Earlier this season, a newly energized International Hot Rod Association quietly planted a flag on foreign soil, officially taking control of its Australian property and, in the process, igniting far bigger conversations than a single acquisition. While the IHRA has spent much of the year methodically snapping up racing facilities and rebuilding its domestic footprint, whispers around the pits and in sanctioning-body boardrooms suggest something far more ambitious may be taking shape. A world series with stops in Europe and the Middle East as well?

Those rumors point toward a bold, once-unthinkable idea: an honest-to-goodness global drag racing series. Under the leadership of Darryl Cuttell, the IHRA is rumored to be exploring a schedule that would stretch beyond U.S. borders, linking American events with international stops and turning drag racing into a truly worldwide championship rather than a regional export.