Las Vegas, Nevada – One of our favorite events during the annual SEMA Show is the NHRA breakfast, in which professional drag racing industry experts, media professionals, teams, and racers mingle to talk all about the future of our beloved sport.
And while it’s always a special occasion, for the 2025 SEMA Show, it was a bit more special-er.
That’s because the upcoming 2026 season commemorates the 75th Anniversary of when some guy named Wally Parks decided to make a professional sanctioning body and take drag racing mainstream—a little organization known as the National Hot Rod Association.
So as a prelude to the 75th celebration, the annual SEMA NHRA Breakfast welcomed a handful of drag racing icons to sit on a discussion panel:
- Brian Lohnes – Broadcast voice of the NHRA and emcee for the panel
- Austin Prock – 2024 Funny Car World Champion & current Funny Car NHRA Record Holder for speed
- Ron Capps – Multiple Funny Car World Champion & team owner
- Bill Bader – Owner of Summit Racing Motorsports Park & SEMA Board Member
- Don Garlits – I mean, if you don’t know who he is, where do we begin?
The all-star panel discussed a wide range of topics, from racing itself to its impact on the community, with plenty of fun stories and anecdotes along the way.
One of the more salient moments was when Mr. Garlits brought up the importance of the drivers as personalities and ambassadors to the sport.
“We need to make the driver’s name on the car bigger, so that some people can tell who’s driving the car,” he explained. “I think it should be mandatory, I mean, the sponsors are wonderful, but we’ve got to know who’s driving these cars.”
The panel members nodded in earnest agreement.
But it was Bill Bader who had perhaps the key takeaway for the future of professional drag racing
“We are in the entertainment business, everything we do is guest-centric, that’s number one,” Bader said. “Number two, we have to offer value. We have to give people more than their money’s worth. And number three, we’ve got to entertain the hell out of them when they come to the racetrack.”
Suffice it to say, that’s a recipe that’s worked for Summit Racing Motorsports Park and the NHRA so far.
And with the enthusiasm, skills, and knowledge on display during the 2025 SEMA NHRA Breakfast, we’re ready for another 75 years of professional drag racing action.
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