By Neto Baptiste
The relationship between the Antigua and Barbuda Drag Racing Association (ABDRA) and the Antigua Pro Racing Ltd has significantly improved.
This is according to acting president of the drag racing association, Denelle Richards, who said both bodies have managed to find common ground and are moving forward as one.
“Well, as you know, at first it was a rocky start, but I think that at the end of it the minister [Daryll Matthew] gave us an opportunity to present ourselves which we did at a meeting where the guys from the other fraternity were there. We presented our case in terms of why we want to continue our path with the IHRA [International Hot Rod Association]. We got the assistance of the president of the IHRA and basically showed the road map that we have been on for the last few years in terms of the different development stages that we have been following to become IHRA-sanctioned,” he said.
Richards said that having the IHRA’s blessings moving forward is a significant step towards achieving their goal of hosting international events.
“To have cars around the region, the United States and Canada and so forth visit us for our events and that was accepted so we have, at the end of the day, realised that motorsports is not just drag racing, it’s not just dirt racing so in the sense of Antigua Pro Racing, we understand the concept that there is one governing body of motorsports,” he said.
“At the end of the day, the drag racing association, we don’t want to be governing dirt track, they also have Jet Ski racing or different kind of races, we don’t really see us wanting to manage that, so we understand the need for Antigua Pro Racing,” Richards added.
In June this year, head of Antigua Pro Racing Ltd, Carlo Falcone, denied claims the body was keen on taking over the operations of the drag racing association and the government-owned North Sound Raceway.
There had been a reported rift between the two bodies with concerns being raised over the then make-up of the Antigua Pro Racing board which consisted only of members of the rally racing fraternity.
This has however since changed after two members of the drag racing association were recently added to the make-up of the pro racing board.