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Valcourt, Quebec, November 25, 2025 – Can-Am, iconic brand of BRP Inc. (TSX:DOO; NASDAQ:DOOO), today announced a new package of the iconic Defender. Starting at $23,999 USD*, the new Defender DPS CAB HD10 with HVAC, available in three-seat and MAX (six-seat) configurations, is now the most affordable HVAC-equipped side-by-side in the industry, delivering premium comfort and rugged capability at an unmatched value. This announcement builds on the momentum of Can-Am’s 2026 model year reveal in August, which showcased a range of product innovations across its off-road portfolio. Can-Am Defender DPS CAB HD10 with HVAC Synonymous with hard work, grit and determination, the Can-Am Defender lineup is trusted by farmers, ranchers and riders across the world. The new Defender DPS CAB HD10 with HVAC package brings the proven performance and reliability of the Defender platform to more riders, thanks to a lower price point. Equipped with a full cab, heating, venting and air-conditioning, the proven Rotax HD10 powertrain, a reliable CVT transmission and a robust chassis, this new package continues to deliver on the workhorse capability and toughness that the Defender is known for. Can-Am Defender DPS CAB HD10 MAX with HVAC “We’re committed to making adventure and utility more accessible to riders everywhere,” said Jeremi Doyon-Roch, Marketing Director at Can-Am Off-Road. “Our new Can-Am Defender DPS CAB HD10 with HVAC package means more people can experience the durability and versatility that’s made it the most unstoppable workhorse in the field. And with the introduction of our new Dark Wildland Camo colorway for the Outlander Electric, hunters can now be better equipped than ever before to pursue game in the backcountry.” The Defender DPS CAB HD10 with HVAC will be available at select Can-Am dealers in early 2026. To learn more about these models and the rest of the Can-Am Off-Road lineup, visit can-am.brp.com. *Canadian Pricing: The Defender DPS CAB HD10 with HVAC starts at $29,999 CAD About BRP BRP Inc. is a global leader in the world of powersports products, propulsion systems and boats built on over 80 years of ingenuity and intensive consumer focus. Through its portfolio of industry-leading and distinctive brands featuring Ski-Doo and Lynx snowmobiles, Sea-Doo watercraft and pontoons, Can-Am on and off-road vehicles, Quintrex boats and Rotax marine propulsion systems as well as Rotax engines for karts and recreational aircraft, BRP unlocks exhilarating adventures and provides access to experiences across different playgrounds. The Company completes its lines of products with a dedicated parts, accessories and apparel portfolio to fully optimize the riding experience. Committed to growing responsibly, BRP is developing electric models for its existing product lines. Headquartered in Quebec, Canada, BRP had annual sales of CA$7.8 billion from over 130 countries and employed approximately 16,500 driven, resourceful people as of January 31, 2025. www.brp.com @BRPNews Ski-Doo, Lynx, Sea-Doo, Can-Am, Rotax, and the BRP logo are trademarks of Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. or its affiliates. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. The post Can-Am Unveils the Industry’s Most Affordable HVAC-Equipped Side-by-Sides appeared first on UTV Guide. View the full article

While Can-Am just introduced the latest and greatest Defender HD11, the older generation is still in production and marks a helluva deal for those who want an HVAC-equipped side-by-side. View the full article

The Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R Race Edition is a factory-prepped, track-only monster engineered for top-level riders.View the full article

