The NHRA handed down the largest fine in the history of NHRA POWERade championship drag racing on Sunday afternoon after discovering Don Schumacher Racing to be in possession of four drums of nitromethane not purchased from the official fuel supplier of the NHRA, VP Racing Fuels. NHRA VP Graham Light announced DSR’s fine was $100,000.

“Yesterday we discovered nitromethane in Don Schumacher Racing’s pits that was not purchased through the official distributor and that is clearly in violation of the rules,” Light said, in an interview with ESPN2. “As stewards of that product we take our responsibility very seriously. There are very strict guidelines as to the purchase and use of nitromethane. As a result of this violation, a $100,000 fine has been levied against Don Schumacher’s team.”

Don Schumacher was in complete protest of NHRA’s decision.

“I’ve been told by Tom Compton and Graham Light that Pro Nitro is a legal nitromethane that can be used in the NHRA,” Schumacher said, in reference to his brand that is legal in IHRA, Nostalgia and test events. “We had four drums of Pro Nitro in our pits Saturday and they have been removed. They feel this is inappropriate and have fined me. I will appeal the fine and I don’t feel the rulebook is being enforced the way it is written. That’s the bottom line.”

The NHRA handed down the largest fine in the history of NHRA POWERade championship drag racing on Sunday afternoon after discovering Don Schumacher Racing to be in possession of four drums of nitromethane not purchased from the official fuel supplier of the NHRA, VP Racing Fuels. NHRA VP Graham Light announced DSR’s fine was $100,000.

“Yesterday we discovered nitromethane in Don Schumacher Racing’s pits that was not purchased through the official distributor and that is clearly in violation of the rules,” Light said, in an interview with ESPN2. “As stewards of that product we take our responsibility very seriously. There are very strict guidelines as to the purchase and use of nitromethane. As a result of this violation, a $100,000 fine has been levied against Don Schumacher’s team.”

Don Schumacher was in complete protest of NHRA’s decision.

“I’ve been told by Tom Compton and Graham Light that Pro Nitro is a legal nitromethane that can be used in the NHRA,” Schumacher said, in reference to his brand that is legal in IHRA, Nostalgia and test events. “We had four drums of Pro Nitro in our pits Saturday and they have been removed. They feel this is inappropriate and have fined me. I will appeal the fine and I don’t feel the rulebook is being enforced the way it is written. That’s the bottom line.”

Schumacher added the fuel in question was not used in any of his race cars during the course of the weekend.

“We had planned to use the fuel in testing on Monday,” Schumacher explained. “The nitro that is being distributed here this weekend was not manufactured by Wego. It’s being distributed and not a ProNitro nitromethane either. This nitromethane shouldn’t really be out here and that I’m aware of first hand.

Section 4 in the NHRA 2008 rulebook states that only nitromethane from an accepted NHRA supplier may be brought or used on-site at an NHRA POWERade Series event. The rulebook also states NHRA will designate accepted suppliers may be brought on-site or used on site at national and divisional events.

What makes the issue even more clouded is Schumacher’s allegation that he’s sold nitromethane to VP Racing Fuels.

Schumacher first got into the nitromethane business in 2004 to combat a substantial price increase being doled out by VP Racing Fuels, who had brokered a deal with the China-based Wego and the U.S. based Dow-Angus brand.

The price of a 55-gallon barrel of nitromethane was $650 and immediately was raised to $900 with the cost expected to climb to $1,400 before the season’s end. Homeland Security was cited as a reason for the increase although a call to the Homeland Security Department by CompetitionPlus.com refuted the claim.

As this scenario played out, Schumacher procured another Chinese source of nitro and had a tanker of the fuel en route to the United States when the NHRA implemented a rule stating only the brands under exclusivity to VP Race Fuels were approved sources.

The NHRA eventually capped the price at $800 in 2004.

The Pro Nitro brand was declared the official source of nitromethane on the IHRA tour and this product was sold for $650. Many racers began to question the difference in price for an equal in quality product which was used largely by NHRA teams in testing.

The second skirmish between the official supplier and Pro Nitro transpired in 2006 when many teams covertly ran the lesser expensive source of nitro until a handful of those teams were put on secret probation when the number of runs they made in competition didn’t jibe up with receipts from the official supplier.

VP Race Fuels defended the exclusivity as protecting the sport’s only domestic supplier of nitromethane – Dow-Angus. Dow-Angus announced in November of 2006 they were ceasing production of nitromethane for racing leaving the only known source as the Chinese brand.

Last year, VP Race Fuels raised the price of nitromethane to $950 during the NHRA U.S. Nationals race weekend.

With the advent of U.S. Department of Homeland Security regulations, a drum of nitromethane was reduced to 42-gallons or 400 pounds while the price remained the same $950 for a lesser amount of product.

Citing Homeland Security and the need for an armed guard as well as increased paperwork, the price was launched to $1,250 per barrel. The paperwork according to Schumacher requires 15 – 20 minutes and the armed guard was only used during the evening hours of the NHRA Gatornationals last month. There was no added security during the daylight hours.

The price reportedly has been dropped to $1,050 according to ESPN2 coverage of the event.