One Step Back Resulted in Two Steps Forward for Sean Lemire and His 1972 Chevrolet Nova at Hot Rod Drag Week 2025
Sometimes being able to see the big picture, even if it means regrouping and not attending an event, can be the right move for a competitor.
In the case of Sean Lemire and his 1972 Chevrolet Nova, he was lined up to attend a pair of drag and drive events in 2024, but the Nova didn’t make the trip. Lemire chose to work on a few issues instead, and when he and the Nova made their first appearance at Hot Rod Drag Week in 2025, it was a memorable one.
First Impressions - Gary Brown’s Hot Rod Turns Heads at Hot Rod Drag Week 2025!
Few cars at Hot Rod Drag Week 2025 turned as many heads as Gary Brown’s ’33 Ford Tudor. Roof-chopped to within an inch of its life and barking with centrifugally supercharged combustion, this radical machine had us pining for the Bonneville salt flats.
Gary is a street rod builder and restorer by trade at Browns Metal Mods, which made him the perfect man to take a ‘rusted out hulk of a shell’ and turn it into something special.
“I built the car ground-up to do drag and drives three years ago,” he said. “And I finally made an event!”
That Old Feeling – After Some Time Away, David Lacey Returns to Drag Racing, With Some Street Driving As Well, on the 2026 Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive!
Unlike some forms of motorsports, drag racing can host both novice and professional drivers in various levels of performances, sometimes at the same event or same day.
The drag and drive event format takes this format to the next level, and is credited with bringing a lot of enthusiasts back to the drag racing game. With structures and classes for nearly every form of street-legal vehicle, plus the street drives between tracks, it was just the ticket for David Lacey and his classic 1957 Chevrolet.
Could a New Transmission from Liberty’s Gears Change the Future of Stick Shift Classes?
Many will admit what keeps a Shift Shift class interesting and balanced, regardless of drag and drive ‘average’ results, or heads-up racing action, is requiring a clutch-activated manual transmission, and for some, an ‘H-pattern’ shifter and linkage.
Today marks the first day for what many consider a serious change in transmissions, as the first Liberty’s Gears Extreme Billet manual transmission with a clutch-assisted set-up and a H-pattern shifter was shipped to a customer.
Sick Week Needs Your Help - Vote ‘Sick Week’ to Help Drag and Drive Win USA Today’s 10Best Motorsports Race for 2026!
Sick Week has once again been nominated in USA Today’s 10Best Motorsports Race competition, and we need your help to ensure that the sport of drag and drive stays at the top!
The thrilling combination of the world’s fastest real street cars, road trip adventures, and grassroots camaraderie has made Sick Week a must-attend event on the American motorsports calendar.
Miles Ahead – Aydan Bailey Makes Home State Stand at Sick Michigan Miles Presented by Driven Racing Oil to Earn First Drag and Drive Event Win!
When your father is one of the biggest names in drag and drive, it’s going to take something special to break out of his shadow.
Aydan Bailey’s victory at Sick Michigan Miles 2026 presented by Driven Racing Oil was his spotlight moment.
IHRA Acquires Frank Hawley’s Drag Racing School!
In just over a year’s time, the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) sanctioning body has made some significant moves to reclaim their standings in both national and sportsman level racing.
Today, they added another level to their arsenal, as the IHRA announced the acquisition of Frank Hawley’s Drag Racing School.
Three Pedals, One Mission - Shane Halverson Transforms a Former Daily Driver Ford Pick-Up Into a Drag and Drive Instrument
When this ’77 Ford F100 rolled into Shane Halverson’s garage in March 2024, it was slated for a drivability upgrade.
What followed was a full-blown, ground-up rebuild that turned the former daily-driven workhorse into a drag and drive ride that Shane released on the world in 2025!
Surviving and Thriving – Andy Jaquess Takes the Natural Route to Complete Sick The Mag Events, Including Edelbrock Sick Smokies and Three-Straight Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive Events
There are a good number of naturally-aspirated rides at most drag and drive events, but when you look for Ford-powered rides, especially older models, that number drops a good amount.
There’s a smaller number of Ford-powered rides in the Naturally Aspirated category, and one of them is Andy Jaquess and his classic Mustang. After one visit to Sick Week in 2023, the Florida resident was hooked, and has made the annual drag and drive event a staple on his calendar.
Dreams Are One Thing, but reality demands action - Joe Giunta decided there was only so long he could sit on the sidelines
A fan of drag and drive since the first Hot Rod Drag Week, Joe has been all too aware of the explosive growth of the sport in the last few years. He was early to the party and he decided that in 2025 it was time to dance.
