IHRA goes 1/8 mile for all classes

[Cliff]

WOODRUFF SAYS IHRA EIGHTH-MILE EDICT IS ALL ABOUT BUILDING THE SHOW AROUND FANS | Competition Plus

“It takes the ET out of the mind… it’s about who gets to the finish line first,” Woodruff said. “Drag racing’s a big math equation — you just got to go to

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[Chili]

I think most racers prefer this because it’s easier on parts. If a nitro racer is serious enough about it, I’m sure they can shorten the wick and be exploding engines at 600 feet.
Is there a 1/8 mile series drawing a decent crowd? I know MWDRS doesn’t at most events and either does PDRA. FCC does ok but in what is usually fairly small venues. Will 1/8 mile nitro bring the fans in?
IHRA has great payouts but the small gates they have been getting isn’t going to cover the costs to run the series. Galot did decent for attendance but it only holds 9000. With 5000 fans a day at $40 a ticket they still aren’t even close to covering the payouts. That doesn’t include payroll, insurance and all the other costs associated with running a series. It all changes if they can get a major series sponsor which is a possibility. Obviously the owner has deep pockets but how much does he want to spend of his own money and for how long? That’s up to him.

Racing needs IHRA to be successful. I think the lack on nitro cars in recent years is due to having no other organization to get your feet wet. A handful have brought cars to funny car chaos and most of those guys have moved up to IHRA. There was zero options for TF other than NHRA. I’m sure there are some out there putting cars together for 2026 to run IHRA. Once they get cars built they can occasionally dabble in NHRA on weekends they have short fields.