Ethan Steding Reflects On First Pro Mod Win And Prepares For Snowbird Outlaw Nationals

Words By Mellie Snedeker 

Most parents hardly trust their teenagers with the family car, but Kurt and Wendi Steding had full confidence in their son, Ethan, behind the wheel of Kurt’s Pro Modified, screw-blown Camaro at the final race of the 2025 IHRA season at Drana Motorsports Park – Dunn. Their faith paid off, as Ethan took the P2 Contracting machine all the way to the winner’s circle on his very first outing.

Ethan Steding has grown up behind the wheel of a race car, quickly moving up the ranks from Junior Dragster to PDRA Pro Street, where he won two season championships, and now Pro Mod. Kurt knew Ethan was ready to pilot a car in the fastest category of door-car racing after he won the PDRA Pro Street championship last season.

“Todd Tutterow and I felt like he should get another championship under his belt before he gets in a Pro Mod,” explained Kurt, adding that Ethan has also successfully managed construction sites while working for the family business, P2 Contracting, further proving a maturity and responsibility deserving of this next step at just 18 years old.

In 2025, Ethan did exactly what his father and Tutterow had hoped, racing his Pro Street Camaro to back-to-back season championships, with his next racing journey in sight. Within a month, he was in his father’s 1969 Jerry Bickel Camaro, testing and learning the ropes. The original plan was to test and then make his Pro Mod debut at the Drag Illustrated Winter Series Snowbird Nationals at Bradenton Motorsports Park. However, with how well he tested, and with Kurt recovering from hip surgery, the family and team decided to debut at the IHRA Nitro Outlaw Nationals.

When asked how he personally felt ready for the leap, Ethan explained that everything he learned in Junior Dragsters and Pro Street prepared him as he made test passes and grew comfortable in the car. “It also helps when you have the greatest teachers and leaders like my father and Todd Tutterow. You need to have the confidence and no negativity.”

Discussing the difference between driving the Pro Street car and the Pro Mod, Ethan said it’s “a whole different ball game,” noting that the biggest change happens on the starting line. The starting-line acceleration, he described, is a total head rush.

Heading into the IHRA race weekend, the game plan and expectations were the same as every other race: do your best, stay sharp on the tree, and go as many rounds as possible, treating each round like one of the test passes from the weeks prior. “A lot was going through my head to be there in front of a huge crowd at my first Pro Mod outing,” Ethan said. “It gives you the most confidence in the world when you have great people standing behind you.”

By the end of round two of qualifying, Ethan had qualified comfortably in the middle of the field. As eliminations kicked off, he expected to perform well, but he wasn’t expecting to keep going rounds throughout the night—and he certainly wasn’t expecting to end up in the winner’s circle in his first outing.

“To bring home the win means everything to me, and to be out there competing with legends and knowing I have something for them is a good feeling,” Ethan reflected. Even more impressively, from first round to final round, he averaged a .025 reaction time, showing that not only does he have a car capable of winning, but also the skills on the tree to back it up. “I was on cloud nine to watch him go rounds and win the race,” said Kurt. “I’m so proud of him at home, at work, and in the car.”

What’s next for this young gun? The Snowbird Outlaw Nationals at Bradenton Motorsports Park. He’ll be wheeling his father’s previous ride, the Jerry Bickel 2020 Camaro that Kurt piloted to multiple event wins. The drag racing world will be watching closely to see what this kid can do next.