A Diesel Dominates Cleeter’s AWD vs. RWD Shootout

Is it the ultimate comeback story? You betcha! From a catastrophic crash in the fall of 2023 to his ’10 F-250 being reborn at Truck Source Diesel to winning Cleeter’s AWD vs. RWD Shootout, Nathan Wheeler has the Crazyhorse” Ford sitting on top of the world. Last Thursday, Nathan and the team from Austin, Texas beat out some of the best AWD no-prep racers in the country, including the infamous “Gringo” and “Grimace” F-150s—and took home $20,000 in cold, hard cash. It’s proof that with enough determination, testing, and the right setup—D&J Enforcer series Cummins, S&S fuel and calibrating (via MoTeC stand-alone), Hart’s turbo, and five (5) stages of nitrous—diesel can compete with anyone, anywhere, any time.

At The ‘Strip

Cummins Corvette Goes 3’s At Battle For The Thrones

They fought issue after issue and didn’t get the W, but Rod MacMaster and team Hardway got the Cummins-powered Corvette into the 3’s. It happened during the Battle for the Thrones radial tire race at Rockingham Dragway over the weekend and it’s a huge milestone for what is another tremendous comeback story in diesel drag racing. After kissing the wall in 2023, it was a long road back to this point—but we’re sure that 3.97 at 191 mph timeslip made every minute of it worth it. Look for Rod to dip deeper and deeper into the 3’s going in forward and continue to force the words “compression ignition” into the Radial Vs. The World conversation.

Diesel Truck Wars

Some 250 miles east of Rockingham, the spring edition of Diesel Truck Wars went down at Northeast Dragway—and Byron Kline killed it. Not only did he double-class in the event’s two fastest categories, Outlaw and Singles Elite, but he won the latter class and made it to the finals in Outlaw (Jaxon Ray Harrell’s nasty Duramax would get the W there). A big win would be earned by hometown boy, Josh White, who stole the show in the 6.70 Index class. As always, solid payouts equaled a big turnout for an event that is becoming the can’t-miss season-opener for diesel drag racing.

In The Dirt

Showdown In The Swamp—Truck And Tractor Pulling From Louisiana

Many don’t usually associate truck and tractor pulling with the state of Louisiana—but that needs to change. The “Showdown In The Swamp” pull put on by the Mid-South Pullers Association (a member state of the Pro Pulling League) brings some of the heaviest hitters in Pro Stock Diesel trucks, Limited Pro Stock tractors, Super Farm tractors, Light Limited Super Stock tractors, and Super Modified 2wd trucks to Hammond, Louisiana every March. This year, the action commenced on Friday evening (unfortunately, Saturday was a rainout) and, after picking the perfect line, Brady Ingram piloted Scheid Diesel’s Pro Stock second-gen to the winner’s circle.

2025 Summit 7.3

The first year was eye-opening. This time, Summit 7.3 officially became an “every-year” event for us. It’s clear the folks at Power Hungry Performance go above and beyond to plan and pull off a comprehensive event that celebrates all things 7.3L Power Stroke. Attendees learn about the current state of the diesel industry, are presented with business development strategies designed to improve operations both large and small, have the option of attending a Minotaur software training day, and get a first glimpse at prototype and soon-to-be-released parts. New for 2025, there was a public truck show on the final day of Summit 7.3. Our friends at Jelibuilt Performance took full advantage of it, putting their reborn 7.3L drag truck on display. Owner Brian Jelich and his 3,700-pound F-350 will soon look to regain the title of fastest 4×4 7.3L in the world…

Written by Mike McGlothlin