WINTER WONDERLAND

THE 53rd Winternationals lived up to its rep as the biggest and most prestigious event on the domestic drag racing calendar. Near-capacity crowds flocked to Willowbank Raceway over the four days of the meeting and were treated to some of the finest and closest racing at the track in decades.

It was the first 400 Thunder meeting at the venue since January 2020, and also served as the final round of the 2019/21 400 Thunder season, which began at Sydney Dragway way back in November 2019.

For many competitors, it was their first significant hit-out since the COVID-19 outbreak, so it came as no surprise to see many hot-foot racers cutting red lights and collecting centre cones over the first