Summit Motorsports Park President Bill Bader Jr. issued an open letter to the drag racing community this week, expressing concern for sportsman racers affected by the recent wave of International Hot Rod Association schedule changes and pledging that his team is prepared to help provide a championship destination should the IHRA be unable to complete its planned sportsman season.
The letter follows a turbulent stretch for the sanctioning body. After significantly reducing its national-event schedule in late June, the IHRA canceled the remaining three events on its 2026 Outlaw Nitro Series schedule in July. The organization said the cancellations applied only to the national Nitro series and maintained that its sportsman bracket racing program, weekly racing at IHRA-owned facilities and other operations would continue.
Still, the developments have created questions among racers who have spent the season pursuing regional and national championships.
Bader, whose family has operated Summit Motorsports Park in Norwalk, Ohio, for more than 50 years, centered his message on the importance of sportsman racers and the independently operated tracks that support them.
“Sportsman racers and the tracks they call home every weekend are the backbone, the heart, and the soul of drag racing,” Bader wrote. “Without them, there is no show, no culture, and no sport.”
Bader also pointed to the sportsman roots of his late father, Bill Bader Sr., who purchased the former Norwalk Raceway in 1973 and built the facility around a racer-focused philosophy before developing it into one of the country’s premier drag racing venues.
While Bader stopped short of announcing a specific event, date or format, he said Summit Motorsports Park is assembling a group of people prepared to act if the IHRA cannot deliver the remainder of its sportsman program as planned.
Bader acknowledged that any replacement event would not attempt to match previously announced regional or national payouts. Instead, he promised a financially sound event that would offer stability, transparency and a first-class experience for sportsman competitors.
“We cannot replicate the regional and national payouts previously promised,” Bader wrote. “Delivering on unrealistic guarantees that put events at risk is not how we operate.”
The full letter from Bader appears below.
An Open Letter to the Drag Racing Community: Preserving the Heart of Sportsman Racing
By Bill Bader
Recent events surrounding the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) have been nothing short of tragic, leaving a community of passionate racers feeling uncertain and leaving the sport of drag racing at a profound loss.
Drag racing is more than just a sport; it is a shared passion, a community, and for many of us, a family way of life. When an institution that so many relied on falters, the impact hits home across every pit area in the country.
“Sportsman racers and the tracks they call home every weekend are the backbone, the heart, and the soul of drag racing. Without them, there is no show, no culture, and no sport.”
This sport’s identity is deeply personal to me. My father was, at his core, a sportsman racer. When he bought Norwalk Raceway back in 1973, he didn’t set out merely to build a business—he set out to build a sportsman-friendly racetrack. Long before being in the headlines for hosting national events, he understood a fundamental truth that has guided our family and our team ever since: sportsman racing is the bedrock of drag racing.
The grassroots racers—the ones hauling trailers through the night, spending their hard-earned dollars, and thrashing in the pits with family and friends—are the reason this sport exists. The track owners and their families, sometimes generations of families, who have made this sport their life’s work—are the reason this sport exists. They are not an afterthought; they are the entire foundation.
It breaks my heart to see our sportsman community left in limbo regarding the balance of their season and events this year and beyond. You work all season, sacrifice time with your families, and pour your heart and savings into earning a shot at a championship. You deserve certainty, respect, and a stage that honors your dedication.
If the IHRA is ultimately for whatever reason unable to deliver on the balance of their season as they previously stated they would, I want to make one thing clear: our team is prepared to step up.
We are actively rallying a team of dedicated people who care deeply about the health of this sport to ensure that sportsman racers have an event—and a championship destination—that everyone can be proud to participate in.
I want to be completely candid with you. We cannot replicate the regional and national payouts previously promised. Delivering on unrealistic guarantees that put events at risk is not how we operate. But what we can promise is this:
1) Integrity & Stability: An event that is financially sound, transparent, and guaranteed to happen.
2) A First-Class Stage: A premier experience that treats sportsman racers with the prestige and respect you deserve.
3) A Community-Driven Celebration: An atmosphere where the racing is fierce, the hospitality is genuine, and the legacy of sportsman drag racing is honored.
Drag racing has weathered tough storms before, and it always comes back stronger when the community unites. Whatever happens next, please know that you are not forgotten or alone. We are standing by, working hard, and ready to deliver a solution that honors your effort and keeps the spirit of sportsman racing thriving.
We look forward to seeing you at the track, helmet in hand, ready to do what we all love most!
This story was originally published on July 23, 2026.
The post Bill Bader Jr. Pledges Support for Sportsman Racers Amid IHRA Uncertainty first appeared on Drag Illustrated.
