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The XDA encountered unfavorable
weather conditions for the
second time this season. Despite
this, dedicated XDA racers
arrived at the track on Thursday
night to prepare for the 23rd
annual WPGC Bike Fest. These
racers put on an impressive
display of motorcycle drag
racing, ensuring that the event
was as exciting as ever.
And while the forecast changed
rapidly over the three-day
event, the XDA staff adjusted
the schedule on the fly to
deliver another completed event.
The event included live music
from Critical Condition Band, a
bike show and sound competition,
a bikini contest, and a vast
vendor midway.
The on-track action was
electrifying, with 629 entries
taking on MIR's quarter mile.
The racers were fully prepared
for intense competition and
didn't let the rain or warm
weather affect their
performance. The pits were
bustling with various
activities, and with full
fields, there was non-stop
action throughout the weekend.
Orient Express
Racing Pro Street
Winner - Darion Payne
Runner-up - Mark Rendeluk
Despite the challenging weather
conditions, the bad boys of
Orient Express Racing Pro Street
showed no signs of slowing down.
It was once again a full field
of six-second machines producing
more than 650 horsepower with
impressive six-second times.
Rodney Williford put the
smackdown on Saturday afternoon
with a 6.388 at 229.82 mph pass
when the temperatures were
pushing over 90 degrees. And
with only two rounds of
qualifying, the top eight
qualifiers all ran in the 6.60s
or better making it another
quick field, and the 16 bike
field bump spot was a 6.81!
The main objective for the
weekend was to execute clean
passes from point A to point B,
taking into account the
ever-changing weather
conditions. The class tuners
exhibited impressive
adaptability, adjusting their
techniques round after round
like true professionals, putting
on an exciting show for the
spectators.
With Williford qualified number
one, we prepared for another
Williford show. In round one, he
took out teammate Jamie Lopes;
in round two, he cut a .000
light and took out rookie
Brandon Litten. Williford should
have saved that triple zero
light for the next round.
In the semi-final, the clouds
parted, and the sun shined down
on Darion Payne who cut a .047
light to Williford’s .078, and
both competitors rocketed down
the track toward the finish
line. At the 330’ mark Payne was
leading, but Williford was
pulling hard with that big MPH!
Payne crossed the finish line
first with a 6.457 and a
Holeshot win over Williford’s
quicker 6.428 pass that lost by
.0022.
The starting line was madness;
Williford’s win streak ended
after four consecutive XDA
events. This event last year was
the only event that Williford
did not make a final-round
appearance. In fact, Darion
Payne got the win over Williford
in the semi-final and took a
runner-up finish to Jason
Dunigan in the final after he
turned on a red light.
Darion Payne would face
Dunigan’s teammate Mark Rendeluk
this year, and Payne would
surely not push the tree to the
red side. Rendeluk has had a
banner year as a rookie, already
running in the forties after
only two events. Rendeluk took
the number two qualifying
position with a 6.520 and had to
face teammate Jayson Geerman in
round one. He then went on to
take wins over Ryan Bonitatis
and Greg Wallace before making
it to his very first Pro Street
final.
And with Payne coming off a win
over Williford, the starting
line was electric as these two
competitors faced each other for
the first time in a final. Payne
was living on the edge
as he got the starting line
advantage when he pushed the
tree to a .002 reaction, almost
repeating last year's red light.
Rendeluk was more reserved and
cut a .051 light allowing Payne
to take the lead on the track.
Rendeluk closed the gap by the
1000’ mark, running his
career-best time of 6.449 at
228.04. But again, it was
Payne’s win light that came on,
running a 6.480 at 225.48 for
another holeshot win and sending
himself to his first-ever Pro
Street winner’s circle.
We can’t wait to see what
happens at the FuelTech Bike
Bash next month at Virginia
Motorsports Park; get August
25-28 on your calendar now!
