Drag and Drive Events Continue Gaining Momentum
Combining mechanical talent, endurance driving and on-track performance, drag and drive events are surging in popularity. A movement started twenty years ago by the staff at Hot Rod Magazine, Drag and Drive has never been more popular as a growing number of drag racers are prepping street-worthy racing machines and promoters are responding with an expanding list of events.
Drag and Drive events require a participant to take their hopped up street legal machine on a road trip from one track to another, tightly walking the line between streetability and performance. Events range from three hundred mile trips between tracks to long haul road trips totaling fifteen hundred miles or more. These aren’t just casual trips down the highway, with routes between tracks often encountering challenging terrain and surface conditions along the backroads of America.
We checked in with Michael Narx, owner of dragdriverepeat.com and RacingJunk partner. Michael is also the owner/promoter of The Circuit Drag N Drive, a popular charity based event for drag and drive racers and one of 13+ events currently on the agenda for 2026.
“We’ve got a list of new races and racers that’s growing so fast it’s hard to keep up with,” said Narx. “We’re seeing guys that are seasoned racers, looking for a new challenge as well as a ton of growth from folks that have always wanted to race and see drag and drive as a way to get involved in racing.”
Along with participating in these select events, racers are also going to their local tracks to gather data, test combinations and compete in anticipation of their next event. We asked Narx where he thinks drag and drive is headed: “It’s not going anywhere. With new events year after year, I think we’ll continue to see more events pop up around the country. I wouldn’t be surprised to start seeing the tracks get in on the action, with classes offered on a weekly basis for drag and drive racers.”
It’s evident this form of drag racing is taking off. Events are selling out in minutes and with a growing number of fans looking to travel with these events, there’s no denying that drag and drive is here to stay. This is great news for performance parts manufacturers. Seeking performance and reliability, racers are providing manufacturers with a new laboratory to test tunable fuel management, boost applications, overdrive kits and retrofit creature comforts like power windows and bolt-on systems to maintain a vehicle’s streetability.
The communities lucky enough to welcome these roaming bands of gearheads to their gas stations, restaurants and hotels are seeing a major impact in revenue, with community leaders taking notice. The substantial economic impact of drag and drive events will continue to drive support from communities and businesses, looking to bring in new commerce opportunities. This isn’t just good for drag and drive, but a great representation for the entire motorsports industry.
If you’re interested in getting in on the fun, RacingJunk has a category dedicated to drag and drive classifieds. Plan your next racing adventure either as a competitor or race fan at dragdriverepeat.com to see when the craze comes to your neck of the woods.