Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 324 FUEL FOR THOUGHT Publications Ignite2X Managing Editor Shayna Keller Photography BME Photography Contributing Writers Rob Goodman, Shayna Keller, Michael Dunn, Skooter Peaco Advertising Sales Shawn Hackman, Dana Landry Art/Creative Ignite2X TM Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors & Chief Executive Officer Chris Lencheski Chief Financial Officer Lou Partenza President Michael Dunn Vice President Skooter Peaco New Business Development Dana Landry Director of Corporate Communications Shayna Keller Director of Creative Marketing Manfred Eissner Membership Coordinator Bobby Carville Chief Revenue Officer Shawn Hackman Vice President of Administration and Logistic Darren Thompson Senior Director of Competition and Racing Operations Mike Baker Divisional Directors Josh Peake, Jon O’Neal & Frank Kohutek Special Advisor For Track Development Phil Gingerich The International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) is owned and operated by IRG Sports + Entertainment™, a TPG Specialty Lending company. The IHRA promotes professional and sportsman racing for drivers of all levels. The IHRA sanctions nearly 100 motorsport facilities in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Bahama’s and welcomes 80,000 racers annually to their IHRA- sanctioned facilities. The IHRA oversees multiple sportsman racing programs including the Summit Sportsman National Championship and the Summit Racing Equipment SuperSeries. When I started the position of president of the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) at the beginning of the season I new the job would be challenging. That would be an understatement. The one thing though that I quickly realized is that there is no shortage of great racing across the sportsman and professional levels at the IHRA. Our racers are the best in the world and every single weekend they traveled to events and put on one heck of a show. I’ve been a drag racer my entire life and I have had the opportunity to work with a lot great and talented people and I can honestly say that working with the racers, sponsors, fans and coworkers of the IHRA has been a pinnacle moment in my motorsports career. We’ve had to make some tough decisions in order to get the IHRA back on the right track but the future looks very bright for this organization as we move into 2017 and beyond. This year we set our sights on aligning ourselves with key partners that will help us with long-term success. We’ve established relationships with Ignite 2X to relaunch Drag Review Magazine, Racer Marketing and Media for full coverage of the IHRA, increased our commitment with IHRA Australia, hired key executives from the motorsports realm to advance our growth potential and have signed with a major national broadcast partner to include live streaming of the Summit Sportsman National Championship in 2017 and national television exposure of our professional series in 2018 and beyond. Looking ahead to next year, the IHRA is concentrating on the sportsman programs and building upon the already solid foundation established. The recent announcements regarding the Summit Sportsman National Championship and the increased points fund, will only enhance what we consider the “backbone” of the IHRA. In addition, our focus will be on rebuilding the professional series and relaunching the program, in 2018 with full digital and television coverage. On a personal note, I would like to take a minute to thank everyone for welcoming me into the IHRA. I am proud to say I am a part of this organization and look forward to what the future holds for this historic sanctioning body. As a collective group, we can elevate this series and ensure its success! I want to wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and we’ll see you at the track in 2017! MIKE DUNN IHRA President