DME Racing
Real Street
Winner - David
Stewart
Runner-up - Mark Hylton
The DME Racing Real Street
champions again went to battle
at the WPGC Bike Fest. Class
champion David Stewart left the
last event setting two class
records. He showed the class he
wasn’t letting up by qualifying
number one with a 7.466 and then
breaking the MIR track ET record
by running a 7.438 during
eliminations. He missed
resetting the overall class
record of 7.435 by only three
thousandths.
Stewart and Mark Hylton
dominated eliminations as they
reached the coveted final round.
Both riders were looking to win
their first Real Street event of
the season. Class champion
Hylton was a runner-up at the
last event, and Stewart went
home with his motorcycle in
boxes after a tear-down at tech,
so both riders were
laser-focused on a win. Hylton
cut the tree with a .085 to
Stewart’s dead late .145
reaction. Hylton crossed the
eighth-mile mark first, but
Stewart’s Hayabusa kept building
power and took the lead to cross
the finish line first with a
7.451, a good bike length ahead
of Hylton, who ran a 7.605.
Not too bad for Stewart, who
went from leaving the track with
a bike in pieces to leaving with
the trophy!
MaxxECU Pro
Xtreme
Winner - Tommy Saxon
Runner-up - John Collins
Hard work paid off in MaxxECU
Pro Xtreme for Tommy Saxon when
he finally turned on the win
light this past weekend. Saxon
joined XDA at the end of the
2020 motorcycle drag racing
season with his 700
lb—turbocharged monster. He made
a final-round appearance at the
close of the 2022 season but
couldn’t surpass Ronnie
Procopio.
Saxon took wins over Chris
Theodoridis and Chris Cutsinger
before meeting John Collins in
the final. Collins qualified
number one with a 4.033 to earn
a bye in the first round and
then took a win in the
semi-final over England’s Dale
Leeks. Quality racing action was
on tap for the final, with the
number one and two qualifiers
ready to battle.
Collins cut down the tree with a
.010 for the advantage over
Saxon’s .062 reaction time.
Collins shot out from the tree
like a rocket to take a
significant lead on Saxon. But
as they approached the 660’
finish line, Collins lost power,
and Saxon continued to build
power as the first three-second
pass of the weekend lit up the
board with a 3.974. Saxon gave a
big thanks to Billy Vose, along
with the rest of his team, for
helping him hit this milestone.
MaxxECU Pro Xtreme is presented
by Billy Vose Racing, Fast by
Gast, Dunigan Racing, DME
Racing, Grothus Dragbikes,
Harley Haul, Rob Bush
Motorsports, Robinson
Industries, Schnitz Racing,
Timblin Chassis, and Worldwide
Bearings.
HTP
Performance Super Stock
Winner - Mike Davis
Runner-up - Tim Cottrell
Mike Davis has been in more HTP
Performance Super Stock finals
as a runner-up finalist than we
can count. But this past
weekend, he finally got the
monkey off his back and finished
with a win! Davis, aboard his
Kawasaki ZX-14, won four rounds
to land in the final opposite of
Tim Cottrell, who was also
aboard a Kawasaki ZX-14. Super
Stock is the only class
dominated by Kawasaki
motorcycles.
In the final, Davis cut one of
his best weekend lights with a
.113 for the starting line
advantage. As the pair took off
for the finish line, they both
fought to keep the front wheel
down. Cottrell caught Davis by
the 1000’ mark, and they were
side-by-side to the finish line,
where Davis pulled off the win
by running an 8.992 to
Cottrell’s 9.001. It was a close
one, but you could hear Davis’s
team celebrating at the starting
line from the end of the track!
HTP
Performance Grudge
Saturday night’s Running of the
Bulls was delayed until Sunday
after a heavy rain cell hit the
track. However, the competition
was still flying with tight
track prep and a continuation to
Sunday for the final rounds.
Turbo bikes were in short supply
as Geoff Godfrey on ‘Minion’
took the Boosted Bull to a win
unopposed. The All Motor Bulls
will be completed at the August
Bike Bash between David Fondon
on ‘Bad Bitch’ and La Payne on
‘Dark Knight.’
