NASCAR AND NHRA

By Ashley Brown and John Tullis

HISTORY

Started in the 1930s

Bill France Sr. organizes NASCAR
Feb. 15, 1948 was the first race
in Daytona Beach, Florida

Fig. 2 NHRA 1937 logo.

Source: NHRA, NHRA History.

Fig. 1 Red Byron, a stock car

legend from Atlanta, won the
event in a Ford Modified.
Source: NASCAR, About
NASCAR.

Started in the early 1930s

Wally Parks
First race in April 1953, at the LA
county fairgrounds parking lot in
Pomona, California

Fig. 3 Schedule
Source: NASCAR, 2015 Sprint Cup Series.

2015 NHRA MELLO YELLO DRAG RACING SERIES SCHEDULE

NHRA Mello Yello Series Regular Season
Feb. 5-8

NHRA Winternationals

Pomona

Feb. 20-22

Phoenix

March 27-29

CARQUEST Auto Parts NHRA Nationals

Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals
(PSM)
NHRA Four-Wide Nationals (PSM)

April 10-12

SummitRacing.com NHRA Nationals

Las Vegas

April 24-26

OReilly Auto Parts NHRA SpringNationals

Houston

May 15-17

Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Southern

Nationals (PSM)

Atlanta

May 22-24

NHRA Kansas Nationals

Topeka

June 4-7

Toyota NHRA Summernationals (PSM)

Englishtown

June 12-14

Auto-Plus NHRA New England Nationals

Epping

June 19-21

NHRA Thunder Valley Nationals

Bristol

July 2-5

Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals

(PSM)

Norwalk

July 9-12

OReilly Auto Parts Route 66 NHRA

Nationals (PSM)

Chicago

July 24-26

Mopar Mile-High NHRA Nationals (PSM)

Denver

July 31-Aug. 2

NHRA Sonoma Nationals (PSM)

OReilly Auto Parts NHRA Northwest
Nationals
Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals

Sonoma

March 12-15

Aug. 7-9
Aug. 20-23
Sept. 2-7
Sept. 18-20

Gainesville
Charlotte

Seattle
Brainerd

Chevrolet Performance U.S. Nationals

Indianapolis
(PSM)
NHRA Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship
Charlotte

Oct. 1-4

NHRA Carolina Nationals (PSM)

AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals
(PSM)
NHRA Nationals (PSM)

Oct. 15-18

AAA Texas NHRA FallNationals (PSM)

Dallas

Oct. 29-Nov. 1

NHRA Toyota Nationals (PSM)

Las Vegas

Nov. 12-15

Auto Club NHRA Finals (PSM)

Pomona

Sept. 25-27

St. Louis
Reading

Fig. 4 2015
NHRA Mello
Yellow Drag
Racing
Schedule
Source: NHRA
Website,
2015 NHRA
Schedule.

Fig. 5 Decade of Sprint Cup Races over the

years.

NHRA TACK MAP

Fig. 6 Division of Tracks

Source: NHRA, Member Track.

QUALIFICATIONS OF A NASCAR DRIVER

Visit your local
racetrack
Ask questions
Factors to consider:
1. Physical ability
2. Sponsors
3. 100% commitment

Fig. 7 Dale Earnhardt wins 1991 Winston Cup

Source: Dale Earnhardt Inc., Photos.

QUALIFICATIONS
FOR A NHRA DRIVER
1. State/Government
drivers license or
NHRA competition
license
2. Current
membership
3. License and
Physical forms for
ages 13 years and
older
Fig. 8 Bruce Hagestad was one of the
Top Fuel Drivers from 1966-1979.
Source: Division 5 NHRA Top Fuel
Drivers, Competetion Drivers
License.

SPONSORSHIPS
NHRA

Fig. 11 Sponsorship on a single NASCAR

car.
Source: Business Insider, Sponsor
NASCAR.

Level 1 Single Race ($100 $500)

Level 2 Contingency ($500 $1,000)
Level 3 Associate Junior
( $1,000 - $2,500)
Level 4 Associate ($2,600 $5,000)
Level 5 Associate Senior
( $6,000 - $14,000)
Level 6 Primary Junior
( $15,000 - $24,000)
Level 7 Primary Major ($25,000
$50,000)

TRACK SHAPES AND SIZES

NASCAR
Short Tracks

NHRA

Bristol, Martinsville

Intermediate Tracks
Charlotte, Texas

Superspeedway
Daytona, Talladega
Shapes: True oval, Tri-oval,
Quad oval, D-shaped oval,
Road course

Fig. 12 An aerial view of zMax Dragway during

Saturday action at the Pep Boys NHRA Carolina
Nationals. (Sept. 13, 2014)
Source: Charlotte Motor Speedway, Photo
Gallery.

