SNOHOMISH, Wash. — Predictions are fun to read but scary to make.
Aside from the all-too-real risk of being wrong at the end of the year and the equally unpleasant fear of offending people who are likeable, no one knows what the future holds. Therefore, predictions might have been Nostradamus’ gig or the Amazing Kreskin’s shtick, but in general, they aren’t mine.
But we’re always encouraged to try new adventures at the start of a new year, so here are some ideas about what we can anticipate from the NHRA Camping World Drag Racing Series, which starts March 9-12 at Florida’s Gainesville Raceway.
And yes, at the end of the year, unlike the weatherman, I’ll own up to all the incorrect forecasts.
■ A prominent nitro-class racer will step away from the cockpit at the end of the season.
■ Doug Kalitta, who uncharacteristically blanked in the win column in 2022, will pick up two or three victories but won’t break his Top Fuel championship jinx. The 49-time winner has been runner-up in the championship hunt five times, giving him the dubious distinction in the pro ranks of winning the most events with no title to show for it.
■ Expect, for different reasons, improved performances from Antron Brown, Tony Schumacher, Josh Hart and Mike Salinas in Top Fuel — not that any of them had a lousy season last year.
Brown has momentum, barging from 12th place late in the regular season to second by the Finals. Eight-time champion Schumacher is reunited with crew chief Mike Neff, who’s hungry for a Top Fuel title to match his 2005 Funny Car trophy with Gary Scelzi. Hart has two new Morgan Lucas Racing-built dragsters — “the first cars I’ve ever had built for me … all designed the way we wanted it from scratch.” That’s one reason he said he’s “ahead of the curve this year.” And Salinas, who has finished seventh twice, third in 2021 and fifth last season, has more experience.
■ At least one single-car team will become a two-car team. Both the Top Fuel and Funny Car classes have nearly 20 one-car teams.
■ Some surprises will emerge when the NHRA releases its 2024 schedule sometime around the U.S. Nationals Labor Day classic. It’s no secret Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in the Phoenix suburb of Chandler, Ariz., is going away. And it’s still a mystery what will happen with Route 66 Raceway in Joliet, Ill., which returns to the schedule this season. But a new venue and perhaps fewer stops on the tour could be in store.
■ Tony Stewart will be back on the drag strip. Although Funny Car champion Ron Capps has been hinting that Stewart will be making an announcement, Stewart will talk when he’s ready. No one would be surprised if he competes in a couple more Top Alcohol Dragster races before having a go in Top Fuel at “The Big Go,” the U.S. Nationals at Lucas Oil Indianapolis Raceway Park.
■ The NHRA will consider ditching the Countdown to the Championship format.
■ Camrie Caruso, the 2022 NHRA rookie of the year, will win at least one Pro Stock trophy this season. She threatened at Houston, reaching the final round against Erica Enders. Now she is part of the KB Titan Racing fearsome foursome that includes Greg Anderson, Dallas Glenn and Kyle Koretsky.
■ A notable pro racer will switch to another class. Alex Laughlin already has made the move from Top Fuel to Funny Car, and he has talked, maybe jokingly and maybe not, about becoming licensed someday in Pro Stock Motorcycle.
Likewise, Joe Morrison announced just after New Year’s that he’s sliding from a Top Fuel car into a Funny Car. Antron Brown in 2008 made a highly successful switch from the bike class to Top Fuel. And Mike Salinas wants to drive everything — he has made his mark in Top Fuel but has driven as wildly different cars as a Jr. Dragster and a Pro Modified and says he wants to race daughter Jianna Evaristo in Pro Stock Motorcycle.
A few pro drivers — such as Aaron Stanfield and Erica Enders — will be competing in at least two classes throughout the year. So it wouldn’t be unusual to see someone — or maybe more than one racer — change classes.
■ A “celebrity” will invest in an NHRA pro team this year.
This story appeared in the Feb. 15, 2023 edition of the SPEED SPORT Insider.
