Dirt
‘$20K,
Baby!’
Sean Bellemeur bags Top Alcohol
Funny Car’s biggest payday in Mid-
West Drag Racing Series debut
By Josh Hachat
The moment Sean Bellemeur
stepped foot into Xtreme Raceway
Park for the first time in early July, he
knew he was in for a special weekend.
Win or not, that would have remained the prevailing
thought for the back-to-back NHRA world
champ in Top Alcohol Funny Car.
As it turned out, Bellemeur got the icing on
the cake in the form of a $20,000 victory at the
Mid-West Drag Racing Series Texas Nationals,
an event that promised TAFC a big spotlight and
more than delivered. In the days that followed,
Bellemeur, who went 3.63-seconds at 211 mph
in the final round in the Tony Bartone-owned
car, recalled an incredible atmosphere that accompanied
the memorable event.
“I could tell from the moment we walked in
that everyone wanted to put on a good show,”
Bellemeur says. “When those stands filled up, it
reminded me of being a kid and watching my
dad match race. It had that raw feeling and it
was just awesome. They were clearing people out
of the way on the starting line and it was just a
unique experience. I’ve never really experienced
anything quite like that and I hope this is around
for years to come.”
That’s Bellemeur referencing the class finding
a new home in the MWDRS, a move that was
announced earlier this year. The class raced during
a MWDRS event in Dallas in May, and the
Texas Nationals at XRP marked the first paying
race for the class.
To nobody’s surprise, Bellemeur impressed,
even as he raced his first eighth-mile race in
TAFC – and first since racing Jr. Dragster more
than 20 years ago.
With an incredible braintrust that includes
tuner Steve Boggs and car chief Troy Green, Bellemeur
had no doubts the team would be ready.
“I’m lucky enough to have a guy like Steve
Boggs in my corner. I don’t care if it’s eighthmile,
quarter-mile or two miles, Steve is going
to have a combo for it,” Bellemeur says. “I wasn’t
worried about it. I was just worried about getting
my head in the right spot.”
The biggest concern for the cars is the 2-3 gear
shift occurring right at the eighth-mile mark,
leaving teams with an important decision at a
critical juncture in the race.
Bellemeur’s team adjusted the car so the shift
light came on right at the finish line and he
quickly found a groove, qualifying No. 1 with an
impressive blast of 3.643 at 211.67, also earning
an extra $1,000 in the process.
He worked his way through eliminations to
meet up with Doug Gordon in a memorable final
round. Bellemeur pulled away at the finish line,
going 3.63 at 211 to beat Gordon’s 3.68 at 209, but
admitted there were considerable nerves before
the enjoyable celebration.
“To work my way through the field and make
it to the final, I hadn’t been as nervous since the
2018 final in Indy,” Bellemeur says. “It definitely
had a different feel to it.
“So, I make the run, get the ‘chutes out and I
just hear Troy on the radio yelling, ‘20k baby, 20k!’
I screamed something like, ‘20Gs baby, let’s party,”
and it was just incredible. It was just awesome.”
The victory continued Bellemeur’s domination
in the class since joining forces with Bartone.
He’s won consecutive world titles in the NHRA
ranks, grabbing the U.S. Nationals victory in
2018 as well.
But this victory will hold a special part in Bellemeur’s
heart and while extremely nice, the money
didn’t have everything to do with that. What stood
out to Bellemeur was the excellent treatment,
the build-up to the event and the spotlight the
class received, which brought a sizable crowd in
the process.
“It felt so great to be respected as one of the big
guys,” Bellemeur says. “I hadn’t been this excited
for a race in a long time. The reception we’ve
received from the [MWDRS] has been nothing
but positive. The opportunity to go have fun, and
then you throw a big pile of cash on top of it, it
was amazing. The buzz was great and there was
just a bunch of bad hot rods.”
Bellemeur expects that to only grow as well
as word continues to spread. The sizable purse
helps – and the class champion will get $20,000
in 2021 – but Bellemeur praised the track surface,
competitors in the other classes and just about
everything else regarding the weekend.
As the team gets dialed in with eighth-mile
racing, he expects runs in the 3.50s in ideal conditions,
and Bellemeur can’t wait to see what’s
next – and next on the MWDRS circuit is a stop
in St. Louis on Aug. 14-15 – after such a thrilling
weekend in every regard.
“This gives us the motivation to spread the
word and get more people involved,” Bellemeur
says. “Plus, the track was awesome, the fans were
spectacular and it’s great money. I can’t wait for
this to blossom into something even better. I can’t
say enough things about it.” DI
PHOTOS: RANDY CURTIS
34 | Drag Illustrated | DragIllustrated.com Issue 159