![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dragillustrated.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Dentons_Blake-and-Amber_Tara-photo.jpg\")
Denton\u2019s time in Pro 632 ended in triumphant fashion at the final two races of the 2024 PDRA season. She clinched the world championship on her way to a win at DragWars at GALOT Motorsports Park in early October, giving the Tommy Franklin Motorsports team led by tuner Jeff Pierce the opportunity to go after the class E.T. record at the Brian Olson Memorial World Finals. Sure enough, Denton cracked off a 4.086-second pass on a first-round bye run, making her the first driver in the class to dip into the 4.00 range. She later went red in the final round, finishing the season with three wins in six final-round appearances, as well as six No. 1 qualifier awards.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cGoing into World Finals, the Pro Nitrous conversation had already been started, so I knew that it would be my last time competing in the class,\u201d Denton said. \u201c[The record] was definitely something that we wanted to go for and wanted to accomplish before I moved categories. The run was a huge adrenaline rush for us all and exciting for the entire team.\u201d<\/p>\n
The wheels were set in motion for an eventual move to Pro Nitrous towards the end of the season, as the team swapped a Liberty transmission into Denton\u2019s Musi-powered \u201969 Camaro so she could get used to that routine. The car has now been fully swapped\u00a0back to Pro Nitrous trim, complete with a Musi 974-cubic-inch engine, to get ready for offseason testing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAside from the physical changes to the car, I\u2019m just mentally focusing and taking everything seriously,\u201d Denton said. \u201cObviously, it\u2019s a decent jump going from running 4.10s to mid-to-high 3-second runs. We made some changes throughout this season kind of setting ourselves up to make that transition easier if that was the way that we decided to go. As a driver, I\u2019m just trying to do my part in setting myself up for a routine that will make it an easy transition, and taking things slow, step by step.\u201d<\/p>\n
Denton\u2019s methodical approach to driving is one of the reasons why her parents, Tommy and Judy, felt she was ready to make the move to Pro Nitrous.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s just very composed in the car,\u201d Tommy said. \u201cShe never seems behind in the car. She\u2019s a cautious driver. She thinks ahead and tries to be aware inside the car at all times. That gives me the comfort as a parent to let her get in there and speed it up.\u201d<\/p>\n The move to Pro Nitrous will be a transition for Tommy and Judy as much as it will be for Amber, just as it was when they supported her move from Jr. Dragsters and bracket dragsters to Tommy\u2019s former Pro Nitrous car. It had been waiting in the wings for Amber to get into a doorslammer class like Pro 632 and eventually Pro Nitrous.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a double-edged sword,\u201d Tommy said. \u201cI\u2019m happy for her to be able to grow. She\u2019s done a great job in the 632 class. The goal was always to get her into the Pro Nitrous car. Happy for all that.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAs a parent, obviously the nerves get higher. As a competitor, I don\u2019t want to have to race her,\u201d he laughed.\u00a0<\/p>\n The opportunity to race against her dad is one of the draws to Pro Nitrous for Amber, who watched closely as her father became a championship driver in the class over the last 10 years. She\u2019s studied his processes and routines, from burnouts to staging. Now, the student is set to take on the teacher.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI watched this car compete in this class for years and win championships,\u201d Denton said. \u201cTo be able to compete in the class in that same car with my dad still competing in a different car, it\u2019s really exciting and it\u2019s a dream come true. This was a childhood goal of mine, and for it to be coming true is really exciting and I\u2019m just really blessed to be in the position that I\u2019m in.\u201d<\/p>\n Always humble and grateful, Denton isn\u2019t taking anything for granted as she takes this next step in her career.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m so thankful for my team, all the opportunities that my parents give me, Blake [Denton]\u2019s support, and my sister Ashley\u2019s support,\u201d Denton said. \u201cI give God all the glory every time because without Him, none of this is possible for any of us. Just a big thank you to everyone who backs us \u2013 Jeff Pierce, Red Line Oil, Pat Musi Racing Engines, Jerry Bickel Race Cars, Hoosier Racing Tires, and Menscer Motorsports.\u201d<\/p>\n The TFM team hasn\u2019t set a date for Amber\u2019s Pro Nitrous debut. They\u2019re instead focused on getting her seat time in the car, making sure she\u2019s comfortable with it, and finally ensuring that the car is competitive before diving into Pro Nitrous action.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s no doubt that Pro Nitrous is full of a bunch of fast cars,\u201d Denton said, \u201cand we always say with my dad racing it, it\u2019s not like you\u2019re going up against any ducks in the first round. Everyone\u2019s fast and everyone has a good chance, so we want to make sure we\u2019re competing at that same level before we come out and debut.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Once she does make her debut, Denton\u2019s goals are bold yet attainable given the equipment and team in her corner.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cShort-term goals would be a final-round appearances this year,\u201d she said. \u201cChampionship goals are long term. But if we can get an event win or final-round appearance, that would definitely be great, especially if we can pull it off to be against my dad. That\u2019s super exciting too.\u201d<\/p>\n The post Amber (Franklin) Denton Announces Move to PDRA Pro Nitrous for 2025<\/a> first appeared on Drag Illustrated<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" PDRA Pro Nitrous will have a new contender in 2025, as two-time and reigning Pro 632 world champion Amber (Franklin) Denton is set to join her father, three-time world champion Tommy Franklin, in the class. She\u2019ll continue driving the Bickel-built \u201969 Camaro known as the \u201cOG Jungle Rat,\u201d which Tommy drove to two of his […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-97030","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97030","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"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=97030"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97030\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=97030"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=97030"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/racepages.com\/Videos\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=97030"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dragillustrated.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/PDRA_Franklin-double_Gary-Rowe-photo.jpg\")
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dragillustrated.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/Tommy-Amber-Maryland-win_Gary-Rowe-photo.jpg\")