B
ACK in the April issue, I wrote about
the SFG 500 meeting that was to
be held at US131 Motorsports Park
in Michigan, where the promoters
guaranteed US$500,000 to the winner, making
it the largest payday in drag history. At the time
I had a couple of reservations, mainly because
we’ve all heard about meetings that promise the
world but fail to produce the goods.
Well, the event did go ahead in late June.
Over 500 entries turned up, and the race
promoters lived up to their promise, paying over
US$500,000 to 19-year-old Gage Burch from
Florida, who won the final.In the process, the young bloke beat some
of the very best bracket racers in the world,
including five-time NHRA Pro Stock champion
Jeg Coughlin Jr. It just proves that when the
light goes green, reputations aren’t everything.
In the final, Burch defeated gun racer Johnny
‘Bracket Racer’ Ezell, who travelled fromLafayette, Louisiana to compete.
I loved what Burch said after he dusted
Coughlin: “No disrespect to Jeg at all, but you
can’t treat anybody different just because they
have a big name. The race was full of big names,
but you have to treat each one of them the same
and run your race and do the best you can.”
I should point out that Burch didn’t actually
keep all of the half-million in the end. From all
accounts, he pocketed about US$160,000,
while Ezell walked away with US$140,000,
after the 16 finalists decided to split the prize
money. When I first wrote about the event, I
said that if you were a real dyed-in-the-wooldrag racer, you wouldn’t want to split the prize
money. I haven’t changed my mind, but on the
day and under the circumstances, who knows?
I can’t let this month go by without paying
tribute to Ray Box, who after 30 years is no
longer part of the Jamboree scene in Australia.
He took a real gamble back in 1991 when hestarted the Brisbane Jamboree, and over the
years has turned the event into one of the most
important race meetings in the country.
It would be a real shame if Ray was lost to drag
racing. He has a passion for the sport, a proven
history in event management and understands
what drag racing is about. Col Willshire has
taken over the running of the Jamboree, and,
being the astute businessman he is, I’m sure
he will take it to the next level.
I was intrigued to see that the revamped
Supercars E-Series racing simulation
competition kicks off on 24 September.
There will be six rounds comprising 16 racesbroadcast live on Fox Sports and streamed
on Kayo in prime time. What caught my eye
is that members of the public can be drafted
into the series through a number of elimination
races. The series covers 14 different circuits,
including Monza, Italy; Laguna Seca, California;
and Mount Panorama, Bathurst. The final raceWILD AT HEART
VICTOR BRAY
PHOTO BY STEVE KELLY
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BRISBANE JAMBOREE, AND OVER THE YEARS HAS TURNED THE EVENT
INTO ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT RACE MEETINGS IN THE COUNTRY.
IT WOULD BE A REAL SHAME IF RAY WAS LOST TO DRAG RACING