Reigning 2025 Dakar Rally Champion Brock Heger & 2024 Champion Xavier De Soultrait Return to Polaris RZR Factory Racing as Team Chases Third-Consecutive Championship Expands Program with All-New, Purpose-Built Race Vehicle Debuting in New SSV1 Category MINNEAPOLIS, MN (November 24, 2025) – Polaris Off Road, the leader in off-road vehicle innovation, and LOEB FrayMédia Motorsport announces a five-rider lineup for the 2026 Dakar Rally. Led by back-to-back champions Brock Heger and Xavier De Soultrait, Polaris RZR Factory Racing is primed to chase its third-straight Dakar Rally championship. ROOKIE, BROCK HEGER and NAVIGATOR MAX EDDY JR. SHINE AT THE 2025 DAKAR RALLY With the launch of the SSV1 category, Polaris RZR Factory Racing will field two machines. To compete in SSV1, Polaris engineered an all-new race machine from the ground up to take on the new class. This dual-platform strategy underscores Polaris’ commitment to innovation, durability, and race-proven engineering across every level of elite off-road competition. Drivers competing in the T4 category will be armed with the proven RZR Pro R Factory, the same platform that delivered historic victories in 2024 and 2025. “Dakar represents the ultimate test of vehicle performance and team resilience, and our goal for 2026 is simple – defend our title while demonstrating the full strength of Polaris’ innovation,” said Alex Scheuerell, Director of Off-Road Motorsports, Polaris. “With two Dakar champions leading our five-driver lineup, and the debut of our all-new race platform, we’re entering the rally more prepared and more ambitious than ever.” The 2026 Polaris RZR Factory Race team combines championship pedigree and rising talent. Brock Heger (SSV1) — Heger is the reigning 2025 Dakar Champion, 2025 SCORE Series Champion, and a proven off-road racer recognized for his smooth driving style, race IQ, and unwavering consistency across multiple disciplines. Xavier De Soultrait (SSV1) — De Soultrait is the 2024 Dakar Champion, whose transition from elite motorcycle competition to SSVs has highlighted his adaptability and racecraft. His calm, methodical approach under pressure makes him one of rally-raid’s most respected and reliable talents. Goncalo Guerreiro (SSV1) — Guerreiro is a rising Portuguese rally-raid driver whose JB Racing roots and early championship success have quickly positioned him as one of the most promising young talents. Johan Krisstoffersson (T4) — Kristoffersson is a multi-time World Rallycross Champion and elite all-surface racer, recognized globally for his precision, versatility, and unmatched consistency. Florent Vayssade (T4) — Vayssade is a seasoned French rally-raid competitor whose path from elite kayaking to motorcycles and now SSV racing reflects his deep endurance background and adaptability. He brings proven Dakar experience and a steady, disciplined approach to the Polaris program. Each driver will be paired with experienced co-drivers, supported by LOEB FrayMédia Motorsport, and Polaris engineers – maximizing performance, reliability, and stage-to-stage strategy throughout the duration of the Dakar Rally. Polaris’ entry into Dakar’s newly created SSV1 category ushers in the Pro R Rally, designed specifically to meet international racing requirements. The new platform was engineered specifically for the demands of Dakar’s diverse, wide open terrain. Vehicle highlights include the following: DYNAMIX semi-active suspension: Tuned in-house by Polaris engineers specifically to tackle Dakar’s brutal terrain. Full MoTeC engine management and data acquisition: Offer drivers pro-level control and real-time intel in the harshest conditions. Sleek side-intake scoops: Improve airflow to engine and cooling system and double as number plates Full carbon-fiber dash and windshield frame: Reduce weight while adding serious race-car rigidity and feel. FiA-homologated race cage: Engineered and tested to handle Dakar-level abuse and keep drivers protected when things get wild. With championship experience, expanded vehicle capability, and one of the deepest driver lineups in the field, Polaris RZR Factory Racing and the LOEB FrayMédia Motorsport team enters the 2026 Dakar Rally with clear aspirations: push the limits of off-road performance and chase a third consecutive victory in the world’s most demanding desert race. Dakar 2026 takes place January 3-17 in Saudi Arabia. To learn more, please visit Polaris.com/RZR or join the conversation and follow onFacebook sm, Instagram sm, YouTube sm and Twitter sm. About Polaris As the global leader in powersports, Polaris Inc. (NYSE: PII) pioneers product breakthroughs and enriching experiences and services that have invited people to discover the joy of being outdoors since our founding in 1954. Polaris’ high-quality product line-up includes the RANGER, RZR and Polaris XPEDITION and GENERAL side-by-side off-road vehicles; Sportsman all-terrain off-road vehicles; military and commercial off-road vehicles; snowmobiles; Indian Motorcycle mid-size and heavyweight motorcycles; Slingshot moto-roadsters; Aixam quadricycles; Goupil electric vehicles; and pontoon and deck boats, including industry-leading Bennington pontoons. Polaris enhances the riding experience with a robust portfolio of parts, garments, and accessories. Headquartered in Minnesota, Polaris serves nearly 100 countries across the globe.www.polaris.com The post POLARIS RZR FACTORY RACING AND LOEB FRAYMÉDIA MOTORSPORT ANNOUNCE FIVE-DRIVER LINEUP FOR 2026 DAKAR RALLY appeared first on UTV Guide. View the full article

