KEARBY: NHRA sells out just about every race, so you can't really bring in more fans. Here's what NHRA wants to do: They want to bring more value to the fans during race day. So what's going to happen is we're going to have a concert series. The concerts are going to be at the end of each racing event. It's win-win for everybody. It will keep merchandise row open later because it will keep 10-20,000 people from leaving.

CALL: We're going into a major radio push next year. So as our air play picks up, it's going to bring a lot more value. It's not like it's a regional band or a national band that's on an independent label. You're going to see more air play, and we'll be mentioning the name NHRA.

KEARBY: NHRA pays a lot of money for advertising, and they recognize right off the bat what they're betting on here. When they hit radio air play in January, they probably have four No. 1 hits on their new CD. NHRA just got these guys locked down for a concert series with the option to go to 23. And they're now going to have a headlining band that's No. 1 on the charts. That's going to be huge. And they see that potential, too. It's like getting Aerosmith online with you before their first album, their first hit, came out. That's the potential they see. They're talking about an interactive atmosphere. They want something that's more interactive. And this met everything they were looking for.

DRO: From what I hear, you didn't get everything you were looking for.

KEARBY: An exhibition class is all the Pro Mod can have here. It's not a pro class.

[Becoming animated] This is huge. The drivers make more money at IHRA. They drive in front of 8-10,000 at IHRA. Here there's 150,000 people through the weekend. Over there, there may be 30-40,000. They're televised on ESPN on a first-class television network at NHRA. The IHRA television package is not nearly as good. Now, with the concert series tied into it, these guys can go to major-brand sponsors. The publicity and television I'm going to get for my money is significant over anything any other class at IHRA. So why will they come here? Yeah, the purses aren't as big, but they can go out and get big-bucks sponsors now. That's where they make their money. They'd rather take a paycheck than a gambling win. If you look at the names on some of the Pro Mod cars you're going to see major corporations start to show up on the cars. There's a bunch of sponsors coming to the table. So a lot of guys will have new sponsorship because of this. That's what we brought to the table.

DRO: You mentioned the Pro Modified TV package with NHRA. The best way to describe it is erratic.

KEARBY: We're going to look to improve that.

[NOWLING walks up and joins the discussion.]

KEARBY: Here he is! This is the guy who negotiated our sponsorship with Mike Ashley. Because we do have a major sponsor next year, because the concert series is tied in with Pro Mod, that the Pro Modifieds can go out and get major sponsors. They're going to be very attractive to the corporate world, more than they've ever been. Kenny went to the mat for the Pro Modified drivers. He pulled out a sword and went in there for the Pro Modified drivers and said, "This is what we need for these guys." David took on Goliath. There were obstacles that could not be overcome. He went to the mat to try to make something happen and it didn't happen.