Australian Top Sportsman champion Jason Stares has started his title defence off in the best possible way by taking victory tonight as part of the Nitro Up North event, in what was his first ever trip to Darwin.

Gary Philips and Damien Muscat have each overcome some tricky runs to take the Nitro Up North Top Doorslammer and Top Fuel Motorcycle event victories this weekend.

This Friday and Saturday (8 and 9 July), Hidden Valley Raceway will explode with ANDRA National Championship Drag Racing for the professionals and Summit Racing Equipment Sportsman categories, and Top Doorslammer racer Grant O’Rourke is already getting into the ‘swing’ of things.

After twenty plus years of consecutive competition in events all around Australia from Super Street to Group 1, O’Rourke Motorsport’s Grant and Debbie have announced that they will ‘park up’ for an unspecified time, following July’s back-to-back drag racing events in the Northern Territory.

While Queensland may have already come out on top in the current State of Origin Rugby League Series, for Top Fuel Motorcycle racers Chris Porter and Damian Muscat the battle will continue this weekend on two wheels as part of Hidden Valley Raceway’s Nitro Up North event (July 8 and 9, 2016).

Darwin will be the centre of Australia’s drag racing community come July 8 and 9, with a massive 124 entries received for Nitro Up North.

Australia has chalked up yet another Import or Sport Compact World Record – this one going to the GAS Racing camp.

Former Australian and NHRA Top Alcohol champion Steve Harker was taken to hospital following a qualifying crash in his Top Alcohol Funny Car at the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals in Norwalk, Ohio.

Easily the most inspiring news for drag racing in recent times is to see the Lamattina Top Fuel Racing team back on track for the first time after Phil Lamattina’s horrifying wreck just over a year ago.

It has been a rough time for owners of 1963 Corvette doorslammers of late, in testing on Saturday Sydney’s Darren Hubbard found how quickly a few thousand horsepower can bite you.