Australian Hot Rod Club (AHRC), promoter of drag race events at Bob Jane-owned Calder Park and Adelaide International raceways, has angered competitors after announcing it plans to slash prizemoney payments at both venues.

The AHRC recently informed the Australian National Drag Racing Association (ANDRA) that win and runner-up prizemoney only would now be paid to Group One classes - Top Fuel, Top Doorslammer, Pro Stock, Top Alcohol, Top Bike and Pro Stock Motorcycle - and that prizemoney payments have been scrapped for all other classes.

After a series of meetings at Calder on July 14 and 15 between ANDRA chief Tony Thornton, ANDRA National Control Council (NCC) members and track promoters Gary Miocevich (Kwinana, Perth) and Dennis Syrmis (Willowbank, Brisbane), AHRC and Calder manager Peter Bridge, Adelaide manager Anna Micheel and Bob Jane, Thornton last week informed the drag race community of AHRC's planned prizemoney changes.

In a bulletin to ANDRA NCC, National Executive Committee and divisional council members Thornton wrote that during the July meeting Calder and Adelaide advised that both tracks planned to post prizemoney for Group One finalists only.

Thornton further reported that after the July meeting he wrote to both tracks seeking confirmation of prizemoney payments for the 2001/2002 season and when the report was circulated a response had not been received.

Under the current practice, all major track promoters post Group One prizemoney for all elimination rounds - first round, semi and final - and usually from the quarterfinals in all other classes.

Bridge last week confirmed that the AHRC plans to pay win and runner-up prizemoney only for Group One categories and trophies only for all other categories and that he is in the process of writing to all drag race competitors informing them of AHRC's intentions.

"Yes, the payment of prizemoney was discussed at the meeting. Yes it is AHRC's intention to pay winner and runner-up prizemoney only in Group One categories and trophies only in all other classes and yes, AHRC is in the process of writing to all competitors," Bridge said.

Following the Thornton bulletin, racers are now advocating a boycott of Calder and Adelaide national open events if AHRC does not rescind the prizemoney plan. While many leading Group One team owners support a boycott, they are not prepared to publicly comment on the AHRC plan due to possible sponsor repercussions.

However, Australian Pro Stock champion Peter Ridgeway said if the AHRC plan is implemented he would only race at Calder and Adelaide if championship points were on the line.

"If it was a round of the championship and my fellow competitors were racing and I did not and in doing so it could cost me the championship then I would review the situation due to sponsor obligations. Apart from that I would not race.

"I believe ANDRA should not sanction championship series rounds under the AHRC criteria so that team owners are not faced with that sort of problem. "But I also believe that most competitors will not race at Calder and Adelaide if the AHRC plan is implemented," Ridgeway said.

Another leading Group One team owner who does not want to be identified said most Group One teams would not enter events if prizemoney is not posted. "The reliance on prizemoney to compete at events is far greater than people imagine. Most teams are either small business operators or wage earners and rely on prizemoney to cover travel costs. If they do not get prizemoney they cannot get to events," the team owner said.