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Concerning the NHRA TV lineup


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This is not to start a firestorm from Pro Stock motorcycle lovers. I would be asking this regardless of what class of vehicle occupies the spot they are in now. Having said that, here's the question.

Would the NHRA and the fans of all things drag racing, be better served by the bikes being replaced by Pro Mod? My main reasons for suggesting this are twofold. First, they are more exciting. Period. Second, it would be easier for them to procure sponsorship with the additional coverage. I know it would hurt the bikers and I wish no one ill will. But sacrifices have been made before for the greater good. ESPN could still do highlights of qualifying and competition instead of a mind numbing side piece about a clutch set up or fuel management. We can Google that.

DISCUSS (Ducks and runs for cover)

Edited by Nytrozilla
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I would be against it personally. Im friends with some of the guys that help pioneer the class in the 1980s, so my opinion is very bias. Of course it takes money to win races, and it takes talent to tune, but adding another class like Pro Mod, which really has no limitations on power, would bore me to death. In all the years Ive been heading to Englishtown, I havent sat in the bleachers to watch the fuel classes since I was a kid in the 80s. (Don Garlit back flipped his T/FD on my birthday,July 12th, 1986 :D ) For me, making any sort of horsepower on a naturally aspirated engine is far superior than getting the right pulley on a blower.

 

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I'm personally not a big fan of the NHRA,especially so after they tried to make publicity for them selves when they revoked NHRA memberships from members of a reality TV show over fake "street racing". What they need to do if they want better ratings is spool up some silly reality TV show about drag racing or they could come up with a way to help pioneer into the field of online entertainment. TV stations in general are becoming a thing of the past,YouTube just recently passed some of the cable giants in earnings if I'm not mistaken.

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Replacing Pro Stock AND Pro Stock bike is a good idea.

Neither class really represents anything on the road today. As an OLD guy I can tell you NHRA has always been glacially slow to change and to recognize the obvious. The entire NHRA lineup from T/F on down is not sustainable, going nowhere and in desperate need of modernization if it's to survive. I haven't been to the "Big Show" in years, too expensive, too little racing, too many people...etc.

Try "nostalgia" racing ( I HATE the term). It's just taking it back a notch to the 80's, WAY more fun all the way around.

'NHRA as it exists is just a circus act, it WILL NOT survive as is.

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Modernization? How? What's keeping them back? They already make more power than they could handle, the aero packages are advanced as much of the times and the performance is almost too much for the human body to handle. Look at Kenny Bernstein .....his eye balls were coming out of his head because of the G forces.

Edited by John Clutch
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I've never been a fan of the bikes, really motorcycles in general. But I don't see it as a problem. I really don't care for Pro Mod either. I am a big fan of Pro Stock though. There has been talk of changing that class and it does need some changes. It would be great to see Challengers, Mustangs, and Camaros  running Hemis, LSs, and Mod motors shooting it out (but they call that Super Stock....). Problem is the NHRA won't make big changes to the way things are because too many people have too much money invested in the way things are now.

 

When I saw the thread title I thought it was going to be about NHRA going to Fox Sports 1 next season, I'm not happy about that.....even though ESPN2 has its own problems with its coverage. I guess it doesn't matter because I don't have cable or satellite to watch it on TV anymore. 

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Modernization? How? What's keeping them back? They already make more power than they could handle, the aero packages are advanced as much of the times and the performance is almost too much for the human body to handle. Look at Kenny Bernstein .....his eye balls were coming out of his head because of the G forces.

By going back. The cars are just too fast. It's ridiculous. I'd rather see a 5 second 1320 foot race WITH a shift than the BS FC "3" second run.

Actual driving. By modernizing, I mean ditch PS/PSB, promote T/A and Pro Mod. Take it down a few notches so you don't have to be a oil sheik to race.

AND, it might help local tracks as well. When I go to the March Meet and there are three dozen FC's vs barely 16 at Pomona, it tells me that usual NHRA has their priorities wrong. The big show is an "event, like wrestling or "extreme" sports, not real racing anymore. The same multi car reams ALWAYS win.

