Thompson, Buchner, Wanamaker, Jaquish and Muchler Crowned 2024 WDRA Summit World Champions
The World Drag Racing Alliance (WDRA) sophomore season came to an exciting close at Montgomery International Dragway during the Summit World Championships presented by SunCoast Performance. Racers from across North America converged at the southern facility to compete in the Box, No Box, Sportsman, Junior Dragster, and inaugural Motorcycle class. The Summit Sportsman Drag Racing Series (SSDRS) includes $250,000 worth of payouts and prizes, including $300 cash given to every participant in an effort to offset travel expenses.
A select field of only the best racers from across the WDRA member track network were invited to compete for this prestigious event which boasts cash payouts, the WDRA Rod trophy, WDRA Champion Card, and lifetime achievement of being a World Champion. Every participant was thoroughly vetted to ensure only qualified individuals would be in attendance – that meant either Track Champions, the highest finishing SSDRS competitor, or Main Event winners from the regional Bracket Finals races.
The level of competition on World Championship Saturday was as hot as the Alabama temperature as each win light seemingly burned brighter than the last. There were no buybacks and thus no second chances to try again. Round by round the field whittled until only a few remained with hopes of entering their names in the record books.
Round four of the No Box class featured five drivers: Fred Kaufman, Rich Komor, Ernie Humes, Drew Buchner, and the reigning No Box World Champion, Donnie Hagar. Kaufman, Buchner, and Humes advanced to the semifinal where the latter secured the bye run courtesy of his .0008 reaction time. Kaufman ran dead on his 7.32 dial but finds himself two thousandths behind at the finish line when Buchner is .018 on the tree and one above for the win.
The final round had an element for all crowds as the Canadian Drew Buchner transbrakes off the bottom bulb in his Chevrolet Camaro beside Ernie Humes who footbrakes his Ford Mustang from his home state of North Carolina. All the anticipation was over at the starting line when Humes is .004 red while Buchner is .022 green for the $20,000 win.
Buchner, representing St. Thomas Dragway is the first Canadian to become a WDRA Summit World Champion and will return to Ontario with this year’s No Box title.
The Box quarterfinal pairings included Tom Thompson, Jared Pennington, Kevin Pass, Ernie Humes, and Ian Woods. Two dragsters would battle in the semifinal while Thompson secured the bye run with his previous .006 reaction time. Both drivers run one above their respective dial ins, but Woods’ .007 light gives him enough advantage to take the win.
It was a southern door car versus dragster final with Tom Thompson from South Carolina taking on Ian Woods from Tennessee. For the second year, door cars rule the world when Thompson is .007 and runs two above his 5.67 dial for the $20,000 win in his Foxbody Mustang, while Woods must settle for the runner up honors.
Thompson, representing Greer Dragway, won his first track championship after multiple runner up finishes and enthusiastically earns the WDRA Box World Championship during his first attempt.
In the inaugural Motorcycle class, the last eight competitors were Steve Goth, Dave Easter, James Schlanger, Jeff Green, Clayton Knicely, Jeff Jaquish, Charlie Reynolds, and Mike Schulz. Two sleds and two motorcycles made the cut with Green having issues on the starting line to advance Knicely and Jaquish using a .008 reaction time to eliminate Schlanger.
It was a rare sight in the south as both finalists were piloting snowmobiles, but Jeff Jaquish from Wisconsin and Clayton Knicely from Ontario certainly made it an exciting battle to watch. Both riders were .006 on the tree but Knicely breaks out beside Jaquish who runs three above his 5.61 dial to claim the $5,000 victory.
Jaquish, representing Mid Michigan Motorplex, will go down in history as the first WDRA Motorcycle World Champion, seeing as snowmobiles and sleds are categorized in that class.
Five Junior Dragster racers remained in round four of competition: CJ Handy, Evan Muchler, Jase Beams, Grace Varner, and Emerson Green. Muchler, Handy, and Varner continued towards the championship chase with Varner earning the bye into the finals with her previous .021 light. Muchler has the starting line advantage with his .009 bulb and takes the .015 margin of victory over Handy.
North Florida Motorplex representative Grace Varner takes on Evan Muchler from US 131 Motorsports Park with $10,000 at stake. Only four ten-thousandths separate the pair on the tree, but Muchler runs dead on his 7.90 dial to take the .005 margin of victory over Varner.
Muchler returns to his second consecutive WDRA Junior Dragster World Championship final round and this time secures the remarkable win at eighteen years old.
Seven Sportsman racers made their way into round four: Cody Harrison, Ben Dixon, Kyle Wanamaker, Chris Mesbergen, David Bigham, and Jimmie Barrett. After the quarterfinal win lights, Bigham used an .021 reaction time to eliminate Dixon, while similarly Wanamaker’s .025 tree gave him the winning edge over Mesbergen.
In the final, Bigham runs 7.490 off his 7.49 dial but was .003 red to end his day, while Wanamaker had already left green and eases out of the throttle as the WDRA Sportsman World Champion.
The US 131 Motorsports Park racer, Kyle Wanamaker, earned the $10,000 payday in his nearly nine-second Plymouth Volare.
Once the winner’s circle celebrations were complete, the 2024 WDRA season came to a bittersweet close. Many memories were made over the weekend as long-distance race friends were reunited or introduced during the Summit World Championships presented by SunCoast Performance. As the WDRA team travels back to their respective homes, they will already have started to plan for 2025 with the racers and tracks at the forefront of their minds.
For more information on the WDRA Summit Sportsman Drag Racing Series, visit our website at www.racewdra.com.
This story was originally published on October 28, 2024.
The post Thompson, Buchner, Wanamaker, Jaquish and Muchler Crowned 2024 WDRA Summit World Champions first appeared on Drag Illustrated.
