2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

I, for the life of me, cannot find the LODRS or National pay structure for 2025. Does anybody have it on hand or a link to it? I was fortunate enough to make it to the semis in STK at the bby gators in a 7 round race and I have absolutely no idea how much my check will be for. It'd be nice to have a better idea what I'm running for in general too.

I was able to find this on NHRA Racer, but these are not hot-links and do not navigate to anything.
https://www.nhraracer.com/content/ge...846&zoneid=175

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Is this what you're looking for?
https://www.nhra.com/contingency-program-posting

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

I thought you would of gotten your check from them by now

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

I believe the divisional payouts come from the hosting track. Seeing the entry fee can vary among the different divisions, I would advise calling the track .
Generally speaking , your check will be for....not much.
The Nat's used to be posted in the ND ads for said race. Somewhere along the line, they decided listing the payout was not much of an incentive, so now those amounts are even harder to find than JE's guest list. ;-)

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

You may need to contact the track if you did not fill out a W9. Some tracks will not pay until that is filled out and provided to them.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

I made it to the 3rd round at the Baby Gators. My check came directly from NHRA once I filled out the online W9 form and sent it back. I thing semis pays about $300

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

yeah I was late on the W9 stuff so I haven't gotten my payout yet. Lord I hope it's more than 300 bones but I'll let y'all know how much it is whenever I get it. I spent about $2000 just getting to Gainesville and back home after buying trailer tires post blow-out, truck alternator, two entries, race gas, diesel, etc. I'm busted down lol. Gonna try to make something happen this weekend at the SGAS race at Carolina Dragway. Would love to dig myself out of this hole.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Keep us posted,but I would be surprised if it is more than $250.

Last year at the Division 3 race in St Louis, there was over 140 cars trying to qualify for the 128 car field and the Runner Up only got $500.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

You make it down to 4 cars and all you get is $300! Make it down to the final 2 cars and only get $500! I remember making it down to 6 cars at the last Atlanta NHRA National event. I received a whopping $250! So where is all the money from entry fees going? How come they pay more to win a Divisional race than a National Event? Then to hear they had timing issues at Bella Rose and refused to re-run some of the rounds, after already re-running prior runs with admitted issues? This is getting to be ridiculous. Why are the big wigs at NHRA treating the sportsman racers like their red headed stepchild. After all, WE, that's right, WE are their customers. That doesn't seem to be any concern of theirs anymore. When bean counters become the managing body, instead of what used to be people with real racing experience running these events, it surely shows that it's now all about the corporate or advertising dollars, not about the details that matter to the racers. This was never more obvious than when they hired a division DIRECTOR that had NO DRAG RACING experience or knowledge of drag racing management experience. BUT he did come from, wait for it, wait for it, Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus on his resume! And when you asked this DIVISION DIRECTOR a technical question about Stock Eliminator, His response was, "Well, I suggest you Call the Division 2 Director" Thankfully he was removed from that position after only 1 year. Pitiful. Maybe IHRA can make a come back and give NHRA some competition. Until then, NHRA knows they are the only game in town, and if you don't like how we do business, go somewhere else. That's the attitude they've had for a number of years. So sad.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Found out last weekend that D4 doesn't pay until the 5th round! I know we don't do this for the money but it would be nice if they threw the dog a bone for third round out. I could be wrong but I think every other division pays at 3rd round. I find it hard to believe that the D4 Lucas oil racers are ok with this.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

At least on the divisional side most of the money goes to Alcohol cars. They pay no entry and get 10 crew passes for free. Pays 10 spots back. So yes the even the first two alternates get paid!

At most divisional races the crowds are very small. The Alcohol cars don't pay for there selves in attendance. The other sportsman racers pay for there purse. It's time for Alcohol cars to be a national event only level categories.

Top Fuel, Funny Car, and Pro Stock use to be contested at Division races before becoming National event only categories. It's time to do the same with Alcohol cars. Save track owners money and direct some of it to other sportsman categories purses.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Actually the Alcohol classes only compete at the regional races. Here in D2 that is the baby gators. I think other divisions hold one regional event along with the divisional schedule. I agree. The alcohol classes should be national event only. At the baby gators and Gators neither of the classes filled to make a full field. Track owners and promoters need to do a better job of promoting the events and attracting spectators into the stands. This has been discussed on many threads here on the forum in the past. We should not be funding the purse for the TAD and TAFC classes. They need to stand on their own 2 feet.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

You are lucky in D2. D3 has regionals at 4 out of 7 divisional races. Another 2 regionals at stand alone events at divisional tracks. So they are using sportsman entry fees to use alcohol cars as a booked
in show.

NHRA and tracks have embraced the double race model. If that is your plan then you have to know that your spectators are not coming out on a Wednesday. It's high time we realize that we(sportsman racers)are the main customers and we deserve better payouts and convenience for our entry fee costs. Paying spectators are merely a bonus at a vast majority of non national event races.

Also when Alcohol cars are contested at a double they receive "test passes" why? At Bella Rose they received 2 test hits before their 2 qualifiers when it was known that weather was going to impact the races. Then they
ran Alcohol eliminations on Friday. They made zero passes on the weekend.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Looking at this thread I thought I would try to track down a posted payout for Divisional/Regional as well as National events. It is almost impossible to find, with the few exceptions of flyers from some Division races.