APE Nitrous
Bulls
Winner - Jeremy
Teasley / American Express
Malcolm Phillips on ‘Strip
Tease’ won a big money race
during shakedowns against Lavar
Delee on ‘High Roller.’ After
the random chip drawing,
Phillips faced him again in the
first round of competition. And
for the second time in the span
of a few hours, Phillips kicked
those dice to the side for
another win.
Teasley on ‘American Express’
won over ‘Sho Nuff’ in round
one, and David Fondon on ‘Storm
Shadow’ in the semi-final.
Phillips was a no-show for his
semi-final bye and would not be
able to advance to the final.
This left Teasley with an
unopposed win.
This is Jeremy Teasley’s second
Bike Fest win in a row in APE
Nitrous Bulls. Last year he won
on ‘Unhinged,’ and this year, he
did it again, but this time on
Chris Connelly’s ‘American
Express.’
3 Sixty 5
Monster Bulls
Winner - Crow Teasley
/ Unhinged
Runner-up - Howard Gerken / Son
of Sam
In 3 Sixty 5 Monster Bulls,
Howard Gerken on ‘Son of Sam’
made it to his second final
round finish after slaughtering
Brandon Tyree on ‘Plan B’ in
round one and John James on
‘Dope Sick’ in round two. His
competitors struggled to keep
their front wheels down while
Gerken was cool and controlled
on his winning passes.
Crow Teasley on ‘Unhinged’ sent
Spencer Claycomb on his ‘1 Trip’
back to the trailer in round
one, and disposed of John Carter
on ‘Grey Matter’ in round two.
In the final, Gerken had his
first misstep and got caught up
in a side step off the starting
line while Teasley made a clean
pass to the finish line. This is
the first ever XDA Father, and
Son win at the same event.
Tommie's
Motorsports DMV Bulls
Winner - Brandon
Litten / Butch Cassidy
Runner-up - Antonio Patton / Big
Dirty
Tommie's Motorsports DMV Bulls
was a sell-out stacked with
heavy hitters and young guns.
Brandon Litten, who had a
final-round finish at the last
event on ‘Butch Cassidy,’ earned
his way to another final round.
Litten went on a spree stealing
win lights from Caleb Holt,
David Fondon, and Aubrey
Valentine before he made it to
the final to take one more from
Antonio Patton on ‘Big Dirty.’
Patton made a run for it, but
Litten caught him by the 330’
and rocketed past him for his
first winner’s circle finish!
Vance & Hines
4.60
Winner - Rick Bunting
Runner-up - Steven Shriver Sr.
The Vance and Hines 4.60 Index
class had a record turnout for
Bike Fest, with fifty bikes
competing for the
thirty-two-bike field. Due to
the increased turnout, XDA moved
the qualifying field to
forty-eight bikes allowing more
racers to enter the competition.
Rick Bunting led the class of
eighth-mile races with a 4.603
in qualifying. Bunting would
take this momentum and turn on
five-win lights as he made his
way to the final round. Steven
Shriver, who qualified number
two with a 4.607, was also on
his game as he sat in the
opposing lane for the final
round.
And for the second time at this
event, the number one and two
qualifiers would make it to the
final round. Shriver Sr. left
the starting line first with a
.019 reaction time, and Bunting
followed with a .046. Bunting
quickly caught Shriver Sr., and
as they approached the finish
line side-by-side, both racers
backed off the gas at the last
second as they broke out. In a
heart-pounding final, Bunting
took the win with a 4.569 over
Shriver’s 4.568!
1 Stop Speed
5.60
Winner - Mark Schwalm
Runner-up - Chad Kacagias
In 1 Stop Speed 5.60, Jeffrey
Santin led the qualifying field
with the only perfect 5.600 run
over thirty-five other
competitors. Santin’s time on
top was short-lived, as class
champion Dustin Lee eliminated
him in the third round.
