DINWIDDIE, Va. (Oct. 14, 2024) – Major shakeups at the most recent race on the Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series tour led to big moves at the top of the Switzer Dynamics Pro Nitrous points standings with just one race left in the season. The top three drivers – Fredy Scriba, Jim Halsey, and Tommy Franklin – are separated by less than one round going into this weekend’s Pro Line Racing Brian Olson Memorial World Finals presented by ProCharger, Oct. 17-20, at Virginia Motorsports Park. It’s just one of the numerous championship battles that will be decided in the series’ professional, sportsman, and Jr. Dragster categories.
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“It’s been years since we’ve seen a Pro Nitrous championship battle like this,” said Tyler Crossnoe, series director, PDRA. “Jim Halsey and Tommy Franklin have dominated the Pro Nitrous scene in recent years, so it really opened everyone’s eyes when Fredy Scriba broke through to win our last race, taking over the points lead in the process. These three drivers and their teams aren’t going to let up now. It’s going to be a fierce battle until the very end – probably culminating in the final round on Sunday afternoon.”
The Brian Olson Memorial World Finals is the last of eight points-earning races on the 2024 PDRA schedule. Drivers in seven professional classes, four sportsman divisions, and two Jr. Dragster classes have been fighting for championship points at six different tracks along the East Coast and into the Midwest.
“It’s been another incredible season of racing as we enter our second decade of all-eighth-mile drag racing,” said Crossnoe, who’s also the VP of Virginia Motorsports Park. “It’s always fun to come back to the series ‘home track’ to crown our world champions. By this time in the year, the conditions are usually just right for record-setting, throw-down racing. It’s going to be an exciting weekend whether you’re racing for a championship or you’re a fan in the grandstands.”
Before the race weekend gets started, PDRA and Virginia Motorsports Park will hold a pre-race party for fans and participants on Wednesday, Oct. 16, from 5-9 p.m. at the Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery located at 2070 Waterside Rd. in Prince George, Virginia. Several drivers will be on hand to sign autographs, and cars from almost all of the professional classes will be on display.
In Pro Nitrous, Halsey and Franklin have spent the season trading the points lead back and forth, with both drivers boasting two event wins and multiple late-round finishes. Scriba has been on the cusp of his first points-earning win in the class all season, putting him in prime position to capitalize on early exits at the recent DragWars by Halsey and Franklin. A parts failure caused a freak crash for Halsey in his Fulton-powered “Daddy Shark” ’68 Camaro in the final qualifying session, forcing him to miss eliminations. Franklin lost his first-round match in his Musi-powered “Jungle Rat” ’69 Camaro, while Scriba in his Musi-powered “Sorcerer” ’69 Camaro charged to the final-round win over Pro Modified legend Rickie Smith. Scriba now leads Halsey by 34 points, while Halsey is 54 points ahead of Franklin. A round win is worth 100 points.
WS Construction Pro Boost presented by P2 Contracting and Ty-Drive also saw a points lead change at DragWars, with reigning world champion Jason Harris racing to his second consecutive win in his ProCharged Southern Diamond Co. “Party Time” ’69 Camaro to take the lead from Kurt Steding. He’s now two rounds and one point ahead of Steding, who lost in the first round but has one event win in his screw-blown P2 Contracting ’69 Camaro. Steding’s teammate and tuner, two-time world champion Todd “King Tut” Tutterow, also kept himself in championship contention when he drove Justin Smith’s screw-blown Quik Fuel ’69 Camaro to a runner-up finish at DragWars.
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Ethan Steding, the 17-year-old son of Pro Boost title contender Kurt Steding, is the points leader in Menscer Motorsports Pro Street presented by Afco Racing. The rookie driver won three of the seven races in his roots-blown P2 Contracting “College Fund” ’24 Camaro, putting him nearly a full event’s worth of points ahead of No. 2 driver Dan Norris going into the World Finals. The three drivers behind Steding are separated by less than a round. Norris, also a rookie, has taken his roots-blown ’22 Mustang to the final round twice this season. Another young gun, Scott Kincaid, is third in points after starting the season with his fifth consecutive win in his screw-blown ’69 Camaro. The third rookie in the top four, Brian Weddle, missed the season opener but picked up a win and two runner-up finishes in subsequent events.
Two-time Liberty’s Gears Extreme Pro Stock presented by AED Competition world champion Johnny Pluchino started the season with back-to-back wins, giving him a solid headstart towards another season title. But 2021 world champion Chris Powers fought his way back to the top, winning two of the last three races in his Sonny’s Racing Engines ’21 Camaro. He leads Pluchino and his Kaase-powered Feather-Lite Batteries ’13 Mustang by 436 points going into Virginia. Though he’s out of the championship hunt, third place driver Jeremy Huffman is chasing his first career Extreme Pro Stock win after qualifying No. 1 at DragWars.
