NASCAR drivers have made the occasional appearance at the NHRA races at zMAX Dragway in Concord , North Carolina , the heart of NASCAR country , for years . But when Tony Stewart , one of the most prolific drivers and team owners in all of motorsports , started getting more involved in drag racing , his circle-track-racing friends started coming around more too . Drivers who had a general knowledge of 12,000-horsepower Top Fuel and Funny Car racing soon got a first-hand look while attending races with the Tony Stewart Racing Nitro team .

“ Smoke ” isn ’ t the only NASCAR figure to get involved in NHRA nitro racing in recent years . Former driver turned team owner Rick Ware jumped into the NHRA Top Fuel ranks at the 2022 U . S . Nationals with popular driver Clay Millican and the Parts Plus team . Ware , whose teams also compete in the NASCAR Cup Series , American Flat Track , and the World Supercross Championship , has shown that he ’ s all-in on nitro racing . Despite busy schedules for all of his teams , Ware regularly attends races with the Top Fuel team and has provided the Jim Oberhofer and Nicky Boninfante-led team with all the resources needed to compete for a championship .

“ NHRA offers a unique opportunity to afford intimate access to the action to larger numbers of guests than most other motorsport properties do , and that ’ s important to us as we continue to find new ways to offer memorable motorsport experiences ,” Ware explained when he announced the formation of his Top Fuel program .

Other team owners are starting to catch on too .

Clay Millican ( left ) and Rick Ware

Over the summer , an Autoweek story by Susan Wade reported that Andretti Autosport owner Michael Andretti shared his interest in NHRA drag racing during a media roundtable at the Portland E Prix . He indicated that he ’ s looking at it as an option and he would “ love to be in drag racing .” While Andretti Autosport hasn ’ t made any announcements regarding a potential drag racing venture , the fact that they ’ re even considering it feels like a win for the sport . Will we see more outside involvement in coming years ? If it means more passionate new personalities like Stewart and Ware , we sure hope so . – NATE VAN WAGNEN DI

Funny Car , and Pro Stock intrigued fans and

confines of NHRA national events since PRO officials maintained from the beginning the beginning , but it ’ s almost always been that they didn ’ t intend to compete with NHRA . in a match race capacity . When the Professional Instead , the PRO Superstar Shootout was created Racers Owners Organization ( PRO ) announced as a preseason event where teams could try new the inaugural PRO Superstar Shootout in August 2023 , the idea of a non-NHRA-sanctioned , national event . Some of these factors included

ideas that typically wouldn ’ t happen at an NHRA national event-style race featuring Top Fuel , three qualifying sessions in one day , chip draws

The inaugural SCAG Power Equipment PRO Superstar Shootout presented by JHG turned heads locally in Bradenton , Florida , and on the mainstream drag racing level . to determine pairings in eliminations , and allday livestreaming on the track and in the pits on FloRacing .

Though NHRA never really publicly acknowledged the event , the sport ’ s premier sanctioning body took notice . NHRA ’ s VP of Competition , Ned Walliser , even made an appearance at the race , which took place February 8-10 at Bradenton Motorsports Park .

If PRO wanted the Superstar Shootout to show to NHRA that the occasional refresh in policies and procedures can work , they succeeded . Not long after the race , NHRA announced a new twoday event format for the Virginia Nationals , which would feature three qualifying sessions in a single day . Even if that move wasn ’ t a direct result of the PRO race , it at least proved that it was possible .

Beyond affecting the relationship between the PRO member teams and the NHRA , the PRO Superstar Shootout introduced professional drag racing to new audiences through the FloRacing livestream and through the dozens of videos and social media posts shared by the automotive influencers who attended the event . Thousands of fans poured through the gates at Bradenton to witness the inaugural event , many of whom probably had never been to a drag race or hadn ’ t been to Bradenton in years .

As of this writing , plans for a second annual PRO Superstar Shootout haven ’ t been announced . Whether the Superstar Shootout becomes a time-honored tradition or it ends up being a one-time thing , we will always look back on the inaugural running for the unique moment in time that it created . – NATE VAN WAGNEN DI

PHOTOGRAPHS BY LUKE NIEUWHOF , NHRA

128 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated . com Issue 190