Import Face-Off Bakersfield: Drag Racing for the People
Forged in sport-compact drag racing’s heyday, Import Face-Off may not have soared to the multi-million-dollar heights that some of the largest and most profitable series of the time have enjoyed; but with each passing year, it has successfully done two things that have proven to be far more valuable than commercial success: Survive. And flourish. (See our coverage of Import Face-Off from last year.)
Plan of Attack
We think the secret lies in Import Face-Off’s humble mission: to bring import drag racing to the people – no competing with top-flight professional drag racing series for brand recognition, no fighting for TV time or even courting the fastest professional teams.
Throwing nearly as many events in a season as there are weeks in a year, in both popular and forgotten corners of the country alike, they’ve succeeded by catering to a segment of the market that will be around, looking for a race, long after the glitz and glamour are gone: the grassroots – people like us.
Bakersfield: California’s Midway
Basically in the middle of nowhere, an aging quarter-mile drag strip nestled in farmland might not seem the likely location for rival drag racing battles, but when that drag strip is located roughly equidistant from Southern California and the Bay Area – two of the state's strongholds for import drag racing – it makes sense. Add in participation from some Northwest and Four Corners shops and drivers, and – if you’re an import drag racer or fan – spending a day in rural central California can be rather exciting.
Heavy hitters from the SoCal street-scene came out in full force, such as “Driver B,” “Ritchieworks,” and the venerable Jerry Built crew, who were met with perennial drag racing efforts from the Darton Sleeves team, Loarca Racing and more. Other groups included the Bay’s Red Zone Performance, Sinister Racing, Hybridworks and Team Lightspeed Racing, to name a few.
And for every one of them were even more amateur SoCal and NorCal drag racers with impressive builds, fast heads-up blasts or consistent bracket-class performance. A few of the heavy hitters even took their rivalries one step further by entering their daily drivers and tow rigs in friendly competition.
Seizing the Day
Hundreds of competing racers, friends, family and fans filled Bakersfield’s Auto Club Famoso Raceway this time around, and the drag racing ensued like drag racing should: with excitement, suspense, hardships (fortunately few) and triumphs. Import Face-Off’s show portion of festivities was equally large and competitive, incurring an impressive presence from rival crews like Team Hybrid, Slammedenuff, NVUS, R-Rydes and more. It was good times, all around.
As the event drew to a close and all in attendance had gotten all the drag racing excitement they could take (or afford to repair from), we were reminded once again why Import Face-Off is still around and stronger than ever:
Everyone was smiling.
Smiling after having won, smiling after having lost, smiling while talking trash, smiling while waiting for that unexpected AAA tow to arrive, even smiling with gnarly sunburns.
No records were broken (that we’re aware of), no contracts were signed, not even a single TV camera was present. Just lots of drag racing and show action, in the summer California sun. And we can’t wait to do it all again.
See nearly 100 high-quality pics from the day in our gallery below, and don’t be afraid to rip and repost across your social sites! @DrivingLine