The first year of the century’s second decade couldn’t have started much worse for NHRA Pro Stock star Greg Anderson. With his team owner and close friend, Ken Black, fighting for his life in a Las Vegas hospital after suffering a stroke last December, Anderson’s Mooresville, North Carolina, home was gutted by fire just one month later. Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared as the cover story in DI #47 in November of 2010. Fortunately, no one was injured in the blaze, but Anderson’s personal life obviously was in turmoil. The transplanted Minnesotan regrouped and rebounded with an impressive final-round showing in the 2010 NHRA opener at Pomona in February, but at least some of the swagger and confidence of the three-time consecutive series champion seemed missing. He readily admits to being distracted by the personal tragedies and falling behind in critical off-season research and development (R&D) and testing, setbacks manifested in a series of middle-of-the-pack qualifying results and early-round losses that extended several months into the season. Still, Anderson never fell below fourth in points, while teammate and 2006 Pro Stock champion Jason Line hovered around the fifth- and sixth-place spots. Line delivered the team’s first win of the year at Gainesville, Florida, in the third event on the schedule, then finished runner-up a few races later in Chicago, but it wouldn’t be until the season’s halfway point at Norwalk, Ohio, that Anderson would reach another final, where he dispatched Allen Johnson for the 61st race win of his career. He didn’t have to wait long for his 62nd, as Anderson prevailed again in the next event at Seattle, the opening match of the annual three-race, so-called Western Swing, while Line kept the final-round streak alive, though suffering a loss to Jeg Coughlin Jr. in the following event at Sonoma, California. Both KB Racing drivers made it into the NHRA’s Top 10 Countdown to the Championship Pro Stock field, with Anderson placing fourth and Line fifth after 17 races were in the books. A disappointing outing with second-round losses for both at the 56th annual U.S. Nationals opened their Countdown quests, but Anderson again rebounded with his third win of the year just a couple of weeks later in September at his home track in Charlotte. “When I think about how I’ve struggled at that race track in the past I just wasn’t really looking forward to going back there and needing a victory to get back into the Countdown,” Anderson admits. “And after the start we had this year with Ken going down like that and then we had the fire and lost our home, I guess you could say we had a very interesting off season that kind of threw us behind the eight ball. “I don’t want to make excuses, but I think we did get a little bit behind and it’s taken the last three or four months before the Countdown to really get our act in gear and catch up to the rest of the guys. So to be quite honest, the first four or five months this season we were a little behind and it was hard to win, but we’re finally turning the corner and running good enough to go win races again and have a chance at winning another championship and we’re feeling a whole lot better.” Though it may sometimes seem like Anderson has been a fixture atop the Pro Stock field forever, he made his first start in the class just a dozen years ago in 1998, scored his inaugural win in 2001 and didn’t mount a full-time effort until 2002 when he won two national events. A record-setting campaign followed in 2003 along the way to Anderson’s first NHRA championship. He won a class record 12 events; earned an NHRA record 67 round wins; set national records for ET and speed; notched 19 track records and secured 14 number-one qualifying positions as one of only two Pro Stock drivers to qualify for all 23 national events that season. Incredibly, he did even better in 2004, claiming a new record 15 national-event wins after appearing in a record 19 final rounds with a record 76 elimination round wins. Anderson also earned a record 16 top qualifier awards and ultimately was voted Driver of the Year by nationwide motorsports media members after securing his second-straight championship. Anderson tapered off somewhat in 2005, making “only” seven first-place starts and winning eight times in 11 final-round appearances while wrapping up his third consecutive Pro Stock season title to end one of the most dominating runs in drag racing history, regardless of class. And though Anderson is yet to return to the top spot on the championship podium, he remains a consistent top-three finisher each year (eight years straight and counting) and enjoys a 10-year streak of delivering at least one victory annually. Line, meanwhile, is a former NHRA Stock Eliminator champion who entered the Pro Stock fray with a part-time effort in 2003 before being awarded 2004 NHRA Rookie of the Year honors based on the strength of four wins in eight final-round appearances that year. Another four wins complemented a pair of number-one starts the next season before Line broke through with his first Pro Stock championship in 2006 after scoring yet another four race wins. “That all seems so long ago now,” Line says. “The face of Pro Stock has certainly changed over the last few years and it’s tough right now, really tough, and there’s a bunch of cars that can all run about the same, which just makes it really hard. We certainly enjoyed things more in the past when we had a