RONNIE DAVIS: UPHOLDING THE TOP SPORTSMAN NAME
Fri, 2010-05-07 14:00
Back in 1990, the outlook for the Top Sportsman class appeared to be uncertain. The foggy status was a result of the IHRA creating a Pro Modified class out of Top Sportsman that year.
At the time, however, Top Sportsman racer Ronnie Davis didn’t worry at all about the class being eliminated.
“It never even entered my mind,” Davis said. “Pro Mod spawned or grew or burst out of Top Sportsman. When I heard about Top Sportsman in 1989, I knew some guys that ran it, but I was an NHRA racer. They would go to the tracks, qualify at national meets, run the Quick 8 and load up and leave. That’s what Scotty Cannon, Blake Wiggins and those other old timers did. In 1990, when I won a world championship, I was a door car, and I had to run against dragsters and altereds.”
At the time, however, Top Sportsman racer Ronnie Davis didn’t worry at all about the class being eliminated.
“It never even entered my mind,” Davis said. “Pro Mod spawned or grew or burst out of Top Sportsman. When I heard about Top Sportsman in 1989, I knew some guys that ran it, but I was an NHRA racer. They would go to the tracks, qualify at national meets, run the Quick 8 and load up and leave. That’s what Scotty Cannon, Blake Wiggins and those other old timers did. In 1990, when I won a world championship, I was a door car, and I had to run against dragsters and altereds.”
Davis became a Top Sportsman IHRA world championship contender wining titles in ’91 and ’97. Additionally, he took home two division crowns in 2000 and 2002.
Davis’ IHRA accomplishments weren’t surprising, considering his racing roots. In his early racing days in the early 1980s, he garnered “The King” nickname because of his amazing success and countless victories in heads up races at the old Atlanta Speed Shop Dragway.
“They had a local deal called the king of hill where you run what you brung and hope you brung enough,” Davis said. “I went three-and-half years undefeated in that king of the hill category, that’s why they started calling me “The King”.”
Although “The King” was a star competitor in IHRA, he became disenchanted with the direction of the sanctioning body by the late 1990s.
“When (Bill) Bader bought the IHRA (in 1998), and went to the 48-car field, that’s when I stopped liking it,” Davis said. “I didn’t like 48, 32 was enough. I wanted to keep it quick. He also had a bye run into the final, and I never liked that idea.”
Flash forward to the present and Davis has become a Top Sportsman legend, not only for his driving ability, but his impact on the class.
Davis is responsible for introducing the Top Sportsman class to the NHRA.
“When NHRA contacted me in late 2001, and told me they were interested in Top Sportsman, and wanted to know if I was interested in building Top Sportsman in NHRA, I jumped on it,” the 55-year-old Davis said. “I started Top Sportsman on my own and it started in Division 2 as a five-race experimental series in 2002. Bill Holt, the NHRA Division 2 director, and myself, talked about doing this Top Sportsman class several times and he liked it. They were looking for something different over there (in NHRA), and we put together a deal to get things going. I got all the sponsors, and drew up the IHRA rules to fit the NHRA and we had our first race at Bristol in July of 2002. There were no Top Sportsman racers in NHRA because there was no class, so I invited my IHRA guys to come and that’s where it came from.”
After the inaugural NHRA Top Sportsman season, the class expanded to Division 3 and Division 4 in 2003.
“After 2003, it just grew to where it is now,” Davis said. “The Top Sportsman class has gone very well, I believe. They’ve called me the Godfather of Top Sportsman in the NHRA a few times, and that’s a source of pride for me because I’m actually the one who started it (Top Sportsman) in the NHRA, and now it is huge over there.”
Presently, Top Sportsman and Top Dragster are both in all seven NHRA divisions. This season, the NHRA also added another wrinkle as the Top Sportsman class is being competed at five national events. Races have already been held at Charlotte in March and St. Louis this past weekend, the remaining events will be held at Atlanta (May 14-16), Sonoma, Calif. (July 16-18) and Dallas (Sept. 23-26).
