NHRA Drivers Backpedaling on Four Wide.
By: Drew Hierwarter
Charlotte Motor Speedway photo
That strange sound you hear coming from the world of NHRA is the backpedaling of the members of PRO, the organization of drag racing’s professional drivers and owners.
Several weeks ago, after the initial “4-Wide Nationals” was held at Bruton Smith’s Z-Max Dragway, PRO sent a letter to the NHRA stating that the membership had voted 61 to 3 to not participate in any more four wide drag racing in a points paying event.
The group sited confusion over the additional lights required on the Christmas tree that affected the outcome of races, the lack of sponsorship identity caused by the necessarily wide TV shot to show all four cars at once, and several safety concerns.
When the series arrived in
Listening to the interviews on ESPN was like listening to the Stepford Drivers. With few exceptions they all were merely parroting the talking points given to them by the NHRA. We heard things like; “Well, maybe we overreacted initially”, or “Cooler heads have prevailed”, “NHRA has the best interest of the sport at heart”, and more. But the most common thread in almost every interview was; “Mr. Smith has done a great deal for our sport. He spent a lot of money to make his Z-Max Dragway the showplace that it is and we should all try to support what he is doing.”
The NHRA then issued the following statement; “NHRA announced today that the 2011 NHRA Four Wide Nationals at Z-Max Dragway will once again feature four-wide racing in all four professional categories. The spring event in
Is anybody besides Bruton Smith happy about this?
The NHRA conducted a fan survey on their Facebook page, the results of which showed that only 22% of respondents “loved it”. In another survey conducted by ESPN, fully 70% of their fans said they didn’t like it and would not watch if it was done again. And yet, the NHRA claims that they used “fan feedback” to make the decision to continue four-wide racing.
Many of the comments that fans left on Facebook in response to the NHRA’s decision cannot be repeated here. Most feel it was just a gimmick and accused the NHRA of trying to turn drag racing into something more like a monster truck event. Several mentioned that the only fans who liked it were those new to drag racing and that “real” drag racing is done two cars at a time.
So, the bottom line is that it appears Bruton Smith put enough pressure on the NHRA and the members of PRO to at least try it one more time. For sure they will make some changes and tweak the format to appease some of the competitor’s concerns. But the real test will be if the fans show up or turn on their TVs. I suspect that come next spring, if Bruton Smith looks out of his owner’s suite and sees a lot of empty seats, the idea of four-wide drag racing will die the quiet death that it deserves.