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This past weekend 799 motorcycle
drag racers ran down the
Maryland International Raceway
(MDIR) quarter mile for the 20th
annual Platinum Fleet Repair
Bike Fest with the Xtreme
Dragbike Association (XDA). Only
1 shy of that round number of
800.
The temperatures over the
weekend were in the 90's with a
minimal breeze making the track
an oven, but that didn't keep
the XDA racers at home; they
were ready to compete, and they
showed despite a forecast with
the threat of thunderstorms. For
XDA, this race was their
official season opener for 2020.
On Friday we tested all day long
but on Friday night, rain washed
out the first qualifying session
of the weekend. We completed
Sportsman Qualifying and
Eliminations on Saturday, except
for the last few rounds that
were finished on Sunday morning.
The Pros normally get three more
qualifiers on Saturday, but a
Saturday afternoon shower
cancelled one of them, leaving
the Pros with only two shots at
putting down their best numbers
for qualifying. We also
completed the HTP Afterdark
Underground Grudge program on
Saturday night, along with the
Running of the Bulls.
With a delayed season start due
to Covid-19, racers were excited
to finally see their racing
family after 10 months away from
the racetrack. And they made the
best of the weekend with an
added Cornhole Tournament and
Squirt Gun Wars. But nothing
felt as good as seeing quick
numbers on the scoreboards and
the win lights as competition
was finally back underway.
Orient Express
Racing Pro Street
Winner - Greg Wallace /
Runner-up - Chris Moore
#1 Qualifier - Jeremy Teasley
6.564
My oh my was Orient Express
Racing Pro Street a sight to see
at the XDA season opener. The
temperatures were hot, but that
was nothing compared to how hot
the Pro Street field was. Class
champion Jeremy Teasley took the
top qualifying spot on the DME
Racing GSX-R1000 with a 6.564.
Ehren Litten, who holds the MPH
record at 232.59 did not break
his own record, but he did run
an impressive 229.70mph on an
entirely new set up for this
year. And on his Litten-built
and tuned Hayabusa, Greg Wallace
also put down big MPH with a
228.89 that will earn him the #4
spot on the Pro Street MPH Goat
List (Greatest of all Time).
Kenny Brewer finally brought his
three year in the making 'Show
Bike' to the track to prove he
could run with the big boys. And
he did just that with the
biggest upset of the weekend
taking out the class champion
Jeremy Teasley in round one
running a 7.071 to Teasley's
7.259. Gamblers would have had
their money on Teasley as the
sure-fire winner of that round
aboard the world's quickest Pro
Street bike. But the liter bike
suffered a valve train issue and
quickly slowed Teasley, sending
Brewer to round two. Proving as
tuners try to push the limits of
their machines, anything can
happen on Sunday.
In round two of eliminations
Gaige Herrera ran a 6.667 to
become the World’s Quickest
Nitrous Hayabusa in Pro Street.
Proving that even in the heat of
July, the XDA and Maryland
International Raceway can
produce world record numbers.
Chris Moore won over his brother
Alex in round one with a 6.60.
Then in round two, he was ready
for Rodney Williford running his
personal best Pro Street pass to
date, a 6.509. But Williford cut
a red light when he couldn't
keep the power of his GSX-R1000
from wanting to launch like a
missile down the track sending
Moore to the semi-final. In the
semi-final, Moore faced Justin
Shakir, who had problems at the
starting line, sending Moore to
the final to meet Greg Wallace.
On his new Hayabusa, Greg
Wallace was making impressive
passes all weekend and looks to
be a top contender for this
season. Wallace qualified in the
lower half of the field with a
6.95, but after seeing his
passes on Sunday, you could see
he turned around his game very
quickly. In round one of
eliminations, Wallace ran a
6.687 to take out Jason Dunigan.
In round two, he ran a 6.59
taking out Darion Payne, and
then in the semi-final, he took
out his teammate Litten with a
6.643.
With Chris Moore running a 6.50
in round two, and Wallace on a
steady descent on ET, everyone
in Pro Street knew the final
would be a good race. Wallace
got the starting line advantage
cutting a .047 light on Moore's
.132. As Moore attempted to
catch up to Wallace, he was
fighting for control over the
literbike as it pulled him over
the center line taking out the
1000' cone. Greg Wallace won
running a 6.547 to take the win
and hold the points lead in what
will only be a three-race series
this year. The next two events
will mean everything for the
guys now behind him in points.
