{"id":101996,"date":"2025-08-19T18:44:17","date_gmt":"2025-08-19T18:44:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/drag-racing\/uncategorized\/amber-denton-reflects-on-first-pdra-pro-nitrous-win-sets-sights-on-thunder-valley-throwdown-in-bristol\/"},"modified":"2025-08-19T18:44:17","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T18:44:17","slug":"amber-denton-reflects-on-first-pdra-pro-nitrous-win-sets-sights-on-thunder-valley-throwdown-in-bristol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/drag-racing\/uncategorized\/amber-denton-reflects-on-first-pdra-pro-nitrous-win-sets-sights-on-thunder-valley-throwdown-in-bristol\/","title":{"rendered":"Amber Denton Reflects on First PDRA Pro Nitrous Win, Sets Sights on Thunder Valley Throwdown in Bristol"},"content":{"rendered":"

Amber Denton is still letting it sink in. The 23-year-old second-generation racer made history at the PDRA Northern Nationals in Michigan, capturing her first career Pro Nitrous victory in a storybook final round against her father, three-time world champion Tommy Franklin. For Amber, it wasn\u2019t just the win light or the trophy that made the moment unforgettable \u2013 it was the culmination of years spent growing up around the sport, dreaming about the possibility of one day lining up against her dad on the big stage, and finally seeing that vision come to life in front of a packed house.<\/p>\n

\u201cSuper surreal\u201d was how she described it. For years she and her family joked about whether each race would finally deliver that long-anticipated father-versus-daughter showdown. It didn\u2019t happen until US 131 Motorsports Park, and when it did, the circumstances were pure drag racing chaos. Both Franklins battled mechanical carnage throughout the weekend. Amber\u2019s semifinal win came at the cost of a wounded engine, leaving her team thrashing in the pits, piecing together whatever they could with the help of fellow racers and friends. Her father advanced to the final when an opponent broke on the starting line. In the midst of the scramble, it was hard to fully grasp what was happening.<\/p>\n

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\u201cI don\u2019t think it really sunk in until we were up in the staging lanes,\u201d Amber said. \u201cThat was the first time we\u2019d ever had this moment, and I just had to stop and remind myself to soak it in.\u201d<\/p>\n

The race itself was an oddity. With both cars hurt, neither could apply nitrous. They idled down the track, essentially running naturally aspirated combinations. It was far from the blazing 3.60-second blasts Pro Nitrous is known for, but it was real competition nonetheless \u2013 and for Amber, it was a victory over her father by just two-thousandths of a second. \u201cWe wanted a heads-up race, and we got it,\u201d she said. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to go up there without him, and he didn\u2019t want to go up there without me. We just wanted to race for that win, and that\u2019s what happened.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the winner\u2019s circle, Amber was quick to credit the sportsmanship and camaraderie that helped her team get to the line. Racers like Buddy Perkinson, Brian Trout, and Evan Salemi pitched in during the frantic repairs, embodying what Amber calls the \u201cprofessionally controlled chaos\u201d that often defines their pit. It was a reminder that drag racing, for all its intensity and pressure, is still a family-driven sport where competitors rally around each other when it counts.<\/p>\n

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Amber\u2019s breakout victory is the latest chapter in what has already been a landmark season. She started the year by making her Pro Nitrous debut, qualified for the invitation-only World Series of Pro Mod, and appeared on the cover of\u00a0Drag Illustrated<\/em>\u2019s Women of Power issue alongside Callie Mills. Now, with a win under her belt, she\u2019s proven she can contend with the very best in one of drag racing\u2019s toughest classes. \u201cThis year in Pro Nitrous has been a dogfight,\u201d she said. \u201cGoing into Michigan, first through seventh in points were within a round. You cannot slack a single round. Doing what we did there definitely helped, and hopefully we can continue the momentum.\u201d<\/p>\n

Momentum will be crucial with the season entering its stretch run. The next stop is Bristol Dragway\u2019s Thunder Valley Throwdown, a race that has quickly become a highlight of the PDRA calendar. Amber knows the challenge ahead will be steep, with names like Billy Albert, Marcus Butner, Buddy Perkinson, and her own father still firmly in the championship hunt. But she also knows her team is working tirelessly to ensure she arrives in Bristol with a car capable of running at its full potential. Engines are already at Pat Musi Racing Engines, and the car itself is at Robert Hayes Motorsports in North Carolina undergoing repairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t thank my guys enough,\u201d she said. \u201cThey put the work in and we wouldn\u2019t have gotten the win without them. Whatever issue we were fighting in Michigan was out of the normal for us, and they\u2019re working hard to make sure it\u2019s resolved before Bristol. I\u2019m grateful for all the hard work they put in, and I know we\u2019ll be ready.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bristol holds a special place in Amber\u2019s heart. As a junior dragster racer, she watched others compete there in the Eastern Conference Finals, and last year she finally had the chance to experience the iconic Thunder Valley for herself. The history of the venue, the scenic mountain setting, and the passionate fanbase make it one of her favorite stops. \u201cI absolutely love Bristol,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s beautiful, it\u2019s different, and it means a lot to race there. For a lot of PDRA racers, getting to compete at a track like Bristol is a big deal, and I know everyone looks forward to it.\u201d<\/p>\n

That fan connection is something Amber takes seriously. At US 131, fans packed the stands and crowded around her pit, even returning pieces of bodywork after her father\u2019s car suffered damage. It reminded her that drag racing is about more than just what happens on the track. \u201cPart of the reason we wanted to make sure we made the final round was because we wanted to give the fans a show,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s an atmosphere unlike any other. Racing in front of that many people, it just makes the work feel worth it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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As the PDRA Pro Nitrous season heads into its decisive final stretch, Amber Denton sits atop the points standings with a target on her back \u2013 and the confidence of a racer who knows she belongs. Her win in Michigan was a validation, but it\u2019s also motivation. The championship fight is tight, the competition relentless, and the margin for error slim. But Amber wouldn\u2019t have it any other way.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis has been such a competitive year, and I love it,\u201d she said. \u201cIt makes you better. We\u2019re just going to take it race by race and round by round, and give it our best each time. Bristol is next, and I\u2019m excited to see what we can do.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Amber Denton, the first win is already behind her. The next goal is clear: keep the momentum alive in Thunder Valley, and chase down a PDRA Pro Nitrous championship.<\/p>\n

This story was originally published on August 19, 2025. \"Drag<\/p>\n

The post Amber Denton Reflects on First PDRA Pro Nitrous Win, Sets Sights on Thunder Valley Throwdown in Bristol<\/a> first appeared on Drag Illustrated<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Amber Denton is still letting it sink in. The 23-year-old second-generation racer made history at the PDRA Northern Nationals in Michigan, capturing her first career Pro Nitrous victory in a storybook final round against her father, three-time world champion Tommy Franklin. For Amber, it wasn\u2019t just the win light or the trophy that made the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-101996","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101996","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=101996"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/101996\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=101996"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=101996"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=101996"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}