Tim Ford’s Nissan 240SX might be having an identity crisis. But whether it’s drag, drift or street, success and fun seem to be in the DNA.
“I tell as many car enthusiasts as I can about drag and drives, specifically Sick hosted events,” he said. “It’s such a great community to be involved in, in any capacity. We’re looking forward to the next one!”
Spectator Tickets on Sale for Speedfest, Featuring America’s Fastest Street Cars, Jets, Nitro and Freakin' Lasers!
Speedfest is set to take over Beech Bend Raceway in Bowling Green, KY from May 28 to 30, 2026 as Sick, Street Car Takeover and Braggin Rights join forces on one of America’s biggest drag racing festivals.
After Nearly Seven Decades of Racing History, the Future of Pacemakers Dragway in Ohio is in Serious Doubt as Rezoning for Homes on the Track Property is Requested
Originally opening in 1956, Packers Raceway Park (and later known as Pacemakers Outlaw Dragstrip) has hosted everything from test and tune and bracket racing, to grudge racing and no-prep.
The track has faced financial hardships once before, closing for two years between 2019 and 2021. But 2026 could be the year that the track doesn’t recover from, as rezoning for a portion of the track property to into a mobile home park is on the table.
Second Verse – This 1997 Cobra Is Sean Kelley’s Ticket Back to Drag and Drive in 2026
After a ton of work to get a 1988 Fox Mustang ready for a Sick Week presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive 2024 debut, Sean Kelley was able to complete his first drag and drive. He returned one year later with goals of a top three in class and improved performance, but a testing crash at South Georgia Motorsports Park ended his chances.
Just over one year later, Sean is ready for a return, but with a new horse to ride, a 1997 Mustang Cobra. And although he missed the chance to debut it at Sick Week, he’s working to get back to the season-opening event and prove a point.
Texas Motorplex and Sick Prep Join Forces to Host a Record-Setting TX2K in 2026, With 12 Records Established Over a Week in Texas!
It’s been heralded as the event where street cars come in droves, competition is fierce, records are set, and thousands of spectators come to witness it all. And for the 27th time, the annual TX2K brought all those elements to Texas Motorplex for six days of amazing action.
As the first purpose-built all-concrete track celebrates 40 years of historic runs and events, TX2K looked to add to that history by bringing Sick Prep onboard to handle the track surface for the event. After six days of on-track action were in the books, the performances and records once again shared the headlines alongside the winners’ celebrations.
Time Machine – Brian Goldfarb Builds a Modernized DeLorean for More Than 88 MPH – and A Debut Date For Sick Week 2027!
As the drag and drive community has expanded and more events are added each year, we’ve seen more competitors and more cars join in the test the street and track bring to each event. We’ve even seen some new builds each year, from both veteran and new competitors.
Brian Goldfarb isn’t a new face to the drag and drive community, and has participated in Hot Rod Drag Week in the past. But for his second chapter, he decided to build something a little more unique, combining a rare classic ride with a modern powerplant.
Who is ‘No Way Guy’ Shaun Umscheid? How a Canadian Welder Turned Workshop Comedy Into Millions of Followers
For Canadian welder Shaun Umscheid, better known as the ‘No Way Guy,’ it has been a wild ride from obscurity to viral social media fame.
Brett LaSala, Sean Madden, Jim Braun and Mark Blackwell Lead Winners List From 27th Annual TX2K at Texas Motorplex
One of the most anticipated events each spring is TX2K, an annual celebration of competition and speed on the drag racing and roll racing front, held at Texas Motorplex in Ennis, Texas.
The event, which started as an add-on to a test and tune race at Houston Raceway Park in 2000 (hence the ‘2K’ part of the event name), has become an annual proving ground to see where the mark stands in a multitude of classes, as well as engine platforms.
The event hosts thirteen drag racing classes, as well as four roll racing classes. And after six days of on-track competition, champions were crowned and clutching unique TX2K trophies.
The GMC Syclone’s Special Place in America’s Pickup Truck Culture (And The Secret Version That Got Even Racier)
The GMC Syclone holds a unique and lasting place in automotive culture as one of the first vehicles to truly blur the line between utility and outright performance.
FEATURE: Oldsmobile Cutlass Evolves Into Max-Effort Hot Rod
When Joe New first bought his 1972 Oldsmobile Cutlass 26 years ago, he had no idea it would become a lifelong project — a machine that’s morphed from a weekend cruiser into a seven-second, streetable monster. Decades of tinkering, learning and evolving are what you see before you.