Tii Tharpe is the champion of the NHRA Mickey Thompson Tires & Wheels Top Fuel Harley Drag Racing Series after clinching the win over the Labor Day weekend at the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis — a new event for the Harley series this year. Tharpe defeated Doug Vancil in dramatic fashion after the two entered the finale separated by less than a round's worth of points.

Tharpe and Vancil competed head-to-head throughout the season, with Tharpe going into the weekend's showdown with a slight edge. The duo recorded identical 0.43 reaction times to kick off the final round before Tharpe surged ahead on the strength of a 6.44 pass on his Spevko, recording his fifth win of the season.

“Congratulations to Tii and his team on earning the Mickey Thompson Tires Top Fuel Harley title,” said Ken Warner, Vice President of Marketing for Mickey Thompson Tires & Wheels. “It doesn't get any more exciting than the kind of finish Tii and our other elite competitors treated fans to, and we're looking forward to building on that excitement next year.”

Additionally, Stock Eliminator winner TC Morris, S.A.M Tech Factory Stock Showdown champion Leah Pritchett and Dodge Hemi Challenge winner James Daniels all relied on Mickey Thompson tires to top the podium over the weekend in Indianapolis.

Mickey Thompson increased its presence in the Top Fuel Harley class this season and was featured at 10 events on the 2018 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series calendar—up from eight races last year. It awarded bonuses to the top three finishers, where riders competed for a share of $97,000 in total awards between year-end prize money and the eight races.

For a full list of results from the Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals, go to: https://www.nhra.com/schedule/2018/nhra-mello-yello-drag-racing-series/chevrolet-performance-us-nationals

See the full schedule of upcoming NHRA 2018 races here:
https://www.nhra.com/schedule