Pro Boost is one of the headlining PDRA classes , and for good reason .
Racers like Elijah Morton have found a stable home in PDRA Extreme Pro Stock .
“ Hey , we ’ re going to load up and go because we know they ’ re going to get this thing in no matter what . They ’ re going to fight . They ’ re not going to give up until there ’ s absolutely no chance to get it in .”
The 2021 season also saw the introduction of Pro Street as a world championship category . Created as a revival of the true Outlaw 10.5-style racing , it features cars with stock body styles and dimensions running on 33x10.5 bias-ply slicks . With smaller 28x10.5 slicks , Super Street was added in 2022 on a trial basis before becoming a championship class for 2023 .
TC : Pro Street is really kind of taking hold . It came from a very strong base in Outlaw 10.5 . A lot of racers that were still involved with that program that had moved on to other classes swapped back to 33x10.5 trim to be able to run Pro Street . The class is really taking off . Strong car counts , almost having 16 cars at every race now .
It ’ s really an exciting class because it gives a different look to the series . Same as Super Street . A Ford Mustang looks like a Ford Mustang . A Chevrolet Camaro looks like a Chevrolet Camaro . That ’ s different from what we see in Pro Nitrous and Pro Boost . The Pro Mod bodies are stretched with added wheelbase to be able to run the Hemi platforms and the big nitrous platforms . The relatability factor of Pro Street and Super Street is what I feel like makes them unique in the PDRA . They don ’ t look like any other cars that are there . You look at Top Sportsman and a lot of those cars could be a 632 car or a Pro Stock car or a Pro Nitrous / Pro Boost car . Pro Street and Super Street are their own thing . I think that ’ s what makes them unique and special . I also think that ’ s what ’ s growing both classes in the series as we close out 2023 .
SMALL CARS , BIG COMPETITION
Growth was apparent throughout the 2022 season , as car counts were huge at the marquee races on the schedule , which was unchanged from 2021 . Former Jr . Dragster standouts stole the show multiple times , with longtime best friends Amber Franklin and Lexi Tanner trading wins back and forth in multiple final rounds . Preston Tanner also scored his first win in the stacked Pro Boost division . It was a full-circle season for the parents who committed to traveling the PDRA tour with their children in the early days , as well as for the young racers who made their dreams of racing in the “ big leagues ” come true .
November / December 2023
PRESTON TANNER : It ’ s an odd feeling sometimes because you think about when you were in a Jr . and you just wanted to win your class . You ’ re looking at these guys racing Pro Extreme or Pro Nitrous back then thinking , “ Man , I would die to be in that position one day ,” and now that you ’ re in it , you just can ’ t believe it sometimes because I am that guy that I used to look up to . It ’ s just a weird feeling that I don ’ t think I ’ ll ever get over .
The Jr . Dragster classes have become two of the most competitive areas in the series , with Pro Jr . Dragster drivers qualifying on a 7.90 index and Top Jr . Dragster drivers qualifying based on reaction times . In 2023 , 91 Pro Jr . Dragster drivers competed with the series , along with 49 Top Jr . Dragster kids . The huge Pro Jr . Dragster fields led the series to expand the class to a 32-car qualified field starting at the third race of the season . One race later , four drivers ran 7.900 in qualifying , while another 12 ran in the 7.90s . The bump spot for the 32-car field was 7.924 . Four drivers ran 7.925 and two ran 7.926 to DNQ . As frustrating as it may be to miss the field , parents , racers , and even those looking in from the outside realize the experience prepares kids for bigger challenges down the road .
PT : I can say I ’ m glad I ’ m not in it anymore because it used to be stressful when three guys used to be 7.90 , then the rest of us were trying to get in . Now , I just think it shows the family atmosphere too , though . I believe that there ’ s other series where the Jr . Dragster kids don ’ t feel welcome . Here , they probably feel the most welcome anywhere with a series that has professional categories . I think that ’ s why PDRA gets that many Jrs . They treat them fairly . That and the family atmosphere . Just like here in the pro pits , if you go down there and somebody needs a part , I ’ m sure anybody there would be willing to help anybody .
You have to think , some of these kids probably have more laps than some of these adults going down the track because they can hit 10-15 runs in a weekend compared to what we do now , which is six or seven . They get a lot more seat time and laps down the track . I know the speed ’ s a lot different , but if you can do the repetitions – pre-stage it , stage it , just be used to the track and running somebody else – you have an advantage . That ’ s why you see a lot of these kids hop out of Jr . Dragsters and they instantly do pretty well in whichever class they step up into . It ’ s the amount of laps they have .
JF : The Jr . group is a special group at the PDRA . Our Jr . drag racers are complete badasses . Excuse the language , but they are . You go out there and look at the Top Jrs . that are cutting the tree down just to get in the field , then the Pro Jrs ., just trying to run that 7.90 index , it takes a lot of skill and effort . Not only from the kids themselves , but from the parents . I just think the Jr . Dragster group in PDRA is a special group .
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