The Arrow McLaren NTT INDYCAR SERIES team has named Tony Kanaan as team principal and Kevin Thimjon as president to lead the team's business operations.

Kanaan, who raced in his final Indianapolis 500 with the team in 2023, has served as deputy team principal since the end of 2024, and previously transitioned from a special advisor role within the Indianapolis-based team.

Thimjon joins Arrow McLaren as president, bringing extensive leadership experience from roles at Core BTS, Lids Sports Group and Just Marketing International (JMI). He will lead the team’s business operations, including finance, commercial strategy and administration, supporting the team’s long-term growth and operational efficiency. He will also join the McLaren Racing Executive Team under CEO Zak Brown. 

For more information, visit mclaren.com.

Hoosier Racing Tire will serve as the official racing tire at the Drag Illustrated World Series of Pro Mod (WSOPM), the $150,000-to-win finale of the inaugural Drag Illustrated Winter Series, event officials announced today.

Through the partnership, Hoosier Racing Tire will provide tire service to thee more than 75 Pro Mod teams competing February 27-March 1 at Bradenton Motorsports Park.

The Hoosier Racing Tire truck will be on-site at Bradenton Motorsports Park starting Tuesday, February 25, to provide service to racers who are testing in preparation for the WSOPM.

For more information, visit thewinterseries.com or hoosiertire.com.

The PRI team, including PRI President Mike Good, Race Track Ambassador Tom Deery and Industry Sales Director Celina Kluba, hit the road last week to capitalize on the start of the race season, visiting Volusia Speedway Park (De Leon Springs, Florida) for the 2025 DirtCar Nationals,  New Smyrna Speedway, which hosts the NASCAR Advance Auto Parts Weekly Series and more weekly racing, and finally the one-and-only Great American Race, the Daytona 500.  

They also visited VMP Performance in New Smyrna Beach, where they got to see where the VMP pros provide their custom tuning and installations in addition to the line of performance parts and supporting components from manufacturers. 

Relive the excitement in the photo gallery, here. 

TRD, U.S.A. (Toyota Racing Development) has unveiled its 2025 Toyota Driver Development (TD2) lineup. The accomplished program continues to spotlight up-and-coming talented drivers. Last year, graduate Christopher Bell finished in the top five of the NASCAR Cup Series point standings for the third straight season.

This season’s talented TD2 lineup is focused across three motorsports disciplines: stock car, grassroots dirt and sports car. Drivers representing Toyota include Jade Avedisian, Brent Crews, Jacob Denney, Tyler Gonzalez, Taylor Gray, Corey Heim, Buddy Kofoid, Cannon McIntosh, Kiko Porto, Isabella Robusto, Gio Ruggiero, William Sawalich, Gresham Wagner and Westin Workman.

For the complete details, read the Toyota announcement here or visit toyota.com/racing.

Brembo, the Italian brake supplier, and Michelin, the French tire manufacturer, have formed a new partnership to merge their technologies and insights.

Through the partnership, the companies combined Michelin's connected solutions software to provide tire grip data to Brembo's SENSIFY braking system. Engineers used the tire insights to fine-tune the braking system.

In the first testing phase, Michelin's tire models and algorithms were integrated with Brembo's intelligent braking models and vehicle simulations in a fully virtual environment. In the second phase, physical tests were conducted on tracks at Michelin's Research Center, where the simulation results were confirmed.

The tests demonstrated braking distance reductions up to 13 feet during ABS events, with the same tires in various conditions.

For more information, visit brembo.com or michelin.com.

BorgWarner, the mobility company headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, has been included on the Forbes list of America's Best Employers 2025. It is the sixth time the company has appeared on the list.

The award is presented in collaboration with Statista, a statistics portal and industry ranking provider.

Forbes and Statista selected America's Best Employers 2025 through an independent survey from a sample of more than 217,000 United States employees working for companies employing at least 1,000 people within the U.S. More than 6.5 million employer evaluations were considered. The final score is based on two types of evaluations: personal (those given by employees themselves) and public (those given by friends and family members of employees, or members of the public who work in the same industry), with a much higher weighting for personal evaluations. 

"We are honored to receive this recognition and are deeply proud of the incredible team we have built at BorgWarner," said Tania Wingfield, chief human resources officer, BorgWarner. "Our employees are at the heart of everything we do, and this award reflects our ongoing dedication to creating a workplace where everyone feels valued, supported, and empowered. We believe that when our employees thrive, our company thrives, and this recognition is a testament to that philosophy."

The full award list can be viewed on the Forbes website.

Steve O'Neal, promoter of Port Royal Raceway in Pennsylvania, was awarded the 49th Auto-Racing Promoter of the Year at the RPM @ Daytona Workshops in Daytona Beach, Florida.