Arizona racer Chad Kacagias
would make his mark at this
event by defeating Lee in the
semi-final and advancing to the
final. He met NHRA Summit
National Champion Mark Schwalm
for the final round battle
there.
Both competitors ran close to
the 5.60 index, making them
well-matched for the final.
Schwalm took the starting line
advantage with a .067 over
Kacagias’ .080 reaction. And
with very little room for error
in the 660’, Schwalm made sure
he got there first, and he did
it by ten feet with 5.616 over
Kacagias’ 5.661 for a winning
run.
Mickey
Thompson Tires Top Sportsman
Winner - Robin
Procopio
Runner-up - Jimmie Miller
Ryan Burnell leads Mickey
Thompson Tires Top Sportsman,
XDA’s quickest sportsman class,
running a 7.386 in the
quarter-mile. Unfortunately for
Burnell his weekend would come
to a quick end when he met class
champion Jimmie Miller in round
two. Miller would win two more
rounds before meeting Robin
Procopio in the final.
Procopio, one of the toughest
racers to face, also won this
class at last year’s WPGC Bike
Fest. Miller was ready to put
his best on the track, but he
jumped the gun and cut a -.041
red light to hand Procopio
another Top sportsman win and
send her back into the Pro ET
competition for a chance at
another win.
MPS Racing Pro
ET
Winner - Ben Knight
Runner-up - Robin Procopio
Ben Knight is the first-ever XDA
Monday morning winner. With
Sunday morning rain delays, the
event pushed our sportsman races
until late on Sunday night. With
one hundred and twenty-seven
racers in MPS Racing Pro ET,
their final was the last to run
shortly before 1 am on Monday.
Despite the previous night's
racing after a long weekend, the
sportsman racers were on their
game as they stayed focused on
the finish line.
Ben Knight from the ‘University
of Win’ stayed steady and
consistent as he turned on seven
win lights before making it to
the final against Robin
Procopio, who just finished
taking a win in Top Sportsman.
Procopio, who also won at this
event last year, was looking to
double up for this event. Knight
had the starting line advantage
with a .038 reaction over
Procopio’s .076. As both riders
approached the finish line,
Procopio pulled ahead of Knight
and didn’t let off the throttle
as she took the stipe, breaking
out with an 8.136 on her 8.15
dial. Knight ran an 8.727 on his
8.71 dial, taking his team to
another winner-circle finish.
Brock's
Performance Street ET
Winner - Montrell
Johnson
Runner-up - Laray Proctor
Montrell Johnson dominates the
WPGC with back-to-back wins in
Brock's Performance Street ET
for the second consecutive year.
Johnson won six rounds of tough
bracket racing before meeting
Laray Proctor in the seventh and
final round. In the semi-final
round Proctor pushed the tree to
a .002 to take the win over
Daniel Stribling. However,
chopping on that tree caught up
with him in the final when he
cut a -.040 red light to give
the win to Johnson before he
even left the starting line.
Hard Times
Parts & Service Gambler’s Race
Winner - Nick Hamlett
Runner-up - Alex Maturo
In Friday night’s Hard Times
Parts & Service Gambler’s Race,
Nick Hamlett brought it home for
.00 Racing in memory of his
friend and XDA Champion Derrick
Milbourne. At this event last
year, Hamlett won the VooDoo
Components Bracket Bash, making
him a WPGC Bike Fest winner
circle staple. Hamlett won six
rounds before meeting Alex
Maturo in the final. With an
8.47 dial, Maturo got the
starting line advantage on
Hamlett, but when it became a
race to the finish line, Maturo
would break out running an
8.451, and Hamlett got the win
by running 8.246 on his 8.21
dial.
The XDA will return to Virginia
Motorsports Park for the 5th
annual FuelTech Bike Bash on
August 25-27, 2023. There will
be over 700 Professional,
Sportsman, and Grudge motorcycle
racers in competition, battling
it out for over $90,000 in cash
purses at this event. Get August
25-27 on your calendar now!
Visit xdaracing.com for event
information, class rules,
schedule, and more.
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 |
