Conveniently located off Interstate 22, the venue features an 1/8-mile drag strip, eight staging lanes, concrete walls, guardrails and an uphill shutdown area. The track has LED lighting, an AccuTime timing system, acres of paved parking and numerous speakers throughout the facility. 

There are over 100 sites with electrical hook-ups, plenty of other camping space, restrooms, showers and a concession stand with reasonably priced items. Track manager Jody Brooks and his staff work hard to accommodate the racers and provide an enjoyable experience.

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“Our racers have talked about how much they’ve enjoyed coming to Holly Springs,” IHRA Owner and CEO Larry Jeffers said. “They do such an amazing job taking care of the racers and creating a special environment for the most prestigious championship event in bracket racing.”

Holly Springs Motorsports Park will also host the IHRA Division 4 Summit Team Finals Sept. 11-14. Click here to check out the Facebook page for Holly Springs Motorsports Park and to keep up with the latest happenings at this great venue.

“Everywhere I go, the people I see have a love for the original IHRA and what it was all about,” IHRA President Kenny Nowling said. “We listened to our track partners, racers and fans. The desire to go back to the original logo is overwhelming.”

It is a tribute to the IHRA’s history with the sanctioning body founded by Larry Carrier in 1970 and the first national events held in 1971. His son, Andy Carrier, was overjoyed when he heard the news the IHRA was bringing back the iconic logo.

“That’s wonderful. I’ve been watching a lot of the old IHRA races on YouTube and the nostalgia makes you proud,” Carrier said. “I remember walking into the IHRA offices as a kid and that logo always stood out. It was so pretty with the red, white and blue. When Bill Bader Sr. was still alive, they did a tribute to dad and they gave us plaques with the old logo on it. That was very special to the family.”

Carrier is excited about the direction of the IHRA under new President Kenny Nowling. He also loved hearing about the return of the original Ironman trophy.

“When I read that Kenny had taken over, I thought that was awesome,” Carrier said. “I think Kenny has the will and know-how to bring the IHRA back to where it was. Having the Ironman, there are traditions in sports where if you’re changing trophies they don’t have as much meaning. You don’t see the Stanley Cup being changed. The Ironman represents IHRA racing and always has.”

For the fourth straight year, the IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Finals will return to Holly Springs Motorsports Park on Oct. 23-25, 2025.

DIVISION REALIGNMENT

The IHRA also announced a major realignment of its divisions for the 2025 season. This will provide a better and fairer format for the Summit Team Finals with a better distribution of tracks in each division.

IHRA Summit Team Finals for 2025 have been set with Division 1 Team Finals Oct. 2-5 at Darlington Dragway. Division 2 Finals will be held Oct. 9-12 at Rocket City Dragway. Division 3 Team Finals are scheduled Sept. 18-20 at Quaker City Motorsports Park.

Division 4 Team Finals will take place Sept. 11-14 at Holly Springs Motorsports Park. Southwest tracks are now going to be Division 5 with the Summit Team Finals from Sept. 25-28 at Xtreme Raceway Park.

Check out IHRA.com and our Facebook page throughout next week as the new lineups of tracks for each division are released.

IHRA-member racers who won these events qualified for the IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Finals presented by Strange Engineering at Holly Springs, Mississippi.

Some of these racers ended up on the IHRA National Top 10 lists. Joe Soucek Jr., the winner of the IHRA Sportsman Spectacular presented by Moser at Dragway 42, was the national runner-up in the Top (Box) class. Joe Hoskins, who qualified through the IHRA Sportsman Spectacular at Kil-Kare Raceway, ranked No. 9 nationally.

Justin Minton, the IHRA Sportsman Spectacular winner at Beacon Dragway, was the Mod (No Box) World Champion. Jordan Johnson also won the IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Championship in Sportsman after winning the IHRA Sportsman Spectacular presented by Moser at Music City Raceway.

Other IHRA Sportsman Spectacular winners in the Sportsman Top 10 include David Bigham who won at Knoxville Dragway, Jim Andrysiak, the winner at Bunker Hill Dragstrip, and Cameron Groff, the winner at Kil-Kare Raceway.

Second through fourth in the Motorcycle standings all won IHRA Sportsman Spectacular races in Tennessee. National runner-up Baley Miles was the winner at Music City Raceway. Dalton Markham qualified through the IHRA Sportsman Spectacular at Knoxville Dragway and John Markham was the winner at Gleason Raceway Park.

Three Junior Dragster racers in the National Top 10 qualified through IHRA Sportsman Spectacular events. They were Lane VanNote from Muncie Dragway, Treson Ambrose from Bunker Hill Dragstrip and Ryan Roberts from Quaker City Motorsports Park.

