Erica Enders became the first woman to win the NHRA Pro Stock world championship in 2014.
Her title came after a breakthrough 2012 season, when she became the first woman to win an NHRA Pro Stock national event. By 2014, Enders had turned that historic victory into a full championship campaign, winning six events and securing the season title in the category's yearlong points battle.
The wording matters because women had already won NHRA championships in other professional categories. Shirley Muldowney, for example, became a pioneering Top Fuel champion, while women had also achieved major success in Funny Car and other divisions. Enders' distinction is specific to Pro Stock, a class built around production-based cars and naturally aspirated V8 engines.
Enders defended the title in 2015, becoming the first woman to win Pro Stock championships in consecutive seasons. She later added championships in 2019, 2020 and 2022, establishing herself as the winningest female champion in the class.