As one of South Carolina’s premier drag strips, Darlington Dragway has not only hosted big name events for multiple sanctioning bodies, but also been the site of record runs and nearly fifty years of history.

The track got a lot of attention in March of 2025, as one of several race tracks targeted for potential purchase by the IHRA (International Hot Rod Association).

Although the track would not be purchased by the IHRA, just four months later, it has been sold to a new owner!

The International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) has been the subject of multiple news stories in 2025, as the series has come back with national events that include professional classes, as well as a return to their sportsman classes too.

The IHRA also got a lot of attention for the purchasing of several race tracks, including Milan Dragway, which hosts the second of five IHRA Outlaw Nitro Series events for 2025 this weekend under its new name, Darana Dragway.

Darana Dragway will also be the host track for next month's Sick Michigan Miles Presented by Driven Racing Oil, August 10-17th!

The International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) has been through a lot in the last couple years, including being purchased by two different entities, ceasing to host their popular Nitro Jam / Pro-Am events, and losing sanctioning for several dozen tracks to the new World Drag Racing Alliance (WDRA) and the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA).

But an announcement today about ten events for the IHRA’s Pro-Am 2025 national event schedule signifies a big change in the organization, and a few of the race tracks on the schedule should raise some eyebrows.

The IHRA schedule includes Galot Motorsports Park and Maryland International Dragway, which were under IHRA sanctioning at the start of 2024.

But some of the tracks on the schedule, including Darlington Dragway, Milan Dragway and National Trail Raceway, were under NHRA sanctioning at the beginning of the 2024 season.

Justin Harvey admitted the amount of street racing around the area had gotten to such a peak, that either a street permit to do something, or building a race track were the likely solutions.

While we did write about several track closures in 2023, it was refreshing to hear and see about a few tracks coming back to life as well. It’ll be just a few weeks before a popular track in Alabama re-opens with a new name, Rocket City Dragway, this spring.