Here Comes the Bow Tie
The rumors we've been hearing for the last six months or so were somewhat confirmed at the SEMA Show-GM is entering the import racing scene in 2002. The General Motors booth contained two wild drag racers designed to compete in a tube-frame FWD category. The Cavalier pictured is expected to compete, while a yellow Cavalier, dubbed the 425 A/FX, will be campaigned as an exhibition car. There could well be two other GM racers burning rubber in the water box in 2002. Check page 46 for the details.
Abel Ibarra Lands Lucrative Sponsorship Package
Abel Ibarra was one of the biggest winners in Vegas-and he was nowhere near a casino. Abel's dream came true when it was announced that Flaco Racing signed a three-year sponsorship package with K&N Engineering for both of the team's cars. Look for Abel's RX-7 and the R-100 piloted by Efren Vasquez to be flexing fresh paint schemes for the 2002 season.
NHRA and NIRA Merge
A "strategic alliance" was forged between the NHRA and NIRA sanctioning bodies during the 2001 SEMA Show. Primedia, the publisher of Turbo, acquired NIRA when it took over EMAP USA. The press conference announced that NHRA, NIRA and Primedia "will join forces to significantly strengthen the NHRA Summit Import Drag Racing Series to make it the most dominant player in the import scene."
NHRA/NIRA 2002 Schedule
| April 13-14 | Gainesville, Fla. |
| May 4-5 | Englishtown, N.J. |
| May 18-19 | Atco, N.J. |
| June 1-2 | Houston |
| June 15-16 | Maple Grove, Pa. |
| August 3-4 | Dallas |
| August 17-18 | Woodburn, Ore. |
| September 7-8 | Sonoma, Calif. |
| October 16-17 | Englishtown |
| October 26-27 | Pomona, Calif. |