by Bobby Bennett Jr. Wed, 2024-06-19 10:37
The NHRA’s decision to condense the Virginia Nationals into two days doesn’t present as big of a challenge to the more prominent teams as one might expect.
In. his first season as a Top Fuel driver, Tony Stewart believes the format will be just fine for his team.
“I honestly think our team is more than capable of handling it," Stewart said. "On race day, they’re doing four rounds if they make it to the final. So, three rounds and having the time to prepare beforehand makes it not an issue as far as the teams are concerned.
by Bobby Bennett Jr. Wed, 2024-06-19 08:41
It might be the one thing the pandemic got right.
NHRA confirmed in a statement that it would once again open its season in Gainesville, Fla. It's the third consecutive season the California-based sanctioning body has started its season in Match and on the East Coast.
Tickets for the Gatornationals will go on sale on Aug. 19, and the entire 2025 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series schedule will be announced soon.
by Bobby Bennett Jr.; Photos by Barry Bergeron Tue, 2024-06-18 11:48
On a weekend where the Rooftec Competition Eliminator Bonus Fund traveled outside of its NHRA Division 5 (South-central) divisional base, the D5 racers who have long supported the series displayed their prowess in sweeping both races.
Scott Linder completed the sweep by driving his A/Altered Pontiac Grand Am to the title by stopping Adam Hickey in the final round. Linder joined Taylor Chomiski in winning those events.
by Bobby Bennett Jr. Tue, 2024-06-18 11:23
Tony Stewart Racing [TSR] will represent the Dodge brand as the team announced an extension for the foreseeable future. Details of the extension, which entails both the team’s Top Fuel and Funny Car teams, were not revealed in a team statement.
The partnership began in 2022 and has yielded 15 national event victories and the Funny Car NHRA Mission Foods championship in 2023 with Matt Hagan. In 2024, team owner Tony Stewart took over the driving chores on the dragster while his wife Leah Pruett is on leave of absence as they begin a family.
by Bobby Bennett Jr. Tue, 2024-06-18 10:47
NHRA has been rapidly charting new frontiers, and the upcoming NHRA Virginia Nationals will showcase two of its latest efforts. Not only will the event hosted by Virginia Motorsports Park become an unprecedented two day national event where professional teams qualify on Saturday and race on Sunday, it will also feature title sponsorship for its new PlayNHRA, an initiative that provides fans opportunities to engage in fantasy games, gaming, and betting for NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series events.
The PlayNHRA Virginia Nationals, June 21 - 23, 2024, serves as the ninth of 20 races during the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season.
by Bobby Bennett; Photos by Steve Reyes Mon, 2024-06-17 21:00
For those on the outside looking in, the great PRA/PRO vs. NHRA conflict of the 1970s might have appeared to be a pissing match of epic proportions. However, when details of what caused the public relations dust up almost five decades later come to light, it was more about professional drag racers demanding what they felt was their worth compared to other forms of motorsports.
In 1971, with the Vietnam War raging, the United States motorsports community came together in a show of support for the troops during a USO tour at the request of Rear Admiral Emmet H. Tidd. The team featured the best of the best in all forms of racing and included the likes of Richard Petty, A.J. Foyt, Mario Andretti, and drag racing’s Don Garlits.
Little did Tidd know, the tour would create another kind of war.
by Bobby Bennett Jr.; Photos courtesy of NHRA, Steve Reyes, Jon Asher, Norman Blake, Cacklefest.com, Dave Wallace, Dave McGee Mon, 2024-06-17 15:29
In this five-part series, CompetitionPlus.com will explore ten races that were really great at one time, and some were famous, while others were obscure. The bottom line is they were fun and epitomized the spirit of drag racing.
We will undoubtedly miss a few, but save your judgment until the series ends. Special thanks to Bret Kepner, Dave Wallace, Steve Earwood, and others who helped ensure this series came to fruition with their knowledge of the sport and willingness to contribute.
by Bobby Bennett Jr.; Photos by Tara Bowker Sun, 2024-06-16 09:44
They likely didn’t ask for it, but they got it. The Franklin and Steding families both secured double-up victories.
On Father’s Day weekend, Franklin and his daughter scored a double-up victory, with him taking the Pro Nitrous win and Amber scoring the title in Pro 632 during the North vs. South Shootout in Budds Creek, Md. Not to be outdone, Kurt Steding and son Ethan taking home the Pro Boost and Pro Street titles respectively.
Elijah Morton (Extreme Pro Stock) rounded out the top winners at Maryland International Raceway.
by Bobby Bennett; Photo by Barry Bergeron Sat, 2024-06-15 12:01
Comp racer Taylor Chomiski killed two birds with one stone at the NHRADivision 5 event at the new Flying H Dragstrip outside Kansas City, Mo. This weekend's first of two events marked the fourth stop on the $750,000 Rooftec Competition Eliminator Bonus Fund series [CEBF].
Chomiski scored his first career Rooftec CEBF, and in beating Don Thomas, he kept the curse intact, which prevented a racer from winning two of the events in the same season.
by Bobby Bennett, Jr.; Photos by Tara Bowker Sat, 2024-06-15 10:26
The last time Steve King raced a major Pro Modified event in Maryland, it worked out well for him. After winning Cecil County Dragway’s $50,000-to-win Pro Mod Invitational back in May, King drove his supercharged Corvette to the No. 1 qualifying position in Pro Boost at the PDRA North vs. South Shootout
Joining him atop the doorslammer-based series were Jim Halsey (Pro Nitrous) and Jeremy Huffman (Extreme Pro Stock).
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