What is the nickname of the NHRA's annual event at Pomona, California?

The NHRA’s annual Pomona event is nicknamed the Winternationals.

The name reflects the race’s traditional place near the beginning of the drag-racing season, when winter weather still shaped the calendar even though Pomona sits in Southern California. NHRA has held the event at Pomona since 1961, making it one of the organization’s longest-running national competitions.

Pomona’s dragstrip itself hosted NHRA’s first sanctioned event in April 1953. The venue later became associated with two major NHRA races: the Winternationals and the season-ending NHRA Finals, which moved there in 1984. The Winternationals was traditionally the season opener for decades, although scheduling changed during and after the COVID-19 period.

A common mix-up is confusing the Winternationals with the U.S. Nationals, NHRA’s famous Labor Day event at Indianapolis. Fans also shorten the Pomona race to “Winternats,” but that informal name refers to the same event.