I
STATE OF DRAG
★★★★★
magine a time when millions of Americans
are tuned into a major television network to watch live
coverage of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series – a sport once relegated to 1AM timeslots and the
occasional primetime billing on a sporting network’s
secondary channel. Now, think of an eighth-mile drag
race in rural Georgia where a standing-room-only crowd numbering in the
tens-of-thousands has gathered to witness drivers of radial tire-equipped
cars dip well into the three-second zone at over 200mph while competing
for a $50,000 winner’s purse. Finally, picture a group of underground
street racers from the Midw est as the hottest stars in reality television.
Such notions would be laughed at as recently
as the turn of the decade, but they are all just a
glimpse at the current state of drag racing in 2016.
The NHRA “Western Swing” and prestigious U.S.
Nationals were broadcast live on FOX this summer for the first time in history – a monumental
achievement for the sanctioning body under the
direction of new president Peter Clifford. Promoter Donald “Duck” Long literally shut down major
highways with his Lights Out 7 event at South
Georgia Motorsports Park in February, where
about 450 on-the-edge, small-tired race cars battled for prize money that was previously unheard
of in the drag radial world. Now in production
for its eighth season, Discovery’s Street Outlaws
show and its stars have created controversy and
attracted legions of fans as they undoubtedly
leave their mark on the industry. Top Fuel dragsters and Funny Cars are eclipsing speed records
that were set when the nitro-gulping machines
were still racing to 1,320-feet, and eighth-mile
Pro Mods are now capable of performances in
the 3.4-second, 230 mile per hour range. It’s truly
a captivating and important time for the sport.
Through a series of face-to-face interviews,
Drag Illustrated gathered opinions from five of
professional drag racing’s most powerful, prominent and popular figures to get a look at the
state of drag racing from the inside. The panelists
represent several different backgrounds and disciplines – from Alan Johnson’s reserved stance
as an elite Top Fuel crew chief and manufacturer
to the driven nature of Leah Pritchett during her
ongoing quest to find a major backer. Pro Nitrous
superstar driver and owner Steve “Stevie Fast”
Jackson tackles the topics with the signature tellit-like-it-is, no-punches-pulled style of a proven
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grudge racer. As an original outlaw Pro Mod
heavyweight and quiet co-founder-slash-owner of
the Professional Drag Racers Association (PDRA),
Jason Scruggs comments on the series’ tumultuous season and what they’re doing to improve in
the future. Finally, NHRA Funny Car pilot Ron
Capps provides insight from his standpoint as
one of the sport’s few textbook “professional drag
racers”, revealing how his corporate sponsors feel
about the future of NHRA drag racing.
While there are always issues facing the
sport of drag racing at any given time, here
at the midway point of the season a large majority of racers, promoters and fans seem to
be in high spirits. Where do you stand on the
“We have to figure out
a way to market this
stuff to younger kids.
I want to watch drag
racing when I’m old
and retired, so I still
want it to be doing
good,” Jackson said.
health and wellness of drag racing heading
into the heat of summer in 2016?
Alan Johnson: Well, I think our sport’s always
been strong. Even during the recession we maintained a good presence; we didn’t lose nearly as
much as some other sports did. We have a great
product – a product that kind of sells itself to
some extent. This year with our improved television package with FOX, our viewership is way up.
And, over time, the more people that are exposed
to drag racing the more people are going to love
it. I haven’t had many instances where someone
came out to the track for the first time and said, ‘
Well, turns out I can’t stand drag racing.’ They’re
always, ‘Well, I love this! This is great! I didn’t
even know this existed!’ Right?
Ron Capps: It’s been unbelievable. The changes that Peter Clifford and his team have made
have really raised some eyebrows – especially
with sponsors – and not just the deal with FOX.
I know with NAPA they were a little unsure about
what all was happening – this was the first year
we didn’t shoot a new commercial. But I know
talking to the guys at corporate – they’re already
working on 2017 based on what they’ve seen from
the new TV show and the viewership numbers
thus far. They’re more than pleased. We’ve had
several sellouts this year, and you never heard
about that before this year. FOX Sports 1 has
re-aired a lot of our races during the week, and
I’m regularly getting calls and texts from people
wondering why I’m racing in the middle of the
week and I have to explain that it’s a replay. But,
to them, it’s up on the TV at the bar or grill or
whatever, and, man, that is huge. I can’t stress it
enough. We recently had the preliminary bouts
of the biggest mixed martial arts event in history
– UFC 200 – lead into NHRA Championship Drag
Racing. It’s unbelievable, and it’s incredible to
think of how many new people were introduced
to our sport in that instance alone.
Leah Pritchett: I believe it’s growing exponentially due to a lot of factors. I’m not sure that it
was entirely purposeful that it’s all coming together at the same time, but I think there are a lot of
different positive forces that are helping move the
sport in the right direction. On the NHRA side of
things, FOX has been a huge contributing factor,
as well as the upper management at NHRA finally
being open to input from racers, team owners and
fans. Honestly, from a general health and interest
perspective, I think you have to give the show
Street Outlaws some credit for getting people
excited about fast cars and racing as a whole. I
think the show has done a lot to attract a new fan
base for drag racing. Like I said, intentional or
not, drag racing’s status in the sporting world is
elevating right now, and it’s a good thing.
Jason Scruggs: I think things are looking good
right now, overall. Without question, the Street
Outlaws program is bringing a lot of new people
into drag racing, and a lot of people back that may
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