Tracks all have the same shape

Track length varies: Generally 1/4 mile
and 1/8 mile.

SAFETY
NHRA
Focused more on the car

Fig. 13 NHRA Top Fuel

dragster driver Larry Dixon
during the Gatornationals at
Auto Plus Raceway at
Gainesville.

NASCAR
Focuses more on the whole picture.

Fig. 14 Kyle Larson crashes during

Nationwide final lap (2013).
Source: NASCAR, Larson walks away.

Safety In Action

http://www.motoroids.com/interesting-humorous-andothers/video-top-fuel-dragster-crashes-at-280-mph-driverlarry-dixon-survives/
12

The Construction of the

Car

In NASCAR cars are built for durability and speed

Cup cars are meant to withstand great stress

Cup teams are designed for performance over a long race

Cars are built to turn quickly without losing speed

Fig. 15 Toyotas Cutaway

Source: 2015 Detroit Autoshow evo.co.uk

The Construction of the Dragster

Top Fuel cars are meant to last

seconds

Built for pure speed

The engine must be rebuilt after

every pass

Fig. 16 Cutaway of Joe Amatos Top Fueler

Source: nhra.com

Teams here must be able to

produce constant results

Which Goes
Faster?

Fig 17 Hamlin holds off Keselowski for victory

Source: foxsports.com

If both were placed on a mile

runway, the dragster would win.
While there is a possibility the
dragster cant run for that long,
its speed is superior.

Fig 18 Dave Connollys Flaming Top Fuel Launch

Source: bangshift.com

Who Has the Longer

Weekend ?

Nascar Cup team spend about 4

days on the road per event

Races generally run 3-6 hours

long

There is no down time at the

track

High performance is always

demanded

Fig 19 HAMLIN WINS CRAZY DAY IN TEXAS

Source: allleftturns.com

Who Has the Longer Weekend?

Top fuel teams are on the road 3

days a week

Each day can be at least a 10

hour day

Everyone is always preparing to

run again

Constant error free work in

always necessary

Fig 20 The Gumout Top Fuel Team Tear Down And Rebuild
Source: bangshift.com

What Do they Win?

Nascar races pay $250,000 to win

on average

Top fuel purses normal do not

exceed $75,000 to win

Nascar drivers win sponsor

related trophies whereas all
dragster trophies are the same

Fig 22 Camping World Rv 400 Trophy

Source: sportingnews.com

Fig 21 Schumacher, Hagan double up in Joliet

Source: Chicago Tribune

Merchandise

Merchandise plays a large roll in

NASCAR and the NHRA

This is the real money making

ploy for teams

Teams rely on this money to

power their operations

Fig 23 NASCAR - Colorful sea of fans at Martinsville

Source: dreamstime.com

Questions?

20

Work Cited
2015 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series Schedule. n.d. Web. 14 April 2015.
2015 Detroit auto show - things you may not have seen (Evo), n.d. Web. 13 April 2015
2015 Sprint Cup Series Schedule. n.d. Web. 14 April 2015.
About NASCAR. n.d. Web. 14 April 2015.
Aumann, Mark. "Safety improvments, changes define racing eras." 16 Febuary 2011. NASCAR. Web. 14 April 2015.
Caraviello, David. "Larson walks away from frightening final-lap crash ." 23 February 2013. NASCAR.Web. 14 April
2015.
Charlotte Motor Speedway: Photo Gallery. n.d. Web. 14 April 2015.
Dale Earnhardt Photos. n.d. Web. 14 April 2015.
Division 5 Drivers. n.d. Web. 14 April 2015.
Edwards, Jim. "Here's what it cost to sponsor NASCAR." 28 January 2013. Business Insider. Web. 14 April 2015.
"Explaining the difference in sponsors." 5 January 2015. NASCAR. Web. 14 April 2015.
Member Track Locator . n.d. Web. 14 April 2015.
"NHRA History: Drag racing's fast start ." n.d. Web. The offical website of the national hotrod association. 14 April
2015.
Olsen, Jeff. NHRA's Larry Dixon walks away from scary crash at Gatornationals . Web. 14 March 2015. 14 April 2015.