The tense championship battles in the Professional Drag Racers Association (PDRA) will tighten up this weekend as the all-eighth-mile series heads to Darlington Dragway for the penultimate race on the 2019 Road to the Finals, the Fall Nationals presented by $hameless Racing, Oct. 3-5.
The PDRA had to cancel their most recent event, PDRA Drag Wars presented by Pro Line Racing at GALOT Motorsports Park, because of Hurricane Dorian. Racers with a solid points lead breathed a sigh of relief, while competitors trying to move up in pursuit of the 2019 PDRA world championships will be feeling the pressure as they have just two races left to gain ground on the points leaders.
āThose round wins went from important to very important real quick with losing Drag Wars,ā said Tyler Crossnoe, race director, PDRA. āWe hated to lose that event ā Drag Wars has always been a staple on the PDRA calendar ā but Darlington is up next and the Fall Nationals will be solid as well. The points championships are going to be as dramatic as theyāve ever been now that four rounds are off the table.ā
In the PDRAās quickest and fastest class, Moroso Pro Boost, 2016 world champion Kevin Rivenbark leads the charge in his ProCharger-boosted GALOT Motorsports ā69 Camaro. Rivenbark won the season-opening East Coast Nationals at GALOT Motorsports Park and runnered-up at the Northern Nationals in Ohio. Heās followed by Kris Thorne, who defeated Rivenbark in the Ohio final and won the North-South Shootout in Maryland in his turbocharged ā16 Corvette to sit 93 points behind first. Defending world champion Tommy DāAprile is just 21 points behind Thorne with a win and two runner-up finishes in Al Billesā supercharged ā69 Camaro.
Nitrous Pro Modified veteran Jim Halsey is on top in Switzer Dynamics Pro Nitrous after winning the first two races of the season and taking runner-up at Ohio in his Fulton-powered ā68 Camaro. Two-time world champion Tommy Franklin is mounting a late-season charge in his Musi-powered āJungle Ratā 69 Camaro with 192 points behind Halsey after a dominant win at Ohio. Defending world champion Jason Harris in the Musi-powered āParty Timeā ā69 Camaro sits 9 points behind Franklin with a win and a runner-up finish.
āYouāre going to see two styles of racing at Darlington: youāre going to see a defensive racer and an offensive racer,ā Crossnoe said. āYouāre going to see the guys who are fighting for it and going at it from first round to the finals, then youāll see the guys like Rivenbark and Halsey playing defense more than offense, trying to stay the course and keep turning on win lights.ā
John Montecalvo holds a sizable 263-point lead over Jeff Dobbins in Libertyās Gears Extreme Pro Stock. Montecalvo drove his Sonnyās-powered ā18 Camaro to runner-up finishes at Maryland and South Georgia before adding a win at Ohio. Dobbins in his Bears Performance Dodge Avenger won the Mid-Atlantic Showdown to sit second, with just under a round over Chris Powers in his Sonnyās-powered Camaro.
The defending world champion in Schwing America Pro Outlaw 632 presented by East Side Auto Transport, Johnny Pluchino, is on track to win a second title in his Kaase-powered, naturally aspirated ā06 Ford Escort with just over six rounds on the competition. Heās followed by Wes Distefano, who has two runner-up finishes in his Musi-powered, nitrous-assisted $hameless Racing ā68 Camaro. Christopher Holdorf in his Nelson-powered ā53 Corvette is third.
The tightest battle in the pro classes can be found in Drag 965 Pro Nitrous Motorcycle, where defending world champion Ronnie āPro Modā Smith leads 2017 world champion Travis Davis by 55 points. Smith hasnāt lost first round all season, grabbing a decisive win at Maryland. Davis lost first round at Maryland, but won the Mid-Atlantic Showdown and was the runner-up at South Georgia. Perennial championship contender Chris Garner-Jones is third with just under two rounds behind Davis.
In addition to the professional classes, the Fall Nationals will include sportsman racing in MagnaFuel Top Sportsman, Lucas Oil Top Dragster, Coolshirt Pro Jr. Dragster presented by Knoxtown Products, Gilbert Motorsports Top Jr. Dragster and Edelbrock Bracket Bash.
Racers will start the weekend with a full day of open testing on Thursday from 12-8 p.m. Friday qualifying begins at 10 a.m., followed by Friday Night Fire with two back-to-back pro qualifying sessions starting at 6 p.m. Sportsman racers will run final qualifying Saturday at 10 a.m. and eliminations beginning at noon. Professional class eliminations will begin at 4 p.m.
Tickets to the PDRA Fall Nationals presented by $hameless Racing are available for $15 for Thursday testing, $20 for Friday qualifying and $25 for Saturday eliminations. Children 10 and under get in free. Tickets are available at the gate or online at www.pdra660.com.
This story was originally published on October 1, 2019.