Quain Stott has come a long way in IHRA competition. From his humble beginnings of racing on a shoestring budget to making the most of a modest one, the Inman, S.C.-based driver scored a world championship in 2006 and picked up nine national event victories in 14 finals.

After entering his 144th consecutive event at Rockingham, N.C., Stott says he's made a tough decision regarding his future. He’s walking away from the series in 2009, at least in terms of chasing a championship.

Stott says the troubled U.S. economy didn’t make the decision. He’s adamant that customer service or lack thereof from the sanctioning body did. He’s under the impression his comments won’t be taken seriously.

Quain Stott has come a long way in IHRA competition. From his humble beginnings of racing on a shoestring budget to making the most of a modest one, the Inman, S.C.-based driver scored a world championship in 2006 and picked up nine national event victories in 14 finals.

After entering his 144th consecutive event at Rockingham, N.C., Stott says he's made a tough decision regarding his future. He’s walking away from the series in 2009, at least in terms of chasing a championship.

Stott says the troubled U.S. economy didn’t make the decision. He’s adamant that customer service or lack thereof from the sanctioning body did. He’s under the impression his comments won’t be taken seriously.

He cautions they should be because those gripes aren’t his alone.

“Nobody will miss me because there will be another monkey to take my place like there always is,” Stott said. “That’s what the IHRA counts on, that’s what all the sanctioning bodys count on. I’m not the only dummy out here. There are 50 or 60 other Pro Mod drivers that feel just like I do.

“I’ve actually been told that before by a former IHRA President when I have made some complaints. I was told if I didn’t like the way things went, I could leave to go somewhere else. Well now I have somewhere else I can go. I have a list of problems we’ve compiled in the pits if they want to talk about it, but unless they are willing to get serious then they shouldn’t waste my time or theirs.”

 

Nobody will miss me because there will be another monkey to take my place like there always is. - Quain Stott

Stott says the gripes range from professional teams having to pay entry fees to lack of foresight of management conducting race events to the sportsman style ladder used in professional competition.

“The entry fee is my biggest problem, I’ve been begging, every racer has been begging for them to reconsider,” Stott added. “It’s not the money anymore - it’s just the smack in the face -- pulling up to the gate and paying an entry fee when you run a professional class. It just doesn’t seem like the sanctioning body is going anywhere and I have to make my decisions based on the current situation.

“I’ve been here through all the changes and every time we’ve been told it’s getting better and all that, and it’s still the same old thing in the end. They won’t listen to me when I talk to them man-to-man, but they’ll listen now. They wonder why we only have barely have Pro Modified cars like we used to and it don’t take a rocket scientist to figure it out. These racers are still racing, just not here anymore.”

Stott said he’s cheering for the new IHRA ownership with Feld Motorsports to improve the morale in the pits, but this time he’s going to witness the transformation from another angle – the outside.

“If they make a big enough impact, I may be back,” Stott admitted. “Otherwise I’m getting my eighth-mile combination ready for ADRL.”