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‘ Big Change ’ on Big Tires
After a successful run in the Outlaw 10.5 world , Mike Decker Jr . and the Decker ’ s Salvage team have taken their winning ways to the Northeast Outlaw Pro Mod Association . With help from Todd Tutterow , the Maryland native has won two races and leads the points with one race left on the schedule . By Nate Van Wagnen
Power Player
No matter the power adder , Jeff Pierce has proven his abilities as a versatile doorslammer tuner . This season , he ’ s leading the way in MWDRS Pro Mod with Joey Oksas ’ s twin-turbo Mustang . By Josh Hachat
“ All the Track Will Hold ”
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Final Round Bound
In this month ’ s PDRA feature , crew chief Troy Russell talks about the journey to the top he ’ s taken with defending world champion Wes Distefano in $ hameless Racing Pro Outlaw 632 . Distefano has appeared in every final round since the 2020 season started . By Nate Van Wagnen
Training New Talent
With a rush of new , young drivers joining the sport ’ s highest level classes , crew chiefs and tuners can be tasked with bringing rookies up to speed . In this feature , tuners talk about what it takes to get new drivers comfortable , confident and competitive in the seat . By Josh Hachat
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DEPARTMENTS
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54 On the Road 57
For the second time this season , Van Abernethy revisited a track that he hasn ’ t visited since the early 1990s . This time , it was New York ’ s Empire Dragway , which has seen over $ 3.5 million in renovations by new owner Jerry Scaccia .
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The Real Deal
As Tommy D ’ Aprile professes in his long-running monthly column , drag racing could benefit from a return to the long , smoky burnouts and unpredictable racing that made the sport so exciting in years past . In other words , drag racing needs more showmanship .
ON THE COVER Defending NHRA Top Fuel world champion Steve Torrence ’ s team led by Richard Hogan as photographed by Cole Rokosky at Lucas Oil Raceway in Brownsburg , Indiana .
PHOTOS : LUKE NIEUWHOF , COLE ROKOSKY , TARA BOWKER
8 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated . com Issue 171