Since 1998, Drag Race Central has served as one of drag racing’s most enduring resources for fans who want quick, accurate results. Twenty-seven years later, the site remains a cornerstone of the sport, maintained by Rick Green and Dave Rowe, even as technology and media platforms around them have rapidly evolved.
Green admits the passion that keeps him in the trenches hasn’t wavered. “I’ve just grown up loving the sport and continue to love it, and so that’s what drives me,” he said. That passion fuels long days at racetracks across the country, from the moment the first car fires until well after the last one crosses the finish line.
“Before the first car goes down the track until after the last car goes down the track, and then at least another 45 minutes,” Green explained. “So depending on the day at the racetrack, a long day.”
Drag Race Central began as a niche concept, delivering data for fans when few options existed. Under the leadership of founder Ed Dykes and software engineer Larry Sullivan, the project shifted from a personal pursuit into a platform that now serves thousands of users. Green acknowledged that while the site has stood the test of time, it has not been without missed opportunities.
“Well, because we are the only ones that do what we do is the unique option, but I think we missed the boat on a couple of things,” Green said. “Drag Race Central is basically a results website. It’s nothing really more. I put stories and stuff in there, but it’s basically where you go to get your results. And that’s what I say, I missed the boat. I should have expanded our operations, but figured stay with what you’re good at.”
Even so, the site has become indispensable for fans and racers seeking immediate information on qualifying sheets, eliminations, and round-by-round updates. Green said the continued loyalty gives him a sense of appreciation. “Well, it gives me some type of appreciation for all the hard work I do, but I don’t know,” he admitted.
.
📷📷📷 Headed to the Stampede of Speed & #FallNats? 📷📷
— Competition Plus (@competitionplus) October 3, 2025
Don’t miss your chance to SAVE 10% with code 📷 COMPETITIONPLUS10 📷
📷 Grab your tickets here 📷 https://t.co/3S7MSFCe60#DragRacingNews #PEAKSquad 📷 pic.twitter.com/oH6sMKHzvA
The memories of Dykes and Sullivan remain central to Green’s work. Dykes, who died in a plane crash after meeting with sponsors, is remembered as the visionary who pushed the project into a sustainable model.
“I always think of trying to make Ed Dykes proud because he was the one that thought of how to do this,” Green said. “We were all doing it for CompuServe to begin with, but we were spending our own money and getting divorces and losing all of our money because we were out here doing this, and so he figured out a way to get paid to do it. And so I just tried to make him think that he would be proud of what I’ve done with it.”
Sullivan, meanwhile, built the program that remains the backbone of Drag Race Central. “Larry Sullivan is the engineer behind it all. He’s the one that made the program that makes it so we can do what we do,” Green said. “And that’s why I really think no one else has been able to come along because they don’t have the software to make it work like we do.”
Green said the sudden loss of Dykes pushed him into a role he hadn’t fully anticipated. “Ed had just met with the Summit Racing Equipment people and was on his way home and had an airplane crash, and they called me and said they wanted to keep doing it and if I’d wanted to take it on,” Green said. “At that time, I still had a full-time job and I just did it on weekends, and they said you’ll have to make this full-time job. And so that’s when I figured, well, I’ll jump on the boat and we’ll see if it sinks or goes. So that’s been what, 28 years ago or something?”
The staffing of Drag Race Central has changed significantly since those early years. At one point, Green said, nearly 10 reporters contributed. Sponsorship cuts and logistical changes reduced that number, and many contributors went on to leadership roles in the sport.
“Well, he’s an intricate part. It’s just Dave Rowe and I now,” Green said. “It used to, at one time, I think there were probably about 10 reporters that worked for me. And as we lost sponsorships and things of that nature, we started covering less and started having the divisional races done from home and things of that nature.”
Green credited the site for providing opportunities that helped others in drag racing establish careers. “Dave’s the only one that’s left out of those 10. And they’ve either passed on or went on to other jobs,” he said. “Some of them became division directors and some of them did track managers. And so I think, in a way, it gave some of those younger kids a start in drag racing that they wouldn’t have had the visibility of being out here if it wasn’t for Drag Race Central.”
While Green acknowledges that the site may not have evolved into a multimedia powerhouse, its staying power lies in its reliability and singular focus. For hardcore fans, Drag Race Central remains the scoreboard and archive that preserves runs, records and results long after the smoke clears.
For Green, that mission continues nearly three decades later. “I’ll jump on the boat and we’ll see if it sinks or goes,” he said. “So far, it’s stayed afloat.”