They were just a handful of the IHRA Sportsman Spectacular presented by Moser winners in 2024. Thank you again to all the racers who participated in these events.

“Cody brings a ton of experience to the table in the bracket racing world, and we’re excited to have him join us here at Penwell Knights for our bracket program in 2025,” Gardenhire said. 

Pollage also has his own bracket series, CP Racing Promotions, which will be hosting a big money bracket event at Penwell Knights Raceway on Oct. 17-19, 2025. To find out more about that event, please check him out on Facebook at Cody Pollage Racing Promotions1. 

The racing veteran will also continue to be assistant manager at his home race track, State Capitol Raceway, right outside of Baton Rouge, Louisiana. 

“I’m very excited to join Team Penwell for the 2025 season for the bracket program.” Cody said. “There are so many of my good friends that race in this area, and this will feel like home to me. Gary and crew were very welcoming when I was here for my event in 2024, as well as some of the IHRA races I had attended while working for them.” 

Pollage stated a goal of doing some big things for the West Texas racers and working towards packed houses at Penwell Knights. The track is currently looking for a race director for its Index and heads-up races.

Officially referred to as Penwell Knights Raceway at Caprock Motorplex, it has been called the Permian Basin’s premier drag racing facility. They have been a long time partner of the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) and share the commitment to grassroots, Sportsman racing.

Mikel McQueen was the track’s IHRA Summit SuperSeries Top champion for a second straight year. Other 2024 champions included: Benny Gossett (Mod), Robert Schoemer (Sportsman), Tadd Sprayberry (Motorcycle) and Ayden Johnson Gossett (Junior Dragster). 

In addition, the track hosted an IHRA Sportsman Spectacular presented by Moser back in March. Schoemer was also the Sportsman winner, while other class winners were: Tom Hollifield (Top), Evan Santos (Mod), David Baugh (Motorcycle) and Owen Blair (Junior Dragster).

Penwell Knights Raceway has released its 2025 schedule with some great special events. The Bounty Hunters No Prep races take place March 14-15. The always popular, Funny Car Chaos, is slated for May 30-31. There is also the Skinny Kid Heads Up Series, West TX Flashlight Drags and OctoberFAST.

Racing into December, there’s a No Prep Shootout and a toy drive the following week. Gardenhire and staff have been busy with work on new VIP suites, and more asphalt added in the pits. 

You often hear the terms of a “blue collar” and “white collar” worker. Gardenhire is both, working a variety of jobs to provide a great experience for the racers.

“I enjoy the challenge of it,” he said. “I do everything from cleaning restrooms to marketing and meeting with companies for sponsorship. I’ve got my hands full, and it sometimes stresses me out, but I like it.” 

He also likes seeing Penwell racers have success at other venues. They’ve had racers like 2022 IHRA Summit SuperSeries Junior Dragster runner-up Caden Keyes and Motorcycle racer Jeramy Tally in the IHRA National Top 10. Baugh has been wildly successful both in his car and on two wheels as a Motorcycle racer.

Gardenhire believes part of the reason Penwell racers are so tough is the track’s location.

“We have the weather changes, the DA (density altitude) that’s sometimes hard to adapt to,” he said. “If they can adapt here, they can pretty much run anywhere and be competitive. We start early March and run until mid-December.”

Click here to check out the Facebook page for Penwell Knights Raceway for more exciting news about this West Texas track.

The PRI Trade Show is the most influential business event in auto racing. There are 1,100 exhibiting companies with 70,000 attendees from all 50 states and 70 countries. 

Check out our special banners to celebrate the 2024 IHRA World Champions. For those interested in membership, we will have some exciting news on that front.

The IHRA leadership encourages an open dialogue with racers, track operators and marketing partners. Stop by, visit our booth at the PRI Trade Show and share your ideas with us. We look forward to seeing you there.

“My first reaction was unbelievable. I’d never won anything like that,” he said. “I knew if I did, it was going to be for the benefit of the race track.”

Rasmussen had been feeling down after losing in the first round of eliminations. That was until he was able to share the good news.

“I was in Sportsman class, the last pair up the track. I was late and the car wouldn’t run the number,” Rasmussen said. “I was thinking, ‘Why in the world did I come here?’ I came to this to find out he won that. As soon as I lost, I hear Doug (Foley Jr.) say, ‘We’re getting ready to draw for the truck.’ I’m at the tool box and I hear him say, ‘I know this guy. He’s painting bleachers.’ As soon as he said that, I knew it was Mike Walters.”

Walters didn’t end up with the F-150 crew cab truck. Instead, he decided to take a cash option which ended up benefitting the track in a number of ways.

“It put us in a position to help our race track do some serious improvements,” he said. “We got our short-term loans paid off and we’re getting a new timing system.”

