- This Week at MBE
- Brunson Grothus Earns Long-Awaited First PDRA Pro Extreme Motorcycle World Championship
- Antron Brown to Make Pro Mod Debut with Team Buginga at DI Winter Series at Bradenton Motorsports Park
- Drag Illustrated Winter Series Introduces Points Championship for Pro Mod Racers
- PRO Superstar Shootout Adds Callies as Premier Sponsor in 2025
- Inaugural Drag Illustrated Winter Series to Kick Off at Snowbird Outlaw Nationals
- ANOTHER SEASON, ANOTHER RECORD-BREAKING CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON FOR PSM’S GAIGE HERRERA
This Week at MBE
Brunson Grothus Earns Long-Awaited First PDRA Pro Extreme Motorcycle World Championship
FREDERICKSBURG, VA – Iowa’s Brunson Grothus is an accomplished competitor in numerous motorcycle drag racing classes and 
organizations, but a world championship in the Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series eluded him until this season. Racing on two wheels in Drag 965 Pro Extreme Motorcycle, Grothus competed against past world champions to win three of the five races that included the class on the eight-race PDRA schedule. He’s now just the fifth different Pro Extreme Motorcycle world champion in the 11-year history of the series.
Grothus, who previously rode his family’s nitrous-assisted Indocil Art/Grothus Drag Bikes Hayabusa, started the season riding Robert Varela’s turbocharged Excel Glass Systems/Dallas Flat Glass Distributors Hayabusa. He lost in the first round at the season opener, then won the American Doorslammer Challenge at Summit Motorsports Park. Grothus qualified No. 1 for the second time in his career at the North vs. South Shootout at Maryland International Raceway. He qualified No. 1 and won the inaugural Thunder Valley Throwdown at Bristol Dragway, then repeated the sweep at the Brian Olson Memorial World Finals at Virginia Motorsports Park. He clinched the title when he defeated two-time and outgoing world champion Chris Garner-Jones in the semifinals.
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Antron Brown to Make Pro Mod Debut with Team Buginga at DI Winter Series at Bradenton Motorsports Park
BROWNSBURG, IN – Many eye a flight to a warm tropical destination to relax after a grueling ten-month racing season that culminated with 
the NHRA Finals in Southern California on Nov. 17, but not newly crowned four-time NHRA Top Fuel world champion Antron Brown. The 80-time NHRA winner will get plenty of Florida sun this offseason and find comforts behind the wheel of a Lexus RCF Procharger-powered Pro Mod as Brown will compete in the Drag Illustrated Winter Series of events at Bradenton Motorsports Park.
Brown, the second-winningest driver in NHRA Top Fuel history with 64 wins, will make his debut behind the wheel of the red Team Buginga Lexus SC Pro Mod, dubbed “Jerome,” at the Snowbird Outlaw Nationals, Dec. 6-8, at the popular central Florida track. He also will compete in the U.S. Street Nationals, Jan. 24-26, and the World Series of Pro Mod, Feb. 27-March 1, also in Bradenton.
“We’ve been friends with Manny and the Buginga family for some time now and have raced with them in the past, so when Manny called and said I want you to drive our red Lexus RCF Pro Mod, it was an easy decision for me,” Brown said. “It’s been a work in progress for some time and I really enjoy going to Bradenton during the off-season and doing some eighth-mile racing and now, with these three events in December, January, and early March, I’m super-excited. I feel like an NBA player who hoops at the Drew League in the summer. Continue reading
Drag Illustrated Winter Series Introduces Points Championship for Pro Mod Racers
BRADENTON, FL – The highly anticipated 2024-25 Drag Illustrated Winter Series presented by J&A Service promises to elevate the 
competitive landscape of Pro Mod drag racing. The three-race championship series, contested exclusively at the legendary Bradenton Motorsports Park, will see drivers battling for the first-ever Drag Illustrated Winter Series Points Championship, culminating in the prestigious World Series of Pro Mod (WSOPM) with points-and-a-half awarded during eliminations.
With over $275,000 in purse money up for grabs across the three events and an additional $25,000 prize for the series champion, this inaugural championship is designed to bring out the best in Pro Mod competitors. To sweeten the pot, the points champion will also receive a custom-designed championship ring by Jostens, underscoring the prestige of this groundbreaking series.
