Jay Turner Racing will again head up the Nitro Harley racing efforts with the IHRA Drag Racing Series.

With fresh blood headed into the IHRA Drag Racing Series, formerly known as the Nitro Jam series, the IHRA DRS should have another great year in 2016, like the three previous years, all good ones featuring Nitro Harley drag racing. This is due largely in part to the efforts of Jay Turner Racing. Jay and his lady, Dorothy Olson, deserve a big pat on the back for what they have accomplished for T/F bikes and in particular, Nitro Harley racing with the IHRA sanction. Each season Jay does everything he can to grow the class and coordinate all the Harleys with the IHRA.

In contrast, the NHRA T/F Harleys will sorely miss the presence, and more importantly the leadership, of Ray Price and his team, Ray Price Racing. It will be interesting to see if the NHRA T/F Harleys can get it together without Price leading the way. This may be a lean year for T/F in the NHRA, HD-DRS; I hope not.

In the NHRA Mello Yello drag racing series, Pro Stock Motorcycle is still a component of the big show. During the 2015 season, full fields were always at hand for the sixteen races conducted.

This year all the familiar faces are due back with one new twist: Star Racing has a two-bike team and a war chest ready to rumble. This could be a banner year for NHRA P/S M racing.

With Andrew Hines and Eddie Krawiec ready to defend the honor of Vance & Hines Racing and Angelle Sampey with her new teammate Cory Reed ready to contend, add team Hector Arana Racing and the ever capable Matt Smith Racing stable to the mix and there is potential for some of the best NHRA Pro Stock bike racing the sport has ever seen.

In the Sportsman ranks of racing, the Sportsman in motorcycle drag racing have much to choose from no matter what they ride this season. Aside from the MANCUP and IDBL series, which are East Coast ventures, the NHRA has a regional series that will run at all their sanctioned facilities coast to coast. In the Midwest the popular NHDRO, AMRA and WMDRA sanctions serve the racers well too, so no matter what type of motorcycle a drag bike racer chooses to run this year, there is a class for all drag bikes in 2016.

- Tom McCarthy