10/17/2024
IHRA Events
Hildebrandt Continues Strong Texas Tradition with IHRA Summit SuperSeries Junior Dragster World Title
Many of the best Junior Dragster racers in North America come from the Lone Star State.
Tate Hildebrandt is keeping that tradition alive after capturing the IHRA Summit SuperSeries Junior Dragster World Championship at Holly Springs, Mississippi.
Hildebrandt, a 14-year-old from Dillon, Texas, calls Edinburg Motorsports Park his home track. The third-generation racer qualified for the IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Finals presented by Strange Engineering after winning the Junior Dragster title at IHRA Division 4 Summit Team Finals at Xtreme Raceway Park for a second straight year.
With his World Finals victory, Tate ascended to the No. 1 ranking on DragChamp.com Junior Racer Top 10 list. Hildebrandt has honed his skill on the track and also at home with the Roblox Drag Racing online experience. It’s the only sport he does after discovering a passion for drag racing six years ago.
“I just do the video game and drag race,” Hildebrandt said. “My grandpa got me interested in drag racing because he races Super Gas and I’ve been going since I was young.”
His grandfather, Kevin Theobold, is a multiple-time winner on the NHRA tour, while Tate’s father, Jason Hildebrandt, is a successful IHRA bracket racer in his own right. Jason drove his Plymouth to a runner-up finish at the 2023 IHRA Division 4 (Renegades) Summit Team Finals.
Tate has racked up plenty of honors over the years including winning the 2022 IHRA Division 4 Team Finals Shootout at Xtreme Raceway Park. But, the biggest honor came last Saturday when he earned the title of IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Champion.
He received a great prize package headlined by a $10,000 big check from Summit Racing Equipment, a prestigious IHRA Ironman trophy for the World Finals and an IHRA Gold Card.
Hildebrandt got a huge advantage of .060 at the starting tee in his semifinal win over Amarillo Dragway track champion Tristen Glenn. He posted an 8.081-second run at 78.02 mph against an 8.04 dial-in.
It put him against IHRA Division 1 (Patriots) Summit Team Finals winner Will Willard in the final round. Willard, a racer from Elk Creek Dragway, triggered the red-light by just -.004 second. That handed gthe win to Hildebrandt, who was able to cruise to victory and soak in the moment.
“I love the feeling of winning. There’s nothing like it,” Hildebrandt said.
Keep checking out IHRA.com and our social media pages over the next couple of weeks. We will post the National Top 10 lists and have profiles of the runner-ups at the IHRA Summit SuperSeries World Finals.
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