Excitement Builds for NMRA First Visit to Historic Gainesville Raceway
For more than a quarter century, drag racers eager to begin a new year make their way to sunny Florida for the season-opening NMRA Spring Break Shootout. This year, the event will be held at one of drag racing’s most historic venues, Gainesville Raceway, on Feb. 22-25.
Along with producing the finest All-Ford drag racing in the world, every NMRA event will have special features to bring in all Blue Oval fanatics interested in all parts of the automotive and truck hobby.
Along with the exciting categories such as Renegade, True Street and Coyote Stock, the 2024 Spring Break Shootout will be chock full of action including the Fox-Body Reunion, GT500 Shootout, and BMR Suspension S650 Mustang Stampede, tire-shredding drifting, flame-throwing jet cars, FMX motocross stunt shows, Clarence Barnes & the NMRA Fan Experience, and the famed BIGFOOT monster truck to get you going. You’ll also experience RTR Vehicles pro drivers Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Chelsea DeNofa who will be in the house hosting a special RTR Vehicles owners experience. And let’s not forget the giant all-Ford car show, manufacturer’s midway and swap meet, too!
The battle for NMRA drag racing championships will also begin in February on Gainesville Raceway’s famed 1,350, with racers earning points in VP Racing Lubricants Renegade, Coyote Stock, Richmond Gear Factory Stock, SunCoast Performance 8.60 Street Race, Whatever It Takes Transmission Parts’ Street Bandit 10.10, ARP Open Comp, Truck & SUV, Exedy Racing Clutch Modular Muscle, HP Tuners Super Stang, and Ford Muscle. The NMRA SBS will also offer bracket racing classes for those who prefer to dial in and race.
One of the biggest SBS highlights will be the inaugural BMR Suspension S650 Mustang Stampede, a special event dedicated to showcasing 2024 Ford Mustangs. The first of three events scheduled for Gainesville, Norwalk, and Bowling Green, the S650 Mustang Stampede includes special car show categories as well as an all-run eliminator and a Fast Four Shootout based on Friday’s qualifying. The all-run S650 eliminator features a .500 full tree, dial-in staggered start, and a “chip draw” to determine pairings. This will be the first 2024 Mustang (S650) shootout, and it will be very exciting to see who can bring the heat with Ford’s latest Mustang.
The Gainesville opener will also debut Whatever It Takes Transmission Parts’ Street Bandit 10.10 class as an official championship category. The exciting new eliminator was launched last year at the NMRA World Finals, where it was met with rave reviews. Shawn Olson defeated Cary Shotwell in the first Street Bandit 10.10 final round and this year, the popular street-car class will be contested at all six NMRA events and we’ll crown the first series champion next December.
Both old and new Mustangs will be celebrated in Gainesville with the 2020+ GT500 Shootout and the Fox Body Reunion. The GT500 Shootout has become a popular addition to select NMRA events and features open competition among 2020-and-newer Shelby GT500 Mustangs in three classes, GT500 Unlimited, GT500 Street, and GT500 Fast Four. The Fox-Body Reunion celebrates the heritage of ’79-to-’93 Fox-bodied vehicles in the expansive show car area. Of course, you can drag race your Fox Ford in any number of classes.
One of the biggest draws to any NMRA event is the immensely popular Circle D Specialties True Street and TREMEC All Female True Street classes, which will compete on Saturday in Gainesville. Both classes feature a grueling test of street-car endurance and performance that includes a 30-mile street cruise, and three consecutive quarter-mile runs where the average elapsed time is used to determine the winners. True Street is a great class for anyone with a street-legal Ford, Merc or Lincoln who wants to make passes and race the clock for prizes and awards.
As if that wasn’t enough, the BBK Performance Spring Break Shootout and TREMEC Stick Shift Shootout categories return to Florida with bonus payouts offered to the quickest cars in the True Street class as well as the quickest manually shifted entries.
While every NMRA event features a wide variety of entertainment options that will appeal to any automotive enthusiast, the 2024 season-opener is also a must-see thanks to the setting that is Gainesville Raceway and the surrounding area. Known as the home of the NHRA Gatornationals, Gainesville Raceway is one of drag racing’s premiere facilities and famously hosted the sport’s first 300-mph run by Kenny Bernstein in 1993. The track features all the amenities one would expect of a world class facility including acres of paved parking, ample sound and lighting, as well as a track surface that often yields record-setting performances. Gainesville Raceway is also located close to many of our Florida-based sponsors, including National Parts Depot (NPD) about 45 minutes away in Ocala. Ocala is also the home of Big Daddy Don Garlits’ Museum of Drag Racing.
Visit Gainesville Alachua County is an NMRA’s Spring Break Shootout official supporter and the area is also home to the University of Florida and features numerous tourist attractions including the Florida Museum of Natural History, the Harn Museum of Art, Devil's Millhopper Geological State Park, Kanapaha Botanical Gardens, and Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, the home of the Florida Gators football team. The Gainesville area is also well known for its lively downtown area featuring numerous highly rated nightclubs and restaurants.
