• More than 47,000 spectators over the weekend, sold-out Nightshow
  • Luke Farrugia sets new European record in Funny Bike
  • Adverse conditions bring final rounds to an early end

The 39th edition of the NitrOlympX, held from 21 to 23 August 2026, once again demonstrated why this long-established drag racing event is one of the highlights of European motorsport. Despite heavy rain throughout Friday, the NitrOlympX managed to slightly surpass the record attendance set in 2025, welcoming more than 47,000 spectators to the Hockenheimring once again. Fans experienced a particular highlight on Saturday evening, when the spectacular Nightshow was sold out and delivered an unforgettable combination of motorsport and entertainment, with spectacularly illuminated racing action continuing late into the evening.

The sporting action was equally impressive. A new European record in Funny Bike, Top Fuel Dragsters exceeding 400 km/h, numerous outstanding ETs and hard-fought battles provided a weekend packed with highlights. Weather-related interruptions and technical incidents repeatedly challenged riders, drivers, teams and track crews. Although the early termination of numerous final rounds on Sunday prevented a complete sporting conclusion in all classes, it did little to diminish the overall strong showing of the event.

New European Record and Outstanding Performances

The standout sporting achievement of the weekend came from Malta’s Luke Farrugia on Saturday. In the first qualifying session for the FIM Europe Top Fuel Bike class, Farrugia ran a 6.146-second pass at 356.34 km/h to set a new European record for Funny Bikes. He lowered the previous benchmark of 6.181 seconds, set by Britain’s Stuart Crane.

In the FIA Top Fuel Dragster class, Swiss driver Jndia Erbacher dominated qualifying. Her 4.053-second pass at 400.11 km/h remained unbeaten. In the final, the local favourite had been due to face reigning European Champion Susanne Callin of Sweden.

German driver Timo Habermann, meanwhile, continued his impressive comeback campaign in FIA Top Methanol following a six-year break from racing. He posted several runs in the 5.3-second range, while Sweden’s Tony Bryntesson and Johnny Lagg advanced to the final.

Further standout performances came from multiple European Champion Jimmy Ålund in FIA Pro Stock, with a 6.596-second pass at 338.51 km/h; Michel Tooren in Pro Modified, who recorded a 5.815 at 394.08 km/h; and Denmark’s Marcus Christiansen in the FIM Supertwin Bike class. Christiansen clocked a 6.146-second pass at 366.56 km/h in Sunday’s semi-final – just around 5 km/h short of the European speed record.

Spectacular Action in the Sportsman Classes

The Junior Dragster class produced a particularly impressive moment on Saturday when Britain’s Amelia Innes recorded a perfect 0.000-second reaction time. On Friday, Lenny Fässler had already topped the qualifying sheet with a 0.006-second reaction time.

One of the stories of the weekend belonged to Britain’s Jack Williams. Following an accident on Friday, his team spent more than ten hours repairing the Pro-Comp Corvette. Williams returned to the track on Saturday and improved his ET to 7.322 seconds at 304.45 km/h.

Another spectacular incident involved Robert Jongen, whose Super Pro ET VW Beetle lost a rear wheel on the launch. Jongen escaped the incident uninjured.
Final Rounds Unable to Be Completed in All Classes

Race Sunday began under sunny skies and initially proceeded according to schedule. Several high-class semi-finals and final rounds were on the programme. However, two major oil-downs during the course of the day caused significant delays.

The Funny Bike final was particularly affected. Stefan Hagenstein’s Suzuki laid down a long oil trail on the track which required extensive clean-up work. As a result, continuing the final rounds would have pushed the event beyond the operating window stipulated by the local authorities for environmental and emissions-control reasons.

Race control therefore had no choice but to bring the event to an end. As a result, numerous scheduled finals, including final rounds in several FIA and FIM classes, could not be run. The NitrOlympX 2026 therefore concluded with a number of unresolved final pairings rather than a complete set of class results.

“Of course, we would have wished for a different ending to the NitrOlympX. Especially because the track once again provided excellent conditions for spectacular racing this weekend, and the drivers, riders, teams, volunteers and our entire organisation have put an incredible amount of work into this event over many months. In the end, however, the weather and the resulting delays throughout the weekend, together with further setbacks such as oil-downs, simply left us without enough time to run the remaining finals within the prescribed operating window,” says Jochen Nerpel, Managing Director of Hockenheim-Ring GmbH.

His fellow Managing Director Jorn Teske adds: “All the more reason for us to be delighted by the fantastic response from the fans. More than 47,000 spectators over the weekend and a sold-out Nightshow are a very strong signal and demonstrate just how important the NitrOlympX are to the fans. The fact that we were able to slightly surpass last year’s attendance record despite the rain-affected Friday is a fantastic endorsement of the event and of the entire team that makes it possible. And next year, the 40th edition of the NitrOlympX will mark a very special milestone for us. Without giving too much away, the 2027 anniversary event will feature even more highlights and will raise the bar once again compared with this year’s event – and we are already very much looking forward to it.”

Nightshow Delivers Action on the Track and in the Air

When the lights came on in the Motodrom on Saturday evening, the atmosphere in the packed grandstands reached its peak. The sold-out Nightshow offered spectators a unique blend of motorsport and entertainment.

Following the spectacular landing of the parachutists from Aero Club Walldorf, the Red Bull FMX show delivered the first major adrenaline rush with world-class freestyle motocross action. This was followed by a captivating aerial performance by Marlene Kiepke, spectacular runs by Top Fuel Dragsters and bikes, and appearances by the jet-powered dragsters Patriot, Armageddon and Fire Storm, as well as Gerd Habermann’s Jet School Bus.

The evening culminated in a spectacular head-to-head run between Fire Storm and the jet-powered Funny Car Dragon Hunter. The Terry Grant Stunt Show provided even more high-octane entertainment before a spectacular light show and a major fireworks display brought the evening to a spectacular close.

The 40th edition of the NitrOlympX will take place from 20 to 22 August 2027. Advance ticket sales are already underway.

Full results are available here…