April News Roundup

If the month of May in 2019, is anything like the preceding month of April, then 2019 may be one of the best seasons of motorcycle drag racing in decades. With Man Cup, AMRA, NHDRO and XDA all hosting great races in April, May has a tough act to follow.

It all kicked off the first weekend in April with the Man Cup motorcycle drag racing sanction hosting the 38th Annual Exoticycle Spring Cup event, presented by Roaring Toyz on April 5-7, at South Georgia Motorsports Park. The sanction along with SGMP staff fought off weather complications all weekend and got the race in complete on Sunday evening. In the Pingel Top Fuel final, Dave Vantine soloed to victory with a solid 5.93 at 253.71 MPH to take the win and the points championship lead. In Hawaya Racing Pro Fuel: #1 qualifier Preston Bartlett, won the event for his first win of the 2019 season in defense of his #1 Hawaya Racing Pro Fuel championship plate.

The Falicon Pro Mod racing was just monster at this race. In the final round, the Jones Racing machine witch had been delivering 4.0’s all weekend gave Chris Garner Jones a 4.11 elapsed time to Paul Gast’s 4.02 and Mr. Gast hit the win stripe first to start off his 2019 season with a win and a smile. The 2018 Man Cup Pro Open champion, Jean Gosselin of Canada won his class in defense of his 2019, #1 plate. In APE Pro Street competition, Jeremey Teasley, the #1 qualifier was having a great weekend until he met Chris Connelly during E-2 and Chris got the better of him. Chris then went on to win his first big event in 2019, by defeating Carlos Olivo in the final round.

In Shinko/WPS Real Street, Jeremey Teasley was the #1 qualifier with a 7.74 and he dispatched all comers during Sunday’s match ups. Teasley then saved the best for last as he stormed down the 1320 of South Georgia Motorsports Park to post a 7.708 at 183 MPH, almost setting a new Real Street record in the process, for the win.

Rodney Williford  (Tom McCarthy photo)

The NHDRO sanction held its season opener race at Gainesville, FL, on April 12-14 and they also managed to get the full event in. On Sunday April 14, after the smoke cleared, in Millennium Trailers Pro Street – Rodney Williford (W), Sydney Marshall (R/U), Quinn O’s Bike Real Street – Stephen Holmberg (W), Jason Fernando (R/U), Hardcore Cycles Top Gas – Ricardo Marte (W), Cory Washington (R/U), Pro Ultra 4.60 – Tony Mullen (W), Broderick Jackson (R/U), M2 Shocks Crazy Comp – John Markham (W), John King (R/U), Penske Street Fighter – Ron Arnold, (W), Barry Pryor (R/U), MPS Pro ET – Chad Isley, (W) Saturday and Steve Klemme Sunday (W), and in Dennis Insurance ET on Saturday/Sunday winner was Dustin Lee.

On April 28, the AMRA, “All Harley” motorcycle drag racing sanction held its first race of 2019, the AMRA Spring Rally and Drag at historic Beech Bend Park in Bowling Green, KY. Hundreds of Harle- Davidson racers flocked to Beech Bend as they have since 1969 to kick off the new season. This was the first race with the AMRA in transition to new ownership and all went off well despite a washout of Q-3 due to persistent rain showers late Saturday. Sunday the sanction addressed schedule changes, got in a Q-3 session and still finished the race by 7 p.m., much to the satisfaction of the racers and new ownership. Bill Rowe and Marty of the AMRA transition team commented, “This is the best racer attendance we’ve seen for the AMRA season opener in some years.”

Assin Chaudhry, Dresser winner.