DME Racing
Real Street
Winner - Ben Knight / Runner-up
- Spencer Claycomb
#1 Qualifier - Spencer Claycomb
7.531
Record - Spencer Claycomb 7.531
The drama-filled class of DME
Racing Real Street saw some
ProCharger action this weekend
with a new entry from Ben
Knight, while two of our female
racers went MIA due to
mechanical issues. Class
champion Spencer Claycomb
qualified #1 with a 7.531, which
reset the class ET record held
by Jeremey Teasley. Class
champion Jeremy Teasley not only
lost the ET record, but he lost
in round one of eliminations to
David Stewart, making it his
second ‘round one’ loss of the
day.
Ashley Sweeney was unable to
compete as her bike needed
last-minute repairs, and Alisha
Malone was having issues in
Friday testing and opted not to
enter the race. This left only
newcomer Brittany Bohne to
represent the ladies. Bohne made
a lot of clean A-to-B passes,
but she wasn't able to get
around Cameron Teasley in round
one of eliminations.
Champion sportsman racer Ben
Knight showed up to Maryland on
Thursday for testing with his
new DAS Performance built
ProCharger Hayabusa entry. And
he was clearly ready to make
waves in the class as he had the
scoreboards turned off so no one
could see his times. His bike is
loud and fast and quickly became
a fan favorite over the weekend.
He qualified #3 with a 7.677 and
took out Anthony Weindel, Mark
Hylton, and Brandon Teasley on
the road to the final to face
his teammate and class champion,
Spencer Claycomb. Team 'Shake
and Bake' were ecstatic to be in
the final together. Odds were on
Claycomb to take the win, but
instead, he turned on the
red-light sending Ben Knight to
his first pro class winner's
circle.
Pro Xtreme
Winner - Travis Davis /
Runner-up - Rob Garcia
#1 Qualifier - Shane Eperjesi
3.969
Track Record - Shane Eperjesi
193.43 mph
This weekend Shane Eperjesi
qualified #1 with a 3.969 in
XDA's quickest eight-mile
category, Pro Xtreme. Eperjesi's
turbo GS looked to be the
favorite for Sunday when he also
set the track record to
194.43mph in qualifying.
Unfortunately, he was unable to
back up the number to make it an
official XDA record, and we will
have to wait to see if he can do
it again next month at Virginia
Motorsports Park.
Shane Eperjesi lost in round two
of eliminations to Travis Davis
running a 4.064 to his 4.068.
Travis Davis went on to the
final to take on Rob Garcia, who
qualified #2 and ran the
quickest passes in round one and
round two of eliminations. In
the final, Garcia ran the
quickest ET again at 4.000 to
Davis’s 4.050. However, Davis
had a much better reaction of
.047 to Garcia's .189, and that
win at the tree got him the win
at the stripe to make Travis
Davis our first winner of the
year.
Pro Xtreme is presented by Ace
Motorsports, Billy Vose Racing,
Dunigan Racing, DME Racing,
Grothus Dragbikes, Harley Haul,
MaxxECU, Rob Bush Motorsports,
Robinson Industries, Schnitz
Racing, Timblin Chassis, and
Worldwide Bearings.
HTP
Performance Super Stock
Winner - David Fondon /
Runner-up - Jyrec Givens
#1 Qualifier - Jyrec Givens
8.877
Record - David Fondon 8.742 at
161.32 mph
The turnout was phenomenal in
the 'New for 2020' HTP
Performance Super Stock rider's
class with twenty-five riders
showing up to compete. The class
features stock wheelbase
motorcycles with a limited about
of modifications. This class is
all about the riders and what
they can do to squeeze the most
power out of these motorcycles
with just their clutch hand in
control. The challenge with a
stock wheelbase motorcycle in
drag racing is controlling the
torque off the starting line to
keep that front tire on the
ground for a quick and smooth
transition from launch to
acceleration.
Jyrec Givens, on his 2017 Suzuki
GSX-R1000, took the #1
qualifying spot running an
8.877. Jyrec took that advantage
and turned it into a final-round
appearance to face David Fondon.
