It’s time for our weekly Friday morning tour around the racing world. From hot laps to the main event, here’s what’s on our mind this week.
Hot Laps: Chili Bowl
The 38th annual Chili Bowl Nationals is less than two months away. The event runs Jan. 8-13 at Tulsa (Okla.) Expo Raceway.
This year’s race pays $20,000 to win.
Qualifying: Banquets
A longtime colleague posed an interesting question the other day. “Why are banquets a big thing in motorsports? Other sports don’t have them.” It is odd that guys who beat each other’s brains out all season on the track gather in the same room to eat rubber chicken and pound a few beers.
First Heat: Back For More
Has any race track ever been on and off a national touring series schedule as much as Virginia Motorsports Park has been with the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series?
The Richmond-area facility most recently hosted the NHRA professional racers in 2022, but was not on the schedule this year. The track returns to the fold June 21-23.
Second Heat: Stopped Trucks
We’ve seen a lot of races that looked like the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series finale at Phoenix Raceway. However, they happened at places such as Flemington (N.J.) Speedway, Sandusky (Ohio) Speedway and Hickory (N.C.) Motor Speedway.
The Truck series finale on Championship Weekend on a national stage was definitely one of the all-time “klunkers.”
Third Heat: A Sad Day
Like a lot of race fans who grew up or live in the Midwest, I love the All Star Circuit of Champions sprint car series, and the fact that it was purchased basically to shut it down is sad. It also leaves a huge hole in the regional racing scene.
Brad Sweet, co-owner of the High Limit Racing series that purchased the brand, addressed the situation earlier this week.
“We are aware of the situation and definitely care about the All Stars and the history of the overall sport,” Sweet said. “We will see how it plays out. It is just a temporary thing in 2024 where it is off to the side for now.”
Fourth Heat: Uncle Ted
When Ted Johnson’s son-in-law, longtime World of Outlaws series director Carlton Reimers, presented the Ted Johnson Award during the recent series banquet, he stated, “There probably aren’t a lot of people in this room who remember Ted.”
Count me among those who do.
I distinctly remember angry phone calls from “Uncle Ted,” which is what so many in the industry fondly called the World of Outlaws founder. Despite what Ted saw as the media’s “attempts to run his series in the ground,” it’s still here 45 years after the first race in 1978.
Dash: Uncle Ted Part II
It would be difficult to find a more appropriate winner of the Ted Johnson Award than this year’s recipient Brad Doty. Brad’s passion for sprint car racing surpasses that of anyone I know.
B Main: The Final Countdown
The NHRA Camping World Drag Racing season will be the last of the national touring series to wrap up its season this weekend at In-N-Out Burger Drag Strip in Pomona, Calif.
While Gaige Herrera (Pro Stock Motorcycle) and Erica Enders (Pro Stock) pretty much have a handle on their division titles, things are wide open in Top Fuel and Funny Car.
Steve Torrence, who is gunning for a fifth title, holds a 15-point lead over Doug Kalitta and a 34-point advantage over Leah Pruett, with Mike Salinas and Justin Ashley still in contention. Matt Hagan leads Bob Tasca III by 15 markers in the Funny Car class, with Robert Hight entering the final weekend only 17 points behind Hagan.
It should go down to the final round in those two classes.
Feature: A Fast Family
It’s often said that motorsports is one big family, and while that is true to an extent, there is no question that motorsports is rooted in families and in some fashion all of those packs of kin are linked in some fashion.
Dave and Dale Blaney were among the first racers I met upon making a profession out of the racing industry and I’ve always thought highly of the Blaneys. Along came Ryan Blaney and his professionalism and skill was evident.
My wife, Haven, worked for 600 Racing when Ryan started competing in Bandolero’s as an eight-year-old. We’ve followed his career like I did that of his dad and his uncle. As a result, a third-generation Blaney winning North America’s premier racing championship, felt a little more personal.
It was a great day for the Blaneys, and the motorsports family.