Erica Lee Enders (born October 8, 1983 in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
) is an American
drag racing
Drag racing is a type of motor racing in which automobiles or motorcycles compete, usually two at a time, to be first to cross a set finish line. The race follows a short, straight course from a standing start over a measured distance, most c ...
driver. Enders has won five championships in the
Pro Stock class of the
NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series
The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series is a drag racing series organized by the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA). It is the top competition series of the NHRA, comprising competition in four classes, including Top Fuel Dragster, Funny Car, ...
and she continues to drive full-time in that class.
Career
Enders started racing in 1992 at the age of 8. Her original Enders Racing
Junior Dragster car is on display at the
Wally Parks
Wallace Gordon Parks (January 23, 1913 – September 28, 2007) was an American writer. He was the founder, president, and chairman of the National Hot Rod Association, better known as NHRA. He was instrumental in establishing drag racing as a le ...
NHRA
The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) is a drag racing governing body, which sets rules in drag racing and hosts events all over the United States and Canada. With over 40,000 drivers in its rosters, the NHRA claims to be the largest motorsp ...
Motorsports Museum.
In 1993, Enders won the Division 4 Jr. Dragster championship in the 8 to 9 year old class, and in 1995 she was named Junior Dragster Driver of the Year. In her eight years of junior dragster competition, she had 37 career wins.
In 2000, at age 16, she advanced to her first national event final (Houston) to become the youngest NHRA national event finalist. She was named NHRA Sportsman Rookie of the Year.
In 2004, became the 35th woman in NHRA history to earn a national event victory, in Super Gas class at Houston. In 2005, she became the first woman to compete in the NHRA's Pro Stock Category since 1993, the first woman in NHRA history to qualify in the top-half of a Pro Stock field, and the first woman to reach a final round in Pro Stock (at Chicago). Enders achieved more round wins in 2005 than all other female drivers in NHRA Pro Stock history combined, and was a finalist for the “Road to the Future” award for the season’s top rookie.
In 2006, Enders became the first woman to qualify No. 1 in Pro Stock (at Heartland Park, Topeka, Kansas), and recorded another runner-up finish at the
Gatornationals
The Gatornationals is an annual National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) national drag racing event held each March at Gainesville Raceway in Gainesville, Florida. The event was held for the first time in 1970. The traditional East Coast opener and ...
in Gainesville, Fla.
After returning to Cagnazzi Racing in 2011, she broke the national speed record in Pro Stock at at the Gainesville round, and defeated 2004
NASCAR Sprint Cup Series
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. In 1971, ...
champion
Kurt Busch
Kurt Thomas Busch (born August 4, 1978) is an American professional auto racing driver. He last competed full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 45 Toyota Camry TRD for 23XI Racing. He is the 2004 NASCAR Cup Series champion and the ...
in Round One of that meet.
On July 2, 2012, Enders became the first woman to win in NHRA Pro Stock, beating four-time champion
Greg Anderson in the finals at Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Ill. Her winning time was 6.627 seconds for the 1,320 foot run.
In 2012, Enders finished a career best fourth in the points in the Countdown to the Championship in NHRA Pro Stock and followed that up with a sixth-place finish in 2013.
It was announced following the 2013 season that Enders would leave Cagnazzi Racing and join Elite Motorsports for the 2014 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, driving the team's new Camaro.
She currently holds both sides of the NHRA National Record for Pro Stock, 6.464 seconds and , set at Englishtown, NJ in 2014.
In 2014, Enders became the first woman to win the NHRA Pro Stock World Championship, winning six races for the year (an NHRA event win requires winning four, consecutive wins over competitors drawn from the sixteen quickest cars at that event), including the season-ending Auto Club NHRA Finals to clinch the title.
In 2015, Enders broke 2 records for female NHRA drivers. At
Charlotte
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
's
zMax Dragway
Charlotte Motor Speedway (previously known as Lowe's Motor Speedway from 1999 to 2009) is a motorsport complex located in Concord, North Carolina, outside Charlotte. The complex features a quad oval track that hosts NASCAR racing including ...
in September, she scored her 19th career win, surpassing a record previously held by
Shirley Muldowney
Shirley Muldowney (born June 19, 1940), also known professionally as "Cha Cha" and the "First Lady of Drag Racing", is an American auto racer. She was the first woman to receive a license from the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) to drive a ...
in
Top Fuel
Top Fuel is a type of drag racing whose dragsters are the quickest accelerating racing cars in the world and the fastest sanctioned category of drag racing, with the fastest competitors reaching speeds of and finishing the runs in 3.62 seconds ...
for the most NHRA national event wins by a female driver. At the
Texas Motorplex
The Texas Motorplex is a quarter mile drag racing facility located in Ennis, Texas, United States, south of downtown Dallas. Built in 1986 by former funny car driver Billy Meyer, the Motorplex was the first National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) "s ...
in October, Enders-Stevens claimed her eighth victory of the year, breaking
Pro Stock Motorcycle rider
Angelle Sampey’s single-season record of seven wins in 2001.
Enders won the NHRA Pro Stock World Championship for a second straight year in 2015.
In 2018 she also began driving a Pro Modified entry for Elite Motorsports, a twin turbo 2019 Camaro. She also holds the class record for fastest speed at 261 mph. In 2019, Enders barely escaped serious injuries when her Chevrolet Camaro caught fire at the end of a qualifying run in the NHRA Pro Mod class in Ohio.
Personal life
Enders is the older sister of
Courtney Enders
Courtney Lee Enders (born November 14, 1986) is a former NHRA drag racer.
Personal life
Enders is the younger sister of drag racer and four-time (2014, 2015, 2019, 2020) NHRA Pro Stock drag racing champion Erica Enders. She attended Cypress Spr ...
, who was a junior dragster driver; they both attended
Cypress Springs High School
Cypress Springs High School, CSHS, or more commonly as Cy-Springs is located at 7909 Fry Road, in Cypress, an unincorporated community in Harris County, Texas.
Cypress Springs High School was established in 1997, making it the sixth high scho ...
. After winning her first national event in Pro Stock, her longtime boyfriend Richie Stevens, Jr. (also a drag racer) proposed.
The two were married on December 7, 2012.
Film
In 2003, Enders and her sister had their life story turned into a Disney Channel Original Movie, ''
Right on Track''. Erica was portrayed by
Beverley Mitchell
Beverley Ann Mitchell is an American actress and country music singer. She portrayed Lucy Camden on the television series '' 7th Heaven''.
Early life
After graduating from Chaminade College Preparatory School in 1999, Mitchell enrolled at Lo ...
, while Courtney was portrayed by
Brie Larson
Brianne Sidonie Desaulniers (born October 1, 1989), known professionally as Brie Larson, is an American actress. Known for her supporting roles in comedies as a teenager, she has since expanded to leading roles in independent films and blockb ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Enders, Erica
Female dragster drivers
1983 births
Living people
Racing drivers from Houston
Dragster drivers
American female racing drivers
21st-century American women