Brainerd Motorsports Park earned first and third points in the Team Standings during the WDRA Summit Southern Bracket Finals presented by Laris Motorsports Insurance

MONTGOMERY, AL – Eleven teams of racers gathered at Montgomery International Dragway over the weekend for the WDRA Summit Southern Bracket Finals presented by Laris Motorsports Insurance. Weather surrounding the event created a couple of schedule changes and the omission of one gamblers race, but eventually winners emerged in all classes during three separate races.

The Fuel Factory Race of Champions was contested on Friday where track operators and drivers could brag about which track champion was superior to the rest in their region. Brainerd Motorsports Park and Montgomery International Dragway each claimed two wins while Gulfport Dragway celebrated one winner. In the Junior Dragster final, both drivers were .028 on the tree, but CJ Handy ran dead on his 7.96 dial to get the win at his home track over Ryan Alexander from Atmore Dragstrip.

In the Box class, Rob Major from London Dragway had a .009 reaction time but breaks out by nine-thousandths while David Taylor (Montgomery) runs dead on his 4.56 dial in for the win. Brainerd’s Chad Brewer is .011 on the tree and runs two above his dial for the No Box win while leaving Chris Hester from I-22 Dragway mathematically ineligible.

Jerry Rogers is in full control at the starting line get the Sportsman victory for Gulfport over Paige Short Smith from London Dragway. Sonny Vick, representing Brainerd, has an .018 light and runs closer to his dial to earn the Motorcycle win over Robert Meeks from North Florida Motorplex. Continue reading →

WDRA member tracks in Northwest Canada enjoyed their first Summit Bracket Finals experience contested at Nitro Motorsports Park earlier this month

British Columbia, CA – In years past, racers north of the border had to travel into the United States to participate in the end-of-season sanctioning body activities, but this season the World Drag Racing Alliance (WDRA) brought the action to them. The WDRA Summit Northwest Bracket Finals presented by Laris Motorsports Insurance took place September 5-8, 2024, at Nitro Motorsports Park.

The home team came out on top earning 24 points over Northen Lights Raceway with 23 points, followed by Napa Auto Parts Raceway with 20 and Northwest Regional Raceway with 8 points. Northern Lights Raceway competitors took home the Fuel Factory Race of Champion titles in three of the five classes: Dereck Patterson (Box), Kevin Noehring (No Box), and Connor Svisdahl (Junior Dragster). Steve Closkey won the Sportsman Race of Champions representing Nitro Motorsports Park and Darren Gavin earned the Motorcycle win for Napa Auto Parts Raceway.

Racers were eager to compete in the Main Event on Saturday where winners earned cash prizes, a WDRA Rod Trophy, and Champion card. In the Box class, Blair Iles lets go .005 red beside Clint Dolla Vecchia who is .006 green to take the win while representing Northwest Regional Raceway. Amber Rutherford (Northern Lights) is .014 on the tree and runs two above to take the No Box win over Tim Jones from Nitro. Continue reading →

NORWALK, OH – GEN-Y Hitch, a leader in high-quality products, excellent customer support, and comprehensive warranties, will be offering exclusive product discounts to World Drag Racing Alliance (WDRA) racers as they join or renew their WDRA license for 2025.

“GEN-Y Hitch is excited to partner with WDRA, and we are confident that racers across America will appreciate the ride benefits that our products provide,” said Gen-Y Marketing Director Donna Schmucker. “Our patented TORSION-FLEX Technology was designed to create the smoothest ride on the market while protecting your valuable assets. We look forward to seeing our American-made products in the hands of more racers!”

Team WDRA will also tow its official WDRA trailer, sporting the BOSS GEN-Y Torsion Flex hitch, to all race markets in the USA and Canada. Continue reading →

Maryland International Raceway competitors won three of the five main event classes during the 2024 WDRA Summit Eastern Bracket Finals

NEW ALEXANDRIA, PA – The WDRA crew traveled to the northeast for the next stop on the WDRA Summit Bracket Finals presented by Laris Motorsports Insurance tour. Keystone Raceway Park hosted the event for the second year and welcomed teams of racers from Sumerduck Dragway, Beaver Springs Dragway, Maryland International Raceway, Empire Dragway, US 13 Dragway, and Lancaster Dragway.

Maryland took the top spot in the Team Standings with 73.5 points, followed by Beaver Springs (56), Keystone (44), Empire (39), Lancaster (37), US 13 (35), and finally Sumerduck with 18 points.

Early arriving racers could participate in Thursday’s test and tune session for extra passes before entering the always-fun pit vehicle race. It was an all-Keystone final round, with Matt Brehm earning the first winner’s circle celebration after defeating Levi Lear. Continue reading →

NORWALK, OH – Revolutionary asphalt and concrete repair manufacturer Aquaphalt has joined the WDRA as a partner in the Alliance and offers an exclusive discount program to assist WDRA member tracks through 1st Ayd.

