IHRA did more than release a schedule Thursday at the PRI Show, using a press conference to outline a redefinition of what the sanctioning body intends to be in 2026 and beyond. At the center of that plan sits the IHRA Outlaw Nitro Series, positioned as both the anchor and what their officials believe is a cultural standard for a much broader motorsports platform.
Rather than framing its future around drag racing alone, IHRA officials presented a strategy built on unification. Offshore powerboat racing, snowmobile racing, tractor pulling, stock car competition, a new sportsman program, and a small tire drag racing series are all being folded into a single sanctioning structure.
That expansion, officials emphasized, is not designed to dilute the nitro program but to elevate it. The Outlaw Nitro Series is being used as the model for how IHRA intends to operate across every discipline it sanctions…