Mon, 02 Dec 2024, 19:48 PM Against the Odds, Kyle Harris Claims PDRA Elite Top Dragster World Championship

Courtesy of Drag Illustrated on behalf of the Professional Drag Racers Association Photo copyright 2024 Gary Rowe

FREDERICKSBURG, Va. - Going into the Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series season finale, Kyle Harris didn't expect to have a realistic shot at the world championship in Laris Motorsports Insurance Elite Top Dragster presented by Greenbrier Excavating & Paving. Ranked third in points, a range of scenarios had to play out perfectly for Harris to climb into the points lead. That's exactly what happened, though, as Harris raced to his first win of the season at the Brian Olson Memorial World Finals to clinch the championship.

Harris went into the season hoping to be competitive, but his other major goal was helping his son, Pro Jr. Dragster title contender Ryan Harris, earn his Top Dragster license. To accomplish that, Harris switched from his proven but wild Altered to a supercharged, full-length, rear-engine dragster to allow Ryan to make licensing passes during pre-race testing. Harris reached the final round at the third race of the season, the American Doorslammer Challenge at Summit Motorsports Park. He later switched back to the Altered, but when that entry faced continued parts failures that led to early exits, Harris started to feel his championship hopes slip away. Incredibly close first-round losses - both by a .0006 margin of victory - at the sixth and seventh races of the season didn't help.

Two-time and reigning world champion Steve Furr led Elite Top Dragster points going into the World Finals, with past world champion Kellan Farmer separating him and Harris. To win the championship, Harris had to claim every point possible by qualifying No. 1 and winning the race. Plus, Furr had to lose first round and Farmer had to lose in the second round or earlier.

Harris qualified No. 1 with a career-best 3.682-second pass, which paired him up with Furr in the first round, putting Harris's championship destiny in his own hands. Harris got the win when Furr broke out by one thousandth. Farmer lost in the second round, while Harris raced on to the final round, where opponent Frank Falter IV broke out by one thousandth. Harris finished first in the points just 16 points ahead of Farmer.

Earlier in the weekend, son Ryan didn't qualify in Pro Jr. Dragster, ending his championship hopes. That inspired Harris and the team to pull through in the Elite Top Dragster title hunt.

"Watching the championship slip away from my son is something that I can't even barely describe as a father," Harris said. "We were pretty down on ourselves about that, and at some point, we still had No. 1 qualifier and I said, 'You know, we've got a chance here. We need to decide, are we championship caliber or not?' If we are, let's act like it. Let's get out there, let's want this, and let's do it. We set our minds to it. We worked round by round by round, got to the final round, and we got it done, and here we are."

Kyle Harris

The Elite Top Dragster title is a career highlight for Harris, who has traveled from Burford, Ontario, Canada to compete in the PDRA for the last handful of seasons, with the exception of the COVID-19 border closure period. Being able to return to the U.S. and the PDRA has been rewarding on multiple levels for Harris.

"PDRA runs a very family-oriented program, and that's what drew us to this," Harris said. "We've made so many friends here. The competition is very, very stout, and in my mind it's the best in the world. We are just so proud to be able to represent ourselves in the PDRA. Being a world champion in Elite Top Dragster, I can barely describe it."

Harris said his team traveled more than 20,000 miles throughout the season, including complicated border crossings. The effort involved made the reward that much sweeter, and Harris shared the credit with his team and partners.

"We do this as a family with my wife, Jennie, my son, Ryan, and at the World Finals we had my wife's uncle, Mike Azzopardi," said Harris, who thanked DFS Projects, Double-O Permits & Project Services, Atchison Machine Service, Fast Eddie Racewear, chassis builder Richard Hartman of Hartman Machine Works, and Harquip Limited, a company started by Harris's late brother. "It's all family for us. We love this because of the family. That's the beginning of it and that's the end of it."

Farmer, the 2019 world champion, finished second with one win in his ProCharged Race Tech Race Cars '20 Race Tech dragster. Furr, the 2020 and 2023 world champion, won twice in three final rounds in his ProCharged Right Trailers '13 American dragster. He missed one race and didn't qualify in the 16-car Elite field at one race, preventing a better finish.

The Red Line Oil PDRA Drag Racing Series will celebrate its 2024 world champions at the annual PDRA Championship Awards Banquet on Friday, Dec. 13 in downtown Indianapolis.