Shades of 72? (1 Viewer)

yoda

Nitro Member
Is this the future?
Are we back to Wednesday Nite match races? Something on Labor Day weekend? Is this LIV vs. PGA?

 
Is this the future?
Are we back to Wednesday Nite match races? Something on Labor Day weekend? Is this LIV vs. PGA?

match racing went away because the tracks couldn't afford to pay the cars enough to come ans sponsors wanting TV exposure. I don't see that changing anytime soon.
 
While I do believe that the NHRA does need some direction and maybe the PRO race will help them think outside of the box and adapt to time, everyone rooting for a split needs to remember the open wheel split in the United States of the late 90s to mid 00s and why splitting a professional sport hurts in the long run, open wheel racing in the US has never recovered from that.
 
So explain to me why having an 8 car invitational event is such a great thing for everyone other than those 8.

Good question. I was at the race in Bradenton and although I have read several times how "different" it was from the way NHRA does things, I did not, as a spectator, see that at all. The only real difference from an NHRA event that stuck out to me was that Wes Buck was able to stroke his own ego every time he picked up a microphone and told the crowd how great things were. It was a good race, yes. But it was not different.
 
Wally Parks embedded a core belief in the NHRA that drag racing is kind of a hobby and didn't need or want big payouts. Read High Performance by Robert Post and it becomes clear that NHRA's purpose was/is to bring order and structure to the wild assed hotrod world, not big purses.
In defense of the NHRA(might be a first for me), read their tax returns, nobody is getting rich over there. Professional racers need to demand that NHRA hire competent development people to sell sponsorships and partnerships. The reason we see so much of SCAG and Joe Maynard is that so few actually throw money into the NHRA.
 
a few years back when there was the big pre-season test at PBIR, when the season started in pomona. correct me if i'm
wrong, but i don't think the teams got paid to show up and run there? it got to be quite the event, but no money attached to it. no structure, just testing, albeit side x side runs.
bradenton showed how a small group, PRO and D.I./wes buck and team, got together, organized, and ran an actual race, with big money, big sponsors, big fan turnout; all at a small venue that didn't
have the best of the best, but they enough bleachers, enough parking, enough pit space, enough race cars, enough vendors, enough v.i.p. space, a great track, and great promotion and media coverage.
most importantly everyone got paid. i don't think any of them knew how it was going to turn out, but they all probably had a pretty good idea how the race should progress.
pretty amazing result on their first try........heavy on 'first try'
 
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a few years back when there was the big pre-season test at PBIR, when the season started in pomona. correct me if i'm
wrong, but i don't think the teams got paid to show up and run there? it got to be quite the event, but no money attached to it. no structure, just testing, albeit side x side runs.
bradenton showed how a small group, PRO and D.I./wes buck and team, got together, organized, and ran an actual race, with big money, big sponsors, big fan turnout; all at a small venue that didn't
have the best of the best, but they enough bleachers, enough parking, enough pit space, enough race cars, enough vendors, enough v.i.p. space, a great track, and great promotion and media coverage.
most importantly everyone got paid. i don't think any of them knew how it was going to turn out, but they all probably had a pretty good idea how the race should progress.
pretty amazing result on their first try........heavy on 'first try'
Al Anabi paid to rent the track and invited the other teams. I think they open to the public 1 day and charged for it.
 
a few years back when there was the big pre-season test at PBIR, when the season started in pomona. correct me if i'm
wrong, but i don't think the teams got paid to show up and run there? it got to be quite the event, but no money attached to it. no structure, just testing, albeit side x side runs.
There was some structure to it. It was a closed test session during the day, but in the afternoon/evening on the weekend, they had a race. It was paid admission for the fans. I don't remember how they were paired up for 1st rd and I don't think they were racing for any prizes, but it had a little structure.
 
yes, i think the fans paid to be there one afternoon/evening, probably to offset the track rental and support staff. i recall side x side runs, but i don't recall
any type of eliminations, or money being paid. maybe bragging rights ....... it was PRO in '21, and it was the same PRO last month in bradenton, with almost the
same list of pro nitro participants, and then add PS ....... they hosted a great race, ran for 125 and 250 large, used a unique format, broke 340 barrier,
and did it at a small venue with a dedicated staff, who worked alongside promoters and PRO and put on a great event.
 
yes, i think the fans paid to be there one afternoon/evening, probably to offset the track rental and support staff. i recall side x side runs, but i don't recall
any type of eliminations, or money being paid. maybe bragging rights .......
The Pro Warm-up in Palm Beach did have eliminations for the fans at night. I just don't remember how they paired them up for 1st rd.
 
and another big money event coming this summer @ flying H
 
Good question. I was at the race in Bradenton and although I have read several times how "different" it was from the way NHRA does things, I did not, as a spectator, see that at all. The only real difference from an NHRA event that stuck out to me was that Wes Buck was able to stroke his own ego every time he picked up a microphone and told the crowd how great things were. It was a good race, yes. But it was not different.
3 bottled waters and a 16oz beer for 7$ was different. Track glue and sponsor money not cut, that was different, drivers more accessible, different also. Flew from Texas for it, will be at the next one. 341 mph different….
 
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