With championship battles tightening across the Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series, racers in the professional, sportsman, and Jr. Dragster ranks will head to historic Bristol Dragway, Aug. 6-8, for the PDRA Thunder Valley Throwdown presented by Larry Jeffers Race Cars. The fifth of seven races on the 2026 tour comes at a pivotal point in the season, with several classes separated by just a handful of rounds and the PDRA Sportsman Spectacular adding increased stakes for the series’ sportsman and Jr. Dragster competitors.
“The Thunder Valley Throwdown has quickly become one of the most anticipated stops on the PDRA tour,” said Tyler Crossnoe, series director, PDRA. “Bristol is such an iconic track that holds a lot of memories for our racers with its rich history in Pro Modified, Top Sportsman, Top Dragster, and Junior Drag Racing. It’s also one of the most fan-friendly tracks, and its unique location in the hills of Tennessee make it a destination event.”
The last race on tour, the North vs. South Shootout at Maryland International Raceway, saw some major points shakeups across the board, including in Switzer Dynamics Pro Nitrous presented by Jerry Bickel Race Cars. Tommy Franklin, a three-time world champion and the defending event champion, held on to the points lead in his Musi-powered “Jungle Rat 3.0” ’69 Camaro, but his lead is far from safe. Fredy Scriba, the 2024 world champion, debuted a brand-new Musi-powered “Sorcerer” ’69 Camaro at Maryland and raced it to victory for the second consecutive year, moving him up to less than a round behind Franklin in second. Past Elite Top Sportsman world champion Buddy Perkinson took his Musi-powered LAT Racing Oil ’69 Camaro to the final round alongside Scriba to sit third, just over a round out of the points lead.
WS Construction Pro Boost presented by P2 Contracting and Ty-Drive also saw changes to the top three. Jason Harris, seeking his third world championship in the class and fifth in the series, took over the lead with a semifinal finish in his Harts Charger-boosted “Party Time” ’69 Camaro. Johnny Camp and the ProCharged “Hells Bells” ’69 Camaro missed the Maryland race but only dropped one spot to second in points. Reigning world champion and defending event champion Ty Tutterow qualified No. 1 in Justin Smith’s screw-blown Quik Fuel ’69 Camaro and moved up to third, while Travis “The Carolina Kid” Harvey is just outside the top three in fourth with his Maryland victory.
Two of the youngest drivers in Liberty’s Gears Pro Street presented by KTR Drag Racing lead the way going into Bristol. Past Super Street world champion Blake Denton reached the Maryland semifinals in the nitrous-fed “Bonnie” Lizzy Musi tribute ’69 Camaro to maintain his points lead. Second-generation PDRA racer Joel Wensley Jr. earned his first career win at Maryland in his ProCharged ’14 Camaro to move up to second in the standings. Outlaw 10.5 veteran Jerry Morgano earned his second No. 1 qualifier award of the season at Maryland, helping him hang on to a top three position in his turbocharged small-block “Copperhead” ’02 Mustang. Tennessee’s own Ron Reagan and Scott Kincaid are mere qualifying points out of third in fourth and fifth, respectively.
For the first time in three races, there’s a new points leader in PDRA Pro 632 presented my Mark Williams Enterprises, as Jeff Pittman in his Barry Allen-powered Hickory Enclosed Trailer sales ’68 Chevelle earned his first career win in the class at Maryland to take the lead by just three points. JC Beattie Jr., who dominated the first two races of the season in his Reher-Morrison-powered ATI Performance Products ’18 Camaro, suffered a first-round exit to slip to second. Rookie David Cook Jr. sits third with a runner-up finish in his Nelson-powered Copy&PrintWarehouse.com ’10 GTO.
Connor McGee, the defending world champion in 1320 Fabrication Super Street presented by Brian’s Heating & Cooling, is chasing his third consecutive Thunder Valley Throwdown title. In the three completed races this season, he has two wins in three final rounds and two No. 1 qualifier awards in his Fulton-powered Brian’s Heating & Cooling ’90 Mustang. Fellow young gun Austin Vincent is just over two rounds behind McGee with a win and a runner-up finish in his nitrous-fed Vincent Performance ’88 Mustang. Dan Whetstine, the 2024 world champion, is third in points with his ProCharged “Red Velvet” ’91 Mustang.
The Thunder Valley Throwdown is a marquee race for the PDRA’s sportsman and Jr. Dragster classes, as it will host the PDRA Sportsman Spectacular with boosted payouts courtesy of Butcher & Son Demolition, NexGen Race Cars, Fulton Racing Engines, C&C Chemical Co. Inc., and Mike Bos Race Cars.
The points leaders in the sportsman classes going into Bristol are Bryan LaFlam in MagnaFuel Elite Top Sportsman presented by PAR Racing Engines, Steve Furr in Greenbrier Excavating & Paving Elite Top Dragster presented by American Race Cars, Joe Roubicek in MagnaFuel Top Sportsman, and Steven Boone in ATI Performance Products Top Dragster presented by TBM Brakes.
In the PDRA’s Jr. Dragster ranks, Katelyn Page and Carter Hayes held on to their points leads in Maryland, with Page leading Pro Jr. Dragster and Hayes on top in Classic Graphix Top Jr. Dragster.
The Thunder Valley Throwdown will also include local bracket racing in Edelbrock Bracket Bash presented by Philadelphia Racing Products.
The Thunder Valley Throwdown schedule begins with pre-race Thursday testing at 9 a.m. and will roll into Top Sportsman and Top Dragster qualifying around 5 p.m. On Friday, the professional classes are scheduled to run qualifying sessions at 11:45 a.m., 5:30 p.m., and 9 p.m. Jr. Dragster classes will get one final qualifying session to start Saturday’s on-track action, with pre-race ceremonies and pro eliminations set for 10:50 a.m. Eliminations will continue into the evening until event champions are crowned in the FuelTech Winner’s Circle.
Tickets are available for $20 on Thursday, $25 on Friday, and $30 on Saturday. Discounted Junior and Kids tickets are also available, while kids 5 and under get in free. Purchase tickets at www.PDRA660.com or at the gate.
PDRA fans around the world can catch all the action live on the official event live stream through www.FloRacing.com.
This story was originally published on August 3, 2026. 
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