“It’s been amazing to see the evolution of our Drag Illustrated-produced events,” said Wes Buck, Founder and Editorial Director of Drag Illustrated. “What started out as a once-a-year happening has evolved into a three-race championship series that is going to produce some of the most competitive drag racing in the history of our sport.” Continue reading
PRO Superstar Shootout Adds Callies as Premier Sponsor in 2025
INDIANAPOLIS – One of the main benefits for all the professional teams participating in the 2nd annual SCAG Power Equipment PRO 
Superstar Shootout, February 6-8, 2025, in Bradenton, Florida will be getting in front of fans but also getting a jump start on off-season performance adjustments. Callies Performance Products, a premier sponsor for the event, will be supporting the teams and the PRO Superstar Shootout for the second year in a row. Callies crankshafts will be inside several professional team’s engines and throughout the event their performance products, that were produced in their state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, will be put to the test on the track.
“One thing we are looking for with our marketing partners like Callies, is working with companies that are committed to excellence and quality both on and off the track,” said Chad Head, PRO Board Member. “Many teams rely on Callies Performance Products so aligning with them for the PRO Superstar Shootout was a natural fit. They have been involved in drag racing for years and highlighting their company at this event introduces them to a new audience. Everyone associated with the event appreciates their support.” Continue reading
Inaugural Drag Illustrated Winter Series to Kick Off at Snowbird Outlaw Nationals
BRADENTON, FL – After battling for world championships and race wins in numerous different sanctioning bodies and series all season, Pro 
Modified drivers from across North America and beyond will converge on Bradenton Motorsports Park this weekend, Dec. 5-8, for the Snowbird Outlaw Nationals presented by Motion Raceworks. The $50,000-to-win event marks the start of the inaugural Drag Illustrated Winter Series presented by J&A Service, a three-race, eighth-mile Pro Mod series paying out more than $300,000 in event purses and championship bonuses. The Snowbirds will also feature competition in several additional classes like Pro 275, Limited Drag Radial, Outlaw 632, and more, as well as the fan-favorite Night of Fire with numerous jet-powered vehicles.
“The Snowbird Outlaw Nationals has always been one of our biggest races of the year, and it’s only getting bigger this year,” said Victor Alvarez, track owner and promoter, Bradenton Motorsports Park. “The Snowbirds is one last chance for racers in some of the most exciting classes in drag racing to race for big money before the 2024 season is over. The Night of Fire on Saturday is a huge hit with fans, especially all the young families that come out to the track to see the jet cars.
“This year, the fact that the Snowbirds is the kick-off for the inaugural DI Winter Series is going to take this race over the top,” Alvarez added. “Fans are going to see the best drivers, teams, and cars in outlaw Pro Modified racing competing for big money and points towards the Winter Series championship, and that all starts at the Snowbirds.” Continue reading
ANOTHER SEASON, ANOTHER RECORD-BREAKING CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON FOR PSM’S GAIGE HERRERA
Two-time world champ enjoys another stellar campaign, setting all-time NHRA marks, reaching 10 wins again
INDIANAPOLIS – A year ago, Gaige Herrera burst onto the NHRA Pro Stock Motorcycle season full-time, becoming something of a 
phenomenon in his first full season riding for the Vance & Hines team. Setting record after record, winning race after race, Herrera cruised to his first world championship, capping off a surreal year that even Herrera had trouble comprehending.
A season later, not much has seemingly changed, as Herrera rode his way to another dominant championship run, again setting records, again reaching double-digit wins and again remaining as the class of the category on his RevZilla/Mission Foods/Vance & Hines Suzuki.
Herrera won 10 races in 2024, clinching the championship after his opening-round win in Pomona, posting another unbelievable win-loss record, this time going 50-5 in 2024. Included in that was wins in the first six races of the 2024 NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series season. That gave him 11 straight victories dating back to last year, breaking the all-time NHRA record for most consecutive wins. That run included 46 straight round wins, another NHRA record, but Herrera insisted this championship and this season almost meant more for him. Continue reading
James Beattie III Adds to Family Racing Legacy with PDRA Top Jr. Dragster World Championship
FREDERICKSBURG, VA – As the third generation in a drag racing family, James Beattie III has been surrounded by the straight-line sport 
his whole life. He’s soaked up knowledge and skills, and he put that all to use this year when he won the Classic Graphix Top Jr. Dragster presented by Philadelphia Racing Products world championship in the Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series. Beattie earned one event win in two final-round appearances to score his first championship in the PDRA.
