The Southeast Gassers Association returns to Alabama this weekend for the first time in nearly five years, bringing its 1960s-style heads-up drag racing format to Holiday Raceway for the inaugural Bama Brawl in Woodstock.
The event marks the second stop of the 2026 season and the first appearance by the series at the family-owned facility, which dates to 1968. A planned visit in 2025 was lost to weather, making this year’s race a delayed debut for one of the Southeast’s most tradition-rich tracks.
That pairing gives the series a fitting backdrop. Southeast Gassers has built its identity around period-correct gasser competition, with vintage body styles, manual transmissions, wheelstanding launches and side-by-side eliminations that mirror drag racing’s early era.
Holiday Raceway provides the kind of setting the organization seeks. The Alabama strip has remained a grassroots destination for racers and fans, and this weekend places it on the SEGA championship trail for the first time.
Alabama racers are expected to be a major storyline.
The state has long supplied strong contenders in the organization, and that depth stretches across multiple classes. Names such as Dean, Oden and Rainwater have become familiar to series followers through championships and consistent performances.
From Super Stock through A/Gas, Alabama competitors will try to defend home turf against a traveling field that spans the Southeast. Home-track pride often carries weight in nostalgia racing, where local support and regional rivalries still matter.
The Bama Brawl opens Friday with a SEGA-only test and tune beginning at 5 p.m. Central Time. Gates open at 4 p.m., with admission listed at $20.
Saturday qualifying begins at 1 p.m. Central Time, followed by championship eliminations. Gates open at 11 a.m., with $25 single-day admission and $35 weekend passes available.
Once eliminations begin, the format turns simple and unforgiving. Two cars stage, one advances, and winners continue until champions are crowned in each category.
That direct style has helped Southeast Gassers carve out a loyal audience. Fans looking for polished corporate spectacle usually look elsewhere, but those wanting raw starts, aggressive gear changes and old-school race-day tension know where to stand.
The 2026 schedule continues after Alabama with stops at Brainerd Motorsports Park in Georgia, Knoxville Dragway in Tennessee and Rockingham Dragway in North Carolina. Later events include Farmington Dragway, Greer Dragway, Gulfport Dragway’s double-feature weekend and the season finale at Shadyside Dragway.
