Jim Perry has been racing for so long that he has forgotten exactly when he began making runs down a track. "I started racing around 1975," he replied when asked. Regardless, more than 40 years later the Niota, Tenn., racer remains a force to be reckoned with, having a firm grasp on first place in the Super Gas world championship standings as of press time. Perry opened the 2018 season by scoring early at the Amalie Motor Oil NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, Fla., an event he has won three times in the last seven years and a run of success for which he has no explanation. The 2009 Super Comp world champion would like nothing more than to add a Super Gas world championship to his resume after trading his winning dragster for his current '00 Chevy S-10 pickup about six years ago. CompetitionPlus Sportsman's J.T. Gonzalez caught up with Perry to talk about his decades-long racing career, his motivation after more than 40 years in the cockpit, and his future racing plans.

Thanks to our coverage partners at D3TV, we present to you the live video feed from the American Dream Summer Shootout at Dragway 42. 

Stock Eliminator racer Joe Sorenson wanted to make a strong impression headed into Saturday's Jegs All-Stars competition.

Not only did Sorenson qualify atop the 60-car Stock Eliminator field during first-day qualifying at the Jegs NHRA Route 66 Nationals, but also laid down the top run amongst his Jegs All-Stars competition by running -1.094 under the G/Stock Automatic standard with his 1969 Camaro with a 10.906. The next closest competitor in the eight-car specialty event was the D/Stock Automatic Camaro of Andrew Hill with a -1.079, 10.471,

 
Chase Williams led the list of nine winners who were crowned JEGS SPORTSnationals Champions in the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series at Beech Bend Raceway Park.
 
Williams met up with David Rampy in the Comp Eliminator final and drilled the tree with a .001 second reaction time propelling him to the win in 6.819 seconds at 175.34 mph. Rampy who advanced to his 154th national event final tipped the clocks at 7.315, 154.69.

Steve Collier's plan headed into the NHRA Heartland Nationals was to focus more on the performance of the quickest car in the family's stable of race cars.

Collier qualified No. 4, running a personal best 5.375, 254.66, and after a first-round victory appeared poised to make a run deep into eliminations. After winning the first round, he advanced to the semi-finals when Monroe Guest fouled.

Only one driver has this prestigious trophy on his mantle. There are eight others with a chance to join the two-time Pro Modified champion Mike Ashley in this exclusive club of one.

The Jegs Crown is one of the most sought-after awards in sportsman drag racing, earned only by winning both Jegs Sportsnationals events in a single season.

 
In the final results from Auto Club Dragway at Auto Club Speedway and the NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series, local racers Ross Wilson, San Bernardino, Calif., and Phil Mandela Jr., Upland, Calif., took home the wins in Comp Eliminator and Stock Eliminator respectively.
 
Wilson, with a starting line advantage, raced down the track with a pass of 8.309 seconds in his final round victory over Randy Jones, Monarch Beach, Calif., who clocked in at 8.839 seconds.

Only a few races into his Top Alcohol Dragster career, Troy Coughlin Jr. drove the JEGS.com McPhillips Racing rail to the winner's circle by dominating the Cavalcade of Stars presented by Budweiser Sunday in what was clearly the best car of the meet.
 
"Winning this race in this car with this team, right here in the great state of Ohio at this track, it just doesn't get any better," Coughlin said. "To be the No. 1 qualifier and convert that into a race win is very satisfying. I've known from the start this McPhillips Racing team was capable of winning and dominating like this and to have it come together after just a handful of starts says a lot about this tenacious crew."
 

The JEGS NHRA SPORTSnationals, widely regarded as one of the biggest and finest weekends in Sportsman racing, returns to Beech Bend Raceway Park in Bowling Green, Ky., for the third consecutive year on Memorial Day weekend, May 25-27. The event, which will feature three days of intense racing action from the top sportsman racers in the country, will have a purse of more than $108,000, along with special bonus races and national event product contingency awards.

NHRA and South Georgia Motorsports Park officials announced today that based on the current weather conditions at South Georgia and the forecast this week leading up to the scheduled NHRA Lucas Oil Drag Racing Series event, the decision has been made to postpone the event until September 7-8, 2018.