Silver and Black look in front of a packed crowd. DeJoria then fired up her 12,000-horsepower Chevrolet and blasted down the track in 3.874 seconds at 333.33 mph, clocking the quickest run of the round.

After an early shutoff in Friday's second session, DeJoria and her Mike Neff/Jonnie Lindberg-led team returned on Saturday and delivered another strong run of 3.885 seconds. Her opening qualifying performance held up for the No. 4 qualifying position, placing her in the top half of the quickest Funny Car field in NHRA history, with all 16 qualifiers recording three-second runs.

On Sunday morning, DeJoria lined up against No. 13 qualifier Hunter Green in the opening round of eliminations. Green nabbed the early lead, but DeJoria quickly made up the difference and moved ahead of her opponent. Unfortunately, the ignition switch broke soon after and caused the Bandero Funny Car to lose power near halftrack, allowing Green to drive around DeJoria and take the win with a 3.923-second pass to her 3.931.

"I have a great team out here, I love these guys, we work well together," said DeJoria, who has two prior wins at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. "We've got a strong race car. We came out on Friday for Q1 and ran that 87 in the first round and got three bonus points and it couldn't have been more perfect because we had just unveiled the new Silver and Black livery celebrating Bandero's partnership with the Las Vegas Raiders. The Black Hole fan club was out here supporting us, which was really cool. The Raiders have been one of my favorite teams since I was a little girl. I used to go watch them with my mom at the LA Forum, so not only was it really cool to run this special scheme for Bandero, but it was also a really special moment for me personally.

"We qualified well this weekend and started from fourth, but the win lights on Sunday have eluded us as of late. So, it's been frustrating. This last one definitely stung. We had such a strong car going into today but unfortunately, we had a freak thing happen where the ignition switch broke. It nosed me over around halftrack and that was the end of our day. But, I think we've got a lot of good luck in the bank right now and we're building for 2027. Once we do break that seal and get our first win, I truly believe we will be unstoppable. I love this team, we're in this together and I've got their backs, and they've got mine. I can't say enough about Mike Neff and Jonnie Lindberg."

DeJoria, who will continue to campaign the Silver and Black Bandero Premium Tequila Funny Car at the season finale, leaves Las Vegas ranked seventh in the NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car standings. The team will close out the year at the In-N-Out Burger NHRA Finals, Nov. 13-15, at In-N-Out Burger Pomona Dragstrip in Pomona, Calif.

 
Qualified: No. 4 (3.874 E.T. at 333.33 MPH)
 
Elimination Round Results:
E1: 3.931 E.T. at 289.88 MPH defeated by Hunter Green 3.923 E.T. at 321.73 MPH

NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car Point Standings (Unofficial): 
1	Matt Hagan	2563
2	Jordan Vandergriff	2524
3	J.R. Todd	2459
4	Austin Prock	2422
5	Jack Beckman	2412
6	Ron Capps	2408
7	Alexis DeJoria	2314
8	Dan Wilkerson	2239
9	Spencer Hyde	2204
10	Chad Green	2187
11	Cruz Pedregon	2154
12	Dave Richards	2148