What will we see during the 2018 NHRA Pro Mod Season?

This week was the kickoff to the 2018 NHRA season. It is when entry for the season opens. While there wasn't any stunning surprises on the entry lists, it makes you wonder what we will see this season in the NHRA. 

The end of the 2017 season was absolutely amazing, so this season is going to have a lot to live up to if it wants the attention that last season got. What we have heard, there are going to be plenty of things worth talking about in 2018. We wrapped up the end of the season with Troy Coughlin coming back and yanking the championship for Mike Castellana's grip.  

Mike showed us early in the season that the blower setups were going to be a force, and he was exactly right. Mike, along with Stevie Jackson, and others proved that they could win and run with the turbo cars all day long. Some late season slips allowed Troy to take that points lead and win the championship in Vegas at the final Pro Mod race of the year. 

All the talk in 2017 was about this loud mouth, brash kid named Stevie Fast. NHRA had no idea what they were getting when it came to Stevie either. The first time they interviewed Stevie, you'd think that he broke the internet. This guy from middle of no where Georgia came on the scene and put the rest of the class on immediate notice that he was shooting for the top. Stevie went out at his first NHRA race and went straight to the number one qualifying spot. While there were some mechanical issues that prevented him from going rounds at the Gators, the performance was already shown. 

Another story was Rickie Smith. Arguably one of the top three doorslammer racers to ever drive, was laid up for part of the season due to surgery. Rickie is really the one to lead the nitrous fight year after year in pro mod. His absence was glaringly obvious as well. He did come back and show everyone that he can compete and did well enough to finish #9 in points. 

Now that we have entered 2018, the champion has retired, and there are numerous drivers trying to make sure that their marketing partners are locked in as well. So, does that mean we won't have an exciting year? I think the answer would be a resounding no. We have already heard that at least two PDRA standouts are coming to play in the NHRA sandbox in 2018. If the names Melanie Salemi and Lizzy Musi don't get your heart racing, you might want to check your pulse. These two ladies are only two of the new drivers we plan on seeing in 2018 at NHRA national events. If you thought that Stevie was great last year, let's see if 2018 is the year of more rookies. 

Another thing to watch for this year is going to be the ongoing attempt to have parity between the three power adders. Even though a turbo combo took him the big trophy, if you look at the top ten, we saw a pretty even field as far as points go. The turbo drivers are going to want more boost, the blower cars aren't going to want the turbos to have more boost, and the nitrous cars are getting a lockup converter. Will we see .60's from a nitrous car? I would not be at all surprised to see that. Will we see a non Proline turbo entry be able to compete with the big boys? Can anyone stop the consistancy of the blower cars? 

If you don't think that Pro Mod can get anymore exciting than it was last season, I think you are in for one hell of an awakening. Plan on seeing records fall, new drivers step up, and some of the old guard prove that they are still ones to beat. 

What do you think we will see this season? Comment below to let us know.