TJ Pruitt
The Mickey Thompson Million Dollar Drag Race, one of drag racing’s oldest and most prestigious big money bracket events, will return to Capital City Motorsports Park in Montgomery, Ala., for the 2022 season. The 27th edition of the Million Dollar Race will be held on October 18th-22nd, 2022.
From 2011 through 2020, the Million was held at Capital City Motorsports Park, (formerly Montgomery Motorsports Park). During that time, the event crowned some of its most notable champions including Shane Carr, Ray Miller III, Kenny Underwood (2X Champ), Rodney Phagan, Nathan Martin, Jeff Verdi, Johnny Ezell, Dave Triplett, and Kevin Brannon.
After a one-year relocation at SGMP, the popular event will return to Capital City Motorsports Park where new owner Ben Willis is currently overseeing a massive renovation project that includes a new racing surface, Daktronics LED scoreboards, and the latest version of the Compulink timing system.
“We are happy to be bringing the Mickey Thompson Million Dollar Drag Race back to Capital City Motorsports Park this year,” said promoter Randy Folk. “This is the 27th year of the Million and we have enjoyed some of our most successful events at this facility. I’m looking forward to working with Ben and his crew to provide the best experience possible for our racers as they compete for life-changing payouts and a chance to make history.”
Likewise, Willis is thrilled to once again host the Million Dollar Race. Bringing the event back to Montgomery has been a priority since he took over ownership of the track last March.
“I feel like the original Million belongs here at Capital City Motorsports Park,” said Willis. “This race has a lot of history here, and I hated that we missed it last year. This is a legendary event and we’re creating a legendary facility. I want this to be a long-term partnership and I hope that in a couple decades from now we will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of this race at Capital City.”
In addition to the upgrades to the racing surface, scoreboards, and timing system, Willis has purchased a lot of new equipment including tractors, a jet dryer, and a tire rotator to help prep the track, and keep down time to a minimum. Those upgrades represent the tip of the iceberg as Willis is determined to make Capital City Motorsports Park one of the sport’s premiere facilities.
“Over the last ten months we’ve also completely remodeled the timing tower inside and out,” he says. “We’ve built a state-of-the-art garage with a lift that is available to any racer who needs to make repairs. We’re also in the process of upgrading all the lighting on the track and in the pits, and we’re improving the P.A. system.
“We’ve built a new E.T. shack, remodeled all the bathrooms, and we’re going to have the online app to display E.T. slips,” Willis added. “The list goes on and on. The racers who were last here in 2020 won’t recognize the track when they return.”
Additional details for the 27th Annual Mickey Thompson Million Dollar Drag Race will be announced soon, including round sponsors, the JEGS VIP Club grand prize, and the format and payout for the popular warm-up and triple events held on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
