Virginia Motorsports Park
April 21-23, 2023
Chris Garner Jones Wins Drag 965 Pro Nitrous Motorcycle
Past Pro Nitrous Motorcycle world champion Chris Garner-Jones bounced back from an early exit at the season opener by riding his T.T. Jones Racing Hayabusa to the win after qualifying No. 1. He went down the track on a single in the final round, as opponent Meshal Al-Saber’s Q80 Racing Hayabusa shut off as he was staging. Garner-Jones laid down a 3.982 at 176.79 for the win.
“This win feels great, especially after our first outing,” said Garner-Jones, who thanked his brother and tuner, William, as well as Red Line Motorsports Media, FuelTech, and PDRA. “We’re not making excuses, but we ran good once we put the right combination in the bike. It was just a round too late. I feel like we could’ve won that race. But we came out here and ran some stout numbers from testing all the way to the final round. We didn’t go in the fours all weekend. Every pass was three-ninety-something. It feels great.”
| FINALS | ||||||
| W – | Chris Garner-Jones | Harvest AL | ’13 Suzuki | 0.281 | 3.982 | 176.79 |
| RU – | Meshal Alsabar | Kuwait City KUW | ’20 Suzuki | |||
| ROUND 2 | ||||||
| W – | Meshal Alsabar | Kuwait City KUW | ’20 Suzuki | 0.039 | 3.963 | 178.52 |
| L – | SINGLE | |||||
| W – | Chris Garner-Jones | Harvest AL | ’13 Suzuki | 0.040 | 3.996 | 177.53 |
| L – | Brayden Davis | Douglas GA | ’14 Suzuki | -0.014 | 3.984 | 178.02 |
| ROUND 1 | ||||||
| W – | Brayden Davis | Douglas GA | ’14 Suzuki | 0.018 | 3.963 | 177.23 |
| L – | Mohammed Alawad | Kuwait City KUW | ’16 Suzuki | 0.113 | 5.009 | 92.25 |
| W – | Meshal Alsabar | Kuwait City KUW | ’20 Suzuki | 0.177 | 3.985 | 178.68 |
| L – | Gerald Smith | Savannah GA | ’18 Suzuki | |||
| W – | Chris Garner-Jones | Harvest AL | ’13 Suzuki | 0.084 | 3.952 | 179.18 |
| L – | SINGLE | |||||
In the first round of eliminations on Friday night, Garner-Jones set low E.T. of the event with a 3.952 on a single. He lined up against rookie Brayden Davis in the semifinal, but the race was over on the starting line when Davis went red by .014 on a 3.984-second pass. Garner-Jones was ready with a 3.996 at 177.53.
Al-Saber, who also reached the final round at the season opener, qualified No. 2 on the Brad McCoy-tuned Q80 Racing entry. He ran a 3.985 on a first-round single when Gerald Smith couldn’t make the run. The Kuwait-based rider made his best run of the weekend, a 3.963, on a single in the semifinals.
| Pos | Number | Driver | Home Town | Vehicle | ET | MPH |
| 1 | 1 | Chris Garner-Jones | Harvest AL | ’13 Suzuki | 3.978 | 177.420 |
| 2 | Q80 | Meshal Alsabar | Kuwait City KUW | ’20 Suzuki | 4.004 | 179.300 |
| 3 | 185 | Brayden Davis | Douglas GA | ’14 Suzuki | 4.007 | 176.400 |
| 4 | 965 | Mohammed Alawad | Kuwait City KUW | ’16 Suzuki | 4.011 | 175.050 |
| 5 | 82 | Gerald Smith | Savannah GA | ’18 Suzuki | 4.873 | 107.400 |
2023 Schedule
March 30 – April 1 / GALOT Motorsports Park / Benson, NC
April 20-22 / Virginia Motorsports Park / Dinwiddie, VA
May 25-27 / Summit Motorsports Park / Norwalk, OH
June 15-17 / Maryland International Raceway / Budds Creek, MD
July 21-22 / PRO STARS Night of Fire /Virginia Motorsports Park / Dinwiddie, VA
August 3-5 / US 131 Motorsports Park / Martin, MI
September 14-16 / Darlington Dragway / Hartsville, SC
October 5-7 / GALOT Motorsports Park/ Benson, NC
October 19-22 / Virginia Motorsports Park / Dinwiddie, VA
ABOUT THE PDRA
Celebrating its 10th season in 2023, the Professional Drag Racers Association is the top sanctioning body in the United States for the sport of eighth-mile drag racing. The PDRA’s professional categories include Pro Boost, Pro Nitrous, Extreme Pro Stock, Pro Nitrous Motorcycle, Pro 632, and Pro Street. The series also features sportsman racing in Top Sportsman, Top Dragster, Pro Jr. Dragster and Top Jr. Dragster. The 2023 PDRA schedule consists of eight national events, plus the Summit Racing Equipment PDRA ProStars. For more information on the PDRA, visit www.pdra660.com. Follow the PDRA: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube.
