Rico Anthes Quartermile, Hockenheimring, Germany, 21st August 2026: First qualifications kicked off today for all competitors of the 2026 Nitrolympx. Starting around 9 am with the sportman categories, then slowly ramping it up to the FIA & FIM categories. The morning temperatures were around 20 °C, but unfortunately, several rain showers put the races on hold several times during the day. FIA (cars) competitors completed their first qualification round, except Top Fuel Dragster, which was not completed due to rain showers. Also, the qualification runs for the FIM (bikes) categories were canceled due to rain. Still, the spectators saw some great FIM races earlier in the day, like a 5.396 seconds for Timo Habermann vs. a 5.463 seconds for Tony Bryntesson. The top qualifiers for the FIA categories are: Timo Habermann (TM), Stian Rusånes (PM) & Jimmy Ålund (PS).

Text: Benjamin Wefer
Pictures: Benjamin Wefer
Last updated: 21-08-2026

The Top Fuel Dragster, with only four entries this year, was still ongoing when it started to rain. Therefore, only Øyvor Jacobsen and Jndia Erbacher made a pass. Jacobsen completed her burnout but had a major tire shake as soon as he hit the gas pedal, and rolled the dragster to the finish line. Erbacher also encountered some tire shake and aborted the race. Susan Callin and Colin Millar were the last pair to burn out, but the race was canceled due to rain. It would be interesting to see which one will put the first three-second pass on the scoreboard over the weekend.

In Top Methanol, Timo Habermann claimed the provisional number-one spot. Habermann crossed the finish line in 5.396 seconds at 427 km/hr. Tony Bryntesson is currently second with a 5.463-second run at 428 km/hr. Jonny Lagg is currently third with a 5.587-second run at 423 km/hr. Lagg and reigning champion Sandro Bellio were the last pair of the morning session for Top Methanol, but couldn’t run as rain started. They did their run in the afternoon. Bryntesson, Habermann, and Lagg were the only three out of six competitors who managed to run into the 5-second zone.

Timo Habermann

Tony Bryntesson

Jonny Lagg

In Pro Modified, Stian Rusånes from Norway claimed the top qualifying position. Pro Modified competitors had to wait until late in the afternoon to make their first run, and several drivers struggled with the track conditions as temperatures dropped. Still, Rusånes managed to set a stunning run of 5.825 seconds at 387 km/hr to claim the number one spot. Andres Arnover from Estonia was another driver into the 5.8-second zone and took the provisional number two spot with a 5.882-second run at 394 km/hr. David Vegter from the Netherlands is currently third with a 5.896-second (with a reaction time of 0.159 second) run at 383 km/hr, with Marck Harteveld (also from the Netherlands) in fourth position with a 5.977-second (reaction time of 0.036) run at 384 km/hr.

Stian Rusånes

Andres Arnover

David Vegter

Jimmy Ålund, like in 2025, claimed the provisional number-one spot in Pro Stock. Ålund, with a stunning reaction time of 0.047 seconds, crossed the finish line in 6.660 seconds at 335 km/hr to take the top qualifying position. Remarkable to say that Ålund qualified last year in 1st position with a 6.699-second run at 333 km/hr! Robin Norén is currently second with a 6.752-second run at 332 km/hrs, while Simon Ekengren is third with a 6.821-second run at 325 km/hr.

Jimmy Ålund

Robin Norén

Simon Ekengren

A wet first day at the Rico Anthes Quartermile, resulting in only the FIM categories doing one qualification run instead of the planned two, and with the FIM categories canceled. The weather forecast for tomorrow isn’t looking good, but let’s hope the weather gods will be on our side. Stay tuned for the second day of the Nitrolympx weekend (the last Qualifications and first elimination rounds!) We at The Chronicles of Boost wish all competing drivers good luck, but most of all, have fun!

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