Elk Creek Dragway is special to Walters and those who race there. It sits between two beautiful mountain ranges in the Elk Creek Valley. 

They have paved roads throughout the facility with well-groomed grass for trailer parking. They make it family-friendly as it includes a playground, picnic tables with umbrellas and multiple bleachers to watch the different aspects of racing. There is emphasis, particularly on the restrooms and concession areas, to be clean and well maintained.

“It’s the track designed with your family in mind,” Walters said. “Many, many racers have told me, this is their happy place. It’s crazy to hear that from a racer, but we want them to feel at home at Elk Creek Dragway.”

It has paid off with record car counts in 2024 and others who share Walters’ passion. When Hurricane Helene flooded the track, Rasmussen and his boys worked both a Friday and Saturday to help fix it.

The track has one of the strongest bracket racing programs around with races every weekend. In addition, they work with racers to make the facility frequently available for test-and-tune sessions. 

Elk Creek Dragway repeated as IHRA Division 1 (Patriots) Summit Team Finals champions in 2024. Rasmussen was the winner in the Sportsman class and Caleb Hamm won the Motorcycle race. Mike Willard was the Mod winner and his son, Will, was tops in Junior Dragster. Will went on to finish runner-up at the IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Finals.

Walters credits that busy schedule for being a reason why Elk Creek racers have so much success at other drag strips. He’s humble when it comes to his own role, but one can hear in his voice how much he cares for the racers and the track.

“Taking care of the racers is the number one goal across the board,” Walters said. “I’m here living my life, having fun and trying to pay it forward. You take care of your customers and everything else takes care of itself.”

Now, he has the extra resources to take care of the racers as do the other IHRA partner tracks who were able to raise money through the IHRA truck giveaway. Special thanks to Morrow Brothers Ford and all those who participated to help the IHRA partner tracks.

Willard, a racer who calls Elk Creek Dragway his home track, was a little anxious at the start of the Junior Dragster final against Tate Hildebrandt. He left -.004 too quick to trigger the red light. Still, Willard was pleased how the night went.

“It means everything to be the runner-up against the best-of-the-best,” Willard said. “I came as close as you can to winning it all.”

That was certainly a true statement as Roberts gained entry into the World Finals by his win in the IHRA Sportsman Spectacular presented by Moser at Quaker City Motorsports Park. VanNote was the Sportsman Spectacular winner at Muncie Dragway.

Both Willard and Hildebrandt qualified through the IHRA Summit Team Finals. Hildebrandt won the Division 4 (Renegades) title at his home track of Xtreme Raceway Park, while Willard won the Division 1 (Patriots) title at Roxboro Motorsports Park.

Willard was a key in Elk Creek Dragway repeating as team champions. His father, Mike, also qualified for the IHRA World Finals by winning the Mod (Box) class. Will explained being around family and friends is what makes racing so special to him.

“I’ve been racing 10 years. My grandpa, my mom’s dad, Richard Skeens, raced for many years,” Will said. “My dad, I’ve watched him since I was born and have always looked up to him. I got it from both sides of the family.”

As he moves from the Junior Dragsters to full-time in the big cars, Will is expected to remain a top contender. Congratulations to Will Willard and all those who reached the championship round at the 2024 IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Finals.

It actually took a pair of fantastic reaction times to knock off Miles in each night’s final round. IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Champion Grady Powell had the near perfect .001 start, while Miles was solid with a .037 start to go along with a 5.838-second run at 122.12 mph on a 5.81 dial-in. 

She faced off with another Music City racer, Billy Warren, in Friday’s final round. Warren had the .004 to .022 advantage at the tree. Miles was proud of what she was able to accomplish against champions from across North America.

“It’s awesome. We struggled a little with the Motorcycle and felt like packing up and leaving,” she said. “Then to runner-up both nights, I didn’t get to seal the deal, but I made it here.”

Her performance followed Kane Austin winning the IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Championship in 2023. Miles was one of several Music City riders on the 2024 National Top 10 list with Austin sixth and Warren seventh. Dalton Markham and John Markham, who qualified through other tracks, also race frequently at Music City.

Miles also qualified through another track, winning the IHRA Sportsman Spectacular presented by Moser at Ethridge Motorsports Park. She runs a Suzuki Hayabusa after switching from a GSXR. Her husband got her the Hayabusa in June, and immediately it was a great pairing as Miles won her first race on the bike.

Her dad was one of her racing heroes, although it was years before he let Baley on the bike. She’s certainly proven she’s more than capable. Racing is a great release from the pressures of her regular job. The 27-year-old is a legislative auditor for the state of Tennessee.

“It’s just something I enjoy and fun to do,” she said. “I try not to take it too serious and just have fun while I’m here.”