bigger advantage.” Anderson agrees, saying he doesn’t believe his years of dominating the class was a negative influence. “I heard this all the time back when I was winning a lot of races, that people don’t like to see the same guy win every week, but I don’t know. Yes, people certainly don’t want the same thing to happen every week, but I don’t think it’s all bad to have a dominant driver like John Force or Dale Earnhardt Sr. was back in the day. People either loved Earnhardt or they hated him because he won a lot, so I guess it’s not necessarily a bad thing if you’re disliked for that; it’s still good for the sport,” he insists. Furthermore, Anderson says he and Line are “digging hard” to return to setting the pace in Pro Stock, even if it means becoming a target for fans and competitors alike. “A lot of people probably would not want to have that extra pressure or the target on them, whatever you want to call it, but I would much rather have it; I would much rather have a race car that’s capable of going down the track and outrunning every other race car out there and put the weight back on the driver’s shoulders and seeing if he can get the job done by not screwing anything up,” Anderson says. “I probably complained once or twice when we were in that position before, but now that we’re not I’d take that back in a heartbeat, without a doubt. You know what? If you can’t handle the pressure you don’t need to be doing this deal,” he adds. A lot of that pressure comes from on-track parity within the class, but both Anderson and Line agree a lot of that parity is a direct result of something far more pernicious than just hard work—personnel movement. “People ask me about that almost every day. They say, ‘How did you lose your advantage. How did the other guys gain so quickly?’ and it’s through information trade off, information leakage, however you want to put it, it’s because of employees changing teams and you just can’t stop that; there’s nothing you can do about it,” says Anderson, who serves as team manager in addition to his shop and cockpit duties. “The three teams that have won the Pro Stock championship for the last seven or years or so are all in the Charlotte area now. Myself and Jason are here, the Victor Cagnazzi team is here with Jeg (Coughlin) and the Mike Edwards’ team is here, as is Johnny Gray, so yes, we grit our teeth about it pretty much every day and do the best we can to protect ourselves, but really, there’s not much we can do about it. “It’s just the nature of the beast. You try to be as confidential with everything you can, but when you have a race team of 20-some people you need them all pulling on the same rope, so they all need to be involved and know what’s going on to make things better. So everybody pretty much knows what’s going on in the entire shop and when you have one of those employees go across town, there goes all that knowledge, some of which has taken years to attain. “It happens in NASCAR every day and it’s definitely happening in drag racing. That’s exactly why you have so many teams that have stepped up their level of competition lately; it’s the transfer of information, basically, from shop to shop.” As head engine builder for the Summit-backed Pro Stock team and after holding a similar position with a top-flight NASCAR operation for several years before joining Anderson, Line feels a little more personal frustration at losing whatever horsepower-making secrets he may have uncovered. “Everybody flip-flops guys who bring a little bit of knowledge with them wherever they go,” he points out. “It tends to even things out and makes it that much harder to get an advantage—and keep it—because they’re not going to unlearn things when they leave, that’s for sure. It’d be nice to download them before they walk out the door, but that’s not about to happen so we just have to live with it.” Of course money always remains a decisive factor in how competitive any race team can be and Anderson estimates it takes upwards of $2 million a year to mount a championship-contending Pro Stock effort. That figure rises to about $3 million for a two-car team, he says, since facilities, specialized equipment, tools, transportation and personnel can often be shared among both entries. And while “still a lot of money,” Anderson concedes, he stresses the extra expense can provide two very important benefits: additional learning opportunities and better value for sponsors. “Pretty much if you look at history what you’ve got to have is a multi-car team and again it’s for the same reason that NASCAR guys do it; you just get so much more data that you can learn from and so much faster. You just get to try so many more things and see their results so much faster than if you were trying everything individually on only one car,” Anderson says. “You get exposed to the race track a whole lot more and quite honestly, we do a lot of research in the shop and try to come up with new things to make more horsepower and make the race car work better, but it really comes down to trial and error on the race track. The more times you get to try things and the more time you can spend on the race track or on the dyno, the better chance you have of going forward.” Line says R&D is the single biggest expense for an operation like KB Racing, explaining that “each dyno pull costs a lot just because of all the perishables involved.” He cites valve springs as an example, saying it’s not at all uncommon to go through more