The World Series of Pro Mod (WSOPM) has a new home. Begun in 2017 by the founder and CEO of Drag Illustrated magazine, Wes Buck and first run at Bandimere Speedway outside Denver, the stand-alone event has since been run at Bradenton Motorsports Park.
Now the Meyer family’s vaunted Ennis, Texas facility, Texas Motorplex gets the nod for this race, which will run on the all-concrete dragstrip outside Dallas and Fort Worth next March 5-7, 2027. As ever, it will be an invitation-only race and will put a huge spotlight on Pro Mod, a category that Buck has loved – and put his heart, soul and money into – since he became aware of the class.
When WSOPM began, the $100,000 to win was a true anomaly. Six-figure Pro Mod payouts were, nearly ten years ago, unthinkable. Wes Buck changed that, getting manufacturer and engine-builder interest in the class through his promotions. “The winter series in Bradenton,” he said, “proved that Pro Mod works at scale.”
The March 5-7 WSOPM marks the eighth such running, and while Buck and his team are looking forward to holding their race at this legendary Texas racetrack, they are thankful for Bradenton and what they and the track’s operators have put together, as well as their early support from the Bandimere family.
Still, the move to Texas Motorplex, which exists within the fourth largest marketplace in America, gives the event “everything we believe Pro Mod deserves: a super track, stadium-style seating, a venue that’s an NHRA ‘super-track’ and the ‘house that Billy Meyer built’. We needed a bigger venue,” Buck explained, “to build on our investment as this event has grown beyond our imagination. This is what the racers and fans deserve.”
NHRA has held races at Meyer’s facility since it opened in 1986 and the local government is very much involved with the track’s operation and promotion, Buck reminded. The cities of Waxahachie and Ennis hold many events around NHRA’s national race at the Motorplex. “The whole group at Motorplex felt like working with family,” Buck said of the negotiations to make next year’s race take place.
The Drag Illustrated team is hoping to put together long-term announcements soon for WSOPM, but wanted to get the word out. The eighth annual WSOPM will be limited to a 32-car field and the group will hold its chip drawings for qualifying pairings inside Texas Motorplex’s Champion’s Club with fans able to watch. “We want the fans to feel like royalty here,” Buck said.
To that end, Buck and his team are accentuating the fact that this facility is far more modern than Bradenton yet has the same family aspect to it. “We intend to prove we can fill Motorplex with Pro Mod racing. We believe it’s the hottest category in racing. We intend to deliver an historic broadcast deal at an historic venue. Pro Mod,” Buck insisted, “has been regional. We want to take it national, and this is the right place.”
World Series of Pro Mod has become a must-attend race for the class; it’s a high-stakes showcase for the class’ performance, its competition and the innovation Pro Mod stands for. There are no qualifying ladders or easy rounds. Each match-up after the chip draw is a main event. Fans can expect three full days and nights of elite-level racing, driver intros and autograph sessions, pyrotechnics, music and food. The move to Texas Motorplex is intended to elevate the event and create an event that goes far beyond the drag racing surface.
“The goal is to make the World Series of Pro Mod something that people talk about long after the last car has left the property,” Buck stated. “Texas Motorplex has the history, the facility and the team to help us do that. We’re just getting started.” Stay tuned for added info for the Pro Mod racers, the event’s format, ticketing and scheduling. Check worldseriesofpromod.com and drag illustrated.com for more information.
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