RELATED STORY: A TRADITION OF HARD WORK AND BEATING THE ODDS: THE BADER WAY

It was a show that would have made the late Bill Bader Sr. smile.

In front of a packed house for the 45th annual Cornwell Tools Night Under Fire, Summit Motorsports Park delivered a show worthy of being drag racing’s largest single-day independent drag race.

Alexis DeJoria headlined the winners by winning the Chicago-Style eliminations format over John Force, and Larry “Spiderman” McBride won the two-wheeled nitro division.

Unlike many drag races, the Cornwell Tools Night Under Fire showcases the entertainment over the performance. However, on Saturday night, fans who had traveled from as far as Canada saw both thanks to the efforts of track manager Evan Bader and Kurt Johnson of Total Venue Concepts.

Bill Bader Jr. emceed the event sporting his traditional tuxedo while such acts as the Hooligans Flight Team flew over the track in their T-34 Mentors, presenting a Missing Man Formation, and the Rhythm and Rhyme Barbershop Quartet performed “The Star-Spangled Banner,” as a giant flag was ceremoniously unfurled over the track surface by a team of people led by Bobbie Bader.

Bob Motz traditionally closed the show with his iconic jet-powered Kenworth, while Joe Sylvester recorded 101.84 mph in his Bad Habit Monster Truck to set a Guinness World Record for the first Monster Truck to record 101 mph.

While the show entertained at a high level, the competition didn’t miss a beat either.

DeJoria drove to a 3.92 elapsed time to defeat John Force, who was right there with a 3.93, and in the Pingel Top Fuel Motorcycle Shootout presented by CycleDrag, Larry “Spiderman” McBride rocketed to a 5.77 to claim victory over Dave Vantine. Both riders went into the sand at the end of the track, but thankfully, neither was injured.

Josh Graham gunned to a 5.39 to win the eBay motors North American Jet Car Championship after Ernie Bogue fouled.

In Top Alcohol Dragster, Corey Michalek motored to the win with a 5.39 over Mike Hepp, and in R&R Auto Body & DeCerbo Construction Rumble Wars Extreme 8 Pro Mod, Johnny Camp cruised to a 3.66 against James Beadling, who was forced to lift.

Mike Knott muscled to the win with a 3.73 when Paul Molnar had to get out of the throttle in KB Trailer Sales/Motorsports Unlimited Outlaw Dragster, and Ray Kasicki and Bob Cook both stopped the clocks at 5.62, but Kasicki took the holeshot win, in ScottRods AA/Gassers.

The Edelbrock Super Series Elite presented by American Race Cars and Lucas Oil was introduced at this year’s event, and as part of it, the top 32 racers in Summit Motorsports Park’s Edelbrock Super Pro, Edelbrock Pro and Edelbrock Sportsman Delivered on Time by TFC Transportation categories, and the top 16 racers in the Wiseco/Cycle Tech Super Bike category as of Aug. 1, earned the opportunity to race for a share of a substantial $75,000 purse. Carl Keil won over Jono Gerber in Edelbrock Super Pro, Jon Lowery defeated John Bailey in Edelbrock Pro, Garreth Sheppeard upset Blue Adams in Wiseco/Cycle Tech Super Bike and Mitch Williams went to the winner’s circle after facing A.J. Buchanan in Edelbrock Sportsman Delivered on Time by TFC Transportation.

The Summit Racing Equipment Junior Dragster Shootout put the spotlight on the top eight Bear Motorsports presented by Wiseco Junior Dragster Advanced, Intermediate, and Novice racers as of Aug. 1, and the guaranteed purse was a generous $5,760. Braden Peters got past Cruz Schafter in Advanced, Vince Tiburzi turned on the win light against Kace Shupp in Intermediate, and Brayden Baehr defeated sister Abigail Baehr in Novice.

Toward the end of the evening, Bader Jr. gave a heartfelt speech in memory of his father, Bill Bader Sr., who was on the minds of most at this event and had played an integral part in producing it for decades. Then as Bader Sr. would have wanted, a powerful pyrotechnics show, shot from multiple locations over the park, put the exclamation mark on this year’s incredible and inspiring running of the Cornwell Tools Night Under Fire.