As for P/S and P/SB, get real, everyone goes to get a burger. When was the last time you bought a carb'ed muscle car?

Edited by GaryR
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You would rather see a 5 second race and I would like to see cars run faster than ever before. And the only time you ever see the turn out at a national event start to dwindle, is after the NHRA forces a ruling to slow the class down. And everytime they do they take a decade of research and development with it. Who wants to see cars running slower now than 10 years ago? No one. The racers don't want it, the crowd doesn't want it and the sponsors don't want it. Some rule changes are required for the safety of the driver and spectators and I'm all for that. You say turn down the cars and see some shifting, yet the only class that they shift in, you want to eliminate. Give it some time, you'll have your 5 second race in Pro Stock before you know it.

6.40s @ over 210mph in Pro Stock right now. At 2350lb minimums, that's approx. 1700hp, from a naturally aspirated 500ci motor. That's over 3 hp per cube!!!! How can that not be exciting?

And just to show you how impressive that is, IHRA Pro Stocks are UNLIMITED cubic inch and the record is 6.20s. They have motors almost 1000 cubes, yet they can only mustered 2 tenths quicker than NHRA. 

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This is exactly what I was hoping for. An intelligent discussion of how to improve the sport that, most of us, love so well and for so long.

I wouldn't have a problem with Pro Stock taking a back seat either as they are the largest whiners about downforce and track conditions.

I suppose we could settle for adding Pro Mod and having it split coverage with P/S and PSB. That would leave plenty of time for the Top Fuel contingent.

At the track, I would change the lineup to T/F, F/C, Pro Mod, Pro Stock and PSB for eliminations, maintaining the field reversal for the final round as long as it's logistically sound.

Nice talk you guys.

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Joe... I have to first say I am a fan of both the Pro Mods and Pro Stock bikes. I have gotten to see Pro Mods in person when I went to Vegas a few years ago which was the first time to see them in person for me. It was awesome... It took me back to when I grew up around a Top Alcohol Dragster back in the mid 70's to Mid 80's the whining of the blower remindned me how dragsters and funny cars sounded back then. Another thing was that the Pro Mod guys were so cool and friendly. They didn't care what you took pictures of and I even had a few of the drivers let me into the pits to get some up close shots.

My Suggestion would be to add Pro Mod to the mix and keep them all. I like the Line up you suggest with T/F, F/C, Pro Mod, Pro Stock and Pro Stock Bike. And who knows how it will be telivised since the NHRA will be going to Fox Sports.

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The facts are that cars simply can't go infinitely faster. It's been 50 years since the golden age, and T/F cars ran in the 7's then. 110 top fuel cars at Bako in 1966. Racing was WAY WAY SLOWER, but vastly more popular. How many modern T'F cars are there now,16_ 20? Who can afford it? Even Force can't get sponsors!

We can't go back to 1965, but we can set more real terms for racing.That's all I'm suggesting. Pro mods regularly turn 5.50's, I thing the body regs are too liberal, but they do haul. It would help to be somewhat objective too, not focused only on what "you" like. Be honest, the stands empty out for P'S and P/SB.

Not my opinion, it's fact. And NHRA TV rating are way down, live attendance is down, all NHRA does is try to ape NASCAR, and NASCAR is circling the drain compared to a few years ago! Drag racing will NEVER be big on TV, it just doesn't translate. I'd rather have costs reduced, and three or four times the car count! The Heritage series is very successful, while NHRA ignores it and still looks for a way to become the NFL. Ain't going to happen.

Edited by GaryR
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I don't watch modern drag racing at the strip or on TV as it's VERY boring. I watched and raced cars back in the 60's when it was part of the "Golden Years" of drag racing when hard work and innovation was important, and anybody could partake in racing, even with their grandmothers car. Not like these "high dollar" cookie cutter cars that are racing today.

Last weekend there was "vintage" drag racing at a strip I used to race at, and they had over 500 cars registered from all over the country. I believe the cars had to be 1966 and older and had to have "period correct" wheels as well. It was a blast from the past, and there were gassers galore. I'm sure glad I was there.  