than $1,000 worth in just one day of testing. “Then of course it takes a lot of time and everybody has to get paid, so that’s a big expense, too,” he adds. “It definitely costs a lot of money to go fast; these things are driven by money, there’s no question about it.” Regardless, Anderson says expenses have stabilized in recent years, largely due to self-policing by the teams. “We try as hard as we can to keep a budget on things and be realistic about what we spend because, let’s face it; you just can’t go out and spend unlimited dollars just because that may make you win. You have to draw the line somewhere and run it as a business or you’re just not going to be around,” he states. “So I think we’ve all gotten smarter over the last few years and realized we’d better keep things intact and keep our business heads attached or we’re going to outspend ourselves and we’ll all end up in big trouble. “So yes, it is very expensive and gets a little more so every year, but it could gain a lot faster if we got crazy and didn’t care about what we spend. So I give the rest of the class an ‘Atta boy,’ because I think we’ve all done a pretty good job of trying to keep it in check and somewhat real.” Something that could upset the delicate balance of fiscal responsibility, however, is the always looming potential of NHRA introducing electronic fuel injection to the Pro Stock class. Both Anderson and Line say they would support the switch, but Line wonders if today’s troubled economy might not present the right time for such a massive undertaking. “You would definitely have to change the design of the engine to take advantage of it and that’s where a lot of the cost would come in, but I think if they left the option of running both for awhile it would be interesting,” Line says. “It would make us rethink a lot of the things we’ve always done in the past and that’s not a bad thing. It would get everybody’s blood pumping again, that’s for sure.” Anderson says he would vote in favor of EFI if asked, adding he’s not even sure why there’s not more effort being expended on getting approval. “I’m not quite sure what the major hold-up is on it, who’s dragging their feet,” he says. “Obviously you have to realize people who build carburetors aren’t going to be in favor, but most of those same type of companies build fuel-injection systems, too, so I’m not really sure why we don’t have it already.” More important to Line would be encouraging and retaining more auto manufacturer support for the class. An excellent starting point, he claims, would be to promote the use of the popular new pony-car body styles in Pro Stock. “I would love to see cars like the new Camaro being used. It’s a great car and so are the Mustang and the Challenger, and to me they’re all muscle cars and they should be the key players in Pro Stock,” Line says. “It’s an old saying, but in this case I think it would still apply that what wins on Sunday would sell on Monday.” Regardless of what changes may be in store for Pro Stock, Anderson has just one need to satisfy. “Quite honestly, I’ve always been a guy that thinks the class needs to get faster every year; that it needs to improve its speed and get quicker in ET. We kind of have such a big gap from Top Fuel and Funny Car to Pro Stock and how fast the cars run and how much noise they make and how much fire they throw out and all that stuff. I guess I kind of deep down wish that our cars would run a bit faster,” he says. Anderson recognizes, though, that increased speed is accompanied by increased safety concerns, as evidenced by ongoing efforts by NHRA to limit the speed of Top Fuel and Funny Car entries. “So maybe I shouldn’t hope for that, but I’m a racer and I just want to go faster, faster, faster all the time and I think the fans like that, too,” he says. “I do think they’re pretty safe cars right now, but you can obviously still have a major problem and you can still hurt people, so I don’t know. I haven’t really done the research on what might happen if these cars were 50 mile an hour faster, if they’re capable of doing something like that and still being stable, but I’d still like to see them go faster; I just think it’s more exciting. “That’s one big reason why I’m happy we still race to the quarter mile; if we went only to a thousand feet you’d see these cars running maybe 185 or 190 mile an hour and I really believe as a class we definitely have to be over that 200-mile-an-hour mark to excite the fans.” Now four years removed from the NHRA Full Throttle Awards Banquet champions’ table and after a trying year of perseverance, the KB Racing duo appears ready to regain their stature in the class. “I think it’s going to be the most interesting playoff year we’ve ever seen, and yes, the class has gotten a lot stiffer and a lot deeper and that’s just the natural progression. It’s like if you look at a stick-and-ball team where the bench has gotten a lot deeper,” Anderson says. “Quite honestly, we’ve got 10 cars that qualified for our Countdown to the Championship and I can’t pick a winner. Being on the inside you’d think we could tell who has the best hot rod and the best chance to win, but I honestly can’t pick a favorite right now; there are so many guys who could win a race and if they string four or five wins together, any one of them—or one of us—could be world champion.” The post DI Classic: Greg Anderson, Jason Line and Pro Stock Perseverance first appeared on Drag Illustrated. View the full article