The results from the 2019 AMRA Spring Rally and Drags are as follows: Nitro Funny Bike – Hal Cort of Houston TX, (6.85) def Ryan Perry of Milford OH, (6.87), Pro Fuel – Chaz Kennedy of Klin MS, (7.41) def Janette Thornley of Statesville, NC, (7.49), Pro Gas – Donnie Huffman of Lakeland FL, (8.91) def Greg Frost of Omaha, NE, (Broke), Pro Modified – Billy Doherty of Wyoming, MI (8.37) def Shane Pendergast of TN (8.77), Super Comp – Donnie Huffman of Lakeland, FL, (W) Keith Richner, of Moore, SC (R/U), Vreeland’s HD, Top Eliminator, Curt Stuckenschneider of MO (W), Steve Matthews (R/U), Modified – Gary Douglas of Staunton, VA (W), Dan Leslie of Pinson, TN (R/U), Vreeland’s HD, Super Gas – Kimberly DeShields, Smyrna, TN (W), Bill Anderson of Spring TX (R/U), Brock’s Performance Outlaw Street – Stephane Crete, Canada, (W), Charley Douglas, VA, (R/U), Super Pro – David Doremus, Loveland, OH, (W), Butch Lowe, (R/U), Horsepower Inc. Hot Street – Brian Connelly Jr, IL (W), Dave Cartwright, IN, (R/U), Pro Eliminator – Terry Mason, TN (W), Rick Miller, FL, (R/U), Zippers Performance Super Street – Charley Douglas, Staunton, VA, (W), Joe Perry, Kingsport, TN, (R/U), Baker Street Eliminator – Kevin Winters, Richmond IL (W), Charley Walker, Brandon, MS, (R/U), Energy One Dresser – Assim Chaudhry, PA, (W), David Dennick, PA, (R/U), Thundermax Eliminator- Scott Barkley, TN, (W), Matt Hawkins, Woodriver, IL, (R/U), Street Trophy- (1) Tony Eads (W) Roy Meadows (R/U) and (2) Roy Meadows (W) #1416 (R/U). The next AMRA event will be May 18-19 at Orlando Speed World.

Of note at the AMRA event was Chaz Kennedy of Kiln, MS, racing on the LSR P/F bike. Chaz won is first nitro event his first time out. “I was really out to just make laps on the bike, I didn’t expect to win.” When asked if he had ambition on moving up to TFH, “If the deal was right – yes.”

In XDA sanction action, it was raining in a good way – raining record runs that is on April 27-28 at Maryland International Raceway, the home track of the sanction. At the PFR Spring Nationals, in Orient Express Pro Street - Rodney Williford (W) Richard Gadson (R/U), Williford 6.515 at 230.37 MPH, Teasley, 6.492 in competition, new world records – wow! Schnitz Racing Real Street – Marcus Hylton (W), Spencer Claycomb (R/U); DME Pro Extreme – Kevin Clark (W), Rob Garcia (R/U); Vance & Hines 4.60 – Ronald Procopio (W), Tyler Cammock (R/U); FBR Shop 5.60 – Daniel Joyce (W), Dustin Lee (R/U); Shinko Tires Crazy 8’s – Nick Hamlett (W), Spencer Claycomb (R/U); Mickey Thompson Performance Top Sportsman – Jim Shifflett (W), Mac McAdams (R/U); MPS Pro ET – Jimmie Miller (W), Jim Shifflett (R/U); Brock’s Performance Street ET – Derrick Milbourne (W) David Poague (R/U). The XDA’s next event is May 31-June 1 at VMP.

In other interesting motorcycle drag racing news, the #1 qualifier in NHRA Top Fuel at the recent NHRA NGK Spark Plugs Four-Wide Nationals at Charlotte, NC, Mike Salinas, was so impressed by his team’s performance in helping him win his first event at the Four-Wide event in Las Vegas, he presented EIGHT members of his team with brand new Harley-Davidson motorcycles! During NHRA pre-race ceremonies on Sunday morning at Charlotte he came out on stage for his #1 qualifier accolades and then he called his team out on stage and presented each of them with packaged up H-D T-shirts. He then announced, “Whoever has a T-shirt with a Harley-Davidson logo on it, congratulations, you got yourself a new Harley-Davidson motorcycle.” The catch was, all the shirts had the logo and they all did receive new Harleys.