Choosing the most relevant Drag Illustrated 30 Under 30 is not an easy job, as magazine founder and editorial director Wes Buck has discovered. For the fifth edition of this list, featured in the magazine’s December and 151st issue, the editors had to contend with more than 2,000 submissions, which made whittling the group down to 30 a very tough task.
As always, the chosen group features a contingent of young drivers, crew members, tuners, fabricators, track owners, media members and other drag racing industry insiders. The 30 Under 30 list puts a spotlight on the rising stars in this sport and is comprised of prominent personalities from a variety of classes, series and countries, selected by a panel of Drag Illustrated staffers.
“I’m incredibly proud of the group we’ve put together for the fifth annual 30 Under 30 list,” Buck said to a packed crowd at the Performance Racing Industry (PRI) show. “It’s so critical to keep an eye on the future and look for the next group of stars and standouts who will keep drag racing moving forward.
“This is a group more than capable of doing that, and these young talents represent so many great and amazing things going on in our sport,” he continued. “I can’t help but smile when I look at this list and see what they’ve all accomplished already in drag racing. It has me excited to see what all of their futures hold.”
Gracing the December cover are standout drivers Gage Burch and Matt Dadas, who both had exceptional years on their chosen bracket racing scene. Burch, 19, won the $500,000-to-win SFG 500 in June; two months later 24-year-old Dadas reached the final round of the Fall Fling 500K. Both racers reached milestones that will give them a lifetime of memories.
“To be on the cover of Drag Illustrated for the 30 Under 30 issue, it’s pretty surreal got be in this position,” Dadas said. “For both of us, we’re living the dream right now. You dream to be part of these moments.
That’s stuff you can’t replace.”
“It’s been a dream season, that’s for sure” Burch stated. “It’s an incredible honor to be on the cover of Drag Illustrated, and this just adds [to] what has been a great year.”
In addition to Burch and Dadas, the 2019 30 Under 30 list includes: Austin Prock, Justin Carmack, Patrick Miller, Chase Freeman, Haley James, Cody Lane, Kellan Farmer, Bobby Ince Jr., Justin Jones, D.J. and Ryan McCain, Joey Haas, Preston “Peeps” Pennington, Chris Garner-Jones, Allie and Cody Bland, Julie Nataas, Kyle Bigley, John Dougherty, Victor Alvarez, Hunter Patton, Blake Copson, Cole Cummings, Jordan Vandergriff, Mike Mulaney, Tricia Musi, Matthew Lunsford, Will Smith, Kyle Cultrera and the late Joe Hunt.
Drag Illustrated’s editor-in-chief Nate Van Wagnen noted: “From the very start of the Drag Illustrated 30 Under 30, it’s been our goal to feature honors from every area of the sport, and that’s been no different for our 2019 list. This is one of the most diverse lists yet, and continues to show the amount of young stars in our sport at every turn.
“This group features top-level NHRA stars to up-and-coming bracket racers, sportsman racers, small-tire standouts, track managers, series promoters and everything in between,” he emphasized. “This list is truly representative of the tremendous participation and success young people are having in the sport.”
All honorees received a jacket commemorating their selection.
Sponsored by IDIDIT, Moser Engineering, Thermo-Tec and Classic Graphix, the digital edition of the December 2019 Drag Illustrated 30 Under 30 issue is available without charge at digital.dragillustrated.com. Print issues are mailed to subscribers in mid-December.
Thanks Anne Proffit for your ontribution to the sport of racing. If it weren’t for people like you we would not have the many editions of the printed message in our library at home. Thanks once again.