Street circuits for MotoGP haven't been a thing in a long while, mostly due to safety concerns. But the series boss, Carmelo Ezpeleta, said they could return in the near future. View the full article

Michael Dunlop could ride a Ducati V4R at the Isle of Man TT next year and put the brand on the top podium in the Superbike class.View the full article

What happens when you take a clapped out old Fiat 126 and turn it into the streetgoing racecar of your dreams with a BMW K 75 engine swap and a sequential gearbox?View the full article

BendPak just announced their new APEX Ramps. A budget-friendly line for home mechanics. The design handles loading without damaging floors.View the full article

Suzuki unveiled bold new graphics for the 2026 Hayabusa. But perhaps it's time they put this beast out to pasture?View the full article

Yeah, Ducati's MotoGP entry is fast, but even its CEO was surprised by how Marc Marquez took the bike to win the championship in such a decisive way. View the full article

Brent Crews has signed a deal to drive the No. 19 for Joe Gibbs Racing in the 2026 NASCAR O'Reilly Auto Parts (formerly Xfinity) Series. The 17-year-old will run 29 of 33 events, and will only miss four due to the fact that he's not old enough to run at all track types. The Toyota Development Driver would be eligible for a playoff waiver as missed races due to age restrictions are an allowable ...Keep readingView the full article

Richard Childress Racing said in a Monday statement that ‘legal action in being contemplated’ after its eponymous team owner was insulted by NASCAR executives in text messages unsealed as part of the ongoing 23XI Racing and Front Row Motorsports lawsuit against the sanctioning body. “RCR and Richard Childress are deeply disappointed by the insensitive and defamatory statements made about ...Keep readingView the full article

