October 27, 2014
ERIC McKINNEY MAKES IT THREE IN A ROW

The 2014 PDRA Pro Extreme Motorcycle World Champion comes as no surprise. Eric McKinney dominated the class in the PDRA’s inaugural season, winning four of the eight events, a feat which has led to his third straight PXM overall title. He soared to the PXM lead and held it easily, coming in 1200 points ahead of the man who will number two in 2015, Ashley Owens. Owens also happens to be McKinney’s teammate and tuner. Owens also won an event title this season, giving the duo a better than .500 record for the season, a feat not easy in any sport, but nearly unheard of within drag racing. McKinney says his wins this year bring his total wins close to 20.

“It’s pretty awesome to have such a great season and especially to do it with the PDRA,” McKinney elaborated. “The guys four guys that are behind all this are racers and they try to give back to us. The whole season has been great. It’s very racer friendly. The tech guys are great. To me it means more because you feel appreciated, not just another racer that won another championship. They’ve always been appreciative of us and made sure they were doing the right things. The PDRA is awesome. It means the world to me to win the first PXM Championship with them.”
 

At just 29 years old much of McKinney’s career presumably still lies ahead of him. With the 2009 AMA Dragbike Championship also to his credit, it’s clear that his success is no fluke. “We’ve been consistent and just been plugging away,” he continued. “We’ve just been trying to do what we need to do and stay out in front of everybody. Our team is the best there is. I would put them up against anybody. It’s a family deal. My dad is my Crew Chief. My Uncle Steve works on the clutch. Ashley oversees the tuning on both bikes. We have two bikes so we get double the data and everything is consistent. I think we can go faster, but if we stay where we stay we’re not breaking any parts.”

Pro Extreme Motorcycle is easily a fan-favorite class, and the PDRA is the only place fans can see these types of bikes race professionally. Although class participation has varied over the years, it looks to be making a strong comeback. As a frontrunner for the class, McKinney is glad to see the competition level rising and more teams coming on board.

“At the last two races they had over 20 bikes on the property at each track. Everybody is running close. At the last race, we were the number one qualifier but the only thing that separated number one from number three was the mile per hour. Each of us ran 4.065. So the class is tightening up and I hope it continues to grow. There’s really no other place to race these things.”

“I want to thank my mom and dad for allowing me to field a bike and helping me be successful,” he added. “They’re funding the way for our team. Of course I also want to thank my Uncle Steve and Ashley Owens, PMFR Chassis, Vance & Hines, Fast by Gast, the PDRA for giving us a place to race, as well as Mickey Thompson Tires. They’ve been a big help.”

McKinney will wear the number one for his third year in a row in 2015, with teammate Ashley Owens sporting his hard-earned number two. The PXM top 10 in points rounds out with Travis Davis, Terry Schweigert, Ronald Procopio Jr., Paul Gast, Jay Fisher, Christopher Garner, Casey Stemper, David Norris, and Billy Vose.

For more on the world’s premier eighth mile drag racing organization visit www.pdra660.com. Follow the PDRA: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube.


Photo: Gary Rowe / RaceWorks.com / PDRA660.com

 PRESS CONTACT: Lisa Collier
Professional Drag Racers Association
lisa@pdra660.com
704.692.4636