“I thought Top Sportsman was a very good class, and I thought it would go places, and it did,” Davis said. “I think that class is successful in the NHRA because people like to go fast in door cars and dragsters and it is just a real popular category. When you have the dial-in and you have a guy like me who has a $200,000 car, and guy with a $50,000 car, the guy with the $50,000 car can still outrun me because of the dial-in. As far as I know, Top Sportsman is the fastest growing class in the NHRA. There are just hundreds and hundreds of Top Sportsman racers out there.”
These days Davis campaigns a Top Sportsman car and a Pro Mod machine.
This past weekend, Davis was victorious at the Elite 8 shootout at the IHRA’s Spring Nitro Jam in Rockingham, N.C. Davis’ teammate Billy Thigpen also had a stellar outing at the Nitro Jam.
“That was heads-up racing with no breakout, and that’s what I do,” Davis said. “I do a lot of heads-up racing and that was a lot of fun. That was the first IHRA race I’ve been to in three years. Billy and I just had a great weekend at Rockingham. He had two runner-up finishes and I won my race.”
At Rockingham, Davis clocked a 6.471 elapsed time at 206.54 mph to defeat Gilmer Hinshaw in the Elite 8 finals.
Davis and Thigpen are a potent Top Sportsman duo. Thigpen and Davis are first and second in the NHRA Division 2 Jegs All Stars Top Sportsman points standings. In the regular Division 2 points, Davis also is second in the Top Sportsman standings just 10 points back of Anthony Montella.
“I’ve never finished out of the top five in all of my history of running Top Sportsman,” Davis said. “I’m going to keep racing until I get burned out. I’m not there yet.”
Up next for Davis is the Southern Nationals May 13-16 at Atlanta Dragway. He will be competing in the Top Sportsman class at the event.
“I do not go to any race where I’m not racing,” Davis said. “I’m not a very good spectator, and I’m looking forward to this race.”
At the time, however, Top Sportsman racer Ronnie Davis didn’t worry at all about the class being eliminated.
“It never even entered my mind,” Davis said. “Pro Mod spawned or grew or burst out of Top Sportsman. When I heard about Top Sportsman in 1989, I knew some guys that ran it, but I was an NHRA racer. They would go to the tracks, qualify at national meets, run the Quick 8 and load up and leave. That’s what Scotty Cannon, Blake Wiggins and those other old timers did. In 1990, when I won a world championship, I was a door car, and I had to run against dragsters and altereds.”
Back in 1990, the outlook for the Top Sportsman class appeared to be uncertain. The foggy status was a result of the IHRA creating a Pro Modified class out of Top Sportsman that year.
Ronnie Davis was instrumental in getting Top Sportsman added to the NHRA program.
At the time, however, Top Sportsman racer Ronnie Davis didn’t worry at all about the class being eliminated.
“It never even entered my mind,” Davis said. “Pro Mod spawned or grew or burst out of Top Sportsman. When I heard about Top Sportsman in 1989, I knew some guys that ran it, but I was an NHRA racer. They would go to the tracks, qualify at national meets, run the Quick 8 and load up and leave. That’s what Scotty Cannon, Blake Wiggins and those other old timers did. In 1990, when I won a world championship, I was a door car, and I had to run against dragsters and altereds.”
Davis became a Top Sportsman IHRA world championship contender wining titles in ’91 and ’97. Additionally, he took home two division crowns in 2000 and 2002.
Davis’ IHRA accomplishments weren’t surprising, considering his racing roots. In his early racing days in the early 1980s, he garnered “The King” nickname because of his amazing success and countless victories in heads up races at the old Atlanta Speed Shop Dragway.
“They had a local deal called the king of hill where you run what you brung and hope you brung enough,” Davis said. “I went three-and-half years undefeated in that king of the hill category, that’s why they started calling me “The King”.”
Although “The King” was a star competitor in IHRA, he became disenchanted with the direction of the sanctioning body by the late 1990s.