NHRA did increase the divisional payout last year to $2k to win most sportsman classes, but didn't increase the round money down the line.

While my Dad will filling in for me this year, he lost 4th round at a double and didn't even get his entry back. NHRA has, and will continue to subsidize the Alcohol/Pro classes. Do the math on a 64 car field at $185 - $215 entry fee!

I can say it until I'm blue in the face, racing for the gold man is fun from time to time, but supporting local association and track events where the racer comes first is a lot better in my book :D

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Agreed. I like racing for the wally every chance I get, but I'll go to 3x as many local bracket and index races here in the Carolinas supporting the little guys

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

I will run more S/SS combos than N/Ihra stuff i think because of this kind of stuff... None of us get rich at racing for sure.. but its crazy to me you go to a race pay the crazy entry fee and have no idea what they are paying.. its been like this for a while too.. I guess as long as people keep coming and paying it... nothing will change

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Here in D2 this year we have 2 doubles. One at SGMP and one at the "Rock". I am not real fond of the doubles. Have to be away from work for a much longer time. I did not realize D3 had so many regionals. I totally agree with both of your posts.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

There is no doubt that sportsman payouts are insulting and ludicrous. And yes, there is a total difference between the ways that they and alcohol cars are treated. But I think the real problem is that the track operators are backed into a corner and have no real way to improve things.

I've had many operators tell me that it makes all the difference in the world if alcohol is on the program. Casual fans who know nothing and care little about class cars will come out to see something fast, loud, and sadly that occasionally catch on fire. They've told me that those customers make a big difference in whether the race is a success for them or not.

I agree they should pay their own way, and even that it makes so much sense and is the right thing to do I don't think any of the track owners would like removing them from the show. So to me, just like so many other things, this falls back onto the NHRA. They need to come up with a system where a track owner running any sort of their events has a decent chance to make money. I don't see that as something they care about at all. They've made so many cuts which hurt the racers' experience but none that have affected themselves. I'm pretty sure they could rebalance the costs to tracks to make it fair for everybody.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Understand giving alcohol cars the advantage of free crew and entry, they need to develop new talent but seeing guys like Tony Stewart and Coughlin given that while sportsman racers get the short straw seems a bit unfair. Given we all want the tracks to be successful we have little choice but to attend if we want access to Division races and grade points. South Georgia and Florida racers simply don?t have easy access to Association events so hopefully IHRA will get something rolling for us. Just sad to see NHRA have such little regard for class racers.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Don't we all do this because we hate money?

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Meanwhile Junior Dragsters had a huge bump on there purse from gift cards to larger payouts than Sportsman.

Maybe we all outta make and race Junior Dragsters

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Carolina Class Racers Association starts paying with 3rd round loss, pay in cash at the track.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Update: My check from Gainesville came yesterday.

$250 for getting to 4 cars in a 107 man, 7 round race.

If they start paying $100 for a 3rd round loss, $125 for 4th, $150 for fifth, $250 for 6th (semis), $500 R-up and $1500 to win, that's approximately $8600 for 107 cars. They would have taken in $19,795 at $185 entry per participant.

Now, to be fair, this race had class eliminations. Lets make a generous estimate and say it costs $200 to make a wally. They would have handed out about 20 or so class trophies in STK alone. That's another $4000. Plus "tech" and officials which the cost would be spread out between the other 12 classes contested. Say they take another couple grand towards paying for that stuff. That comes out to $14,600.

I don't really know where I am going with this, but I thought I would break down some of the math for the sake of a talking point. I feel like it's ridiculous to know that the only way to break even for one of these events is to get to the final. I feel like the break even point should come in the semis and you should actually be able to make a touch if you make the finals. Obviously you can make a lot more in the finals if you have lots of contingency as well, which of course I was not eligible for getting beat in the semis.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Back in 2010 at the MG LODRS we made it down to the semi-final in SG, this was one of those rare races where we got like 80 cars in SG that weekend and it was a 7-round race, my dad lost to Bernie Weaver that day and as we're loading up, he says go get my check from the tower, so I head up and Kathy Phillips was doing checks at the time, I tell her SG semi's 1194, she hands over the check to me and I say "You must be mistaken, I said Semi's for SG, this is only $250" Kathy was normally always on point with her numbers, she goes, nope $1800 to win, $600 RUP, $250 semi's....I get back to the trailer and give my dad the check and he goes we'll I was going to go for steak for dinner, guess it's Burger King or McDonalds....lol.

Once again, we do it for the fun and memories rather than trying to become millionaires, I know we can make the argument that bracket racing is the way to go but, when you add up those entry fees you better hope you win or get to the split to hopefully make some cash back, I used to work for a team that did the big $$$ bracket races and the end of the weekend tabs with entries and buybacks could make someone run into traffic if you didn't go some rounds.

Re: 2025 Payout / Pay Structure
 

Stock gets a little less to win a national than the other LODRS categories because it was considered an entry level class 100 years ago.