New 2020 NHRA Rules

Just read that for 2020 NHRA (At least Div 1) the cut off for Pro will now be 8.50 instead of 9.00. They apparently still in discussion if they will be keeping the 18.99 or be lowering it to 13.99.

I wasn't aware there was/is a ET cutoff for pro. So now if you are faster than 8.50 you can't run pro, right?

Just curious as I ran Pro in my '63 (10.50) against a door car dialed 8.0 last fall, and he broke out a little running 7.86 at 140mph (do the math on that, its a funny mph).

I wouldn't have protested anyway, but we should know the rules, eh?

Its kind of two fold. It's a NHRA rule, but this is also in the rule book:

SECTION 4: E.T. HANDICAP RACING, INTRODUCTION (Page 1) (10/9/2019) Each racetrack has the option of substituting its own selection of class titles and e.t. breaks

So a track can set its own ET for the classes it runs. I know my local track ran the Street class cut off to 11.00 for years than dropped it to 10.00 even though NHRA Div 1 rule was 11.50. But even when they had on their OWN website what the cut off is there was still cars on certain days that went faster than the cut off. Not sure why post rules if they aren't going to enforce them.

Well, then. So its a suggestion.

Making a 8.50 car set waiting on a 18 second car is ridiculous.

That is what street/sportsman is for.

8.50 is a good cut off number for non-delay box door cars (Pro). A number of upgrades/certifications needed quicker than that number. 13.99 is plenty slow enough for that. Again, some safety rules kick in at that point. There should not be 15-18 second street cars, inexperienced guys with no roll bar, good belts or helmet possibly, running beside cars going 150-160.

ET ranges are usually set by Division directors. Whether the tracks follow it or not is up to them. if they compete in the ET finals, with hopes to go to Pomona for the national title then they should follow the format chosen for there set by NHRA. Otherwise they are doing their racers a disservice. FWIW out here in the wild wild west 7.50 is the minimum ET for Pro. I remember a few years back, 10 or 11 that the National Finals in Pomona the ET minimum, for Pro was 10.00, I had a friend competing for D7 that ran 9.70;s back then and made all his time runs in the 9's at Pomona. Before first round her was notified that the minimum was 10.00. Be nice to have some conformity across the divisions. One last tidbit I will throw out there that is 100% MY opinion. Open cockpit cars, particularly dragsters have NO place in Pro/Bottom bulb racing. Just my opinion but I don't think they belong.

I certainly agree with your opinion there!

Al, I loved whupping several Division 6 Pro bracket dragsters at the division finals at Mission ,B.C. several years back on Saturday in the track champion run offs
I heard one of the local Mission racers saying that is the blue Duster that beat both of our dragster on Saturday in the race of champions on Sunday morning while walking around in the staging lanes before they let us run the first round on Sunday. I didn't think much about that comment then,
I do now though after getting beat by several long cars in the timing lights in races I should have won since then
Time to start working on the last 60 ft. of the track

This is straight out of the 2020 rule book.
SECTION 4A
SUPER PRO, PRO, SPORTSMAN
7.50 (*4.50) seconds & slower
DESIGNATIONS
NHRA SUMMIT RACING SERIES NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
SUPER PRO: 7.00 to 11.99
PRO: 9.00 to 13.99
SPORTSMAN: 12.00 to 19.99

As I said be nice if the track operators and DD stuck to those numbers it would in the end benefit the racers, but they simply DO NOT. They can make the cut offs whatever they wish and here we run Pro to 7.50. IMO 9.00 is plenty and would eliminate the long cars for sure. Hell even at the ET finals Sportsman was faster her in D7. Suggestions like most all rules and laws these days it seems. Even you can see the hypocrisy in what you have there. 7.50 and slower, well except S/Pro we will let them go 7.00 ;0

How many people actually focus on track points and maybe earning a trip to their divisional finals, let alone a trip to Pomona? A lot of effort for little reward. The serious guys chase the money.

I am OK with that... (if the tracks followed it).
I wonder why they didn't use 7.50 for the SuperPro cut off?
Now that I am in North Carolina, very little 1/4 mile for me, except when I travel this year. So many tracks don't have any cutoff in 1/8 mile

Correct on all points!

Especially this: Open cockpit cars, particularly dragsters have NO place in Pro/Bottom bulb racing. Just my opinion but I don't think they belong.