Dirt
Star Racing’s George Bryce talks
about the rise in popularity
with racers and fans in NHRA’s
professional two-wheel eliminator
By Sadie Floyd
I
n a class where the entries consistently almost double those entered in Top
Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock car, Pro
Stock Motorcycle’s popularity is gaining
traction all across the globe and especially in
the NHRA.
George Bryce has been a staple in the NHRA
Pro Stock Motorcycle community for nearly
40-years and through his positive nature and
history in the class, he has his own thoughts on
why the class is growing in interest, more racers are coming into the class, and why the class’
future is as bright as ever.
“First thing, one reason Pro Stock Motorcycle
is seeing a huge growth in popularity is the personalities involved in our class; they’re pretty
unusual,” Bryce says. “We have some unusual
competition, too. We have the Vance and Hines
team that is very high in funding and talent but
it’s not just those two bikes. There is a lot of room
for new stars and even more room for new drivers
and teams to fill in the class.”
Another reason Pro Stock Motorcycle is seeing
expansion in riders and new teams is the diversity
between the different bike combinations a person
can run in the class.
“We have diversity in our class just like the Pro
Mod class with their different car and tuning combinations,” Bryce adds. “We have two cylinders
versus four cylinders and higher RPM motors
versus two cylinder twins. Also, you can choose
to ride a Buell, Harley, Suzuki, etc.”
Along with unique personalities and the ability
to run many different styles of motorcycles in the
class, Bryce acknowledges that the FOX Sports 1
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(FS1) television coverage has been monumental
for the class.
“Probably the biggest reason Pro Stock Motorcycle has become so popular as of late has been
because of the switch to FS1,” reveals Bryce. “The
NHRA production and the FOX Sports network
has done a great job at portraying our class. It
requires a lot of work to make a good run pos-
sible in our class by the crew chiefs
and the drivers and the FS1 really
shows that.”
Pro Stock Motorcycle in 2016 has
seen an average of 24 riders competitive for the coveted 16-bike field and
there doesn’t seem to be showing any
signs of slowing down.
“Back in the day, there was a big
gap between the best and the worst
and now, there is eight people going
home after first round and they’re
only a couple seven- or eight-hundredths between No. 1 and No. 16,”
Bryce beams. “I think Pro Stock
Motorcycle is so popular with just
racers because it’s a serious combination platter of three things: the
coverage is great, the potential for
being involved is unbelievable and
it’s the best bang for your buck. If
you want to run a pro category in
the NHRA, you can get in cheaper
with our class than you can Top Fuel,
Funny Car, and Pro Stock Car. It allows the entry level racer a better
chance of getting in.”
As a team owner with a duo that
consists of the winningest female
racer in all of motorsports and a
rookie rider that’s just getting his feet
wet in the sport, Bryce feels he’s got
the best of both worlds. Bryce’s team
is a prime example of how diverse
the class is and how the class is evolving into an
extremely competitive class that can cultivate
new and seasoned racers.
“Having Angelle and Cory on my team is what
you want as a team owner,” he says. “Jackie [wife]
and I always say we’re a farm for our sport because we’ve introduced a lot of people to our sport.
Having Cory come in as the new crop and hav-
Issue 111
PHOTO: NHRA / NATIONAL DRAGSTER
George Bryce & the
Pro Stock Bike Boom