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MotorTrend Presents Roadkill Nights


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AUBURN HILLS, Mich., July 23, 2024 --

  • Ninth edition of MotorTrend Presents Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge set to return to M1 Concourse in Pontiac, Michigan, on Saturday, August 10
  • Tickets start at $25 with a variety of ticket packages available now for purchase at motortrend.com/roadkillnights
  • Dodge NHRA Funny Car champ Matt Hagan, plus European Dodge brand ambassador and Top Fuel racer Ida Zetterström, will drive 11,000-plus horsepower racecars on Woodward Avenue strip
  • MotorTrend Presents Roadkill Nights (RKN) Powered by Dodge brings legally sanctioned drag racing back to Woodward Avenue, including the Direct Connection Grudge Race for the fourth year
  • Grudge Race competitors will use Direct Connection HurriCrate engines, derived from the high-output 3.0L Hurricane Twin Turbo engine, as building blocks of their drag-car builds
  • Seventh Grudge Race competitor added as automotive builder and media personality, Mike Musto will compete in a HurriCrate engine-powered Dodge Hornet GT
  • Action-packed RKN main event schedule includes street-legal drag racing in Big Tire and Small Tire classes, muscle car cruise-in, Dodge Thrill Rides and much more
  • More information on Direct Connection available at DCPerformance.com
  • Additional information on Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge available at DodgeGarage.com

Tickets are available, the date and location are locked in and the Dodge Brotherhood of Muscle is geared up to gather for the ninth edition of MotorTrend Presents Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge, set to return to M1 Concourse in Pontiac, Michigan, on Saturday, August 10, 2024. Enthusiasts can reserve a spot to watch adrenaline-pumping, legally sanctioned drag racing on Metro Detroit's famed Woodward Avenue and choose from a variety of available ticket packages at motortrend.com/roadkillnights.

Tickets for Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge start at $25 for general admission. Pontiac residents with a valid ID can purchase tickets at a discounted rate of $20 at the gate. Children 12 and under receive free admission, and employees presenting a Stellantis ID badge at the gate will also receive free admission, along with free admission for up to one guest.

This year's event will pack more performance than ever before. Four-time Dodge NHRA Funny Car champion Matt Hagan and European Dodge brand ambassador Ida Zetterström, who will make her NHRA Top Fuel debut later this year, will unleash their respective 11,000-horsepower and 12,000-horsepower drag cars on the temporary Woodward Avenue drag strip on August 10. Hagan's Tony Stewart Racing teammate and fan-favorite Dodge racer Leah Pruett will also be in attendance and will participate in an autograph session with Hagan and Zetterström.

The Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge main event on Saturday will also host the Direct Connection Grudge Race, now back for a fourth consecutive year. Automotive builders with legions of online followers were given Direct Connection HurriCrate engines, derived from the high-output version of the 3.0L Hurricane Twin Turbo engine, to use as building blocks in their drag car build projects.

A recent addition to the list of competitors is media personality and Hemmings Director of Programming Mike Musto, who together with builder and fabricator Suppy Wejpanich, will install a HurriCrate engine in the world's only widebody Dodge Hornet GT. Musto will race the modified Hornet GT against six previously announced competitors, battling it out for Grudge Race bragging rights online and on the strip.

The HurriCrate-powered Hornet build will be showcased on the first season of a new ongoing video series that will follow Musto and Wejpanich as they swap the same engine into a variety of different vehicle builds to demonstrate the HurriCrate's versatility.  

Direct Connection is the Dodge performance parts brand, offering factory-backed performance parts through the Dodge Power Brokers dealer network. All competitors will be linked with a Dodge Power Brokers dealer to assist with their build projects. Competitors will also receive VIP access to the Direct Connection Tech hotline at (800) 998-1110 for assistance. More information on Direct Connection and Dodge Power Brokers is available at DCPerformance.com. Information on the full lineup of Direct Connection Grudge Race competitors is available at DodgeGarage.com.

MotorTrend Presents Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge – Schedule of Events:
The action-packed Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge main event schedule on August 10 will include:

  • Street-legal drag racing in Big Tire and Small Tire classes
  • Classic and modern muscle car cruise-in
  • Dodge Thrill Rides
  • Dodge Demon drag race simulators
  • Dodge vehicle displays, including the all-new 2024 Dodge Charger Daytona R/T and 2024 Charger Daytona Scat Pack
  • Direct Connection performance parts
  • Vendor midway
  • Entertainment
  • Food trucks
  • Appearances by Roadkill's David Freiburger and Mike Finnegan