By Luke Clevenger

The new exhibition class is being introduced as part of the MWDRS’ s continued commitment to growing the sport of drag racing while providing racers with additional opportunities to compete. The two-event trial will allow racers, fans, sponsors, and series officials to evaluate the class before a decision is made on adding it as a full-time championship category in 2027.

“ The Mid-West Drag Racing Series has always been about listening to racers and building the sport of drag racing,” said Keith Haney, owner of the MWDRS.“ Pro Extreme has generated a lot of interest over the years, and we felt the best way to evaluate its future with the MWDRS was to put it on the racetrack. This exhibition gives everyone from the stands to the sponsors an opportunity to see the class in action before we make any decisions for next season.”

Quarter-Max Race Cars, title sponsor of the class, believes the addition could create one of the most exciting new opportunities in doorslammer racing. Owner Clyde Scott wrote the following to racers and fans in anticipation of this partnership:

“ This class holds a special place for me because it’ s where I started my Pro Mod career,” Scott began.“ While I enjoy every form of Pro Mod racing, what makes Pro Extreme unique is that it removes many of the power-adder restrictions, helping level the playing field. Teams that may not have years of data or unlimited testing can still be competitive, qualify well, and have a legitimate opportunity to win races.

“ From a racer’ s perspective, that’ s exciting,” Scott continued.“ From a fan’ s perspective, it creates unpredictable, hard-fought racing that showcases incredible horsepower and talented drivers. Quarter-Max is proud to support this exhibition class, and we’ re excited to see what the racers and fans think over these final two MWDRS events.”

The class will feature an eight-car qualified field with the standard MWDRS three qualifying sessions before eliminations: two qualifying sessions on Friday night and one qualifying session on Saturday morning, with eliminations beginning immediately following the first round of Stroud Safety Pro Mod on Saturday.

The guaranteed purse will award $ 10,000 to the winner, $ 2,500 for runner-up, $ 1,250 for semifinalists, and $ 750 to quarterfinalists.

To encourage participation while maintaining a safe racing environment, the exhibition class features a straightforward rules package: No double power-adder combinations, no nitropowered entries, all applicable NHRA safety requirements must be met( or equivalent IHRA or PDRA standards as applicable), and cars cannot double-enter into other classes.

Feedback from competitors, sponsors, promoters, and fans during the final two events will play a major role in determining whether the class becomes an official points category for the 2027 season and beyond.

“ We want to give racers another place to compete while putting on the best possible show for our fans,” Haney said.“ We’ ve never been about adding classes just to add classes. We’ re going to listen to our racers, our fans, our marketing partners, and our tracks. If everyone believes this class belongs in the MWDRS, we’ ll seriously evaluate making it part of our 2027 championship lineup.” DI

PHOTOGRAPH BY ROBERT RICHARD

32 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated. com Issue 202