Amber Franklin Denton raced to victory in PDRA Pro 632 for the third time this season at DragWars, clinching her second world championship in the class and third overall in the series along the way. She also qualified No. 1 five times in her Musi-powered “OG Jungle Rat” ’69 Camaro and went to two additional final rounds. The World Finals event win is still up for grabs, though, and drivers like No. 2 and 3 in points Walter Lannigan Jr. and Andy House will be fighting for that final win of the season. Lannigan drove Chris Holdorf’s Nelson-powered Freedom Grow ’10 GTO to a win and two runner-up finishes to sit second, while House won in his Pro 632 debut at the season opener in Meade Baldwin’s Southern Diamond Co. ’69 Camaro.
The PDRA’s only two-wheeled category, Drag 965 Pro Extreme Motorcycle, had the DragWars weekend off, giving defending world champion Chris Garner-Jones and title challenger Brunson Grothus even more time to think about their upcoming championship fight. With runner-up finishes at all four races, Garner-Jones and his nitrous-fed T.T. Jones Racing Hayabusa lead Grothus by one round and one point. Grothus, who rode Robert Varela’s turbocharged Dallas Flat Glass Distributors Hayabusa to victories at Norwalk and Bristol, can make up the one point by qualifying just one spot better than Garner-Jones. Sophomore rider Brayden Davis sat out the season opener, preventing him from having a serious shot at another PDRA championship for the Davis family.
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Final-round finishes at the last four of six Afco Racing Super Street presented by Menscer Motorsports races put Dan Whetstine on top of the points standings. He drove his ProCharged “Red Velvet” ’91 Mustang to two event wins in four of those final-round appearances, giving him more than a three-round lead over 2023 championship runner-up Derek Mota. Mota, who lowered his own class E.T. record and won the Mid-Atlantic Showdown at Virginia in the spring, met Whetstine in the DragWars final round earlier this month driving his turbocharged East Point Recovery Centers ’93 Mustang.
Class favorite Glenn Butcher is the points leader in MagnaFuel Elite Top Sportsman presented by PAR Racing Engines, where he earned wins at the Virginia spring race and at Martin in his nitrous-fed ’69 Camaro to lead Randy Perkinson by 148 points. Perkinson, a Virginia native, also has two wins in his ProCharged ’67 Mustang, putting him less than a round ahead of third-placed Tim Paap and his nitrous-fed Corvette.
A pair of past world champions in Laris Motorsports Insurance Elite Top Dragster presented by Greenbrier Excavating & Paving are locked in another championship battle. Two-time and reigning champion Steve Furr won the most recent race in his ProCharged Right Trailers ’13 American dragster, adding to a previous win, to take the points lead. Kellan Farmer, the 2019 world champ, has one win in his ProCharged Race Tech Race Cars dragster to sit less than one round behind Furr. Kyle Harris, Frank Falter IV, and Michael White are also mathematically eligible.
MagnaFuel Top Sportsman presented by Corbin’s RV points leader Mark Reese can clinch the world championship by qualifying at the World Finals. Mike Alexander Jr. sits behind Reese by more than 600 points.
The Laris Motorsports Insurance Top Dragster presented by Younce RV world championship will come down to just two drivers, Lucas Salemi and Nick Meloni. Salemi posted a win and a runner-up finish to hold a lead of just under three rounds going into the World Finals.
Though it’s not a championship category, Edelbrock Bracket Bash presented by COMP Cams will also be a part of the World Finals, giving local bracket racers a place to race on the PDRA national stage.
Tense championship battles are also taking place in the PDRA’s Jr. Dragster categories, which regularly see some of the toughest qualified fields and closest racing throughout the season. In Coolshirt Systems Pro Jr. Dragster presented by Philadelphia Racing Products, points leader Ryan Harris and No. 2 driver Ashley Franklin are separated by just seven points. Carson Hoyle, Alyssa Tilghman, and Makenzie Alexander are also mathematically eligible. One point sits between Classic Graphix Top Jr. Dragster presented by Philadelphia Racing Products points leader Kylie Varnier and James Beattie III. Braydon Crayton is less than one round out of the lead in third.
The Brian Olson Memorial World Finals at Virginia Motorsports Park will begin with Thursday testing from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Qualifying will kick off Friday at 8:30 a.m. starting with the Jr. Dragster and sportsman classes, with the pro classes set to hit the track for qualifying sessions at noon and 5:30 p.m. Saturday’s on-track activities will begin with Jr. Dragster and sportsman final qualifying at 8:30 a.m., followed by pro final qualifying at 12:15 p.m. and sportsman and Jr. Dragster first round of eliminations to follow. Pre-race ceremonies and pro eliminations will begin at 6 p.m. The World Finals will conclude on Sunday, stating with the continuation of Jr. Dragster and sportsman eliminations. The pros will be back on track at noon to continue eliminations starting with the second round.
Tickets are on sale now for $20 for Thursday, $25 for Friday, $30 for Saturday, and $25 for Sunday. Discounted junior and kids tickets are also available, while kids 5 and under get in free. Tickets can be purchased at www.PDRA660.com or at the gate.
Fans at home can watch the full event live on the official livestream through www.FloRacing.com.
Photos by Tara Bowker
