All images courtesy: IHRA

On Friday, the International Hot Rod Association and parent company Feld Motorsports announced the 2012 schedule for the Nitro Jam tour that includes eight stops at some of the most fan friendly motorsports venues in the country.

The 2012 Nitro Jam tour will kick off on the west coast for the first time in the IHRA’s history in the desert of Arizona at the Southwestern International Raceway on March 23-24, and will feature one of the biggest Funny Car races of the season. The tour will then roll into San Antonio Raceway in Texas March 30-31, before heading south to one of the most unique stops on the tour at State Capitol Raceway in Baton Rouge, La. on May 4-5 – complete with the Mardi Gras party atmosphere.

June 1-2, Nitro Jam will visit the Pittsburgh Raceway Park in Pennsylvania, with a second stop in the month of June at Rocky Mountain Raceways in Salt Lake City, Utah, June 29-30. The Canadian tour will take the Nitro Jam regulars to Castrol Raceway in Edmonton, Alberta on July 6-8, with the second stop north of the border on July 20-22 at Grand Bend Motorplex in Grand Bend, Ontario. Then, on August 10-12, the Nitro Jam tour will close the curtain on its season at spectacular U.S. 131 Motorsports Park facility in Martin, Mich.

“Over the past two years we have taken Nitro Jam from an event struggling to find an identity to one of the most exciting shows in the country,” said Nitro Jam President Aaron Polburn. “We have a very strong schedule for 2012 that is designed to build off of the momentum of last year. We had a very successful year in 2011 traveling to some exciting new markets and we are thrilled to be returning to many of those same locations while continuing the success at many of our other top facilities.”

Nitro Jam will continue to feature a number of exciting classes that fans of the series have come to expect, including Pro Fuel Dragster, Prostalgia Nitro Funny Car, Nitro Harleys, Fuel Altereds, and more. Top Fuel Dragster, which was reduced from four cars in 2010 to just two in 2011, appears to be off the lineup card. Sportsman racing will also be featured at every one of the Nitro Jam events, culminating with the sportsman-only IHRA World Finals at the Memphis International Raceway in October.

2012 IHRA NITRO JAM SCHEDULE
DATE                                     VENUE                                                                  CITY
March 23-24 *                  Southwestern International Raceway           Tucson, Ariz.
March 30-April 1              San Antonio Raceway                                    San Antonio, Texas
May 4-6                            State Capitol Raceway                                   Baton Rouge, La.
June 1-3                            Pittsburgh Raceway Park                               Pittsburgh, Pa.
June 29-July 1                   Rocky Mountain Raceways                            Salt Lake City, Utah
July 6-8                             Castrol Raceway                                            Edmonton, Alb.
July 20-22 **                    Grand Bend Motorplex                                   Grand Bend, Ont.
August 10-12                    U.S. 131 Motorsports Park                             Martin, Mich.