“We are thrilled to introduce Aquaphalt to the sport on a large scale as this is a revolutionary product for both racing surface and general facility repairs,” said WDRA’s Jon O’Neal. “We saw this product used in a real-world drag racing environment and were very impressed with the repair. The fact that it was speedy, and our test repair has lasted several months now under extreme abuse at a drag strip with no signs of deteriorating. This product is designed as a permanent repair, not a temporary fix.”

Michael Wertheim of Aquaphalt adds, “Aquaphalt keeps the race going with fast repairs for damaged tracks — you just pour it in, spray some water on it, and tamp it down. It begins to harden right away, so you can drive on it immediately. It’s a bad day to be a pothole.” Continue reading →

The 2024 WDRA Summit Bracket Finals, presented by Laris Motorsports Insurance, kicked off with the Midwest event contested at Eddyville Raceway Park

OSKALOOSA, IA – After competing all season long at their respective racetracks, WDRA members converge regionally to compete against neighboring facilities in hopes of clinching victory as a team and/or a coveted invitation to the WDRA Summit World Championships presented by SunCoast Performance. WDRA member tracks Cordova Dragway, Mid America Dragway, I-29 Dragway, and Mo-Kan Dragway competed alongside the host facility, Eddyville Raceway Park, to kick off these end-of-year festivities during the WDRA Summit Midwest Bracket Finals, presented by Laris Motorsports Insurance over the weekend.

On-track action kicked off on Friday with a Gamblers Race for the Box, No Box, and Junior Dragster classes. Eddyville racers nearly swept the competition with five of the six finalists hailing from the home track. Mark Lambert defeated Gary Smiley in the top bulb class, while the lone Cordova Dragway representative, Ryan Robinson, earned the No Box win over Donnie Ellison. A nearly heads-up final in Junior Dragster ended with Jailin Breeding winning over Ty Ratcliff.

Saturday’s Gamblers Races featured the support of several companies that would sponsor the winning racer in each class with a free 2025 WDRA membership. In the Outlaw Trailers Box class, Steve Lohrer from Eddyville earned the win over a red-lighting Brandon Phillips. Another all-Eddyville final saw Camden Baarda win over Kyle Vogel in the TechnoCraft Trailer Cabinets No Box class. The Junior Dragster class was sponsored by Funny Bone Embroidery & Screen Printing, where Trey Ratcliffe was .004 on the tree to defeat Frankie McGlynn. A Teen Racing Gamblers Race was also contested, where Jaleigh Lightsey from Mid America won over Elizabeth Wehling, representing I-29 Dragway. Continue reading →

SPRINGFIELD, IL – The Kirk family, led by ’91 and ‘93 IHRA Mountain Motor Pro Stock champion Doug Kirk, has stepped in to save the former IHRA-sanctioned track once known as Twin Branch, alongside partner Ronnie Herald and Justin Kirk. The Delbarton, West Virginia facility on a reclaimed coal mine was never developed past a racing surface and concrete wall. The track only operated a few days before the management disbanded following a ten-year struggle to get the concept approved. Now, the track has entered into a multi-year sanction agreement with the World Drag Racing Alliance (WDRA) and will be known as 304 Motorsports Park. The facility will be operated with a racer mindset with Doug and his son Justin, who holds the title of 2016 PDRA Top Dragster Champion.

“WDRA is proud to be chosen by Doug, Justin, and Ronnie to help them on their journey to finish the build on 304 Motorsports Park and to use our knowledge base to advise them and help them get to the finish line with this project,” said Skooter Peaco with WDRA. “We have been blessed with the opportunity to assist two tracks becoming active again so far this season. The hope is that the Kirk family and staff can get the facility to a soft open point before the season ends to add to that number. Having three tracks return to prosperity is amazing for our sport, and we are grateful that these tracks trust us to help them become viable again.” Continue reading →

The sanctioning body quickly checks off another bucket list item by creating a Sponsorship Alliance in its second year of business

SPRINGFIELD, IL – The World Drag Racing Alliance (WDRA) set out to be “Different by Design” when it became the newest drag racing sanctioning body only 16 short months ago.  One of those differing concepts is the WDRA’s mission to create a functioning alliance between the sanctioning body, member racetracks, and the racers. This new line of thinking allows the organization to work on behalf of racetracks and WDRA license holders to advocate for new sponsorship opportunities and financial benefits to the rapidly growing number of supporters.

“While operating in an environment and economy that puts constant financial pressure on dragstrip operations, our focus was to bring those tracks tangible support in terms of overhead cost reduction and sponsorship programs,” says Skooter Peaco with WDRA. “The first area we attacked was getting our tracks meaningful discounts on things they use in the racing business. Everyone in our group at WDRA, including some racers and track owners, worked together to build a network of a dozen companies that help financially covering everything from contingency awards and website design to track improvement services and consumables. As we continue to grow that network, the next step involves creating sponsorship revenue for our facilities.” Continue reading →