Jason Collins wins Pro Mod Southern Nationals

Pro Mod drag racing is the loud, violent edge of NHRA — full-bodied cars, huge power, and very little margin for error. That is why Jason Collins’ win at the Southern Nationals landed the way it did. He did not grind out this result over a long rookie season. He showed up for just his second career JBS Equipment NHRA Pro Mod start and won the whole thing on Sunday, May 3, at South Georgia Motorsports Park, beating Mike Thielen in the final. (nhra.com) ### Why was this a bigger deal than a normal event win? Because Collins was not the established favorite in a class built around deep teams, tricky setups, and tiny mistakes turning into lost rounds. NHRA’s own event recap framed it plainly — this was his second career start in the category. Winning that quickly is unusual in any(nhra.com)l and the field is usually stacked with experienced operators. (nhra.com) ### What actually happened in the final? Collins beat Mike Thielen in the final round with a 5.731-second pass at 252.99 mph in a Chevy Camaro. Thielen’s Ford Mustang slowed to a 9.682 at 93.34 mph, so the deciding run was not a side-by-side photo finish — Collins basically owned the final once his car made a clean trip. He had already qualified No. 2, so this was not a fluke ladder run from the back. (draglist.com) ### Who was Collins driving for? He was in Scott Tidwell Racing’s screw-blown 1969 Camaro, and that matters because Pro Mod is as much about the combination as the driver. A screw-blown setup is one of the class’s big power paths — brutal acceleration, lots of tuning sensitivity, and not much forgiveness if the (draglist.com)The car had to be right. (dragracing.news) ### Why does Mike Thielen matter here too? Because this was not a soft final. Thielen made it there out of the Mike Janis Racing camp and had already put together a strong eliminations day after struggling in qualifying. That gave the final a real underdog-versus-breakthrough feel — Collins chasing a first national-class Pro Mod win, Thielen trying to finish a comeback Sunday from a rough start to the weekend. (dragracing.news) ### Was this the main NHRA headline of the weekend? Not across all classes. The Southern Nationals also produced winners in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Pro Stock, and Pro Stock Motorcycle, with Shawn Langdon, Jordan Vandergriff, Dallas Glenn, and Matt Smith taking those titles. But Pro Mod has its own season inside the larger NHRA weeken(dragracing.news)ro Mod races this year. (nhra.com) ### Why does South Georgia matter? This was NHRA Pro Mod’s official debut at South Georgia Motorsports Park as part of the Southern Nationals weekend, and the event drew a Sunday sellout. So Collins did not just win another stop on the calendar — he won the class’s first Southern Nationals Pro Mod trophy at that venue. Firsts stick. (nhra.com) ### What does this say about Pro Mod right now? Basically, the class is still volatile in the best way. You have enough parity, enough tuning variety, and enough chaos that a driver in his second start can break through if the package is right. That does not mean experience stopped mattering. It means the class st(nhra.com)exactly that. (nhra.com) ### Bottom line? Collins’ win was not just a nice upset. It was a reminder of what makes Pro Mod compelling — massive cars, fragile margins, and a class where a new name can matter immediately if the run is clean enough. Chicago is next on May 14-17, and now Collins arrives there as more than a surprise. He arrives as a winner. (nhra.com)