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I love all of it. Always will. I've never been a NASCAR fan, never will. Im with Chris as well, add Pro Mod. Even if its a partial season like P/M. ESPN has something to do with the ratings on TV. When they keep shoving the drags off to continue the live coverage of midget billiards or high school ping pong or whatever BS sport that's on before them really pisses me off. Then they schedule them late on a sunday. I drive truck, I leave around midnight. Which means I can't watch it, and there are 8 other drivers at my company that love drag racing and can't watch. I hope with Fox Sports they can bring the ratings up. Give the drags a decent time slot, like 5pm not 8pm. I know production and editing would have to be done while most races are happening, or show them live like the roundy round cars.

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Fellas,

 My all time favs, STOCK, Super Stock, and Junior Fuel (small block powered fr. engine dragsters from "back in the day"), Fox needs to broadcast the Sportsman classes in a different show for the diehards...

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Well there is one issue I have with NHRA and that's the ban on lock up converters. They say it's a performance advantage, yet it acts as a clutch and clutch cars are legal. The advantage is a traditional converter multiples the torque at the line, and has a certain amount of slippage for the entire pass. A lock up converteracts the exact same way, but  at whatever RPM or gear you choose, the converter can be locked up 1 to 1, just like how a clutch car works. The technology isn't too expensive so I can't see why the NHRA is holding that back. 

The grandstands empty out when PS and PSM start staging is because the majority  are there to see the fuel classes. And a good part of them as not hardcore drag racers. The biggest fields today is PS and PSM, especially in the northeast. We love our Pro Stocks just like the lower east coast states like their NASCAR. 

The dream of mine is if I had unlimited amount of funds, I would go Pro Stock racing for the rest of my life. I might want to strap into a fuel car to experience that, but my racing is in the pits and under the car. I'm not saying fuel cars are not easy to tune, but fuel cars are NEVER searching for power no matter what altitude they ran at. Finding that 10 hp is where it's at for me.

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When I saw the thread title I thought it was going to be about NHRA going to Fox Sports 1 next season, I'm not happy about that.....even though ESPN2 has its own problems with its coverage. I guess it doesn't matter because I don't have cable or satellite to watch it on TV anymore. 

I think overall its going to be better in the long for the NHRA moving over the Fox Sports twins,  ESPN cares less about anything on four wheels, the only issue could be that Fox Sports 1 is in10 million less homes than ESPN is.  Or I could be wrong and moving to Fox Sports could be bad.

On a related side note, it was reported that Disney is forcing ESPN to cut 250million dollars from its budget by 2017,  and here we have the NHRA leaving ESPN.

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Hot off the presses.....(do they still use presses???)

 

http://www.nhra.com/story/2015/7/25/pro-stock-changes/

WOW!!! Be careful what you wish for, HUH??? I'll bet Jason Line and Greg Anderson are having hissy fits over that news. In the meanwhile, other teams will look at this as a wonderful opportunity to innovate. What a unique cconcept. Approach change with a positive attitude and anything is possible. Can't wait for the show tonite. Sweet.

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When I saw the thread title I thought it was going to be about NHRA going to Fox Sports 1 next season, I'm not happy about that.....even though ESPN2 has its own problems with its coverage. I guess it doesn't matter because I don't have cable or satellite to watch it on TV anymore. 

I think overall its going to be better in the long for the NHRA moving over the Fox Sports twins,  ESPN cares less about anything on four wheels, the only issue could be that Fox Sports 1 is in10 million less homes than ESPN is.  Or I could be wrong and moving to Fox Sports could be bad.

On a related side note, it was reported that Disney is forcing ESPN to cut 250million dollars from its budget by 2017,  and here we have the NHRA leaving

The biggest problem I have with the change is I hate to watch or support Fox networks in any way, shape, or form. I'm not saying the actual coverage will be better or worse, ESPN has some issues with their coverage but I don't have the same issues with their network or ownership.

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