Smokies Garage, a private hobby garage specializing in custom race cars, hot rods, and motorcycles, is now a major sponsor of the inaugural Drag Illustrated Winter Series, race officials announced today. The Canadian drag racing team will also field an entry in the three-race Pro Modified series, which features the Snowbird Outlaw Nationals, the U.S. Street Nationals, and the World Series of Pro Mod at Bradenton Motorsports Park.
“Mike Clark and his group at Smokies Garage believe in what we’re trying to do with the DI Winter Series,” said Wes Buck, DI founder and Winter Series promoter. “We believe the drivers and teams that compete in Pro Mod deserve a big stage, big fanfare, and big-money prizes. We also feel strongly about putting on an incredible show and an unforgettable atmosphere for our fans in the grandstands and watching at home on FloRacing. When Mike heard about this Winter Series coming together, he didn’t hesitate to reach out and offer his support. Smokies Garage was on board with the World Series of Pro Mod earlier this year, and we’re thankful to have Mike and the Smokies team on board for the three-race Winter Series.”
Founded by Mike Clark, Smokies Garage is a private workshop where Clark turns his visions for custom hot rods and motorcycles into reality. In recent years, that expanded to include numerous race teams competing in drag racing, drag-and-drive, land speed racing, and motorcycle racing. One of the hot rods in the Smokies stable is a screw-blown ’67 Mustang Pro Mod driven by Scott Wildgust, a Canadian Pro Mod veteran. Clark has become immersed in the Pro Mod scene and knew he wanted to be involved with the DI Winter Series.
“I think the biggest thing is there’s points and it’s a series. It’s not one race,” Clark said. “I like the invite-only format. Once you get that invite, you can start making plans for the winter. When you start to do points and you do invitation only and you start to open it up, I think it just gives it another dimension.”
Clark, who’s involved in both NHRA Pro Mod and PDRA Pro Boost, has sensed a building interest in the DI Winter Series from fellow team owners and racers, even from beyond the Pro Mod ranks.
“I think you’re going to get a lot of teams that are building cars specifically to run this series,” Clark said. “You’re going to see a lot of the different racers from different classes from NHRA saying, ‘Hey, let’s go racing in the wintertime.’ If you’re a racer, you want to go racing. I think you’re going to see a lot of that happening this year. You get racers from different classes wanting to go race it because it’s a series and at the end of the series, one, there’s a lot of money to be made, and two, you can win a series. Everyone wants to be a champion in their own right. I think that’s what makes it so appealing.”
The DI Winter Series will begin Dec. 6-8, 2024, with the Snowbird Outlaw Nationals, followed by the U.S. Street Nationals on Jan. 24-26, 2025, and the World Series of Pro Mod from Feb. 27 to March 1, 2025. Each race will pay increasingly large prizes to the winners, then an overall series champion will be crowned. That’s a factor that Clark believes will attract fans as well as racers.
“You can earn some points, you can win some money, and the fans are going to come out,” Clark said. “The championship aspect of it gives the fans something to hang on to. Even though it’s only three races, it’s a series. You get points, and whoever has the most points at the end wins. Fans are going to want to follow all three races to see not just who wins each race, but who wins the championship as well.”
To learn more about Smokies Garage, visit www.SmokiesGarage.com.
This story was originally published on October 18, 2024.
The post Smokies Garage Joins DI Winter Series as Major Sponsor first appeared on Drag Illustrated.