“They’re drag racers and they’ve shown us and the other race tracks a lot of love,” Rodriguez said. “It’s unheard of the way that Larry and Mel have promoted the racers and tracks.”
Rodriguez and his business partner have done more than their fair share to promote their racers as well. They’ve given them a great place to race with an upgraded timing system along with adding more bleachers and a burnout pit. They’ve also worked hard on the mud drags side where trucks, ATVs and side-by-sides competitors.
With the way the racing landscape has changed in Texas and across the country, Rodriguez sees Edinburg Motorsports Park as providing a valuable service to the competitors. EMP has been a true leader in getting drag racing off the streets and on the track.
“We’ve become even more important to the racers in South Texas as tracks have closed,” Rodriguez said. “We’re trying to take the bull by the horns and have a huge race coming in February to kick off our points for the season.”
More details will be released later on that event, which will include chassis certifications and racers competing for IHRA Ironman trophies.
As for the 2023 season, Edinburg track representatives at the IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Finals were: Gabriel Hernandez (Top), Allen Friedeck (Mod), Jason Hildebrandt (Sportsman), William Keele Jr. (Motorcycle) and Felipe Trevino (Junior Dragster).
Keele went all the way to the championship round where he was runner-up. Edinburg racers also had a great time at the IHRA Division 4 (Renegades) Summit Team Finals where Hildebrandt was the Sportsman runner-up and his son, Tate, was the Junior Dragster winner. Keele also reached the final round in the Division 4 finals.
Another thing that makes Edinburg Motorsports Park stand out is the great selection of concessions. There are the standard fare of hot dogs and hamburgers, and also plenty of great dishes like one would find in a good Mexican restaurant. It makes good sense as they’re getting more racers in South Texas and from Mexico, giving the true meaning of being an “International” Hot Rod Association track.
“A lot of racers from Mexico are interested in IHRA,” Rodriguez said. “That’s a hot commodity for us right now having racers from Mexico. Our kickoff race (next season) should be really big.”
With the warm weather in South Texas, racing goes on at Edinburg Motorsports Park year round. Click here to check out the track’s Facebook page for more exciting news.