The rumor has been confirmed, Austin Prock is leaving John Force Racing. Prock's father is also leaving the team as well. View the full article

John Force Racing and Austin and Jimmy Prock have ended the racing partnership that produced NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series Funny Car championships the past two seasons for the 24-time championship organization. “John Force Racing has been doing what we do for more than 50 years and all the hard work preparing for the 2026 NHRA season continues as planned with four race teams and the Force American Made machine shop,” said 16-time NHRA Funny Car Champion and team owner John Force. “We appreciate the strength and backing of all of the great sponsors that support us so we’re focused on the future that includes announcing additional partnerships in the coming weeks. “We are very proud of our accomplishments with the Prock family. I wish them well and I understand that their decision to move on is just part of the business we’re in.” Austin Prock earned all 21 of his NHRA victories, 17 in Funny Car and four in Top Fuel, for John Force Racing. Jimmy Prock, Austin’s father and crew chief, started with John Force Racing in 2001 and, other than the final two races in 2014 and the 2015-2016 seasons, was part of the organization through the just-completed 2025 season. The NHRA Mission Foods Drag Racing Series kicks off its 75th anniversary season March 5-8, 2026, with the NHRA Gatornationals at Gainesville (Fla.) Raceway. This story was originally published on November 24, 2025. The post Confirmed: John Force Racing, Procks Part Ways first appeared on Drag Illustrated. View the full article

Episode 3 of the C10 Shootout covers nearly the entire Big 10 build at Big 3 Racing. Check out what they did to their C10. View the full article