Fondon set two records on his
way to the finals. In
eliminations round two, Fondon
set the MPH record to 161.33,
and the ET record in the
semi-final with an 8.742 run.
With all the record-setting, it
was not surprising to see the
Puerto Rico rider take the win
with an 8.860 to Given's losing
8.963. The riding in this class
was impressive and fun to watch!
APE Nitrous
Bulls
Winner - Jeremy Teasley / Nipsey
Hussle
Runner-up - Matthew Dozier /
Jimmy Hendrix
The APE Nitrous Bulls featured
great final round action with
two grudge bikes making clean,
fast passes. 'Jimmy Hendrix'
ridden by Matt Dozier took on 'Nipsey
Hussle' piloted by Jeremy
Teasley. Both bikes put down the
power and shot off into the
night for two fast passes, but
it would be Teasley claiming the
win.
Monster Bulls
Winner - David Page / Pickin
Pockets
Runner-up - Howard Gerken / Son
of Sam
In round one of Monster Bulls,
Howard Green on 'Son of Sam' got
a bye to the final while David
Page on 'Pickin Pockets' had to
earn his spot taking out Dave
Martin on 'Gobstopper.' In the
Final, Page put in work again as
he and Gerken had a close race
with Page taking the win by half
a bike length.
Tommie's
Motorsports DMV Bulls
Winner - Kevin Johnson / Quick
Money
Runner-up - Cody Lowe / Sho Nuff
In round one of Tommie's
Motorsports, DMV Bulls' Quick
Money' prevailed over Jermaine
Proctor on '5th St Bully' while
'Sho Nuff’ took out 'Da Setup'
to advance to the finals. In the
final 'Sho Nuff' didn't have
enough and 'Quick Money' took
the win.
Vance & Hines
4.60
Winner - Ronald Procopio /
Runner-up - Steven Shriver
#1 Qualifier - Terry Tompkins
4.603
The Vance & Hines 4.60 sportsman
were lean and mean at the first
XDA event of the year and eager
for domination. Terry Tompkins
was the boss on Saturday when he
took the #1 qualifying spot
running a 4.603 beating out #2
qualifier Johnny Anderson's
4.608.
On Sunday Ronald Procopio and
Steven Shriver were unbeatable
in the first four rounds of
competition to meet in the
final. Procopio went into the
final with the better reaction
time average and kept that pace
cutting a .043 light to
Shriver's .076. Shriver ran
quicker with a 4.611, but that
reaction time advantage gave the
slower 4.628 ET of Procopio the
win. Procopio started the 2019
season with a win and he is
opening the 2020 season with the
same luck.
The FBR Shop
5.60
Winner - Dustin Lee / Runner-up
- Spencer Claycomb
#1 Qualifier - Dustin Lee 5.600
The FBR Shop 5.60 index
eight-mile was dominated by the
DRR team riders from Tennessee.
Dustin Lee took the number one
qualifying spot with a 5.600.
Lee would then meet teammate
Spencer Claycomb in the final
for a Hayabusa face off. Lee won
the battle at the tree with a
.015 to Claycomb's .051 reaction
time. With Lee getting the
advantage on the tree, Claycomb
pushed too hard at the stripe
and broke out running a 5.570,
handing the win and a 1K payout
to his friend Dustin Lee.
Crazy 8's
Winner - Tylan Beckelheimer /
Runner-up - Andrew Ritchey
#1 Qualifier - Dustin Lee 8.884
In Crazy 8's, the 2019 champion
Dustin Lee took the top spot in
qualifying with 8.884 on
Saturday. In Sunday
eliminations, Tylan Beckelheimer
took out the number one
qualifier in round two, and
would win three more rounds to
make it to the final.
Beckelheimer, on his 2016 Suzuki
GSX-R1000 meet Andrew Ritchey
and his 2008 Suzuki Hayabusa in
the final. With both riders
looking to run dead on 8.88 they
both gave the tree a push and
cut almost identical reaction
times. Ritchey didn't back off
enough at the stripe and broke
out with a 8.861 to give the win
to Beckelheimer who ran 8.891.
