MATCH RACE MADNESS-IT'S ALIVE!!

2/8/05

Once upon a time, there was a drag racing magazine called Super Stock and Drag Illustrated. One of its best features was a section in the back called Match Race Madness. It covered match races (duh) between the nitro funny cars of the day (late 1960s and early 1970s), with a few fuel altered and Top Fuel features thrown in for good measure. Great stuff, even if it was at least a month old by the time it hit the newsstands. But like most Great Stuff, the match race scene had its day and faded out, mostly due to circumstances beyond its control. Super Stock mag too, for that matter.

But as we prepare for the 2005 season here in the Midwest, a new day is upon us. Match Race Madness is on the comeback trail, this time in the guise of Outlaw Pro Mod racing. Four racing series at four tracks in three states works out to twenty-one races for Outlaw Pro Mod racers, all within about a four-hour drive from the Kansas City area. Throw in the usual Pro Mod show at Cordova Dragway's annual World Series event and you have an even twenty-two opportunities for local and regional level Pro Mod teams to get some action. When UDRA announces their 2005 schedule, that number will exceed thirty events. To be sure, there is some date overlap, but not as much as you might think.

In most instances, race mode will be "run-what-ya-brung," with the usual caveats in force regarding safety regulations. Anyone planning on participating should contract the tracks before committing. What tracks, and what series, you ask?

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I'll lead off with the series that started the boom (in my opinion). Last year, Donnie Little spearheaded the Country Motors and Trailer Sales Outlaw Pro Mod tour, a group of dedicated Midwest doorslammer racers. This group raced at various venues, sometimes on the eighth-mile, sometimes the 1320. In 2005, the series will be contested entirely at Gateway International Raceway, in Madison, Illinois. Sixteen car shows, eighth-mile racing, very few rules, and a ton of action will be the order of the day during the six dates booked. Information on race dates is available through the Gateway Raceway website, and DRO will have other information on the series as it becomes available.

My home track, Kansas City International Raceway will also host six Outlaw Pro Mod dates, as the Cable-Dahmer Chevrolet Quick 16 series returns for a second year. In 2004 the series suffered some car-count woes, with a dose of "soft bump" thrown in to boot. For 2005, track management opted to stick with the quarter mile distance, a departure from most Quick 8/16 Outlaw racing. They felt the KC-area fan related more to the full 1320 distance, and hope better promotion and a general strengthening of the Outlaw scene would do the trick in 2005. Time will tell.