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What is the 275 Drag Radial Series?

Mickey Thompson [1]What is the 275 series? Specifically it is for cars running a 275/60 sized tire in a new class that has become increasingly popular in many parts of the country. 275 is a 1/8th mile heads up class run on a .400 pro tree with a pro ladder. X275 is a qualified quick 8 field with courtesy staging and autostart in effect.  With the Outlaw Radial classes becoming more expensive and faster, racers are choosing the 275 class as a cheaper alternative. Not that any class racing is cheap!

The 275 racers are pushing the envelope with these little radials. The amount of power being applied to the 28” x 11.5” tires has become insane with the class approaching the 4 second mark in the 1/8th mile. To be competitive, you will need well over 1000 horsepower to the tire.

The tire of choice so far is Mickey Thompson 3754R which is a 28” x 11.5” radial tire but other companies like Hoosier, M&H, and Goodyear are also an alternative to the popular Mickey Thompson brand. Many of the racers choose to run it on a 10” tire but Mickey Thompson says an 8” will work for those that already run those.

Daniel Whetstine [2]

Dan Whetstine's Beatiful Red Mustang

John Sears out of Virginia has been a major influence on the rules that have come out for the 275 racers in the Northeast. John has helped out Nate Pritchett and Jason Miller to name a couple who have race series for the 275 racers. Many racers in the 2010 season will be sporting X275 decals on their respective cars.  The Ultimate Outlaw Series is another great place for the 275 racers to lay down some very impressive numbers.

Tracks like Maryland International Raceway, Cecil County Dragway in Maryland, and Virginia Motorsports Park have specific class racing for the 275 racers. Racing is 1/8th mile with current times running in the 5 teens and twenties to be competitive. Rules at most of the tracks seem to be very similar in weight breaks and combos. Tracks like Cecil County Dragway in Maryland  and Atco Raceway in New Jersey have decided to keep the same rules so the racers won’t have any worries going to each of these tracks to race. Other tracks have similar rules and weights for the different combos out there in 275. Jason Miller at Maryland International Raceway also has created a class to go along with the top 8 275 class called “The Shootout” for qualifiers 9-16 running on a Pro Ladder and allows non-qualifiers to compete for additional points and have a place to race.

Moparman896 [3]The 275 class seems to be dominated by Mustangs as seen by Dan Whetstine’s gorgeous red Mustang powered by a 400ci FAST fuel injected Windsor, Speedtech two stage plate, and an ATI glide. Although we are seeing more combos out running and competing with the top cars in the class. An example is Yellowbullet member Chad Branson (cold85) and his Dodge Dart. This past season he ran with a 572 Big Block Mopar to the tune of 5.40’s at over 130 MPH. Seems like an interesting combo and different then a lot of the other cars you see out in the 275 class but to go a step further Chad went and built a different combo.

[4] [3]Moparman896 is a member on Yellowbullet and has a 1974 Duster.  Running at the Ultimate Outlaws event at MIR, he was a semi-finalist. He’s only ran two events to date with a best E.T. of 5.69 but 2010 he looks to lose the snorkel for a 4” wrapped cowl and compete with his PAR Race Engines 526, single fogger, and a new fresh installed PTC Converter.

Another combo running at Cecil County Dragway and Maryland International is this beautiful lime green 1972 Dodge Demon. Adam Sailor also known as Demongup on yellowbullet is running a 525 with 440-1 heads, 1 fogger kit and weighing 3400 lbs. He’s run a best of 1.34 60ft and 5.23 @139.80 to the 1/8th.

John Sears  - X275 [5]The 275 is class that is making big waves right now and the cars running are becoming more and more competitive with the creative combos thought up by the racers. At each race you’ll see Fords, Dodges, and Chevy’s all in the low 5 second range in the 1/8th mile. Will 4’s be attainable this year? The great thing about the 275 racers is the different options they have! For those that also like to race in the ¼ also have the option of racing at many events in the 8.50 index racing. Come on out to a track on the East Coast and get ready for some exciting wheels up action!

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[5]Virginia Motorsports Park will also have some great 275 action. The schedule for VMP is below.

May 8thGrudgement Day II / Outlaw 10.5 / X275
June 26
th – Monster Bash / Outlaw 10.5 / X275
July 31
st –  Thunder Jam / Outlaw 10.5 / X275
August 21
st – World Cup of Drag Racing / Outlaw 10.5 / X275
October 9
th – Winner Take All / Outlaw 10.5 / X275

General Class Rules – 275 Drag Radial – 1/8th Mile Racing, 8 car qualified field
1. .400 Pro Tree heads up racing.
2. Engine and Weights:
N/A small block 2600lbs N/A big blocks 2800lbs Small block nitrous (500ci max max 2 systems) 3000lbs, Add 100lbs for sheetmetal intake and add 100lbs for Dual carbs/throttle bodies Small block Supercharged and Single 76mm turbo 3200lbs Big block nitrous (max deck height 10.200,Max size 588ci, max 1 system) 3300lbs(one 15lb bottle max)6cyl turbo GT 47/88 3300lbs Small block turbo GT 47/88 or Y2K and big block Supercharged( max deck height 9.800) 3400lbs Supercharged entries limited to single F1R or smaller Procharger or single Vortech VSI, X or smaller
Turbo entries limited to single GT 47/88 or smaller.

Martin Cox [6]

Photo courtesy of Tim Lewis

3. Gasoline only (alcohol or nitro prohibited)
4. Conventional heads only on all BB Nitrous and Supercharged entries.
5. Cast intake/single four barrel carb on all 8cyl. cars, sheet metal intakes permitted on 4 and 6 cyl. entries
6. Steel body with the exception of hood, scoop, deck lid and bumpers.
7. Working windows mandatory, Lexan is permitted
8. Head and Tail lights must work
9. Factory dash and finished interior mandatory
10. Stock frame in stock location notching permitted, Stock firewall in stock location, suspension must be for that make and model of car, bolt in tubular K members and front frame permitted, rack and pinion permitted.
11. Wheelie bars prohibited
12. Max tire size 275/60/15 DOT Radial from any manufacturer
13. Mufflers Mandatory (inserts are NOT mufflers)

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