Words by Josh Hachat
Photos by John Edwin Mason

In what was the most lucrative win in his
career and in Top Sportsman history,
Terry Teets didn’t have to go far to get it
on Saturday. Racing close to home at
Virginia Motorsports Park, Teets capped
off a terrific day with a winning 4.444 at 163.59
miles per hour in the finals of the Summit
Racing Equipment Top Sportsman “Clash of
the Titans,” which was held at this weekend’s
American Drag Racing League U.S. Drags V.

The win against Richmond-area native William Brown III netted Teets (shown) a Top Sportsman-record $10,000 prize and one massive winner’s circle smile.

“This is the biggest win I’ve ever had. I love Summit and the ADRL for putting this on,” said Teets, who also credited tuner Wayne Rogers, stepdaughter Sidney Spence and his son, Chris Teets. “It’s a big deal, too, because my brother (Glenn) won (in Top Sportsman) last year here, so we kept it in the family.”

Other winners at the U.S. Drags at VMP included Mick Snyder (Pro Extreme), Doug Riesterer (Pro Nitrous), Brad Brand (Mickey Thompson Extreme 10.5), Casey Stemper (Pro Extreme Motorcycle), Richie Stevens Jr. (Extreme Pro Stock) and Fredy Scriba (Aeromotive Fuel Systems Pro Modified).

Driving a Jerry Haas Race Cars ’04 Cavalier, Teets qualified No. 15 in the 32-car qualifying field and then persevered through five rounds of eliminations before topping Brown in a memorable and historic final round.

“William is a great guy and a tough racer, so it’s also nice to keep this in the state of Virginia,” Teets said. “The car ran great all weekend and we just took it a round at a time. Getting to go out last and run as the final pair was really great.”

Mick Snyder made Pro Extreme history on Saturday, becoming the first driver in PX history to win three straight races.

This time, Snyder won it on the line, using an .043 reaction time to have his 3.665 at 208.23 mph hold up in a holeshot win against Tim Tindle and his career-best 3.646. The win stretched Snyder’s points lead and also gave him a significant first in the class.

“We’ve done it three different ways. My dad gave me one (win) with some awesome horsepower, we won one on a single
and this one, I got to do it. A holeshot win is always cool,” Snyder said. “To get three in a row, it’s just crazy.”