"This is an incredible honor. This award is incredible; however, it is a team effort. I wouldn't be up here without the folks that surround me and give me the opportunity at the racetrack," said O'Neal. "It is humbling and one of the greatest honors you can ever receive in our sport. To join all of the great promoters who have won this award means a great deal. We all work extremely hard and to be recognized like this is just incredible. Racing has been our lives, and the track means so much to me. We all pour our heart and soul into it this. We hope to carry on the tradition for many years to come."

O'Neal was previously named regional promoter of the year by the RPM Workshops.

April May Preston of Bradford, Vermont, was announced as the third-annual recipient of the Jody Deery Award. The Jody Deery Award, named after the late promoter of Rockford Speedway in Illinois, has become a highly anticipated award as part of the Workshops. Deery and her husband Hugh were "pioneer" type promoters of the sport, according to event organizers, and helped initiate the RPM @ Daytona Workshops.

Preston, who promotes Bear Ridge Speedway in Bradford, Vermont, with her husband Chuck "C.V." Elms, handles many of the day-to-day track operations, as well as serving as the president of the New England Auto Racing (NEAR) Hall of Fame.

RPM regional award winners:

• Southeast Region--Kelley Carlton, Screven Motor Speedway in Sylvania, Georgia
• Central Midwest--Rich and Shelley Farmer, Fremont Speedway in Fremont, Ohio
• Northern Region--Doug Johnson, Huset's Speedway in Brandon, South Dakota
• Midwest Region--Brad Stevens and Jessi Mynatt, 34 Raceway in Burlington, Iowa
• Southwest and Western Region--Scott Russel and Kami Arnold, Placerville Speedway in Placerville, California
• Region Seven, Australia and New Zealand--Gavin Migro, Perth Motorplex, Perth, Australia

The Buckeye Figure 8 Nationals, held each year at Painesville Speedway in Painesville, Ohio, received the RPM Outstanding Event of the Year. The event is promoted by the Randy Maggio, Sr. and Randy Maggio, Jr.

With an emphasis on no-time and no-prep competition, engine builder Nick Bacalis supports sportsman drag racers with reliable horsepower, comprehensive trackside service, and whatever it takes to make it to the next round.

Bullet Racing Engines builds big horsepower for a wide array of applications, but with a firm focus on sportsman drag racing: “Pro Mod, Top Sportsman, Top Dragster, the .90 classes, small tire N/T, and 4.84 small tire N/T Nitrous,” said shop manager Nick Bacalis. “We have customers with small blocks and big blocks; all-motor, nitrous, turbos, and superchargers. We build a lot of Hemis with screw blowers, centrifugal blowers, or turbos for the N/T anything-goes classes and the No Prep Kings series.”

Bullet has also built engines for street performance, monster trucks, and even a handful of dirt modifieds. But sportsman drags are where Bacalis sees both opportunity and innovation.

“Sportsman drag racing is the backbone of the industry,” he noted. “In the small-tire radial classes, or no-prep, they have to figure out engine, transmission, and suspension packages, and make them go down a track surface where they shouldn’t be going as fast as they do.” They “push the limits,” and what they learn “goes up the food chain to the professional classes.”

Bullet is the engine-building branch of Larry Jeffers Race Cars, located within Jeffers’ vast facility in House Springs, Missouri. Bacalis has managed Bullet since 2021, but his history with racing reaches back much further. He ran his first race in 1995 at age 17 in the NHRA 10.90 class. Over the next decade he added heads-up competition in NMRA, NMCA, PRO, and NSCA, at first in the naturally aspirated classes, and then “a couple of years with a nitrous motor.” He worked for Barnett Performance in Conyers, Georgia, and then Barry Grant in Atlanta.

In 2006 he earned an associate’s degree from the School of Automotive Machinists & Technology (SAM Tech) in Houston, Texas. That led to travel with a number of race teams, and a 2008–2018 assignment with Tony Bischoff and BES Racing Engines. “Then COVID-19 hit,” Bacalis recalled, “and everything was in chaos. After working with the Craig Sullivan and then Tom Blincoe Pro Mod teams, I bounced around until October 2021, when Larry Jeffers asked if I would be interested in running the machine shop. I’ve known Larry for probably 15-plus years, from meeting at the track and being around race cars. And I needed a job. So I decided to move to House Springs and run the shop.”

While he sees many racers struggling with increasing costs, Bacalis cited a few areas that are steady or growing. “Most of the high-end motors are ordered by millionaires, and they don’t care if they spend 100 grand. They are going racing no matter what. You build a screw-blown Hemi for a guy, and he knows he’s going to have a ton of maintenance and a ton of parts in it.

“A lot of people are running Pro Mod now, and the no-time stuff, where they run for no rules, on a small tire, for $50,000 once a month. A lot of them are leaving other classes, like X275 or Super Street, because those classes have gotten too far out of reach for them, or have disappeared, so they decide to do this. They can go local; they don’t have to travel like they used to.”

For the tracks...

