By SEMA Editors
 Team Motive Gear from Belvidere North High School came in first place at the 9th Annual Race & Performance Expo with a time of 23:29. |
The Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Engine Challenge’s first event of the 2016 season was held at the 9th Annual Race & Performance Expo in Schaumburg, Illinois, February 20–21. Thirty-two teams competed for their chance to qualify for the National Dual Championships held later this year at the SEMA and PRI Shows.
NHRA Top Fuel driver Antron Brown launched the event with words of encouragement to these young aspiring teens. Brown, quite familiar with “countdowns” after clinching another World Championship in 2015, was invited to lead the crowd in the first countdown for Hot Rodders of Tomorrow.
After two days, Team Motive Gear from Belvidere North High School came out on top with a low time of 23:29. The other seven qualifiers included Team Taylor Cable (Fremd High School), Team Firestone and Team Design Engineering (Joliet Central High School), Team Howard Cams (Belvidere North High School), Team Fel-Pro and Team Autometer (Lockport High School) and Team Royal Purple (South Elgin High School).
The next competition will be hosted at the Summit I-X Piston Powered Auto-Rama in Cleveland, Ohio, March 19–20, 2016. Another batch of high-school teams will compete for their chance to qualify for the National Dual Championships held at the SEMA Show in Las Vegas and Performance Racing Industry show in Indianapolis. Visit HotRoddersOfTomorrow.com to see the complete results from the weekend.
Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Engine Challenge 2016 Schedule:
- Summit I-X Piston Powered Auto-Rama: Cleveland, Ohio; March 19–20, 2016
- Tarrant College Hot Rodders Qualifier: Fort Worth, Texas; March 26, 2016
- Coker Tire Chattanooga Cruise-In: Chattanooga, Tennessee; April 2, 2016
- Magnaflow Exhaust Event: Santa Margarita, California; April 2, 2016
- Summit Racing Atlanta Motorama: Atlanta; April 16–17, 2016
- UTI Pennsylvania Qualifier: Exton, Pennsylvania; April 23, 2016
- Edelbrock Car Show: Torrance, California; May 14, 2016
- Lane Automotive Car Show: Watervliet, Michigan; May 28, 2016
- UTI Northern CA Qualifier: Sacramento, California; June 4, 2016
- 11th Annual NMRA/NMCA Super Bowl of Street Legal Drag Racing: Joliet, Illinois; July 30–31, 2016
- SEMA Show: Las Vegas; November 1–4, 2016 (National Dual Championships)
- Performance Racing Industry: Indianapolis; December 8–10, 2016 (National Dual Championships)