DME All-Star Shootout and APE Pro Street at Man Cup

NHDRO champion Frankie Stotz started a record breaking, clean sweep weekend with a Saturday win over DME Racing rider Jeremy Teasley in the final of the $10,000-to-win DME Racing All-Star Pro Street Shootout at South Georgia Motorsports Park in Valdosta. Stotz scored another APE Pro Street victory at the Manufacturers Cup World Finals on Sunday, running a string of record setting 6.60 second passes at over 200 mph along the way.

For the third straight year, motorcycle drag racing fabrication powerhouse DME Racing partnered with Dave and Jason Dunigan’s Dunigan Racing, and Chris Connelly’s Pro Stock Inc. to put on the Shootout for the world’s quickest streetbikes, immediately preceding the 2018 Manufacturers Cup race on November 15-16.

After sitting through a soaking rain Wednesday and a track that was too cold once it was dried and prepped on Thursday, the bikes finally hit the track on Friday. “We came off the trailer with a 6.70 at 201 miles per hour, qualified number 1, and headed into eliminations that Friday evening,” recalled Stotz. Teasley qualified 6th.

Stotz’s diminutive, turbocharged Honda CBR1000RR would have to last round after round against a 28-bike field of big 700 horsepower Suzuki Hayabusas. His comparatively small motor has held together this year courtesy of billet cranks built by Marine, and early season transmission woes were cured by a Robinson Industries billet tranny.

Frankie Stotz

But a Shootout and regular program against two large, competitive fields at the biggest race of the year—WOULD it hold together and run the numbers necessary to win? In unseasonably cool, power-making, component-breaking weather—COULD it hold together?

“In the first round of eliminations, we didn’t adjust to the cold like we wished and ended up wheeling in first gear and slowing down to a 7.14 (also at 201),” said Stotz, who nevertheless advanced past Victor Gotay.

“After that is when everything changed,” continued Frankie. “From the second round of eliminations of the Shootout to the finals of the Man Cup race on Sunday, we ran nothing but 6.60s. We ended up setting and resetting the Man Cup Pro Street record twice during the Shootout, dropping the record from a 6.67 to a 6.63.”

Teasley also contnued winning, taking out Luis Sierra, Tony Ficher, and multi-time champ Rodney Williford on his way to the Shootout final against Stotz.

Frankie finished the Shootout with a 6.67 at 203 in the final against Teasley, who ran 6.73 at 222 mph. “With that consistency came the victory, a badass trophy, and 10K,” said Stotz. Watch the final is this video:

DME’s Jeremy Teasley

“It was a great Shootout,” said runner-up Teasley. “Had some really tough competition in the five rounds of racing. Got through two rounds on holeshots and in the finals came up a little short. Andy (DME tuner Andy Sawyer) and I were talking that we came in a little too hot on the tune-up in first gear, but we knew we had to with that Honda knocking off 6.6 runs every lap.

“I can’t thank the DME crew enough for what they do for the sport, and Brandi (former AMA/Dragbike race director Brandi Neithamer) did an awesome job working the lanes.”

The Stotz’s, Team DME and Brandi Neithamer with this year’s Shootout trophy

Stotz, his dad Kent, and tuning consultant Steve Nichols then won the Man Cup race as well, gathering a bonus for the double and collecting a grand total of $14,000 for the weekend.

As always, the event included a fabulous BBQ buffet catered by the Dunigan’s with distribution of over $13,000 in prizes sponsored by many of the sport’s greatest companies and individuals.

Rodney Williford

Rodney Williford was the runner-up to Stotz on Sunday. “We gave it our best shot in the finals with Frankie, but that wheelie down track got a bit too high for me. LOL,” Rodney said on Facebook. “Personal best 330 and 1/8 for me in this run, but couldn’t complete the run.”

Here’s video of Sunday’s final:

Ida Zetterström

An interesting story to follow through the weekend was that of Finnish racer Ida Zetterström. Ida was in Valdosta to complete the purchase of Nem Beltran’s iconic “Pro Street Lucky” bike and get the hang of the bike while she was there.

“It was a great experience although it had some ups and downs,” siad Zetterström. “The weather and lack of testing for us was really frustrating for the whole team and when also we struggled to get the bike down the track, it was hard for us. When we got the bike down the track in E1 it was a great feeling.

“The experience over all and meeting so many great people, it was absolutely worth it! But the fact that we didn’t have enough time to show everyone what we actually can do made me a bit sad, had looked forward to this for so long…I definitely would like to come back another time though, If I ever get the chance to!”

And I suspect she will, as this event becomes more and more an extension of the European racing calendar. Here’s a video of one of the passes where the tune-up wasn’t quite there:

Here’s some highlights (and lowlights) from Pro Street in Valdosta:

Tony Ficher had a great weekend on Eric Paquette’s ProCharged ‘Busa, going to the semis against eventual winner Stotz
Gateway NHDRO winner Gaige Herrera lost to Teasley in round 3
Luis Hornedo (far lane) rode Ronnie Mitchell’s “Apollonia” to round 3

DME’s Chris Connelly Jr lost to Williford in round 3
British racer Steve Venables
DME’s Jason Dunigan getting wild
Jordan Haase—black on black
NHDRO regular Dave Roisen lost to Stotz in E2

Ehren Litten finished off an ambitious season with a second round loss to Herrera
Joey Jobbe lost to Hornedo in E2
Ryan Hable lost to Williford in E2
Gabe Frederick switched back to an old chassis and seemed to have his handling problems solved, but his roller coaster season ended against Teasley in round 2.

Jamie Lopes lost to Chris Connelly Jr. on a holeshot in E1
Justin Shakir’s breakout season ended with a round 1 no-show
Quicktime thug Rudy Sanzottera treed Richard Gadson in E1 but couldn’t run the number

Derrick Riffell’s most fun year ever ended with mechanical carnage on Josh Franklin’s clean machine
Interesting shot of the DME swingarm at speed on Ronnie Mitchell’s bike

Frankie’s bike is for sale, and the price includes a full season of coaching from the Stotz’s about their one-off piece. Will we see him on this bike again?

, , , , , , , ,