Beattie, the grandson of ATI Performance Products founder Jim Beattie and son of current ATI president J.C. Beattie Jr., raced to a runner-up finish at the second race of the season, the Mid-Atlantic Showdown at Virginia Motorsports Park. Two races later, the Maryland native picked up a home-race win at the North vs. South Shootout at Maryland International Raceway. It was his second career win, and a bounce back from a tough DNQ at the same race last season. Beattie clinched the title at the Brian Olson Memorial World Finals at Virginia when his closest challengers, Kylie Varnier and Braydon Crayton, lost first round and didn’t qualify, respectively. Beattie advanced to the semifinals.
“Winning the PDRA championship in Top Jr. means a lot because it shows how far I have come in my short racing career and that I was focused all season,” said Beattie, 11. “The highlight of my season was most definitely the .001 / dead 9 in the second-to-last race of the season in round one of eliminations because that’s my best total package and reaction time in eliminations ever and it was an important round win.” Continue reading
WINNER-TAKE-ALL FINAL ROUND LEADS TO GREG ANDERSON’S MOST MEANINGFUL NHRA PRO STOCK TITLE
Pro Stock’s all-time wins leader caps 2024 season with unbelievable comeback, sixth title and 106th career win
INDIANAPOLIS – Greg Anderson has enjoyed as much success as nearly everyone in NHRA history. But this year’s sixth Pro Stock 
championship might have been the most meaningful accomplishment of his stellar career.
Anderson got the situation he longed craved for – a winner-take-all final round in Pomona – and the veteran delivered in a major way, defeating KB Titan Racing teammate Dallas Glenn in a thriller with a run of 6.501-seconds at 211.30 mph in his HendrickCars.com Chevrolet Camaro to narrowly defeat Glenn’s 6.516.
It handed the driver with the most wins in Pro Stock history (106) an unbelievable moment in a situation many would have thought improbable just few short weeks prior. As he’s been prone to do throughout his championship career, Anderson found another level when he needed it, warding off the young talent for one more year and winning a championship he said meant more than any of the previous five.
“I definitely feel that way,” Anderson said. “Our class is in good shape, that’s the good news. We’ve got so many young guns who can drive the wheels off these things and they’re racing for wins and championships. Yes, they’re trying to push me out the door, but I’m dragging my feet. People ask me when I’m going to quit and I’ll quit when I can’t win anymore. Apparently, I can’t quit yet. It’s not going to be tomorrow.” Continue reading
Mark Reese Clinches First PDRA Top Sportsman World Championship
FREDERICKSBURG, VA – The MagnaFuel Top Sportsman presented by Corbin’s RV world championship typically comes down to the wire 
in the Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series, but this season, newly crowned world champion Mark Reese simply had to qualify at the season finale to secure his title. Facing tough competition with razor-thin margins of victory all season, Reese won two events in three final-round appearances to claim his first world championship in the series.
Reese’s championship hopes began in late May when he drove his nitrous-assisted, PAR Racing Engines-powered ’08 Mustang to a runner-up finish at the American Doorslammer Challenge at Summit Motorsports Park. Two races later, he won the Northern Nationals at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park. He backed that up with a second consecutive win at the inaugural Thunder Valley Throwdown at Bristol Dragway. Those performances gave Reese enough of a lead that he merely had to qualify at the Brian Olson Memorial World Finals at Virginia Motorsports Park to clinch the championship. Reese, who doesn’t live far from VMP in North Dinwiddie, Virginia, qualified No. 22 in the Top Sportsman 48 field.
“This is probably the biggest accomplishment I’ve ever done in my racing career,” said Reese, who thanked his wife, as well as tuner Buddy Perkinson. “I’ve won four championships at VMP before with index racing driving for Keith Cox. It just all came together towards the end of the season. Winning Michigan and Bristol and runner-up at Ohio gave me enough confidence thinking I could compete with these guys out here.” Continue reading
