Pro Stock becomes official NHRA eliminator

Reprinted from the Oct. 31, 1969 issue of National DRAGSTER

Officials of the National Hot Rod Association meeting in Dallas, Texas, this week announced the ratification of proposed eliminator categories for the 1970 NHRA "Super Season" of drag racing.

The categories, which involve several major changes and new designations over 1969 classifications, were made official after careful consideration and deliberation and with strong attention to important recommendations acquired by NHRA Division Directors and Division Tech Directors in the field.

The Eliminator procedure for 1970, which will apply at all major NHRA National events as well as the annual World Championship Series, actually includes two categories -- four for "heads-up" racing and four for "Handicap start" categories.

In the heads-up section, categories will include Top Fuel for AA/Fuel Dragster; Top Gas for AA/Gas Dragster; Funny Car Eliminator for AA/Funny Car and an all-new heads-up Super Stock category for drag racing's professional high-performance stock cars.

The heads-up Super Stock will feature cars of 1968 and later American production cars, with a minimum of 7 lbs. per cu. in., and weighing 2700 lbs. or more.

Engines must be of the same make as the cars in which they are used, with any internal modification permitted. Lightweight replacement components may be used for front fenders, hoods and deck lids, but original steel body shells must be retained.

Carburetion is limited to a maximum of two four-barrel or four two-barrell American automobile carburetors. The designation for this class will be Super Stock and will be carried on the cars at S/S.

Funny Car Eliminator will consist of AA/Funny Car–specially constructed replicas of late-model production machines, with rules similar to those from 1969. Coupe and sedan bodies are required with no removal of tops permitted. Some modifications of bodies will be allowed, but will be restricted to given dimensions in height, width and legth.

In the handicap-start section the present Super Eliminator category has been retained, with the addition of A/Dragster, A/Competition, A/Altered classes. The new designation, however, will be Competition Eliminator.

The former Competition Eliminator, with the exception of the A/Dragster, Competition and Altered classes, has been combined with the present Street Eliminator category and will be renamed as Modified Eliminator. Two new classes for pre-1960 stock head, incline 6's and 8's and flathead V8's were added; E/Dragster and F/Altered, respectively.

The two new categories for handicap stock cars will be defined as top stock and Jr. Stock Eliminators. Top Stock, formerly classed Super Stock will offer 12 classes; AA/S through FF/S and AA/SA through FF/SA for automatic transmissions.

Jr. Stock, formerly called Stock Eliminator retains its present total of 35 classes for both stick and automatic equipped cars. An adjustment in classes requires a change of letter designations, however, but most other details remain the same.

Of special significance to pre 1957 model stock car owners is NHRA's announcement that the proposed 15-year obsolescence rule was abandoned in favor of a requirement that certain replacement parts would not be allowed in stock competition.

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