INDIANAPOLIS - All of the drag strips in NHRA's North Central Division have converged on Indianapolis Raceway Park to pit their best racers against those from other tracks. Over the course of the three-day NHRA Summit Racing Series Finals, more than 800 racers in six classes, including Super Pro, Pro, Sportsman and Super Pro Bike, are competing for individual and team honors. Each track may also have a Youth Team which can include up to six Jr. Dragster competitors (divided into three age groups) and two High School class racers.

At the end of the weekend, individual winners in Super Pro, Pro, Sportsman and Super Pro Bike will advance to compete for a national championship against winners from NHRA's other six divisions at the NHRA Finals in Pomona, Calif., in November. They will each receive $3,500 for participating in the Finals and the national champion in each class will earn an additional $5,000.

Today's action at IRP included the VP Racing Fuels Race of Champions, a race within a race, where the top points earning drivers from each track squared off in head-to-head competition for a share of the $4,000 purse. Doug Bates, Columbus, Ohio, representing Pacemakers Dragway Park took the win in Super Pro and Harley Brewer, Elizabeth, Ind., from Ohio Valley Raceway won in Pro. Edgewater Sports Park's Jeff Seither, Fairfield, Ohio, drove to victory in Sportsman and the Super Pro Bike winner was Mike James, Reynoldsburg, Ohio, racing for National Trail Raceway.

Time trials in the NHRA Summit Racing Series Finals continue Saturday at 8 a.m. First round of eliminations will begin late in the afternoon and continue on Sunday.

The following are the final-round results from the NHRA North Central division VP Racing Fuels Race of Champions:

SUPER PRO
Doug Bate, Columbus, Ohio, '71 Nova, 6.971 seconds, 96.43 mph def.
ArthurBauer, Scbree, Ky., '91 Chevy, 6.900, 97.63

PRO
Harley Brewer, Elizabeth, Ind., '67 Mustang, 6.831, 98.33 def.
Randy Carnal, Evansville, Ind., '75 Vega, red light

SPORTSMAN
Jeff Seither, Fairfield, Ohio, '69 Fairlane, 13.716, 87.74 def.
Bill McCarty, Terre Haute, Ind., '71 Scamp, 14.253, 89.79

SUPER PRO BIKE
Mike James, Reynoldsburg, Ohio, '76 Kawasaki, 9.735, 134.73 def.
Dan Dishon, Logansport, Ind., '97 Kawasaki, 8.963

The following 16 tracks are participating in the North Central division NHRA Summit Racing Series Finals at IRP:
Beech Bend Raceway Park; Bowling Green, Kentucky
Bluegrass Raceway Park; Owingsville, Kentucky
Bunker Hill Dragstrip; Bunkerhill, Indiana
Chandler Motorsports Park; Chandler, Indiana
Coles County Dragway; Charleston, Illinois
Edgewater Sports Park; Cleves, Ohio
Gateway Int'l Raceway; Madison, Illinois
Indianapolis Raceway Park; Indianapolis, Indiana
Kil-Kare Dragway; Xenia, Ohio
Mid-Michigan Motorplex; Stanton, Michigan
National Trail Raceway; Columbus, Ohio
Ohio Valley Raceway; Louisville, Kentucky
Pacemakers Dragway Park; Mount Vernon, Ohio
Route 66 Raceway; Joliet, Illinois
Wabash Valley Dragway; Terre Haute, Indiana
Windy Hollow Raceway Park; Owensboro, Kentucky