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Ashley Delivers for NHRA Pro Mod Racers
2/15/06
 Art by Star Pixel Graphics |
Kudos to Mike Ashley for doing exactly what he said he would. He told me at the 2005 PRI Show in Orlando that he would make sure that the NHRA Pro Mod series would happen for the 2006 season. I have to say that I was among those that doubted it, but he proved me wrong as NHRA announced today (Feb. 15) a 10-event exhibition series to be called the AMS Pro Mod Challenge Exhibition series.
For team owners/racers such as Ashley, Brad Anderson, Stan Ray, Dave Wood and Danny Rowe this announcement is great news. These guys really, really wanted to race at NHRA national events. The companies of Mike Ashley, Jeff Lynn, Brad Anderson and Dave Wood are funding the series for at least one more year.
The press release from NHRA did say that it would be a 10-race series, 16 cars would qualify, and the first round would be on Saturday night but left unanswered was what rules the series will use, would it remain by invitation only or what will the purse be.
My sources have told me that the series will continue to be invitational only due to the restricted amount of parking NHRA allows for exhibition cars, that IHRA rules will be used, and that the winner will get $5,000 and qualifiers $500.
One thing that NHRA’s press release didn’t tell us was that Matthew Brammer who works with Mike Ashley will replace Kenny Nowling as the race administrator and liaison between the series and the NHRA management. A separate press release from Brammer said in part: “At the helm of the series will be Matthew Brammer, president of Phoenix-based Active Marketing. Brammer is replacing outgoing Kenny Nowling who will no longer be associated with the series. Brammer said 'It’s my goal to secure long-term funding in 2006 so the Pro Mod class will remain alive and well for years come under the NHRA umbrella.'"
A call to Nowling confirmed that he will not be involved in any way with the AMS series because his duties as the president of the ADRL, a rival Pro Mod sanctioning body to the AMS series.
One of the strangest turns of events in this Pro Mod mini-melodrama is that Dave Wood, president and CEO of AMS Staff Leasing also is a principal investor in the ADRL. Dave Wood’s close friend Jeff Lynn’s company, Pinnacle Business Solutions, is a primary sponsor of the NHRA AMS-backed series. And they say politics make strange bedfellows?
At any rate, the oft tortured and confused Pro Mod racers finally have a solid schedule from all three Pro Mod sanctioning bodies and can make up their schedules for the year.
So, the main questions now are will there be enough Pro Mod racers to support three series and where will the Pro Mod class go from here? All three sanctioning bodies have 16-car fields, with the ADRL actually needing 24 to fill its two fields at each event.
There are now 28 IHRA, NHRA and ADRL national events, and at least two or three more regional circuit races for Pro Mod racers to choose from. I’d have to guess that as the season wears on there will be increased pressures from sanctioning bodies on racers for them to attend their events. I think that many Pro Mod/Top Sportsman teams who have opted not to race at major events because they thought they wouldn’t be competitive may see weaker fields that will give them a real chance to qualify.
Despite the fact that Mike Ashley and Jeff Lynn made the NHRA program happen through their dedication, it remains to be seen if bringing Pro Mod back as an exhibition class for another year ultimately is beneficial for the class. The fact is that after five years of trying, the NHRA/AMS Pro Mod program to promote the class as a professional class is losing ground not gaining. For a couple of years the series had its own stand-alone program that was just covering the NHRA Pro Mods. Now the AMS Pro Mods will have just a share of the ESPN Inside Drag Racing half-hour program.
The purse for the class at NHRA events is going to be less than it has been in the past by all indications and NHRA is absolutely adamant that Pro Mods will NEVER be a recognized professional class. After five years supporting the NHRA, Pro Mod racers have virtually nothing to show for their efforts and no indication that any of them should hold out any hope for any change of NHRA’s stance in the future. NHRA’s cavalier treatment of the racers when it comes to parking, qualifying and media support are serious indicators of NHRA’s viewing of the class as nothing other than a profit center and a filler for the real professional classes.
On the other hand, there are some definite benefits for some racers. Racing in front of huge crowds at NHRA premier tracks and events are what some racers crave more than money. The chance to race at Englishtown, Gainesville and Indy -- especially Indy -- alone is enough of a benefit for some racers to race with NHRA. For others just racing for the NHRA is plenty.
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Reading between the lines of the Matthew Brammer press release indicates that the AMS program is just a one-year deal instead of the three-year commitment NHRA wanted. Mr. Brammer is not only going to have to administrate a race series involving a lot of high maintenance racers and teams, but then in his spare time he’s going to have to find sponsors for the long term continuation of the series. He faces a daunting task, but the mere fact that he has signed on to do this indicates he enjoys a challenge.
DRO will continue do whatever we can to support the AMS series’ drivers, sponsors and teams just as it has since the first year of NHRA Pro Mod. I just hope that the class benefits from all the effort and sacrifice that Pro Mod racers, owners, and fans have given the NHRA experiment. 