For Tickets and more information click here: https://www.nmradigital.com/gainesville-fl/p118
For more than a quarter century, drag racers eager to begin a new year make their way to sunny Florida for the season-opening NMRA Spring Break Shootout. This year, the event will be held at one of drag racing’s most historic venues, Gainesville Raceway, on Feb. 22-25.
Along with producing the finest All-Ford drag racing in the world, every NMRA event will have special features to bring in all Blue Oval fanatics interested in all parts of the automotive and truck hobby.
Along with the exciting categories such as Renegade, True Street and Coyote Stock, the 2024 Spring Break Shootout will be chock full of action including the Fox-Body Reunion, GT500 Shootout, and BMR Suspension S650 Mustang Stampede, tire-shredding drifting, flame-throwing jet cars, FMX motocross stunt shows, Clarence Barnes & the NMRA Fan Experience, and the famed BIGFOOT monster truck to get you going. You’ll also experience RTR Vehicles pro drivers Vaughn Gittin Jr. and Chelsea DeNofa who will be in the house hosting a special RTR Vehicles owners experience. And let’s not forget the giant all-Ford car show, manufacturer’s midway and swap meet, too!
The battle for NMRA drag racing championships will also begin in February on Gainesville Raceway’s famed 1,350, with racers earning points in VP Racing Lubricants Renegade, Coyote Stock, Richmond Gear Factory Stock, SunCoast Performance 8.60 Street Race, Whatever It Takes Transmission Parts’ Street Bandit 10.10, ARP Open Comp, Truck & SUV, Exedy Racing Clutch Modular Muscle, HP Tuners Super Stang, and Ford Muscle. The NMRA SBS will also offer bracket racing classes for those who prefer to dial in and race.
One of the biggest SBS highlights will be the inaugural BMR Suspension S650 Mustang Stampede, a special event dedicated to showcasing 2024 Ford Mustangs. The first of three events scheduled for Gainesville, Norwalk, and Bowling Green, the S650 Mustang Stampede includes special car show categories as well as an all-run eliminator and a Fast Four Shootout based on Friday’s qualifying. The all-run S650 eliminator features a .500 full tree, dial-in staggered start, and a “chip draw” to determine pairings. This will be the first 2024 Mustang (S650) shootout, and it will be very exciting to see who can bring the heat with Ford’s latest Mustang.
The Gainesville opener will also debut Whatever It Takes Transmission Parts’ Street Bandit 10.10 class as an official championship category. The exciting new eliminator was launched last year at the NMRA World Finals, where it was met with rave reviews. Shawn Olson defeated Cary Shotwell in the first Street Bandit 10.10 final round and this year, the popular street-car class will be contested at all six NMRA events and we’ll crown the first series champion next December.
Both old and new Mustangs will be celebrated in Gainesville with the 2020+ GT500 Shootout and the Fox Body Reunion. The GT500 Shootout has become a popular addition to select NMRA events and features open competition among 2020-and-newer Shelby GT500 Mustangs in three classes, GT500 Unlimited, GT500 Street, and GT500 Fast Four. The Fox-Body Reunion celebrates the heritage of ’79-to-’93 Fox-bodied vehicles in the expansive show car area. Of course, you can drag race your Fox Ford in any number of classes.
One of the biggest draws to any NMRA event is the immensely popular Circle D Specialties True Street and TREMEC All Female True Street classes, which will compete on Saturday in Gainesville. Both classes feature a grueling test of street-car endurance and performance that includes a 30-mile street cruise, and three consecutive quarter-mile runs where the average elapsed time is used to determine the winners. True Street is a great class for anyone with a street-legal Ford, Merc or Lincoln who wants to make passes and race the clock for prizes and awards.
As if that wasn’t enough, the BBK Performance Spring Break Shootout and TREMEC Stick Shift Shootout categories return to Florida with bonus payouts offered to the quickest cars in the True Street class as well as the quickest manually shifted entries.
While every NMRA event features a wide variety of entertainment options that will appeal to any automotive enthusiast, the 2024 season-opener is also a must-see thanks to the setting that is Gainesville Raceway and the surrounding area. Known as the home of the NHRA Gatornationals, Gainesville Raceway is one of drag racing’s premiere facilities and famously hosted the sport’s first 300-mph run by Kenny Bernstein in 1993. The track features all the amenities one would expect of a world class facility including acres of paved parking, ample sound and lighting, as well as a track surface that often yields record-setting performances. Gainesville Raceway is also located close to many of our Florida-based sponsors, including National Parts Depot (NPD) about 45 minutes away in Ocala. Ocala is also the home of Big Daddy Don Garlits’ Museum of Drag Racing.
Visit Gainesville Alachua County is an NMRA’s Spring Break Shootout official supporter and the area is also home to the University of Florida and features numerous tourist attractions including the Florida Museum of Natural History, the Harn Museum of Art, Devil's Millhopper Geological State Park, Kanapaha Botanical Gardens, and Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, the home of the Florida Gators football team. The Gainesville area is also well known for its lively downtown area featuring numerous highly rated nightclubs and restaurants.
For Tickets and more information click here: https://www.nmradigital.com/gainesville-fl/p118
