Results From Sick Week 2023
Last year Tom Bailey, a Hot Rod magazine Drag Week veteran with five wins under his belt, decided that he wanted in on the lucrative drag-and-drive scene and whipped up his own racetrack-and-roadway tour, called Sick Week, and it was a success. Three hundred fifty slots were available for anyone who wanted to push their car and themselves to the limit while touring the dragstrips of Florida and Georgia, and even with a day rained out last year, the racers raved and many said up-front that they would come back for round two in 2023.
Sure enough, at the start of Sick Week 2023, a full roster of racers were waiting at Orlando Speedworld to begin a five-day affair that would see personal bests smashed thanks to outstanding conditions, two major accidents and plenty of mechanical carnage while racers worked to secure the best average elapsed time in their class.
Click here for complete details from the 2023 event.
Dai Yoshihara Announces Entry Into the TC America Race Series With VGRT
Pro athlete and motorsport star, Daijiro “Dai” Yoshihara enters the professional competition field in TC America with the Florida-based Victor Gonzalez Racing Team (VGRT). The TC America powered by Skip Barber championship continues to be both a manufacturer and driver destination for professional touring car racing. Comprised of three competition classes—TCX, TC and TCA — all TC America powered by Skip Barber championships utilize factory-built or supported turn-key race cars, with TCX supporting the BMW M2 CS Racing platform and other full-fledged, homologated race cars.
Now in its fourth year, the racing outfit has competed in TC America, GR Cup, and the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge. Yoshihara will pilot a Honda FK8 Civic Type R TCR in the series. He is among three drivers in the VGRT TC America entry list: Ruben Iglesias Jr. represents the team in TCA, Michael Hurczyn in TC and Yoshihara in TCX. While the other Hondas in the team’s lineup are production models modified for racing, the hindmost is a full-blown Type R race car built by JAS Motorsport—the official Honda motorsport engineering and customer service partner since 1998.
Yoshihara’s participation is another step forward in his multi-lateral growth as a motorsport icon and brand under the Pit+Paddock athlete management portfolio. During his inaugural year under the Pit+Paddock flag, he soared as the fastest EV at the 100th Running of Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, allowed fans to experience his Formula DRIFT Pro class BRZ during the nationwide Ride with Dai Experience and became an official ambassador for Turn 14 Distribution, ENEOS and Yokohama Tire.
NASCAR To Announce New Short-Track, Road Course Rules
Officials with NASCAR have announced plans to debut new aerodynamic rules designed to enhance NASCAR Cup Series racing at short ovals and road courses. The new rules will help reduce downforce by up to 30%, according to NASCAR’s Dr. Eric Jacuzzi, who said the downforce levels are reminiscent of those in the mid-’90s.
The main change will be the move to a 2-in. rear spoiler (reduced from the current 4-in.) and under-car tweaks, such as the removal of three diffuser strakes and engine panel strakes and a trimmed diffuser outer fencing.
All road courses, and most short tracks, will utilize the new rules in 2023. This includes Charlotte Roval, Chicago Street Course, Circuit of The Americas, Indianapolis Motor Speedway Road Course, Martinsville, New Hampshire, North Wilkesboro, Phoenix, Richmond, Sonoma and Watkins Glen.
The new rules package will debut on Sunday, March 12, during the United Rentals Work United 500 at Phoenix Raceway. For the complete details, visit the NASCAR announcement here.
NHRA Pro Mod to Feature New Playoff-Style Points in 2023
Finish Line Consultants and National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) officials have announced a new points system will be introduced for the FuelTech NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by Type A Motorsports during the 2023 season. The new points system will incorporate a playoff-style competition similar to the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series Countdown to the Championship—part of an initiative to showcase Pro Mods more prominently in the NHRA.
The first of 10 overall events will feature a points-and-a-half format for the standout competitors in the Pro Mod ranks, meaning the race winner will earn 150 points. Following the sixth event in Norwalk, the top 10 drivers in the points standings—along with those who meet the minimum qualifying requirements at all six regular-season races—will compete in the Road to the Championship over the final four NHRA Pro Mod events of the year in Brainerd, Indy, St. Louis, and the finale at the NHRA Nevada Nationals at The Strip at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Oct. 26–29.
Those final four races will determine the 2023 world champion in the FuelTech NHRA Pro Mod Drag Racing Series presented by Type A Motorsports, with a points-and-a-half format also in place in Las Vegas.
Along with the Road to the Championship format, additional qualifying points after each round and for overall qualifying will be available at the regular-season finale in Norwalk and the last race of the season in Las Vegas.
For the complete details, visit the NHRA announcement here.
Öhlins Racing Joins NASCAR Competition Partner Program
Öhlins Racing—the racing suspension supplier based in Stockholm, Sweden, with a United States branch in Hendersonville, North Carolina—has joined the NASCAR Competition Partner program, the company announced. Öhlins, which first started developing components for NASCAR in 1994, is currently the exclusive supplier of shock absorbers for the NASCAR Cup Series Next Gen car platform.
Since the start of the 2022 season, all Cup Series teams have been running the “highly advanced” five-way adjustable version of the Öhlins TTR coilover damper featured in IndyCar and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Cup Series TTR damper, developed and tested by Öhlins engineers and NASCAR representatives, is designed to help teams quickly dial in precise damping characteristics to achieve maximum performance on various track conditions.
The Competition Partner program is an extension of NASCAR’s Next Gen Supplier program. It allows companies to promote their affiliation with the NASCAR organization and the products they supply for the Next Gen Car to fans, customers and the motorsports industry at large.
For more racing news, visit Performance Racing Industry’s (PRI) website.