PDRA Pro Boost standout Melanie Salemi rides the back tires and wheelie bars in her brandnew , screw-blown “ Purple Reign ” ‘ 68 Firebird at the PDRA American Doorslammer Challenge .

In Salemi ’ s Pro Boost rookie season , 2015 , she drove the original “ Purple Reign ” to her first professional win in the car ’ s second race in competition . The Firebird was later replaced by Eddie Whelan ’ s ‘ 19 Camaro known as “ Purple Reign ’ s Sidepiece ,” which was originally built for Radial vs . the World competition . The latest version of “ Purple Reign ” has been in the works for quite some time at G-Force Race Cars , led by Salemi ’ s brother-in-law , Jim Salemi , but work for customers pushed back the car ’ s completion and debut . Salemi qualified No . 9 at Norwalk and grabbed a firstround win before falling to No . 1 qualifier and eventual winner Todd Tutterow in the second round .

Photograph by Tara Bowker Summit Motorsports Park | Norwalk , Ohio | Friday , May 24 th , 2024

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