Mickey
Thompson Performance Top
Sportsman
Winner - Jim Shifflett /
Runner-up - Erik Phipps
#1 Qualifier - Kevin Manchester
6.990
The thirty-two quickest ET bikes
on the property have the
privilege of running Mickey
Thompson Performance Top
Sportsman on Sunday. With 154
riders looking for a spot, Kevin
Manchester would take the top
qualifying spot with a 6.990 E.T.
and he did it on a GSXR 1000
with no bar. The field had less
than a second and a half
separation with the
thirty-second spot going to Mike
Charcalla with an 8.360 ET. Jim
Shifflett and Erik Phipps would
put on a show Sunday night that
was a nail biter to the end.
Shifflett dialed an 8.06 and
Phipps an 8.01, and both riders
would cut identical .060 lights.
As both riders shot off toward
the finish line, you could see
them keeping an eye on the other
as they gauged the finish line.
Shifflett would get the win
running dead on his dial with
8.069 to Phipps' 8.043. Shifflet
won 3K and then went on to
compete in Pro ET for a chance
at another 3K, however, Stephen
Knight would take him out in the
semi's to end that chance for a
double win weekend.
MPS Racing Pro
ET
Saturday Winner - James Farmer /
Runner-up - Bill Maturo Jr
Sunday Winner - Stephen Knight /
Runner-up - Wilson Burkhead
Close to 200 racers showed up to
compete for the weekend's $9,000
purse in MPS Racing Pro ET. In
Saturday's race, James Farmer
and Bill Maturo Jr won seven
rounds to make it to the final.
But the final would be
uneventful as Maturo was broke
and Farmer got an easy final
round win.
On Sunday, the final would
feature Stephen Knight and
Wilson Burkhead. Both
competitors entered two bikes,
and would actually face each
other in quarter-finals where
Burkhead would win over Knight,
who cut a red light. And when
they met again in the final, the
dial-ins would not come into
play. In the most important
round of the day, it was
Burkhead who would turn on the
reds this time to give the win
to Stephen Knight and a 3K
payday.
Brock's
Performance Street ET
Saturday Winner - Montrell
Johnson / Runner-up - Laray
Proctor
Sunday Winner - Derrick
Milbourne / Runner-up - Tyrone
Dale
Brock's Performance Street ET
racers were not daunted by the
high temperatures of the weekend
and flooded the lanes for their
chance at the weekend's $2,000
purse. This class also saw a
rule change for 2020 that
requires a True Hand Clutch,
thus moving anyone with a
lock-up into the Pro ET class.
On Saturday, Maryland racers,
Montrell Johnson and Laray
Proctor, would win six rounds of
competition before facing off.
In the final, Johnson would wait
at the tree for a full second
with his 8.95 dial-in while
Proctor left first on his 9.75
dial. With closely matched
reaction times, the win would
come down to who could gauge the
stripe better. Montrell took the
win and 1K in cash when Proctor
broke out running a 9.748.
On Sunday, the game was the
same; only the final contenders
would be different. In the
seventh and final round, Derrick
Milbourne and Tyrone Dale would
be the last men standing. On his
2005 Kawasaki ZX-10R, Milbourne
dialed an 8.90 to Dale's 8.96 on
his 2008 Suzuki GSX-R1000. Dale
took the advantage at the
starting line with a .010
reaction time to Milbourne's
.032. With both racers looking
at each other and working the
throttle at the top end of the
track, Milbourne would get the
win taking the stripe first and
running closer to his dial with
a 9.126 to Dale's 9.298 et.
For full qualifying and
round-by-round results of the
event, visit
www.xdaracing.com.
The XDA will head back to
Virginia Motorsports Park for
the second annual Bike Bash on
August 21-23, 2020. There will
be over 700 Professional,
Sportsman, and Grudge motorcycle
racers in competition battling
it out for over $75,000 in cash
purse. Make plans now to watch
the best drag racers in the
country put on the premier
horsepower show the East Coast
has to offer.
About XDA Racing
The Xtreme Dragbike Association
(XDA) is an east coast
motorcycle drag racing series
with 700+ motorcycle racers
competing at each event. Every
XDA event hosts professional
classes, sportsman classes,
grudge racing and a vendor
midway. Lifestyle activities
such as bike shows, bikini
contests, DJ and live bands are
also held at select events. For
more information on the XDA,
please visit
www.xdaracing.com
or connect with us on Facebook,
Instagram, Twitter and YouTube @xdaracing |
