A year ago, Jared Johnston pulled out all the stops in his then-brand new turbocharged White Riot X275 Mustang and ripped of a stellar 4.44 in Texas in March. That record stood strong until a few weeks ago, when the Bruder Brothers took advantage of the substantial weight break afforded to 80mm turbo combinations – allowed to run at 2,900 pounds versus 3,250 for the more powerful 85mm turbo setups – to shock the world with a seemingly out-of-nowhere 4.38 at Maryland International Raceway.

The two X275 heavyweights dueled back and forth at Holly Springs’ Fall Brawl 4, where Bruder emerged with the race win and another 4.38 under his belt. This weekend, however, Johnston was not to be denied, at least through the qualifying rounds. Jared wheeled his KBX-built Fox body Mustang to a scintillating 4.37 elapsed time to reclaim the throne in one of the most competitive, tightly-policed classes in small-tire drag racing. Johnston, a resident of Raymor, Missouri, hooked up with the minds behind KBX, Ford engine guru Jon Bennett and small tire wizard John Kolivas, to build the White Riot ‘stang as the shops’ first car purpose-built from the ground up for X275 competition. The car is relying on the tried-and-true 85mm turbo combination, despite the hefty weight penalty, to get the job done.

With the season coming to a close and winter-long bragging rights on the line, there’s a very real chance the world record will be lowered again before the dust settles and the calendars turn to 2016. Betting all your money on White (Riot) might not be a bad play!