When the inaugural PRO Superstar Shootout was announced in 2023 for an early February 2024 date at Bradenton Motorsports Park in Florida, there were some who doubted this would be a roaring success. Thankfully, they were wrong. With practice and testing days, plus competition Thursday through Saturday, the inaugural race for Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock racers paid mountains of dollars to the three winners – Doug Kalitta, Austin Prock and Erica Enders – as well as entertaining thousands of race fans who flocked to the venue to see this new type of straight-line competition.
Success breeds success and the second SCAG PRO Superstar Shootout is scheduled for February 6-8 at the same venue. “The inaugural shootout was a huge win for the fans, for PRO and its members,” said PRO president Alan Johnson. “Our goal with the SCAG PRO Superstar Shootout is to give motorsports fans a unique event and to get them excited for the start of the 2025 NHRA season,” he explained.
“Last year we put on an amazing show that saw Doug Kalitta (Top Fuel), Austin Prock (Funny Car) and Erica Enders (Pro Stock) drive to exhilarating victories. This year,” Johnson continued, “we will be looking to once again offer fans an unparalleled drag racing experience. We know interest in the PRO Superstar Shootout will be very high, which is why tickets re going on sale now to ensure fans from around the world can secure their entry.”
Doug Kalitta fully realized the gravitas of winning the first PRO Superstar Shootout at Bradenton earlier this year. “On the heels of winning my first Top Fuel championship, winning the first PRO Superstar Shootout was pretty cool,” he said. “We were all happy to win that race, but just making the eight-car field was incredibly tough,” Kalitta reminded. “The whole deal was just really cool. It was something different for the drivers and teams, and the fans loved it. I am looking forward to getting back to Bradenton next year with our Mac Tools Kalitta Motorsports team.”
The successful format used by PRO will continue in 2025, with qualifying on both Thursday and Friday, and elimination round matchups of the eight-car field on Saturday determined by a chip draw, a unique feature for this event. The higher-qualified drivers will draw chips with competitor names that determine first-round match-ups. Subsequent rounds will also be decided by random draws, giving both fans and teams a thrill of uncertainty and excitement as Saturday’s race day progresses.
Once again, Top Fuel and Funny Car racers will face off in a fan-favorite Top Fuel versus Funny Car Chicago-style race. “We will be doing chip draws every round and we’ll also highlight some strong Top Fuel versus Funny Car racing again in 2025,” noted Bob Tasca III, who recorded a record-setting 341-mph run at last year’s event. Unfortunately, it didn’t count as a national record because the PRO event is not an NHRA-sanctioned contest.
“We want this race to have a different feel and experience than a traditional national event,” Tasca continued. “The drivers and teams like the format, because it’s unpredictable and fun, and the fans let us know they loved it!”
Additional classes beyond Top Fuel, Funny Car and Pro Stock will be on the docket, including Top Sportsman, Stock and Super Stock. Over the three days of competition, the PRO Superstar Shootout will feature autograph sessions, driver Q&As and additional fan-friendly entertainment, as it did in 2024. Once again, the PRO Superstar Shootout is featured on FloRacing for all three days of competition.
Victor Alvarez, owner of Bradenton Motorsports Park realized he had a winning event once it began and fans started streaming onto his facility. “Last year was an amazing event that I couldn’t imagine not doing again,” Alvarez said. “Bradenton has a unique vibe. I take a lot of pride in that and I”m extremely proud of our staff and everything that went into making last year such a success. When I bought that track,” he mused, “a dream of mine was to get the facility to a point where we could host special events like the PRO Superstar Shootout. I can’t wait to work with PRO to make this year’s event even better for the drivers, sponsors and, most importantly the fans.”
There will be added announcements about next February’s PRO Superstar Shootout, which will include a test day on the Tuesday prior to the race, February 6. Participating drivers, added sponsors and a schedule of events will be announced shortly at www.prosuperstarshootout.com. To purchase tickets, go to: HERE!
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