In early May, former DI contributor Craig Cook sat down four of the original Street Outlaws cast members for a roundtable interview at Mo-Kan Dragway’s inaugural 405 Shootout. Cook spoke with James “Doc” Love, Joe “Dominator” Woods, Sean “Farmtruck” Whitley, Jeff “AZN” Bonnett to discuss the early days of the show, how it evolved over time, and what the future holds after 15 seasons of the original show and numerous spinoffs. At the time, many of the drivers were at a crossroads: with no television deal in place and fewer contracts being offered, they had to decide how to proceed moving forward. Since then, Speed Promotions Racing, which took over the No Prep Kings framework, canceled the final races of its 2025 season, effectively ending the Street Outlaws era. This excerpt of the roundtable, which appeared in DI #196, the State of Drag Issue, in September/October 2025, features James “Doc” Love. Looking back on when the original 405 show first started, did you ever believe it would blow up and become as popular as it did? Yes and no. Yes because what we did was frigging cool as hell. You can look around at the spectators now, just to watch some idiots going out there and doing burnouts and street racing. In that aspect, how could it not be a hit? Then it’s like, “I’m just a diesel mechanic nobody from Oklahoma City. This can’t be happening to me.” We’d never had a camera in our face, and most of us, myself included, sucked at the beginning of it. You just tense up and don’t know what to say. Everywhere you look, there’s a camera guy and a sound guy, and everybody’s watching you and they’re wanting you to just be normal. From the aspect of a camera crew filming some stupid, redneck, backward-ass guys doing stupid shit on the streets at 2:00 in the morning, did I think that was going to make a hit? No. But at the same time, I believed in it, and that led to 12 years of awesomeness. You all have done this for quite a while now. Looking back on the show, what’s either a favorite memory or accomplishment that each of you had over the course of Street Outlaws? It’s no secret that me and “Big Chief” [Justin Shearer] never really got along. “Murder Nova” [Shawn Ellington], being best friends with Chief back in the day, it was kind of always me against them. Probably the first moment that really sticks out – besides taking the Crown away from Murder Nova – was when I raced Petey Smallblock in an out-of-town race, and everybody got behind me and put their own money up. Chief told those guys from New York, “You put your pot together, we’ll match it.” I believe the pot ended up being 21 grand, so winning that race and winning 21 grand for Team 405, having all my boys stand behind me, put their own money on me, it’s just a great feeling. You beat the out-of-towner. Everybody believes in you, and it was the biggest money race of the night. Besides winning the Crown, that’s probably my second-highest achievement, right there. As things progressed, it wasn’t just the 405 show anymore. With nearly 20 spin-off shows, you were basically filming year-round. With a cast made up primarily of regular, blue-collar workers, how did you balance your regular jobs and filming full-time? We were a hodgepodge of everything you could think of. There was one year that I personally filmed four different TV shows. I know it was our original show and No Prep Kings. I did Mega Cash Days, and something else. I can’t remember what the other one was, but I filmed four shows. I never made America’s List, so I could have been doing five, maybe even six shows. It cost me my career. I couldn’t be there to run my shop. I had to rely on other people to run my shop, and nobody can run your shop like you do. I had to make the decision: close the shop and continue filming, or quit filming and go back to the business. I don’t want to be a diesel mechanic. I’m tired of working on diesels. My hands hurt, arthritis, shoulder, back. I chose the path to do something I love. Even though we’ve been struggling, I still want to go down that road. I love the fans. The racing can be as bad as it can be, and the fans all turn it around. One of the most popular spin-off shows was No Prep Kings. How did you all balance the idea of being street racers that are now competing at the track, but also giving fans of the show the opportunity to come out and experience what you’re doing? We personally didn’t care. We’re getting paid to race. That was the road to us going to full-time jobs with this stuff. Our fan base was literally seven-year-olds to 75-year-olds. What part of that fan base is actually going to get to see us race on the street? A very small percentage. The only way we could give back to our fans was to go to the track. No prep was invented to get street racers off the street. It evolved into its own animal, took off, and it’s its own thing now, as far away from street racing as it could be. Everybody wants to outrun everybody. That evolution led to where it’s at now: the best of the best cars, parts, and tuners. Nobody does it alone, like we used to. Am I happy with it? No. I wish it was still back to the original, real no prep days. That’s where I feel like blue-collar guys like me, that can’t afford the best of the best, will shine. With the evolution you talked about – the never-ending desire to continue going faster combined with big-money teams jumping in – do you believe it eventually went too far from what made it popular to begin with? I’ll say something about that. We had some new guys come in and immediately make an impact. Clay Cole, Nate Sayler, the Gucci car, those guys basically built Ryan Martin’s car in a different body. They literally called Pro Line and said, “I want to run with Ryan, I want to compete with Ryan Martin,” and they told them how to build the car. It’s the same tuner Ryan has, so now instead of one Ryan Martin, you have five. That’s where it went, and I’ve just never been a follow-the-leader-type guy. I didn’t want to be like the next guy, nor could I afford to build a $300,000 car. So we just do it the Doc Love way and try to make the best of it. If it ever goes back to the way it used to be, I’m so much smarter now than I used to be, so much more ahead, that I feel I could go back to dominating like I used to. Looking ahead, with Speed Promotions Racing taking over what was formerly No Prep Kings, and no television show currently in place, what are your plans moving forward? Will you continue with SPR, or focus more on match races and paid appearances? If we were still on TV, I could tell you a better direction where we’re going to go, but honestly, we’re in the dark out here. I can’t afford to chase these multi-million-dollar teams around. I’m asking a 30-year-old repurposed bracket car to do what it was never built to do in the first place. Yes, I get paid a little bit of money to go, but in the long run, it’s not worth it. I hate to say that the fans aren’t worth it; I just can’t financially compete anymore, so I’ll do what I can. If I can’t do a Speed Promotions race, then I’ll do an appearance like we’re at right now. In the last five years, we didn’t have time to do appearances. We didn’t have time to go out and just meet the fans and race our cars for fun, so I want to get back to that. I’ll still get in front of the fans, entertain, and do the best I can. I’ll do that until they don’t want to see me anymore. The post DI Interview: James ‘Doc’ Love on ‘Street Outlaws’ Fame, Escalating Costs & Finding His Path Forward first appeared on Drag Illustrated. View the full article

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