“When (Bill) Bader bought the IHRA (in 1998), and went to the 48-car field, that’s when I stopped liking it,” Davis said. “I didn’t like 48, 32 was enough. I wanted to keep it quick. He also had a bye run into the final, and I never liked that idea.”
Flash forward to the present and Davis has become a Top Sportsman legend, not only for his driving ability, but his impact on the class.
Davis is responsible for introducing the Top Sportsman class to the NHRA.
“When NHRA contacted me in late 2001, and told me they were interested in Top Sportsman, and wanted to know if I was interested in building Top Sportsman in NHRA, I jumped on it,” the 55-year-old Davis said. “I started Top Sportsman on my own and it started in Division 2 as a five-race experimental series in 2002. Bill Holt, the NHRA Division 2 director, and myself, talked about doing this Top Sportsman class several times and he liked it. They were looking for something different over there (in NHRA), and we put together a deal to get things going. I got all the sponsors, and drew up the IHRA rules to fit the NHRA and we had our first race at Bristol in July of 2002. There were no Top Sportsman racers in NHRA because there was no class, so I invited my IHRA guys to come and that’s where it came from.”
After the inaugural NHRA Top Sportsman season, the class expanded to Division 3 and Division 4 in 2003.
Recently, Davis won the IHRA Nitro Jame Top Sportsman Quick Eight in Rockingham, NC. (IHRA Photo)
“After 2003, it just grew to where it is now,” Davis said. “The Top Sportsman class has gone very well, I believe. They’ve called me the Godfather of Top Sportsman in the NHRA a few times, and that’s a source of pride for me because I’m actually the one who started it (Top Sportsman) in the NHRA, and now it is huge over there.”
Presently, Top Sportsman and Top Dragster are both in all seven NHRA divisions. This season, the NHRA also added another wrinkle as the Top Sportsman class is being competed at five national events. Races have already been held at Charlotte in March and St. Louis this past weekend, the remaining events will be held at Atlanta (May 14-16), Sonoma, Calif. (July 16-18) and Dallas (Sept. 23-26).
“I thought Top Sportsman was a very good class, and I thought it would go places, and it did,” Davis said. “I think that class is successful in the NHRA because people like to go fast in door cars and dragsters and it is just a real popular category. When you have the dial-in and you have a guy like me who has a $200,000 car, and guy with a $50,000 car, the guy with the $50,000 car can still outrun me because of the dial-in. As far as I know, Top Sportsman is the fastest growing class in the NHRA. There are just hundreds and hundreds of Top Sportsman racers out there.”
These days Davis campaigns a Top Sportsman car and a Pro Mod machine.
This past weekend, Davis was victorious at the Elite 8 shootout at the IHRA’s Spring Nitro Jam in Rockingham, N.C. Davis’ teammate Billy Thigpen also had a stellar outing at the Nitro Jam.
“That was heads-up racing with no breakout, and that’s what I do,” Davis said. “I do a lot of heads-up racing and that was a lot of fun. That was the first IHRA race I’ve been to in three years. Billy and I just had a great weekend at Rockingham. He had two runner-up finishes and I won my race.”
At Rockingham, Davis clocked a 6.471 elapsed time at 206.54 mph to defeat Gilmer Hinshaw in the Elite 8 finals.
Davis and Thigpen are a potent Top Sportsman duo. Thigpen and Davis are first and second in the NHRA Division 2 Jegs All Stars Top Sportsman points standings. In the regular Division 2 points, Davis also is second in the Top Sportsman standings just 10 points back of Anthony Montella.
“I’ve never finished out of the top five in all of my history of running Top Sportsman,” Davis said. “I’m going to keep racing until I get burned out. I’m not there yet.”
Up next for Davis is the Southern Nationals May 13-16 at Atlanta Dragway. He will be competing in the Top Sportsman class at the event.
“I do not go to any race where I’m not racing,” Davis said. “I’m not a very good spectator, and I’m looking forward to this race.”
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