There is plenty to do this week at the Texas Motorplex near Dallas long before the Texas NHRA FallNationals, Oct. 14-16.

One of the headlining events at the 2nd annual Stampede of Speed was Scott Palmer’s Nitro Side Show, which took place Oct. 10 at the facility.

“Well, the first time was kind of a spur of the moment, just a thing that it was dreamed up and we whipped it out there and it worked out so good that social media blew up over this deal,” Palmer said about the inaugural Nitro Side Show in 2021. “Then, I probably got 1000 or 2000 messages and I had at least 10 racetracks contact me about, ‘Hey, why don't we do this at our track?’ And so, you know that people are taking notice when they do that. So, when (Texas Motorplex officials) called me this winter, we just decided well we need to do it again and do some things different.”

Palmer explained the differences in 2022.

Two drag-and-drive stars, Garrett “Cleetus McFarland” Mitchell and Rick Prospero, faced off in a double final round for big money, big checks, and big trophies in two different classes to wrap up the 10th annual FL2K presented by Brian Crower at Gainesville Raceway. Mitchell scored the win with a career-best 6.543-second pass at 221.38 MPH to finish ahead of Prospero and his 6.741 at 209.33, taking the win in Elite Street Car Shootout and Extreme 28s. 
 
The double final round was just one of the thrilling final rounds that closed out five days of action at Gainesville Raceway. The historic NHRA track played host to FL2K after Hurricane Ian caused damage to the event’s usual home track, Bradenton Motorsports Park, just days before the race. 

​Success has never been so rewarding.

Every time Kalitta Motorsports has won a round, Feeding America has been better able to feed the nation’s homeless. The Ypsilanti, Michigan team announced recently they and primary sponsor DHL would team up to donate to Feeding America, the largest charity working to end food hunger and insecurity in the United States through their Drive for Purpose Challenge initiative.

Thanks to a resurgence in performance, 140,000 meals have been donated.

All good things must eventually come to an end, and on Saturday, during Day Two of the second annual Stampede of Speed hosted by the Texas Motorplex, the 2022 Funny Car Chaos season concluded.

In the A Field, it was No. 1 qualifier Kirk Williams capping his world championship season with his sixth win of the year, defeating Mike Newkirk for the Funny Car Chaos trophy commemorative Stampede of Speed belt buckle. Williams was second off the line in the final but made up the difference almost immediately, getting the win with a 3.679-second pass to Newkirk’s 3.749-second run.

There were 32 qualifiers in the A field.

 
A special shootout with four of the quickest cars on the property closed out Saturday qualifying at the 10th annual FL2K presented by Brian Crower at Gainesville Raceway. Rick Prospero collected the $3,500 payday, adding to a day that also saw the Florida native qualify No. 1 in Street Car Shootout presented by Motion Raceworks and Real Street Performance. 
 
Driving his twin-turbocharged, big-block-Chevy-powered Mazda RX-7 known as the “Green Mamba,” Prospero used a 6.753-second pass at 203.89 MPH to knock out David Farlow and his 6.779 at 177.77 in the first round of the shootout. In the final round, he left the starting line first and posted a consistent 6.769 at 203.28 to beat Jonathan Atkins and his 6.916 at 202.91. 
 
“This win means a lot because we finally got the car to another level of power and it's pretty consistent,” Prospero said. “We tried to lean on it a little bit harder the first round and it wheelied, but we managed to gather it up and still got the win.”

From the creative mind of Les Mayhew comes this video of the AA-Fuel Dragster competition from the NHRA Hot Rod Heritage Series Nitro Nationals from Tulsa Raceway Park September 16-17, 2022.

Matt Smith would love nothing more than to win his sixth NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle world championship in 2022.

That would tie him with Andrew Hines for the most PSM world titles.

To help with the drive to a sixth world crown, Smith is having veteran competitor Chip Ellis ride one of his MSR bikes at the Texas NHRA FallNationals at the Texas Motorplex in Dallas.

Smith will arrive in Dallas as points leader with a 21-point advantage over Joey Gladstone.

Just ask a casual drag racing fan what they think of today's current NHRA Pro Stock, and chances are you will get one of these answers.

"Nothing stock, nothing relatable, never watch them. Best time to go check out the sportsman pits."

"Park a Pro Stock car next to the factory-produced equivalent, and that'll answer the question as far as I'm concerned."

After a last-minute move from Bradenton Motorsports Park to Gainesville Raceway, FL2K22 presented by Brian Crower is ready to host the biggest and baddest street cars for a weekend of roll racing, drag racing and more, Oct. 6-9. With bragging rights and $125,000 in cash payouts on the line, it’s one of the most anticipated events in the street car scene. 
 
Victor Alvarez launched the first FL2K in 2013 as a destination event for high-performance street cars. The event has exploded since then, attracting fans, racers, and sponsors to Bradenton Motorsports Park, with many more people watching online from around the world. Alvarez increased his commitment to the event and the track in general when he purchased Bradenton Motorsports Park in 2018. 

Kirk Williams admits that he “wasn’t the best mathematician in high school.”

But he didn’t have to be an Einstein to understand that Funny Car Chaos was the place he needed to race based on raw numbers.

“Where else can you go and have a $100 entry and run for $6,000?” the Glenwood, Iowa, racer said.