The 400 Thunder Aeroflow Drag Racing series today confirmed that from 2024 it will change the season format from the current financial-year season that has traditionally ended with the Gulf Western Oil Winternationals at Willowbank Raceway in June, to a calendar year season more in line with other major sporting leagues and series. This change does not affect any events in the current 400 Thunder Aeroflow Drag Racing Series Super Season.
In addition to this change, the 400 Thunder Aeroflow Drag Racing Series has secured long term, multi-year agreements with The Bend Dragway, Sydney Dragway, Heathcote Park Raceway and Willowbank Raceway to lock in the scheduled dates for the 2024, 2025 and 2026 seasons .
400 Thunder General Manager Jason Hedges said today, “When Rusty Gregory and I joined 400 Thunder, one of our first priorities was to provide racers with a stable and sustainable calendar of events that was workable from a series perspective, but also had the most potential to be successful for our partner tracks.”
He continued, “The benefits of the calendar that we are delivering for 2024 and beyond are immense; We will be visiting the same tracks, at the same time of year each season to help the venues and the series “build the habit” of spectators to become invested, returning fans of the sport. We have thoroughly reviewed weather patterns, average rainfalls and minimum and maximum temperatures of each venue at each time of year to ensure that we are maximising our chances of successful events everywhere we go.”
“We have also built enough space into the calendar to ensue that the discussions we are having with other tracks & venues regarding additional events means that we can facilitate them into the calendar, without having to move any other scheduled and established race meetings.”
The schedule for the 2024 400 Thunder Aeroflow Drag Racing series will feature a single event in 2023 as the transition to the calendar year. This event will be at The Bend Dragway in November 2023.
In March 2024, the series will commence the first ever “Southern Swing” with back-to-back events at The Bend Dragway and Heathcote Park Raceway in successive weeks to help reduce the travel required for racers from the Northern States.
A race to be confirmed will take place in April, with confirmation of dates expected in early 2023.
The Championship will then shift to Willowbank Raceway for back-to-back events with the Winternationals on the traditional June date and the Spring Thunder in September.
The penultimate round of the Championship will return to the all-concrete Sydney Dragway for the East Coast Thunder in October, with the 400 Thunder Aeroflow Drag Racing Series Grand Finals to be held at The Bend Dragway in November.
One Day after the Grand Finals, The Bend will also play host to the Championship Awards Night at the on-site function centre in a fitting tribute to the season champions to end the season.
The Bend will also play host to the 2023 Championship Season Awards, to be held on Monday 20th November in 2023.
Each of the events detailed above will feature a round of the 400 Thunder Aeroflow Drag Racing Series with competing categories to be announced shortly.
The calendar for the 2024 400 Thunder Aeroflow Sportsman Series will be announced early in the new year.
“I would like to thank Steve Bettes and Dr. Sam Shahin from the Bend, Lance Warren from Heathcote Park Raceway, the entire Willowbank Raceway Board and Tony Beuk from Sydney Dragway for their support and co-operation in making this calendar a reality”, Hedges said. “I truly believe that this will provide the platform for the 400 Thunder Aeroflow Drag Racing Series, our partner tracks and our racers put our sport back in the spotlight that it deserves”.
For more information on the 400 Thunder Aeroflow Drag Racing Series, visit www.400Thunder.com.au
For More Information on 400 Thunder Aeroflow Drag Racing Series Partner Tracks, please visit:
The Bend Motorsport Park – www.TheBend.com.au
Willowbank Raceway – www.willowbankraceway.com.au
Heathcote Park Raceway www.hpr.family
Sydney Dragway – www.SydneyDragway.com.au