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Once you download the Zinio mobile app or are logged into Zinio on a desktop browser, you will gain immediate access to more than a year's worth of content, including "Business Profile: Bullet Racing Engines" here and more PRI Show coverage in the January/February 2025 issue here. 

Discover what the judges chose as their top picks from a selection of more than 400 entries in the Featured Products Showcase at the 2024 PRI Show.  To see all the products, visit here.

When the racing industry descends on Indianapolis for the annual PRI Show, exhibitors bring thousands of new and innovative products with them, filling the Indiana Convention Center and Lucas Oil Stadium with the latest and greatest developments in the racing industry. But there’s only one place on the Show floor where you can see them all at once: the Featured Product Showcase.

This annual feature of the PRI Show highlights hundreds of products—submitted by the manufacturers themselves—across every segment, category, and discipline of the racing world. Whether it’s a rear-view mirror or a full suspension kit, a 3D printer or an air pressure gauge, the submissions showcase the non-stop innovation happening throughout the industry. 

“It’s the pinnacle,” said Scott Parker, chief operating officer of POWER Automedia, Temecula, California. “When you look at the cream of the crop, the best new products are at the PRI Show and in the Showcase.”

Every year, a panel of judges—consisting of media members and sanctioning body officials—comb through the cases of products and ultimately provide their picks for products they believe will resonate with the market in the coming year.

Parker, who served as one of nine judges for the 2024 Showcase, had a difficult time narrowing down his list, but ultimately decided on the two-piece Powerglide case from FTI Performance in DeLand, Florida, as his Judge’s Pick. Versatility, he said, was a key factor in his decision, with the added bonus of increased safety.

“Powerglide and Turbo 400 are probably the two most popular transmissions here at PRI, whether you’re drag racing, mud, anything,” Parker said. “To see somebody come out with a two-piece case is really crucial, so you can bolt it up to anything.

“And being SFI certified, that’s really cool,” he added. “I love to see something that really enhances safety.”

Joe Legan, technical manager at SRO Motorsports, based in Arlington, Nebraska, donned his enthusiast hat while judging, he said, in addition to his perspective as a race official. He first evaluated the products as a racer himself, then again as a representative of SRO.

Legan was impressed by the range of products in the Showcase and the variety of applications, uses, and markets represented. There was something on offer for just about anyone, from the grassroots levels to the upper echelons of motorsports.

Ultimately, Legan opted to recognize a product that has a very specific application but represents the constant search for higher performance that permeates throughout the industry: Brembo’s IMSA GTP/WEC Hypercar brake system.

“The level of tech that goes in those cars, it just shows Brembo’s commitment to never stand still,” Legan said. “They’re always trying to make them stronger, lighter, and more affordable.”

Joe Balash, sporting and technical director of the NASCAR Euro Series in Saint Denis sur Loire, France, found the process useful for his own purposes, mirroring how the thousands of attendees who visit the PRI Show use the Showcase as a jumping-off point, while also signaling the importance of the Show for sanctioning bodies. 

“I had been looking for a reversing camera for a project that I’m working on, and there it was,” said Balash, who selected the uC-10 Reversing Camera Kit from Haltech as his Judge’s Pick. 

The reversing camera will ultimately be considered for use in the NASCAR Euro Series.

“The PRI Show allows sanctioning bodies to develop and establish relationships with the vendors,” Balash said. “You’re always looking to see what is next for the sport, and the [Featured Product Showcase] shows what’s next.”

That sentiment applies no matter the discipline, according to Balash. “I was impressed with all the new products; how well the products were put together; and the fit, finish, and quality of all the parts,” he said. “There’s such a variety of vendors and products that, no matter what motorsport you’re involved in, there’s something that will attract you into their booth to talk about their product.”

Legan agreed, noting that the wide range of products and applications represented in the Showcase is a strength of the industry. “The industry is so much wider than SRO,” Legan said. “As motorsports enthusiasts, we get so myopic. When you see the [Featured Product Showcase], you see there are so many other ways to interpret the word ‘motorsports.’ 

“It drove home how varied it is and what the state of it is,” he added. “We always seem to find a way.”

Following are the judges' top choices of products from the Featured Products Showcase followed by their favorite picks...

To read the complete article for free, sign up for a digital subscription to PRI Magazine on Zinio here.    

Once you download the Zinio mobile app or are logged into Zinio on a desktop browser, you will gain immediate access to more than a year's worth of content, including "Exclusive Editions: PRI Show Featured Products Showcase" here and more PRI Show coverage in the January/February 2025 issue here. 

Motor State Distributing will host its first-ever Safety Summit on Friday, March 7, at Lane Automotive in Watervliet, Michigan.

Designed to promote safety at the track, this event will include product demonstrations, a special sale on safety equipment from top brands and several featured speakers, including World of Outlaws Hall of Famer Paul McMahan. Each speaker will focus on different aspects of driver and crew safety.  

The all-day event is free to attendees, but pre-registration is required.

For more information, visit motorstate.com.