I wouldn't think that NHRA would allow that but some small time track might do it. It is very dangerous and creates a liability for the track owner.

We had a case in law school where a car hit a cylinder head that was laying in the track and the driver was injured. He sued the track owner and won. The case didn't explain how a cylinder head was laying on the track. I always thought that was a weird case. How could a cylinder head end up on the track without anyone seeing it?